This paper revisits the Macfarlane Report of 1980, the first draft of which recommended the dissolution of school sixth forms, sixth form colleges and other providers of post-compulsory education and training, and the establishment of a national system of tertiary colleges across England -- a programme of reform which would effectively have…

Using the case study of Anglesey and its pioneering comprehensive scheme, this paper aims to re-examine education reforms and interventions by central government c.1918-1950. This is undertaken in a bid to reveal the significance of such reforms for the way in which comprehensive secondary education was able to evolve at the local level.…

This article investigates the work of Henry Morris (1889-1961), in particular his ideas on the Cambridgeshire village colleges. It is now 90 years since the first of these was founded in Sawston in 1930, and the article aims to address the issue of whether Morris's views on education and democracy encapsulated in the village colleges still have…

This article examines the career of the educationalist, Conservative politician and published writer on education and politics, Rhodes Boyson (1925-2012). As an educationalist, Boyson established Highbury Grove Boys' Comprehensive School in Islington, North London: An inner-city school which was antithetical to the wave of progressivism in the…

High school redesign is one of the most elusive reform challenges to date. This paper explains why personalized high schools are hard to get and keep in a traditional school district, and shows how they can be made much more broadly available through changes in policy and philanthropic investments. Drawing from examples of successful and…

This article examines the curious position of the Academy model in the English school system and how a potential Hereford Steiner Waldorf Academy might figure in this. It sketches the background to the Steiner movement in the UK and goes on to set out the key aspirations and concerns of Steiner educators regarding an Academy. The article provides…

This article uses events in May 1985 surrounding the de-selection of the Conservative chair of the Wiltshire Education Committee and her role in the campaign for comprehensive education in Salisbury, England, to pose questions about the representation of women who championed causes deemed to be progressive and to raise issues about how gender…

After 20 years of experience, comprehensive education in Belgium is characterized by many compromises. Pedagogically, positive results have been achieved. Curricular and structural reforms have been largely successful. However, too much is being expected of it as a lever for social change, and the system may fail as a result. (MSE)

Analyzes the introduction and development of comprehensive education in the west of Scotland from 1965-80. Examines curriculum development, the role of the advisory service, the contribution of in-service training, and the ability grouping of students. Concludes that the efforts to help teachers with the transition had mixed results. (KS)