Official reports on primary education are a bit like London buses. You wait ages and then three come along at once. There has been no major report on primary education since the 1967 Plowden Report "Children and their Primary Schools". Now, final reports are awaited from the Cambridge Primary Review and the government-appointed…

Of all Tony Blair's education policies during his decade as prime minister, one of the most controversial was his plan to create a network of academies--effectively, private schools funded by the taxpayer. This piece explores the origins of the policy and recounts the widespread concerns and criticisms with which it has been beset.

The selection of children in England's schools for different types of education can be seen operating at three levels: between schools, within schools and within classes. This article deals mainly with the second--the allocation of pupils to classes--but it also refers to selection for secondary education and to the grouping of pupils within…

The author provides notes on the historical context and membership of the consultative committees chaired by Sir W. H. Hadow, summarises each of the six reports produced between 1923 and 1933, and assesses the extent to which they informed the development of education in England, noting that the Plowden Committee felt compelled to reiterate many…