Education

I undertake research on equality of opportunity and education. My approach to this topic is inspired by John Rawls’ principle of Fair Equality of Opportunity. I have developed and defended a revised version of that principle, according to which it is especially important that people have sufficient opportunities to develop their talents. I have drawn out the implications of this account for life-long educational opportunities and curriculum design. I have also developed a pluralist account of fairness in university admissions, which incorporates principles of equality, adequacy and parental freedom. In published research I defended a cap on the admission of privately educated students to elite universities at the proportion of school aged children who attend private schools, currently 7% in the UK. I am seeking to develop this account further in the future, specifically to develop rigorous benchmarks that can be used to evaluate admissions at elite English universities today.