Teachers of biology and related subjects are increasingly meeting objections from students and their parents to the teaching of evolution and the exclusion of what is called the theory of Intelligent Design. This paper attempts to draw together arguments and evidence which may be used by such teachers. Four lessons are drawn from the 1982…

Disengagement in school is associated with behavioral problems and decreased academic achievement. In contrast, pupils who are engaged in school develop the academic and social efficacies that underlie successful adulthood. Moreover, engagement promotes educational resilience. This study examines pupils' self-reported level of engagement in…

Since the 1988 Education Reform Act, the teacher's role in England has changed in many ways, a process which intensified under New Labour after 1997. Conceptions of teacher professionalism have become more structured and formalized, often heavily influenced by government policy objectives. Career paths have become more diverse and specialised. In…

This paper explores the nature of a critical friendship between two education advisers within a nation-wide New Zealand Ministry of Education (MOE, 2006-2008) research and development project. Over 18 months the relationship developed through evolving phases. This paper identifies and discusses the factors, circumstances, conditions and analytical…

This paper examines three key education policy documents from Scotland, England and Wales in the eight years after devolution. A close textual analysis of the language of each document is undertaken, which is supported by the authors' insider knowledge of these countries. Findings are presented from analysis of a group of selected words, as well…

This study aims to describe the current position of non-formal education (NFE) as a major educational force in the postmodern world, and to analyze its philosophical and theoretical assumptions. Far from being "supplementary education" or "extracurricular activities", NFE has developed into a worldwide educational industry. However, it has yet to…

Educational governance is a textually-organized relation only accomplished in the coordinated actions of people as they go about their everyday work. We bring this relation into view by tracing Canadian principals' and parents' descriptions of their educational work in the policy-mediated settings of public schooling in British Columbia, Canada.…

While literature on teaching emphasizes the importance of identity in teacher development, understanding identity and the issues related to it can be a challenging endeavour. This article provides an overview of the issues revealed in recent discussions of teacher identity: the problem of defining the concept; the place of the self, and related…

In this paper we use an example of when students appear not to have learnt from their experience to examine some of the "orthodoxies" of experiential education. This frames a discussion exploring how it is possible for a teacher to declare that students have got it "wrong" in relation to learning from experience. It is argued that both learning…

This paper is developed from a study carried out to explore factors influencing the choices of a range of stake-holders in a multi-ethnic urban community--students, parents, teachers, community representatives--with regard to single-sex schooling. The paper discusses competing perspectives underpinning the focus of the study. Recent legislation in…

Ethics is a complicated field and much has been written about its application to educational research. In this paper we introduce a way of planning for and dealing with situations that arise in the course of research that promotes detailed ethical analysis. We present a framework based on the work of Seedhouse and Flinders and describe a…

This paper reports on a survey that aimed to explore the experiences of students undertaking initial teacher education and community education degrees in a Scottish university. The survey focused in particular on decisions around disclosure of disability and experiences on "placements" in schools or community work settings. Findings indicated that…

In this article we explore the ways critical thinking is conceived by a group of Singaporean social studies teachers, what they see as its purposes as well as perceived constraints to critical thinking and teaching critical thinking in Singapore's schools. Using a case study research design and constant comparative method we analysed data from…

The TV broadcast of "Jamie's school dinners" in 2005 prompted action throughout the UK to improve the standards of school meals. A public debate continues across the media around changes, resistance to them and consequences. This article draws upon the findings of a one-year ESRC-funded project on the English school dinners debate, which analysed…

As current study of contact between groups is somehow limited and self-referential, the present study joins other studies that suggest a deeper examination of intergroup contact in wider social processes which recognize the complex nature of intergroup relationships. A qualitative multiple-methods approach, supported by quantitative measures, was…