This review examines four books that may offer some insight into what the discussion about educational policy, reform, and performance may look like after the era of No Child Left Behind (NCLB). Collectively, "The Allure of Order: High Hopes, Dashed Expectations, and the Troubled Quest to Remake American Schooling" by Jal Mehta,…

This literature review begins by considering the concept of autonomy. The focus narrows to teacher autonomy specifically and a range of conceptualisations are summarised. Its influences and impact are discussed and the role which teacher autonomy plays in the wider issue of teacher professionalism is addressed. Central influences, including the UK…

Equalities legislation in Britain has in recent years shifted towards requiring public bodies to proactively promote equality rather than simply prevent discrimination. This paper reports on a study of how this requirement, with specific reference to race equality, is enacted in the regulation and inspection of initial teacher education (ITE) in…

Universities put considerable resources into developing learning and teaching plans. In this paper, we examine the purpose of these plans in the context of legislative requirements, public accountability and the quality agenda. We analyse a sample of Australian university learning and teaching plans using a framework we have developed based on…

The Annual International Conference of the Bulgarian Comparative Education Society is now running in its thirteenth year. From its modest beginnings thirteen years ago, to its impressive size today, a tradition has been the production of a conference book, consistently launched on the first day of the conference each year. This year, Volume 13 of…

Under Prime Minister Tony Blair's New Labour government, increased criminalisation of previously non-criminal behaviour, anti-social behaviour and greater accountability of children and parents for their behaviour were evident. The article provides an overview of anti-social behaviour legislation and the implications for children, schools and…

This paper argues that the rule-making function of institutions introduces an information distortion into markets--economic, political, and cultural--that changes the rational pattern of resource allocation. As markets expand, this distortion raises the price of individual talent and skill development in production. It leads to a public-private…

In the past 150 years, educational systems have expanded and become integrally linked with economic, political, and social status in modern nation-states. As the stakes for education have risen, so has the call for more and improved use of scientific evidence as a basis for educational policymaking. Evidence from averaged scores on international…

In recent years, a number of analyses assessments used in different countries have appeared. Analyses emerging from international comparisons such as Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) and Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) have focused on what might be termed "cross-sectional" comparisons;…

This article assesses the impact of education reform and the new public management (NPM) on the discretion of school teachers. The focal point of the study is Michael Lipsky's theory of discretion which casts public service professionals and others involved in service delivery as "street-level bureaucrats" because their high degree of…

In this discussion paper, I seek to understand the complex interaction between notions of "professionalism" and gendered identity constructions against the backdrop of increased state regulation and demands for performativity in the early years. I seek to explore the ways in which "teacher professionalism" is constructed by…

This highly acclaimed volume in the "Defending Public Schools" series is now available in paperback from Teachers College Press. It is a practical, necessary addition to the work of administrators, teachers, policymakers, and parents as they negotiate the difficult path of how to best teach and educate today's children and youth. This…

The "Times Higher Education Supplement" of 9 February 2006 briefly reported that the Privy Council, tasked with approving the statutes of universities, was now going to leave their internal arrangements in their own hands. These underlying policy directions need to be set in the context of the important change of emphasis from…

Discusses the 1992 British Education Reform Act and identifies weaknesses in the existing accountability structures in both old and new universities and related implications for academic freedom. Argues that reviewing the quality of the administration may be as important reviewing the quality of teaching and research. (DB)

What is the responsibility of an educator--where does it begin and end? We report on a study of teachers at four admired public high schools in urban areas in the US. The teachers describe their deep commitment to meeting students' academic needs, as well as their developmental, social and emotional needs. The ways these teachers construe…