Fairness perceptions of income‐based educational inequality: The impact of social class and ideological orientations

Income‐based educational inequality is a global issue. In Australia, schools in the relatively large private sector charge a range of fees, with public schools also exhibiting considerable income differences. Using a nationally representative sample in the Australian Survey of Social Attitudes, we examined the public's fairness perceptions of income‐based educational inequality and how their fairness perceptions are related to self‐interest (particularly regarding social class) and ideological orientations. We found that people hold diverse views about the fairness of income‐based educational inequality and that the number of people who perceived it as unfair was almost double the number of those who perceived it as fair. Respondents categorised as upper/upper‐middle‐class were, however, more likely to perceive income‐based educational inequality as fair, while agreement with government responsibility for economic well‐being was associated with a negative view of income‐based educational inequality. Implications of these findings for the promotion of socially just and equitable education are discussed.