This article serves as context for the other papers in this special issue, all of which deal with developments in UK secondary education since c.1980. The paper comprises a review of selected impulses and imperatives that saw the substantial legacy of medieval and humanist schooling in Britain re-shaped, during the period c.1830-c.1980, into the…

The Secretary of State for Education's recent announcement of an English Baccalaureate at 16+ has opened up a debate about the nature of general education in the English upper secondary system. Drawing on evidence from national and local studies, we argue that it is important to see general education in England, not only in terms of the…

The training of teachers in upper secondary education varies considerably dependent on whether training is undertaken as a secondary school teacher or as a teacher within the Further Education (FE) system. Indeed, until the late 1990s, the training of teachers in FE had been the focus of little regulation by Government. Differences also occur…

Here we draw on recent research and on earlier contributions on convergence and divergence across Great Britain to consider possible future trajectories for 14-19 education and training in England. We use a UK-wide lens to reflect on 14-19 strategies in England by showing how common issues can be tackled in different ways in Scotland, Wales and…

The study focuses the stability of friendships of students with special educational needs in regular schools, compared to regular students. The sample consisted of 114 students (M age = 14,4); 22 students (19.3%) were identified by the school as SEN students. The results show that on average, SEN students had fewer stable friendships than their…

Through his early studies of the character of adult schools and community colleges in California, Burton Clark launched a set of ideas, sociological and educational, that served as baseline concepts in the study and practice of American higher education. His book "The Open Door College" ranks among the classic accounts of a type of…

This paper considers influences on the contemporary school curriculum in England. It does so mainly through a critical analysis of one significant critique of the curriculum made by the think tank Civitas in their collection of essays asserting the "corruption" of the curriculum, published in 2007. The paper places the Civitas position in a wider…

This paper enquires into curriculum knowledge about sustainable development at advanced level in geography in English schools through a critical look at two concepts. The deconstructive perspective used is drawn from Jacques Derrida. The focus is on school knowledge and responsibility to other ways of knowing that may be neglected within…

This article explores the policy and practice of choice, flexibility and differentiation within the 14-19 curriculum in England. After first locating these issues within contemporary curriculum policy it adopts a historical analysis tracing perspectives and practice since 1945. This narrative exposes complex oscillation in policy and practice in…

This paper examines the views of staff at higher education institutions on how well 14-19 education and training prepares young people for higher education (HE) study. It draws upon research involving focus groups with approximately 250 academic and admissions staff at 21 higher education institutions in England and Wales. The data collection was…

Rational choice theorists have analysed rates of participation in post-compulsory education, and, in particular, class differentials in these rates. Various claims have been made about the motivations of student decision-makers, but these claims have not been grounded empirically. This paper will assess the question of whether students' attitudes…

"Personalised learning" and the value of national assessment data in achieving it have been identified by the UK Secretary of State for Education and Skills as essential for raising educational standards. Employing multilevel analysis, this paper compares children's end of primary school (Key Stage 2) test scores with those they achieved in…

This paper presents an argument around the need to rethink the issue of early school leaving from the vantage point of students and teachers, and the conditions and pathways that need to be constructed and brought into existence within schooling, if such conditions do not already exist. The attempt is to move discussions outside of the…

This article reflects on lessons learnt from recent research and evaluation work in secondary schools operating in urban and challenging contexts in England. It is suggested that there is a common process that effective leaders follow in order to generate and sustain tangible improvements. Central to this argument are the incremental devolution of…