In the wider context of ways that Literacy works to enforce control by elites, the maintenance of high culture, racial stratification, national identity and social injustice through education, this review essay reflects on Allan Luke's collected essays republished by Routledge in 2018 as "Critical literacy, schooling, and social justice: The…

Teacher agency is often depicted in terms of autonomy, empowerment, and participation. This article examines how those democratic visions of teacher agency are (re)constructed during the post-World War Two period when social scientists were eager to find organized procedural reasons. To explain this, I historicize the shifted teachers' role from a…

The articles in this special issue include different perspectives on comparative policy studies with an aim to understand transnational education policies in relation to the logic of national educational systems and to grasp the ongoing reframing of teacher identity and teaching as a result of the policy activities of 'new' and coordinated…

This paper introduces the questions and approaches of a five-nation cross-cultural study of state-based curriculum-making discussed in this issue of "JCS." The paper reviews the two decade-long interest of many nations in state-based curriculum-making and presents a framework for thinking about state-based curriculum-making as a tool of…

This paper frames the problem underlying the cross-cultural Organizing Curriculum Change (OCC) study of state-based curriculum-making. The paper discusses the increased use by states over the past two decades of the century-old instrument of the state-based curriculum and the tool of the curriculum commission. The paper contrasts the slender…

Michael Young's article "Overcoming the crisis in curriculum theory: a knowledge-based approach" ("JCS, 45", 2) is discussed from the starting point that the claimed crisis is constructed from a decisive solution, that is the solution determines what is a crisis. But curriculum research and curriculum theory are in need of…

Sociocultural theory is increasingly popular as a paradigm for research in education. A recent member in this family of theories is introduced--cultural-historical activity theory (CHAT)--that shows much promise to complement and invigorate the field of educational change, a large, multi-faceted, and persistent problematic. In particular,…

This is the first of four commentaries discussing John Dewey's short essay, "Education as engineering". The essay provides a fascinating model of how the example of engineering could guide the interaction between educational research and practice. It has much in common with Herbart's ideas on how "pedagogical tact" bridges the gap between theory…

This is the third of four essays discussing John Dewey's short essay, "Education as engineering", placing the essay into its historical context while also hinting at contemporary connections. This essay aims to show that one must not take the term "engineering" in a narrow, technical sense. Dewey was concerned with how the beliefs and values of…

States that the academic course of study in secondary schools has changed only modestly since the late nineteenth century. Illustrates this point by examining changes in the mid-1800s curriculum of the Cambridge, Massachusetts, High School. Includes tables which show the high school's course of study during the period. (GEA)

Elementary teachers were more apt to implement the language arts curriculum as specified by the district than were secondary teachers. However, curriculum fidelity was extremely low at both the elementary and secondary levels. Teachers who followed the prespecified curriculum attached greater importance to implementation tasks and their…

A case study of the Science Education Project, aimed at improving South African science education, revealed that tactics for in-service education identified as important for the success of educational innovations in developed countries are also appropriate in developing countries. However, the context of the developing country gives rise to…

There is a tendency in Western countries to view school-centered innovation (SCI) as the new panacea for the problems of curriculum change. To investigate the potential and limitations of SCI in developing countries, a case study of the Secondary Schools Community Extension Project in Papua New Guinea was conducted. (RM)

Studying the history of the development of different subjects in the school curriculum can help us better understand the social processes involved, as well as the theoretical issues. The attempt to have environmental studies recognized as an A-level subject in British secondary schools is discussed as an example. (IS)

Describes and analyzes Swedish curriculum theory and research over the last 20 years. Relates this to changes in the comprehensive school system and the decline of the welfare state. Recounts the break-up of the cooperative relationship among the research community, the National Board of Education, and the Ministry of Education. (MJP)