The third of four studies in the "History of Education in England," this volume covers the crucial years 1920-1940, in which the ground was prepared for the 1944 Education Act and likewise for most of the conflicts which have beset educational policies in Britain since the end of the Second World War. In this period Labour's programmes for educational reform came into conflict with a determined Conservative resistance, and proposed reforms were repeatedly cut back by the call for economies, starting with the "Geddes axe" in 1921-22. At the same time, real power passed more and more into the hands of the permanent officials, the top civil service administrators of the Board of Education. The long established divided system of education was consolidated by the development by psychologists of the theory and practice of "psychometry" and "intelligence tests," while the privileged position of the public schools, already under challenge, was maintained intact.

"Innovative study of the cultural legacy of the Mexican Revolution, using the story of rural schools. Focuses on Puebla and Sonora and the attempt by the central government to implement socialist education and to advance its nationalist agenda. Stresses the importance of negotiation among national and local leaders, teachers and peasants"--Handbook of Latin American Studies, v. 58.

This book covers a crucial period for the development of state education in Britain; the advent of the comprehensive debate before and during the Second World War; the War years themselves and the 1944 Education Act; the post-War Labour Government; and Churchill's last government in a time of education expansion. From the 1960s, the focus shifted to questions of social deprivation and educational opportunities, secondary school selection, the debate on standards, Robbins and higher education, and the continuing theme of the dominance of public schools. The book is divided into four sections, which are then divided into chapters. Each chapter takes as its main reference point a key issue within the chronological framework of the book, e.g. resistance to secondary education for all, politics and textbooks, multilateral and technical schools, pressure groups and the 1944 Education Act, Churchill and the Conservatives. Much new light is thrown on the topics by the author's use of new material and he has made a valuable contribution to the politics of education.

This book provides new evidence on teachers unions and their political activities across nations, and offers a foundation for a comparative politics of education.

The most comprehensive bibliography of printed books, articles, and standard texts on twentieth-century England.

Liberal education used to command wide political support. Radicals disagreed with conservatives on whether the best culture could be appreciated by everyone, and they disagreed, too, on whether the barriers to understanding it were mainly social and economic, but there was no dispute that any worthwhile education ought to hand on the best that has been thought and said. That consensus has vanished since the 1960s. The book examines why social radicals supported liberal education, why they have moved away from it, and what the implications are for the future of an intellectually stimulating and culturally literate education.

Rather than concentrating on educational theory, this book examines the practical problems that educational administrators faced in their efforts to devise and maintain efficient, fair and flexible systems. The book examines the role played by educational psychologists in particular.