Education: A Very Short Introduction

Gary Thomas

Jan. 2022 · Tantor Media Inc · Voorgelees deur Chris Reilly

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Since the early Egyptians human beings have formalized the business of learning, setting up a designated environment of some form to pass knowledge and learning on to groups of students. In this second edition of his Very Short Introduction, Gary Thomas explores how and why education has evolved as it has, examining the ways in which it has responded over the centuries to various influences in politics, philosophy, and the social sciences. Focusing on education today, he considers especially the controversies over progressive versus formal teaching, and also examines education worldwide, assessing the accelerating trend on both sides of the Atlantic of the move to charter, academy, and "free" schools. The COVID-19 pandemic has dramatically accelerated moves to online learning in schools and universities, and in this new edition Thomas looks again at curriculums and what shape they should take in a rapidly changing world. He asks why action on race, gender and social inequality has borne so little fruit thus far, questioning the oft-made claim of education to be a force for social mobility, and offering an analysis on how education may develop over the coming century.

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Gary Thomas is professor in education, University of Birmingham, having previously worked as a teacher and as an educational psychologist. His teaching and research have focused on inclusion, special education, and the methods used in social science research.

For a decade Chris Reilly could be heard reading the news on 1010 WINS ("All News, All the Time") and on WNYC, New York Public Radio. When he's not behind the microphone in his home studio, you might find Chris riding his scooter around town, drinking black coffee, caring for his Ragdoll cat, or solving a crossword puzzle.