Bethan-Jane Marshall

English in the National Curriculum: a simple redraft or a major rewrite?

The national curriculum for English is about to be rewritten again, having only been looked at four years ago. According to the chair of the expert group on the new national curriculum this is because the curricula of the past had become too baggy. Although he was not specifically looking at the English curriculum this too is being examined. This article considers the main areas that they will be attending to in the revisions – phonics, the canon and Standard English. It argues that these are the areas that the Tory governments looked at before when they first tried to rewrite the national curriculum and that the reasons are ideological rather than pragmatic. It compares the writing of this curriculum with other countries and looks at how they have framed the debates about what should be in their curricula.

A Rough Guide to English Teachers.

Abstract This article examines the way in which the history of English in schools has contributed to differing philosophies of that subject amongst English teachers. It analyses the current philosophies using, as its database, a novel research instrument called the Rough Guide to English Teachers.

What do we know in English: facts and fiction in an arts based English curriculum

Abstract This article explores the nature of knowledge in English. Using assessment practices as one way of understanding what constitutes knowledge in English, this article asks whether the subject is being subtly changed and whether it is changing in a direction that is profitable. Drawing on the work of Dewey and Eisner, it seeks to understand English as an arts subject and define what it means to know in English seen through this frame.

A Methodological Conundrum: Comparing Schools in Scotland and England

This article considers a conundrum in research methodology; the fact that, in the main, you have to use a social science-based research methodology if you want to look at what goes on in a classroom. This article proposes an alternative arts-based research method instead based on the work of Eisner, and before him Dewey, where one can use the more traditional critical, close reading techniques that are usually associated with a degree in English. We look at a case study English lesson to illustrate and explore how this may be done.

“Resisting the rage for certainty”: dialogic assessment: A case study of one secondary English subject classroom in the UK

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to report on one UK secondary school English teacher and use his practice as a vehicle for exploring the classroom realities of dialogic assessment. Dialogic assessment, a term first proposed by Alexander (2004), is a position which seeks to synthesise the potentially powerful positions of both dialogic teaching and assessment for learning remains largely unexploited as an approach to developing effective teaching and learning. Design/methodology/approach – Using video classroom evidence and interview, the authors explore the parameters within which dialogic teaching and assessment can be developed, and investigate the opportunities and obstacles which developing dialogic assessment bring about. Findings – The authors develop a framework, drawing on the evidence, which demonstrates the development of dialogic assessment in the classroom. Originality/value – This paper is an original look at dialogic assessment within the upper secondary sector.

Who owns educational research? Disciplinary conundrums and considerations

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to consider the dynamics of submitting arts-based research in a climate that is dominated, in the UK, by the social sciences. Design/methodology/approach – It begins by taking a view on arts-based research, considering mainly Eisner and Dewey but exploring the possibilities of other forms such as baroque research. It goes on to look at some examples of arts-based research that has been carried out, funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council. The authors conclude by saying that interdisciplinary research, while being encouraged by research councils, is also made more difficult by these same research councils’ funding structures. Findings – The authors consider that this has an effect on defining what educational research is and could be. The authors argue that this is important not only in relation to the range of disciplinary perspectives that can be drawn upon within educational settings, for example, the need to engage with disciplines such as English, Hist...

On Peter Medway

This article takes a personal view of the contribution made by Pete Medway to Kings College London.