1st Edition
Understanding the Primary School A Sociological Analysis
In this study, first published in 1985, the author explores the construction of educational ideologies and assesses to what extent they are put into practice by the teachers. He examines the ‘politics’ of education within the school; the extent to which the head teacher, as the bureaucratic authority in the school, seeks to impose his or her own views and the degree to which teachers see themselves as possessing professional autonomy. The study also pays attention to status differentiation within the education of the working class and explores the educational consequences of ethnic and gender status group membership. This title will be of interest to sociology and education.
List of Figures; List of Tables; Acknowledgements; Introduction; 1. The Sociology of the Primary School 2. The Pupils and Their Social Background 3. Rockfield School: ‘The Only Stable Part of Their Lives’ 4. Rockfield School: ‘You’re Here to Work’ 5. ‘Stabilizers’, ‘Straddlers’ and the ‘Poor Relations’ 6. ‘Nutters’, ‘Tragedies’ and ‘Dead Horses’ 7. Status Differentiation: Ethnicity and Gender 8. Teachers’ Definitions of Pupils: Ethnicity and Sex 9. The Good Ones Will Make it Anyway’; Conclusion; Appendices; Notes; Bibliography; Author Index; Subject Index
Biography
David Hartley
