Introduction
An opportunity to receive education is one of the features of a civilized society, where every person has equal rights and may count on entering both secondary and higher institutions. However, issues related to inequality in admission arise periodically, which indicates the lack of close attention to this problem. Inequality as a historical relic is a social challenge, and its manifestations in the education sector cause resonance and public condemnation. Unfair admission has various reasons, including gender, class, financial, and other criteria. Regardless of these causes, the fight against this phenomenon plays an essential role today since supporting any of the prejudices is unacceptable and it is the evidence of gaps in control by responsible boards. This paper explains the significance of educational equality and the need to counter unfair admission.
Necessity of Educational Equity
Certain requirements are imposed on the educational system based on the values ​​recognized in a particular society. Today, most people believe that equal opportunities to obtain appropriate professional training should be a fundamental human right. According to Pomeroy, education cannot be considered the service that is a sign of luxury but rather as the natural opportunity of every citizen, which may be realized in any environment (6). This concept, in turn, generates demand for the equality of rights and freedoms regarding admission to educational institutions.
When considering education the service that can be obtained for money, society creates certain obstacles for low-income families because of such a barrier. This approach is socially unfair due to the different level of countries’ development and their economic situation. In modern culture, special principles of socially equitable access to education are formulated. No criteria should become a hindrance for a person who intends to develop professionally, and national, racial, religious, gender, and other factors cannot justify inequality (Pomeroy 5). Otherwise, there will be a contradiction between human rights laws and such constraints based on prejudices and bias.
Today, when an educational environment is developing actively enough, most students may rely on primary and secondary learning, but further professional training is less accessible due to the aforementioned reasons. Some people may enter institutions at a higher level, but no one can prohibit a person from moving up. The gradation of social groups and strata in accordance with their financial status, nationality, gender, place of residence, and other factors violates human rights. This issue is contentious today because, as practice shows, quite a few people are subject to discrimination. McWhirter et al. argue that about half of immigrant schoolchildren in the United States have encountered inequalities during the educational process (331). Thus, income cannot be the indicator of individual abilities and strengths of those students who intend to improve their professional level not by means of payment but using personal knowledge and skills.
Consequences of Unfair Admission
The quality of education is the reflection of modern society, which makes it possible for students to learn to master the behaviors to which they are to conform. In secondary schools, for example, there is a gradual differentiation of children’s teams, and after graduation, pupils may apply to higher educational establishments. At the same time, in the modern educational system, more and more decisive criticism is admitted. Today, almost all people are aware of their personal rights and freedoms. At all the stages of education, they may count on high-quality training. For instance, according to Fantuzzo, “unfair competition raises an objection to educational inequality for which universities can be held responsible” (584). These outcomes reflect the fact that society is not ready to encourage bias and intends to fight its manifestations.
The implementation of the methods of ensuring equality in education is impossible without state regulation in this area. Admission to educational institutions cannot be based on the principles of payment and financial security of individual students. Shields highlights that it is “unfair for some group in society to have life-long access to excellent, well-funded educational institutions” (450). Therefore, appropriate targeted work should support the policy of countering inequality that society does not want to tolerate. The effective measures of creating appropriate conditions for people to have the right to free enrollment in the desired educational establishments will strengthen the position of power and guarantee support. Therefore, the involvement of different stakeholders is necessary in order to help eliminate this social problem and establish a stable and fair mode of providing educational services to the population.
Conclusion
The significance of equality in education is due to the natural development of society and the transition to a civilized order, where any manifestations of bias for various reasons are unacceptable. The intolerance of unfair admission may be explained by the fact that today, most people are aware of personal rights and freedoms. Such a criterion as material well-being cannot be considered an objective reason for preference in favor of this or that student. The participation of government agencies in resolving this issue is mandatory, and involving stakeholders may help to improve the current situation.
Works Cited
Fantuzzo, John. “Admitting a Sense of Superiority: Aggrandized Higher Education Status as an Objection to Educational Inequality.” Studies in Philosophy and Education, vol. 37, no. 6, 2018, pp. 579–93.
McWhirter, Ellen Hawley, et al. “Discrimination and Other Education Barriers, School Connectedness, and Thoughts of Dropping out Among Latina/o Students.” Journal of Career Development, vol. 45, no. 4, 2018, pp. 330–44.
Pomeroy, David. “Educational Equity Policy as Human Taxonomy: Who Do We Compare and Why Does It Matter?” Critical Studies in Education, 2018, pp. 1–16.
Shields, Liam. “Private School, College Admissions and the Value of Education.” Journal of Applied Philosophy, vol. 35, no. 2, 2018, pp. 448–61.