ABSTRACT
It is remarkable how much history has been written from the vantage point of those who have had the charge of running – or attempting to run – other people’s lives, and how little from the real-life experience of people themselves. The history of education is a prime example. It is either a history of great headmasters and reformers, or else about organizational change. The student is expected to memorize (for examination purposes) the more controversial clauses of the different Education Acts, to summarize the findings and recommendations of various Royal Commissions, and to set education in ‘a wider context’ of denominational rivalries and party politics. He does not need to know much about the children – where they sat, what they learnt, how they were disciplined (or bribed) into obedience; nor will he be invited to inquire into the wider context which the child itself experienced – the interplay of family, work and home, or the way in which schooling helped to teach behaviour and inculcate sex and class roles.
