This article proposes a reading of Michel de Certeau's "The Writing of History" which derives an understanding of the concept of practice as authoritative to the establishment and development of Enlightenment rationality. It is seen as a new form of legitimation established in the redeployment of religious "formalities" in…

Scholars of American politics and public policy recognize the interdependence of governments and corporations in the United States. This article presents research findings that high school civics textbooks, where most Americans first encounter the research and theories of political science, have little to say about this interdependence. This…

Vocational education is supposed to improve work and employment skills, but many of the vocational courses developed in schools and colleges after the collapse of industrial apprenticeships in the 1970s have not offered real opportunities for young people in the labour market. Instead, a succession of new qualifications was introduced, which…

The Symposium on Sustainable Schools (SOSS), an independent publishing operation, has contributed several pamphlets critical of Coalition policy in specific issues. The alarming lack of serious debate about education in the May election, and the radical Conservative programme operated as soon as the election was over, demand a wider perspective.…

The modernisation of education and other public services remains a major political objective of the current Coalition government in the UK. This paper focuses on "Tory Modernisation 2.0," a blueprint for the second stage of the public sector reform produced by the Conservative pressure group, Bright Blue. From the critical theory…

This article draws on findings from my doctoral research to exemplify some of the difficulties I encountered when interviewing 20 female professors and subsequently writing about their life histories. In this article, I discuss how I addressed the issues of representing and positioning my participants, and I reflect on the power dynamics present…

This inquiry aims to enrich conversation regarding school reform. The author asks about what other discourses are possible when the action-oriented question of how to "act" is a major approach to "fix" current educational problems. Drawing from Taoist philosophy of "wuwei" (non-action), the author provides a frame to…

This brief is part of a four-part series examining the past, present, and future of modern school accountability systems. With the dual forces of the COVID-19 pandemic and the national call to action on racial inequity, the question of how we should measure and hold schools accountable for the impact they have on students is more urgent than ever.…

The authors examine indicator research over three periods and discuss shifts in policy usage over time. The study compares influential actors that reflect discursive shifts in how, and for what purpose, indicators were used: (1) Jullien de Paris, (2) faculty at Teachers College at Columbia University in the early-twentieth century (notably Paul…

Since the 1970s business groups have staged the control of education, first in the form of partnerships with schools and universities to support science, math, and technology, and more recently in the form of venture philanthropy. This article examines how these business groups, including the "billionaire boys club" and their mega…

There has been debate among states as to how to properly fund schools. The debate has been focused on how much funding is supplied through property tax and is motivated by tax payer anger over fluctuating tax bills. Many of the policies have been implemented without looking at the effects that they will have on schools, especially in Indiana,…

In this latest continuation of our multipart symposium on teacher leadership, we examine what happens when self-defined teacher leaders become school administrators. Do teacher leaders who become administrators maintain a teacher identity? Can they remain committed to their vision of teacher leadership when they take on the normative requirements…

The paper looks the contemporary capitalism and how it has mounted its offensive on the lives of workers across the globe and specifically in India. The aim of education has move much beyond the idea of knowledge that the even welfare regimes conceived. It is about skilling, which in turn is about a training an individual to be unconcerned about…

In France, there is no religious education in state schools. "Convictional education" appeared by drawing its perimeter around three educational subjects: philosophy, teaching about religions, and moral and civic education. Today, the French school is facing new challenges in a highly secularised society on which religion is laying new…

Purpose: Layered with myriad considerations, school closure and rezoning processes in urban school systems are politically fraught with the potential for damaging consequences. This article explores the politics and impacts of a closure and rezoning process in Richmond, Virginia, through the lens of themes applicable to urban school systems and…