Telling Stories About Comprehensive Education
Hidden Histories of Politics, Policy and Practice in Post-War England
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 8407658 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Jane Martins (0000-0002-8886-9952, Birmingham City University, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2020 |
| Volume | 68 |
| Issue | 5 |
| Pages | 649-669 |
| Publication date | 2020-09-02 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | British Journal of Educational Studies (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0007-1005 • E-ISSN: 1467-8527 |
| Publisher | Informa UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1080/00071005.2020.1832956 |
| OpenAlex | W3107721612 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 3 |
| References cited | 22 |
This article re-visits contestation and critique over the nationwide introduction of comprehensive secondary schools in post-war England. In so doing, it considers the contribution of scholar-activist Caroline Benn (1926–2000) and a network of progressive educators who were challenging ideas about fixed ability or potential and aspiring to build a better, more inclusive education system fit for the times. The recent availability of Benn’s personal papers opens an opportunity for a deeper understanding of the politics of comprehensive education, to consider the meaning and significance of the policy as our historical perspective lengthens, notably the question of whether legislation was needed to implement so major a reform and foster cultural change in a society characterized by substantial inequalities in income, status and power. It will be argued that we need to challenge contemporary political narratives that seek to normalize academic selection as a force for social justice and high attainment and maintain a belief in the myth of meritocracy
Economic Justice · Epistemology · Inequality · Legislation · Meaning (existential) · Meritocracy · Mythology · Narrative · Political science · Politics · Power (physics) · Social science · Sociology · Diverse Education Studies and Reforms · Global Educational Policies and Reforms · Historical Studies on Reproduction, Gender, Health, and Societal Changes · History · Law · Public Administration
Education and the social order, 1940-1990
Social class and educational opportunity
Bowling alone
Accounting for a sociological life
Lessons for Life
The Labour Party as Crucible
Circular 10/65 Revisited
The State and Educational Change
Half-Way There
Eleven-Plus and All That
Engines of Social Mobility? Navigating Meritocratic Education Discourse in an Unequal Society
The Education of the Average Child
The Challenge for the Comprehensive School, Culture, Curriculum and Community
Telling Stories about Post-war Britain
Intelligence Testing and the Comprehensive School
Streaming
The IQ myth
| Unique citing works | 3 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 0,75 |
| Citation span | 2022 - 2025 (4) |
| Citation velocity | recent |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 3 |