Abstract

This paper explores the practices of division in operation in primary schools in England in response to the pressures of high stakes tests at age 10/11, known as SATs. Using data from interviews with 20 primary headteachers and information from a survey of nearly 300 primary heads, we argue that the organisation of pupils in preparation for SATs involves 1) the use of grouping by ‘ability’ in sets, despite the increasing evidence of the disadvantages; 2) forms of educational triage, where borderline or ‘cusp’ children are prioritised, and more complex forms of ‘double triage’; and 3) the growth of ‘intervention culture’ where some children are withdrawn from normal lessons to resolve ‘gaps’ in their learning. In this article these practices are understood through a Foucauldian lens as micropractices of power which label and categorise pupils within an accountability system that seeks to classify pupils on a norm/Other binary.

摘要

本文针对10/11岁时被称为SAT的高风险测试的压力，探讨了英格兰小学运营分工的做法。我们使用对20位主要学校负责人的访谈数据和对300位主要负责人的调查得出的信息，我们认为，为准备SAT进行的学生组织涉及1）使用“能力”分组进行分组，尽管越来越多的证据表明缺点 2）教育分流的形式，其中优先考虑边缘儿童或“尖头”儿童，以及更复杂的“双重分流”形式；3）“干预文化”的发展，其中一些孩子退出了正常课程以解决学习中的“空白”。