Summary statistics continue to play an important role in identifying and monitoring patterns and trends in educational inequalities between differing groups of pupils over time. However, this article argues that their uncritical use can also encourage the labelling of whole groups of pupils as "underachievers" or "overachievers" as the findings of…

The concept of giftedness is frequently challenged on the grounds that 1) it is a ragged or slippery concept, 2) it is inegalitarian, 3) it is culturally arbitrary, and 4) it fails to distinguish children with natural ability from children who are parentally pressured. I argue that all these charges are unfounded. We "can" distinguish between…

This paper explores the idea of thinking skills approaches as tools for pedagogical inquiry and in so doing seeks to develop the link between the promotion of inquiry-based learning, which is a central tenet of thinking skills, and inquiry-based teaching as an approach to professional development and school improvement. The first part of the paper…

Over the past decade, the achievement of universal primary education, under the somewhat misleading rubric of "Education for All" (EFA), has steadily built momentum in international forums as a focus for discussion and action. The present study looks critically at the evolution of consensus about EFA within the international community. The first…

This study explores how social identity is formed in the United States of America. In particular, it examines the social, economic and educational problems experienced by under achieving Black American children and issues of social inequality along with their implications for social justice. Against the background of matters of group identity and…

Drawing on Ulrich Beck's theory of "freedom's children," the present contribution examines contemporary concerns about educating young people "for" citizenship as well as educating them "about" citizenship. Under the first theme, the author focuses on the "citizen as learner," highlighting some of the gender- and class-related inequalities that…

While there have been numerous discussions of the impact on educational services made by trade liberalization through the World Trade Organization (WTO), this study looks at the emergence of global resistance to the commodification of culture through the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) within the WTO. In line with the Council of…

This study situates the process of educational decentralization in the narrower context of social justice. Its main object, however, is to analyze the implications of decentralization for strategies of equity and social justice in Nigeria. It starts from the premise that the early optimism that supported decentralization as an efficient and…

A topic of growing concern in Chinese higher education to policy-makers, scholars, and future student applicants is social justice. With the trend toward increasing enrollments in China's higher-education institutions, issues of equity and access have begun to surface, especially as they relate to China's minority population of over 100 million…

In this study we focus on a new program in Cuba, university studies for older adults or seniors. Specifically, we look at the Special Municipality of the Isla de la Juventud (Isle of Youth) in the context of the larger policy of "universalization of higher education." We provide information about Cuban perspectives on adult education, discuss the…

The present study examines educational policy documents and programs on early childhood development and education in Peru. The author provides an evaluation of early childhood learning programs and their outcomes in different education centers in Peru. Health, nutrition, development, and participation are identified as key areas of concern. The…

This study explores various elements in the struggle for a post-colonial refashioning of cultural identity through education. Drawing on experiences in Australia and the Caribbean, the author illustrates how educational systems undergoing decolonisation reflect socio-cultural tensions of race and power. The author discusses the complexities for…

It is widely held that personal autonomy is a quality of character at which educators ought to aim. In this paper I argue that those who hold this view are misguided. I identify two ordinary senses of autonomy, and a range of technical senses currently popular with philosophers, and show that none of them constitutes a defensible educational aim.…

This paper draws on Matthew's story to illustrate the conflicting discourses of being a boy and being a student. Matthew is 12 years old and in Grade Six, his final year at Banrock Primary (a K-6 Australian State School). School is far from a happy place for Matthew--his tearful accounts of his combative relationships with his peers and his…

This paper considers the educational provision for, and general treatment of, refugee and asylum seeker children in Australia, using a framework of governmentality. The paper describes the regimes of practices which govern refugees and asylum seekers in Australia, including mandatory detention and a complex set of visa categorisations, and…