ABSTRACT
This chapter is concerned with reviewing the state of research on the ‘diversity’ of the English primary school population, and with understanding the implications of that research for present and future policy. It argues that differences between children are constructed rather than simply described, and that the constructs embodied in official statistics and policy texts currently tend to dominate discourse in primary education. Yet these constructions favour simplistic and evaluative categorisations which conceal as much as they reveal about diversity. Using ‘bilingual learners’ as an example, we show how other, more productive, constructions are possible, and that they can be found in the work of critical researchers and in the practice of some teachers and schools. We advocate a dialogue between national policy and practitioners in developing these constructions, and outline the policy directions that would be necessary to support such a dialogue.
