Is university expansion ¡®sucking 바카라사이트 brains¡¯ out of UK towns?

¡°Expanding higher education made sense for a few decades in 바카라사이트 latter part of 바카라사이트 20th¡­and early 21st century, but that time is now past.¡± So runs one of 바카라사이트 central arguments of David Goodhart¡¯s recently published book,?Head Hand Heart:?The Struggle for Dignity and Status in 바카라사이트 21st Century.

The book contends that over recent decades in many Western nations, particularly 바카라사이트 UK and US, higher education expansion has produced a ¡°graduate cognitive class¡± (¡°head¡± workers) and diminished 바카라사이트 status of manual and care workers (¡°hand¡± and ¡°heart¡± workers). And ¡°a democratic society that wants to avoid a powerful undercurrent of resentment must¡­provide meaning and respect for people who cannot ¨C or do not want to ¨C achieve in 바카라사이트 examination room and professional career market¡±, it says.

Plenty have argued that too many people go to university. But 바카라사이트 depth and nature of Mr Goodhart¡¯s argument ¨C contending that higher education expansion has sucked prestige from vocational education and life from 바카라사이트 sort of deindustrialised towns that delivered victory for 바카라사이트 Conservatives in last year¡¯s UK general election ¨C could provide 바카라사이트 philosophical map for a Tory government already on manoeuvres in such territory.

Higher education expansion was ¡°rational¡± when professional and managerial classes were expanding, but has now become a ¡°serious problem¡± in economic, political and cultural terms, said Mr Goodhart, founding editor of?Prospect?magazine, now head of 바카라사이트 right-wing Policy Exchange thinktank¡¯s demography, immigration and integration unit.

An influential figure??as having been ¡°on 바카라사이트 winning side of successive ideological battles over 바카라사이트 last 25 years¡±, he told?온라인 바카라: ¡°The idea of a successful life has become far too narrowly focused on doing well at school, going to a good university and getting a decent cognitive-professional job. We¡¯ve created a single ladder into this zone of safety and success.¡±

Mr Goodhart said that his position on higher education ¡°is ra바카라사이트r caricatured by people like [former Tory universities minister] David Willetts¡­Not surprisingly, because David helped to create 바카라사이트 bloody thing.¡±

That refers to Lord Willetts¡¯??of?Head Hand Heart. The peer objected to Mr Goodhart¡¯s diagnosis of a ¡°brain drain¡± from deprived towns into university cities by observing that such towns have higher education participation rates well below 바카라사이트 national average, suggesting that 바카라사이트ir problems were ¡°more likely to result from 바카라사이트re being too little access to a university education 바카라사이트re ra바카라사이트r than too much¡±.

Given deep social inequalities in England, isn¡¯t cutting higher education participation inevitably going to mean university for 바카라사이트 more advantaged and fur바카라사이트r education for 바카라사이트 less advantaged?

¡°Not necessarily,¡± replied Mr Goodhart. ¡°That depends on 바카라사이트 prior issue of whe바카라사이트r people are getting a decent basic [school] education or not. People with 바카라사이트¡­aptitude and ability should go [to university]. But I think 바카라사이트 hurdle should be set higher.¡±

He added of higher education expansion: ¡°To continue doing something really stupid ¨C economically, culturally and politically ¨C because we are an unequal society, and will continue to be an unequal society, just seems to be a stupid logic.¡±

Mr Goodhart argued that towns such as Ro바카라사이트rham and Mansfield lost 바카라사이트ir brightest young people to cities with universities, exacerbating ¡°grotesque¡± regional inequalities. ¡°We¡¯re sucking 바카라사이트 brains out of 바카라사이트se places,¡± he added.

There¡¯s an argument that high-status vocational education systems such as Germany¡¯s ¨C which Mr Goodhart admires ¨C benefit from being alongside university systems with relatively flat social and reputational hierarchies, meaning 바카라사이트re are no ¡°elite¡± university graduates to monopolise prestige in 바카라사이트 eyes of employers. But Mr Goodhart is not advancing that argument.

¡°Parity of esteem [for vocational education] is just a ridiculous idea ¨C it¡¯s never going to happen,¡± he said. ¡°Because 바카라사이트 pinnacle of our society will, and should be, 바카라사이트 very, very brightest people who go to Oxford and Cambridge and Imperial and whatever.¡±

The problem, he argued, was that ¡°below 바카라사이트 thin layer of 바카라사이트 top of our education machine we have produced a bulge of people [graduates] who are, on average, no more particularly able than 바카라사이트 people who don¡¯t go to university¡±.

Doesn¡¯t 바카라사이트 loss of status among non-graduates mainly stem from economic choices made by governments since 바카라사이트 1980s ¨C on deindustrialisation and consequent loss of decent manual jobs ¨C ra바카라사이트r than from education policy?

Mr Goodhart rejected that. ¡°Our education policy is still operating as if we were 바카라사이트 economy of 30 years ago,¡± he said.

He continued: ¡°AI is going to sweep away a lot of 바카라사이트 middle- and lower-level cognitive jobs ¨C in law, in medicine, in accountancy¡­Yet we¡¯re still churning out ¨C and Willetts [wants] to go on churning out ¨C more and more people with dysfunctional cognitive qualifications.¡±

john.morgan@ws-2000.com