Book review
Reclaiming Education
Cassell, 2000
Author: James Tooley
Review by Donald Clark - Epic
There was a rash of soothsaying texts in education in the late
nineties including Michael Barber's The Learning Game, George
Walden's We Should Know Better: Solving the Education Crisis,
Melanie Philips All Must Have Prizes and Tom Bentley's Learning
Beyond the Classroom. However, I found Reclaiming Education
by James Tooley the most challenging.
Prior to the writing of this book Tooley was asked by OFSTED to
review the quality of educational research. He describes this task
as 'a pretty grim business' and his findings were shocking. The
report in itself should be compulsory reading for all involved in
educational research (Educational Research: A critique). The lack
of method, evidence and rigour was all too apparent.
Reclaiming Education is similarly challenging and does a remarkable
thing. It takes a philosophical technique (borrowed from the hugely
influential philosopher John Rawls in The Theory of Justice)
and applies a veil of ignorance to the problems of education. He
asks us to suppose that we know nothing about the existing educational
system and urges us to design a system from scratch that meets our
ideal needs. The approach is bold but refreshing in that it escapes
the traps to which the other mentioned authors fall prey- their
own political and institutional positions. Although Tooley is not
beyond this himself.
The results of the five experimental sessions are startling and
even if you disagree, they're thought provoking.
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Session 1 - Education
The very concept of education is examined and what emerges is
a brilliant critique of 'education as schooling'. He pulls in some
convincing evidence about the problems around early years care and
nursery education built on the simple idea that 'it is almost logically
impossible for a paid worker to be as concerned about a child as
his or her parents will be'. This stuff is in clear and direct opposition
to current government policy.
On the delivery of education he puts forward the idea of Centres
of Learning with more parental involvement (now called extended
schools), teachers as mentors and the use of technology in education.
There is a complete redefinition of the role of the school and teacher.
This is a sizzling start, and you're head will be buzzing with
arguments and counter-arguments. You may even change your mind on
a couple of things. I did.
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Session 2 - Equity
In an uncompromising way, he looks at a basic argument that many
are scared to debate. What role does the state have in education?
Our role, he concludes, is to roll it back. State funded schooling,
in his analysis, has become a juggernaut that needs to be slowed
down and unloaded.
Historical examples from the US and Germany show that high levels
of attainment were present before statewide schooling was introduced.
He also argues that a great deal of funding through charitable educational
charities and donations already comes from the private sector.
This, for most educational professionals, will be a hard pill to
swallow. He is not arguing for a partial solution, but a wholesale
reform of the entire system.
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Session 3 - Choice
An international dimension is introduced with successful models
in countries such as Brazil, S Africa, Romania, India and Peru.
This is useful as we in the UK are good at remaining blinkered to
the outside world, even good models on our own doorstep, like Finland.
Branding, expansion, quality control, innovation, research, development
and funding are all examined to show that private sector solutions
are not as frightening as one would expect. He has a lovely rebuke
to Michael Barber, who dismissed the private sector in The Times
based on a poor plumbing company he had called out on new Year's
Eve. Tooley's riposte was to imagine a state controlled plumbing
industry!
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Session 4 - Democracy
Education and government sit in an uneasy relationship and Tooley
points to the recent imposition of citizenship in the curriculum
along with statements about values, attitudes and dispositions as
being woolly, educationally unsound and politically dangerous.
Democratic control of education cannot be an argument for the state
control of education. This is tricky territory but a debate that
is bound to arise over the next few years as education (and health),
or at least the delivery of education and health, become the twin
pillars of any political campaign.
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Session 5 - Accountability
Why is there only one Monopolies Commission? goes the old joke.
In education, there's a more serious point. Should accountability
to come from the DFES, OFSTED, LEAs? Alternatively, should accountability
come from competing services that respond to real customer demand?
He outlines seven virtues and explains why each of these will eventually
produce a better system.
I have to say that I disagreed with many of Tooley's arguments.
However, the education debate is in danger of being too consensual.
The Blair Wish Conspiracy has Barber and other yea-saying creatures
in positions of power. They have put oodles of cash into education
but many worry about the effectiveness of the spend. As we're about
to enter a phases of reflection on effectiveness, this book poses
some difficult but essential questions. If you like to either challenge
or be challenged this book is a must.
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