In both schools and homes, information and communication technologies (ICT) are widely seen as enhancing learning, this hope fuelling their rapid diffusion and adoption throughout developed societies. But they are not yet so embedded in the social practices of everyday life as to be taken for granted, with schools proving slower to change their…

This article presents the author's response to Hall and Gunter who accuse the author of trying to mount "a stout defence" of New Labour's reforms of the teaching profession. Hall and Gunter go further and accuse the author of "triumphalism" in his use of the title "Tony Blair's big prize". Their second and more…

Scotland's new "Curriculum for Excellence" (CfE) has been widely acknowledged as the most significant educational development in a generation, with the potential to transform learning and teaching in Scottish schools. In common with recent developments elsewhere, CfE seeks to re-engage teachers with processes of curriculum development,…

In the December 2008 special issue of the "Oxford Review of Education" John Furlong focused upon Tony Blair's modernisation of the teaching profession and associated attempts to harness teacher professionalism to a broader reform agenda. This article responds to Furlong's contribution through an examination of the evidence base used to…

The December 2008 special issue of the "Oxford Review of Education" provided a review of education policy during Tony Blair's tenure as Prime Minister. This paper forms a response to the ten contributions to that special issue and discusses some of the issues raised in them. While a few positive aspects of education under New Labour were…

It is argued that in order to understand the ways in which teachers experience their work--including the idiosyncratic ways in which they respond to and implement mandated education policy--it is necessary to take account both of sociological and of psychological issues. The paper draws on original research with practising and beginning teachers,…

Discusses the movement to democratize school government and explains how those for and against this policy justify their case by using the theoretical concepts of democracy, participation, and representation. Suggests how these concepts can be placed on the educational agenda by highlighting how they apply to school policy. (Author/BSR)

Provides a definition of policy research in education. Identifies categories of policy makers and researchers, reviews models and content of policy research, and proposes a mechanism for setting policy research agendas. (JDH)

Reviews the school reform efforts that took place in Sweden between the mid 1940s and late 1960s. Draws four conclusions regarding school reform efforts, among them that: (1) reforms must be conceived in a wider socio-economic context and may not substitute for social and economic changes, and (2) reforms must take into consideration educators'…

It is not always clear which interests or activities are designated by the term "aesthetic education." The term may be construed in ways which can be potentially harmful, in a practical sense, to educational policy. (RM)

This article offers a critique of what has become known as "inclusive education" under the New Labour administration. The initial impetus for the article was a research project designed to ascertain the impact of the "presumption of mainstreaming" contained in Section 15 of the "Standards in Scotland's Schools etc. Act…

British publications have been using the German term Technik. A comparison of the historical roots of the 19th-century education of engineers in Great Britain and in Germany shows differences in the origins of higher technical education in the two countries. The term Technik has a different meaning in Germany. (Author/RM)

The notion of policy "borrowing" in education has been a consistent theme in comparative inquiry in education from the early decades of the 19th century. While there were many countries that benefited from adopting the educational policy of other countries, there has been many cases wherein such action has earned a lot of negative…

Defines the 'monist' influences of centralized Soviet educational policy and attempts to conceptualize the elements of pluralism that function within this system. (JDH)

Provides a history of educational reform efforts since the early 1900s as they have been fueled by the economic needs of the Soviet command economy. (JDH)