Policy and Education

Paul Adams

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2014
• eBook ISBN: 9781136492990
• Topic: Education
• Subtopic: Education General

Written specifically for education studies students, this accessible text offers a clear introduction to education policy. It aims to help the reader understand what is meant by educational policy, how policy can be made and the main discourses that have driven education.

Capturing the essential aspects of educational policy over the last thirty years, the book provides an overview of political themes in education demonstrating how education policy has progressed and the effect this and politics have had on schools. It then covers key themes such as performance, choice and professionalism to show how education policy is constructed and implemented and how this has impacted on education in practice.

Features include:

• activities that can be undertaken individually or as a group to promote discussion

• annotated further reading lists;

• chapter overviews and summaries

Written as part of the Foundations in Education Studies series, this timely textbook is essential reading for students coming to the study of education policy for the first time.

Foundations of Education Studies Series

This is a series of books written specifically to support undergraduate education studies students. Each book provides a broad overview to a fundamental area of study exploring the key themes and ideas to show how these relate to education. Accessibly written with chapter objectives, individual and group tasks, case studies and suggestions for further reading, the books will give students an essential understanding of the key disciplines in education studies, forming the foundations for future study.

Research and Education

Will Curtis, Mark Murphy and Sam Shields

Policy and Education

Paul Adams

Forthcoming titles

Philosophy and Education

Joanna Haynes, Ken Gale and Mel Parker

Sociology and Education

Richard Waller and Chrissie Rogers

Policy and Education

Paul Adams

First published 2014

by Routledge

2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN

Simultaneously published in the USA and Canada

by Routledge

605 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10017

Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business

©2014 Paul Adams

The right of Paul Adams tobe identified as author of this work has been asserted by him in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers.

Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks or registered trademarks, and are used only for identification and explanation without intent to infringe.

British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data

A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library

Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data

A catalog record for this book has been requested

ISBN: 978-0-415-69757-6 (hbk)

ISBN: 978-0-415-69758-3 (pbk)

ISBN: 978-0-203-13875-5 (ebk)

DOI: 10.4324/9780203138755

Typeset in Bembo

by Swales & Willis Ltd, Exeter, Devon, UK

Policy and Education

• Introduction
• Part 1 The context
  • 1 Political ideology
  • 2 Education policy and policy-making
• Part 2 The phases of education
  • 3 Secondary schools
  • 4 Primary matters
• Part 3 Political discourses
  • 5 Markets
  • 6 Choice and diversity
  • 7 Professionalism
  • 8 Performance and accountability
  • 9 The future?
• References
• Index

Introduction

It is true to say that over the last 30 years or so there has been increased emphasis placed on educational policy and education policy-making. The activities involved in such matters have come to the fore academically and most would now maintain that policy study is a vital part of any education studies or related programme. Whilst the opportunities for such study may have diminished on initial teacher training courses, on education studies, related degrees and masters level courses there has been a surge of interest and application. Indeed, policy and politics are now often seen as another of the underpinning disciplines of education alongside philosophy, sociology, history and psychology. Added to this, governments now pay more attention than ever to education; it is seen as one of the most important aspects of government. It has been transformed from relatively unimportant to vital in the drive for increased profitability and the renewal of society. Consequently, policy announcements are often forthcoming, and dealing with these has now become part and parcel of the work of those involved in education and related services. Importantly, education has attained a political currency like never before. This added to the fact that the education system has, in the last 30 years, undergone systemic change on an unprecedented scale, means that the study of education policy has a great deal of interest and currency.

This, book is about the ‘big P’ of education policy and is written for those who are studying education policy as part of an undergraduate degree course. Such study might be part of an education studies degree, or as part of a sociology or related discipline-based degree that has the study of education policy as part of its makeup. It sets out to examine some of the political thinking that has been involved in education policy-making over the last 30 or so years. Its main focus is from the rise of Margaret Thatcher through the years of Tony Blair and Gordon Brown to the present Coalition government. The discourses that abound during such times are examined along with the ways in which political thinking came to drive education policy. By the time the reader has finished with the book, they should have a good insight into the main discourses that have driven the development of education policy over the last 30–40 years. They should be able to identify the main ways in which education policy has progressed and the effect this and politics have had on the nation's schools.

When writing a book such as this there is a need to provide some sort of rationale for the adoption of certain elements and organisational features. As I have examined education policy from the rise of Thatcherism through to the present day, it would seem pertinent for the prevailing discourses and arguments to take centre stage. In this way I have chosen the chapters I have as I believe they capture some of the essential aspects of educational policy over the last 30 years. Thus, chapters include choice, markets, professionalism and performance. These seem to be the main discourses that have driven education during the time period in discussion. Readers will no doubt be able to identify other discourses that have influenced education, and in one respect this is good. If you are able to challenge some of the ideas herein with reasoned argument and careful research, then you will be ‘doing’ educational policy work. Perhaps there are other chapters that I could have included, but for brevity and cohesion, I have adopted the ones I have. Whenever a book is written, there is an element of author choice. I hope, though, that I have captured the main planks of educational reform. Additionally, I have tied the book to statutory age schooling: chapters are provided that cover primary and secondary education.

There are things which this book does not discuss. It does not discuss the ways in which higher education has altered over time, certainly since the 1960s and the first expansion of the sector. Neither does it deal with early years, the sector that has seen so much growth during the last 15 or so years. This is deliberate: to try to integrate all of these would have meant that the book would have been less cohesive. In only discussing statutory age education through an examination of that which has happened in the primary and secondary sector, the book, hopefully, has a better rationale.

With this in mind, this book is set out in three parts. Part 1, The Context, identifies political and policy theory so that an understanding of what the study of policy might mean can be gleaned. Chapter 1 discusses the ways in which government since the Second World War has been positioned. The welfare state is briefly outlined with the chapter analysing the politics behind the drive for change that ensued during the 1980s and 1990s under successive Conservative administrations. Neoliberalism is detailed alongside neoconservatism as the underpinning ideologies of this time. The Third Way is outlined and all are noted for their impact on education. This chapter seeks to identify how and why politics is intimately tied into the development of educational policy and policy-making. Through the identification of how politics has changed over the last 30 years, the chapter signals the mechanisms by which education has been influenced politically. Chapter 2 discusses what might be meant by policy and how policy can be developed and studied. From this chapter the reader should be able to see the particular line that is adopted for the rest of the book: the ways in which discourse drives educational policy-making.

Part 2, The Phases of Education, examines statutory-age school changes. Chapter 3 identifies the ways in which secondary education has changed since the inception of the welfare state. It notes the way in which the system has developed over time and the main mechanisms governments have deployed to effect change. Chapter 4 does the same for the pr...

Table of contents

• Cover Page
• Half Title Page
• Frontmatter 1
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Table of Contents
• Introduction
• Part 1 The context
• Part 2 The phases of education
• Part 3 Political discourses
• References
• Index