The principle of meritocracy in its simplest term is one that provides equal opportunity to all individuals based on merit and regardless of personal attributes. The infamous Wee Shu Min incident in 2006 resulted in louder calls for the government to address the ills of meritocracy in Singapore such as the rising elitist sentiments and particularly the growing inequality. However, ensuring equal outcomes has never been a feature of meritocracy. Therefore, the fault lies not in the principle of meritocracy but its application. Still, it is widely agreed that there is no other principle preferentially better than meritocracy especially in terms of being non-discriminatory. Therefore in this paper, I will argue that meritocracy will remain as …show more content…
Therefore there is a need to develop its human resource to the fullest potential so as to promote economic growth and in turn legitimise their rule. Accordingly, it is unsurprising that the principle of meritocracy is exemplified most obviously in Singapore’s education system, with “merit” being narrowly defined as academic achievements. With success closely tied to the achievement of good grades, an obvious consequence is an excessively competitive environment, where individuals would be self-centred and adopt the zero-sum mentality, advancing their own interest at the expense of others and unwilling to render help. In addition, being evaluated using the same yardstick would also mean that a significant population whose forte lies in non-academic aspects will be left on the sidelines while resources are being unfairly channelled to the …show more content…
In addition, school cultures especially those of “elite” schools should be reshaped through policies such as restrictions on school spending and activities. On one hand, this would ensure that facilities in schools nationwide would not deviate too far from one another, hence downplay the belief that “elite” schools are only suitable for students from wealthier families and hence attract a greater mix of students. This would decrease social distance between students from different family backgrounds and strengthen mutual understanding and thus avoid elitism. Also, since only primary-level education is compulsory, it is very important to establish an equal playing field as much as possible through the quick identification and coaching of weaker students so that they can all move on to the next level through a fair
Myth of Meritocracy is used to describe whites and males embedded with the idea that they are superior to others. Despite the myth of meritocracy, I do not believe that everyone has an equal opportunity, not with the back root of oppression looming over our society. As McIntosh stated herself in a Diverse Students’ Leadership Conference, “We are born into the system that preceded us. We didn’t construct this. We can’t be blamed for it.
The problem can be solved if this country changes to the merit-system, like Canada, to collect talented people from all over the world. The article demonstrates the problem of discrimination against immigrants of color, which has been happening in the United States for a long time. It is hard for the immigrants of color to become employees and find a job. Thomas found the job in her field and improved her
Meritocracy has good intentions such that progress is based on ability and talent rather than class privilege or wealth; however, meritocracy cannot be practically implemented into school education due to social differentiations. Our society has and will continue to consist of a myriad of races, ethnicities, and minorities. Immigrant students who are from an Asian cultural heritage will be accustomed differently than children born and raised in America. Therefore, when schools implement standardized testing via the sorting-machine model or the high stakes testing model, there may be disadvantaged
Every day over 352,000 babies are born. The second these babies enter the world, the opportunities and privileges given to them vary but are set at their birth. Privilege constantly determines opportunities whether the individual can help it or not, and it is revealed constantly throughout our country's history. In the past privilege has affected minorities lives and their opportunities in careers, freedom of speech, and much more. Unconscious biases and privileges are still very well present today but not as obvious.
If all schools whether they be elite or working class were treated the same and given the same exact opportunity to succeed, nobody would feel superior or
If a family is able to afford to do so, they have the option to send their child to a private school to ensure a good education. Also, these parents may choose to send their child to a private school, knowing that there is less diversity of race there. This would keep their children segregated from children of other
In addition to that, there is a problem with the lack of necessary resource in a school. Whether this is seen in only a few schools or a lot, it is unacceptable and must be fixed. How can we expect these students to learn, work, and live on an equal playing field when they don’t even have books, while others have every resource you could ever want in a school? We have this idea of education being the panacea of world struggle, but is it really? When we have all these schools that are not fairly treated.
Argued Davis and Moore thesis states that social stratification is universal because of its functional consequences. in caste system, people are rewarded for performing the duties of their position of birth, in class systems, unequal rewards attract the ablest people to
Schooling for the students Schooling systems have been the same since anyone could remember. What might need to change for students to get the equal amount of education as the “gifted” students? Will students still benefit from the lack of renewal in the education system? According to the authors from chapter 4 "How We Learn" Alfie Kohn, John Taylor Gatto, Bell Hooks, and Kristina Rizga, explaining in their essays published in "Acting Out Culture" by James S. Miller.
Anyon article discussed students of different social class background is exposed to different types of educational knowledge. Anyon used four distinctive schools; working class, middle class, affluent and executive, located in New Jersey. The education the students received reflected the social class level. In the working class school, the principle had did not know the history of the school building. The teachers did not motive or believe in their student’s success.
The honor code or honor systems is known by educators across the nation. The honor code is used to keep students from making bad decisions educational wise, for example, cheating and plagiarism, therefore, the honor is used to keep students inside the behavioral codes that the honor code has to offer. The honor code is very controversial because of the codes that the system delivers. The system is very influential to the students and creates a behavioral impact that allows the students to follow by the codes and to have complete freedom. The process of the honor code should be maintained due to the honesty and pledges of the students to increase their success.
It is a very useful article which provides counter arguments to four main criticisms of positive discrimination, which are: 1) Failure to select the “best” candidate; 2) The undermining of meritocracy; 3) The negative impact on the beneficiaries; 4) Injustice of reverse discrimination. This article starts with the analogy of the “shackled runner” given by the US President Lyndon Johnson who introduced affirmative action legislation in 1965 aimed to redress discrimination towards
Racism and classism management in schools today What if you were not offered the same opportunities based merely off of the color of your skin? What if your peers thought lesser of you because of how much your parents made? It may seem like something of the past, but these manifestations of racism and classism continue to lurk among the depths of schools across the globe. These forms of discrimination are still common within school systems, and continue to affect the lives of many students(Expereiences of racism).
It is generally accepted that a child’s performance can be determined by factors both inside and outside of the school. Jules (2010) supports this position by stating that “boy’s underachievement in the region is only a symptom of deep-seated differentials in society and cannot be resolved in the arena of the school alone”. Having to deal with a negative vibes from both school and home environment are key contributory factors to boy’s underachievement. In closing we need to come together as a country and help our boys.
Virtual Reality its use in education, culture and the Impact on Society Abstract The aims and objectives, of this paper, are to discuss Virtual reality (VR), and its profound usage within educational systems. It will be supported by different research evidence which speak to the application of such. It is underscored by literature reviews and intends to enumerate the potential advantages of implementation within the Caribbean.