ABSTRACT
Introduction Joseph Payne (1808-76) was England's first professor of education, appointed to that position by the College of Preceptors, a chartered body of teachers. Born in Bury St Edmunds in humble circumstances, Payne was an outsider. In terms of British society, including that of education, he was a marginal person. He did not belong to any charmed circle. His way in the world was made by the exercise of his own talents. Though possessed of a strong sense of history, Payne did not have an unalloyed commitment to traditional institutions and ways of thought. Even in respect of the College of Preceptors, a body in which he obtained high office and in which he assumed a pioneering role, he was, on occasion, a stern critic. This chapter examines four areas of Payne's criticisms and reform proposals with regard to the educational thinking and practice of his day. These were: the education of girls and women; boys' public schools; elementary schooling; the training of teachers.
