Equal (educational) opportunities and social inequality

dr. Mitja Sardoč

Summary:  Equal educational opportunities are one of the foundations of public education and one of the basic mechanisms necessary to ensure equity in the distribution of various processes of selective social positions. Despite the declared egalitarianism promoted by different conceptions of equal educational opportunities, its advocates face a series of objections over its unfairness and inefficiency, as well as the illegitimacy of differences that are the result of providing equal educational opportunities. This paper deals with various issues related to the role and importance of equal educational opportunities in a modern pluralistic society, and discusses specific aspects of the general model of equal opportunities and the associated arguments for equal opportunities in education.