Illusory Freedoms ‐ Liberalism, Education and the Market

Citation

Nolan, T. (1998), "Illusory Freedoms ‐ Liberalism, Education and the Market", International Journal of Educational Management, Vol. 12 No. 3, pp. 142-142. https://doi.org/10.1108/ijem.1998.12.3.142.3

The author holds a personal chair in educational theory and policy at the University of Edinburgh. She states in the introduction that the primary purpose of the analysis set out in the book “is to offer an explanatory framework for the sea‐change which has taken place over the last 20 years in the ways in which we understand, conduct, and direct education ‐ that social practice which is most central to the evolution of value and of circumstance … The point of the analysis which follows, however, is not simply to add to a growing debate which either celebrates or deplores recent changes in ethos, practice and policy. It does not set out merely to weigh the pros and cons of contrasting approaches in terms of their likely impact on levels of social equality, national economic competitiveness, cultural ambience, social cohesion, or whatever (often conflictory) criteria of judgement are brought into play in contemporary dialogues of the deaf about suitable policies for ensuring a ‘better’ provision and distribution of education. The point of the analysis is rather to take seriously the insight that education is a society’s most central social practice, to locate within broader context the changes which have taken place with respect to that practice, and in so doing to enhance our understanding of that broader context”.

This is a book which will repay careful study and should be read by all those who seek to develop their understanding of the concept of education and its practical implications. Each chapter has a concise conclusion and has notes and references.

The book has a comprehensive bibliography.