JONATHAN JANSEN | Elite schools hoard the ‘cream of the crop’ — leave something for the rest of us
Poorer schools have no power to select their pupils for two reasons, and that’s how in education the rich get richer
08 August 2024 - 05:20
Why are some schools able to choose ‘the best’ students and get away with it? By best I mean students with good academic results, evidence of leadership in their previous school, solid attendance records and reports of good behaviour. By contrast, schools in poor and working class areas are forced to take applicants who show up on the provincial department’s application sites. The latter group of schools is caught in a bind — they are pressurised to take in students who are shown away at the better-off schools or who show up at the last minute desperately seeking a place in any school...
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