ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the argument of John White, who has been the chief protagonist in England and Wales for the need for a state imposed curriculum for the promotion of education for autonomy autonomy. However, the discussion is by no means conclusive, and in order to strengthen the argument, the chapter proceeds by examining the foundation for White's claims. It transpires that White's argument owes much to Joseph Raz. White argues: children learn by example and are more likely to acquire a taste for the autonomous life from people who themselves embody it than from the hemmed-in functionaries within an authoritarian system. Raz's first argument aims to undermine 'moral individualism' in order to allow the promotion of 'collective goods' to be a legitimate concern of the state. Raz's second argument against antiperfectionism challenges the 'exclusion of ideals'. Raz's argument for the state promotion of autonomy has three elements: the principle of autonomy, the harm principle, and the normal justification thesis.
