This chapter traces the legal, legislative, and political history of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA). Focusing attention on the various related educational reform movements, it discusses the federal role in education policy in the context of its influence on ESEA and the legislation's related amendments. Also, the authors examine…

This chapter discusses the federal government's role in strengthening accountability for student performance under the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB). NCLB represents a major legislative expansion of the role of the federal government in elementary and secondary education, and it has had significant implications for federal-state…

The consequences of the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) are most often thought of in terms of achievement and attainment in elementary and secondary education. In this chapter, however, the authors assess what NCLB might mean for college access by examining existing evidence of the effects of school-based accountability on college participation.…

There is a revival of interest in Bourdieu's work and this article examines dominant trends within feminist re-engagements. It considers the insights into gender identity afforded by "habitus" and "social field", distinguishing between analyses of "gender habitus", and the potential of habitus and social field for feminist analysis of change.…

What tools can we use in attempting to understand the recurring patterns of some girls' early school leaving and consequent exclusion from well-paid employment? From which disciplinary fields can we take them? Using Bourdieu's concept of the "scholastic point of view"--the inherent intellectual bias of a discipline, in his case sociology--as a…

It is a contention of the culturalist strand of underclass theory that the growth of the underclass is not a function of social and economic change, but of features intrinsic to underclass culture. Children born into disadvantaged communities, it is argued, are socialized into the "deviant" culture of their families, families typically headed by…

This article considers Bourdieu's concepts of "social capital" and "social fields", comparing and contrasting his use of these concepts with that of James Coleman and Robert Putnam. It examines how Bourdieu's ideas offer a different way of understanding the lives of economically disadvantaged young women designated as "at risk" of leaving school…

Should lecturers who teach political philosophy hide their personal political beliefs? This question becomes interesting when lecturers face what seems to be morally repugnant policies, such as massive human rights violations. In such cases is there a conflict between a lecturer's civic and political obligations and his/her academic and…

Transforming schools into truly egalitarian institutions requires a holistic and integrated approach. Using a robust conception of "equality of condition", we examine key dimensions of equality that are central to both the purposes and processes of education: equality in educational and related resources; equality of respect and recognition;…

There are two very different accounts of the history of educational philosophy and ideas presently available. One account is the work of historical scholars and classicists, and is based on thorough historical research. The other account is the work of educationists and philosophers, and is generally based on little or no historical research in…

This article presents elements of a capability perspective on impairment and disability and develops in connection with it a multidimensional and relational account of disability. It suggests how a capability perspective provides new and fundamental insights into the conceptualization of impairment and disability, and in doing this, resolves the…

In this article, I propose and defend a certain model of a fair Educational Standard, where this represents the minimally adequate threshold conditions and resources that any just society will devote to the grade school education of its youth. Starting with suggestions made by Harry Frankfurt, I argue that this Standard may be initially founded…

The recent ban of "conspicuous" religious symbols in French state schools has received international attention, especially the uncertainty of whether Muslims will comply with the ban. The issue, however, raises a number of philosophical dilemmas regarding toleration in a liberal democracy, the notion of a "neutral" public space in state schools…

This article analyzes the zero-reject policy at the core of American special education law from the standpoint of morality, by examining the policy in terms of the following three moral theories: utilitarianism, Rawlsian Kantianism (justice as fairness) and neo-Aristotelianism, as developed recently by Martha Nussbaum in her capabilities account…

Drawing on published feminist literature, this essay deconstructs developmentalism as a metanarrative that contributes to the oppression and exploitation of women and underpins educational practice. First, I examine feminist critiques of developmentalism, distinguishing between "insider critiques" formulated by feminist psychologists evaluating…