Meritocracy

The concept of meritocracy involves the idea that the things people attain throughout their lives are done so on the basis of their individual merits.

Lawson and Garrod ("The Complete A-Z Sociology Handbook") define the concept of meritocracy in the following way:

"A social system in which rewards and occupational positions are allocated justly on the basis of merit, rather than ascriptive factors such as class, gender, ethnic group or wealth. It is often claimed that modern industrial societies are more meritocratic than in the past, and that the education systems in such societies are also meritocratic. However, there is much evidence to show that ascriptive factors such as those listed above exert a considerable influence on an individual's life chances".

In some ways, of course, it could be argued that schools in our society are meritocratic institutions. They do not, for example, overtly discriminate against different genders, classes or ethnic groups (although whether or not schools exercise covert forms of discrimination is something that's much more open to question). Similarly, students take the same exams under the same conditions which gives the schooling system at least a veneer of equality of opportunity.

However, as Bilton et al ("Introductory Sociology") conclude:

"The myth of meritocracy - the view that schools stimulate individual talents and, without regard for ascribed characteristics such as social class or gender, reshuffle children according to ability - is one of the most cherished myths of our time. The overwhelming evidence is that the British education system, like that of many other countries, favours those who are already privileged, and puts further obstacles in the path of those who are disadvantaged.".