What is cultural capital?
How Ofsted defines it
Ofsted added the term 'cultural capital' to the inspection handbook in 2019. In paragraph 226, it defines it as:
...the essential knowledge that pupils need to be educated citizens, introducing them to the best that has been thought and said and helping to engender an appreciation of human creativity and achievement.
In her speech in 2019, chief inspector Amanda Spielman explained what the term means in practice:
By [cultural capital], we simply mean the essential knowledge, those standard reference points, that we want all children to have.
... So for example, it’s about being able to learn about and name things that are, for many, outside their daily experience.
Cultural capital doesn’t just come from British 'high' culture (e.g. trips to the ballet or opera, or an understanding of Dickens