This article is based on an inaugural professorial lecture given by Jane Martin at the University of Birmingham on 3 December 2014. It grew out of research in progress on the life and work of the leading educational reformer, Caroline Benn, wife of one of the most prominent and controversial post-war socialists in Britain, Tony Benn.

In the United States, people think of elementary and secondary education as fundamentally different from higher education. The first two levels are where students are expected to learn the building blocks for lifelong learning, while college is meant to confer higher-order thinking and more-specialized skills. How students are treated flows…

The "National Physical Activity Plan", as well as professional and government agencies (NASPE, 2008a; US Department of Health and Human Services, 2000) acknowledge pre-kindergarten (pre-K) children should be part of comprehensive school physical activity initiatives anchored in quality physical education programming. These…

Three different "logics"--that of the internal strategies of the institutions, the economic pressures of the socialist market economy and the political policies of the state drive the development of a university. The dynamic interaction and coexistence of the three logics has determined the transformation models of teacher-education or…

This historical review concludes that, for the last decade, Danish education policies have been influenced by a minority conservative coalition government and in important ways, have been inspired by British and U.S. policy. This has included demand for user input into instruction, increased institutional autonomy, and evaluation of teaching to…

One of the most important educational reforms related to secondary education in Taiwan is the planning of comprehensive high schools. The impetus for their establishment has come from several sources, including increased educational alternatives, integration of academic and vocational education resources to upgrade the quality of education, the…

This collection of eight essays examines the current and future status of early childhood education and care (educare), focusing on Europe but also addressing issues applicable to the wider world. The essays are: (1) "Early Childhood Intervention: An Overview of Practice North and South" (John Bennett); (2) "Developing the Child's…

Attributes the relatively high dropout rate among Welsh secondary school students to the educational processes within the comprehensive schools. Advocates extensive research into the nature of Welsh education and problems stemming from historical, socioeconomic, and political factors. Encourages policy formation that reflects Welsh rather than…

For more than a century, American educators and education policymakers have chosen sides in a great debate about the nature and function of American high schools. The origins of this long-running argument can be traced to 1893, when the influential Committee of Ten, a bluechip panel of educators, issued a report proposing that all public…