ABSTRACT
This introduction presents an overview of key concepts discusses in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book focuses on governments are intimately involved in education, and will always be so, is taken for granted by the great majority of educationalists. It explores whether an 'education for democracy' could provide the basis for a curriculum for a 'minimum adequate education', prompted by the common recent criticism of markets that they will indeed fail to provide for this. The chapter investigates the related but not identical 'education for autonomy' as a possible basis for West's minimum adequate curriculum. It suggests that perhaps it is misguided for one philosopher of education to attempt a prescription for the minimum adequate curriculum, but that what Ls desirable is that the decision should be reached instead through the democratic process. It also suggests that West's market model has emerged from the philosophical debate stronger than at first appeared possible.
