It's about Britain, obviously, but a lot of it applies to the USofA and Canada.
http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/commentators/tim-lott-there-is-a-solution-to-classridden-britain-1761407.htmlThe problems of social mobility highlighted in the all-party report chaired by Alan Milburn last week were genuinely shocking. After 12 years of Labour government, the fact that, for instance, 75 per cent of judges are privately educated, as well as more than 50 per cent of top journalists, when only 7 per cent of the population goes to private schools is a damning picture of inequality in Britain.
The litany of injustice is depressing. The Russell Group of elite universities has only 16 per cent of undergraduates from the poorest economic backgrounds. In contrast, 68 per cent of top barristers went to private schools. Britain is one of the least socially mobile countries in Europe.
Shocking, but no surprise. For a long time, class has been pushed to one side in political debate. Money has been put into improving failing schools – but the idea of excellence, high aspiration and achievement that characterises the best private schools is rarer in the state sector. In short, it is obvious that, on the whole, most kids that go to most private schools get a better education.
Education isn't the only inequality. Any child from a middle-class family will enjoy a huge amount of social capital. Their family will be likely to value education highly. (One of the deep-rooted problems with the working class is that many of them are suspicious of education as simply trying to be "posh".) Crucially, they will be personally connected to other professionals, and will be able to arrange, say, work placements for friends. Furthermore, wealthy families can afford to work for nothing at voluntary internships.
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