Children's Lives, Children's Futures: A Study of Children Starting Secondary School

Description

In many Western societies there is concern that children from less advantaged social backgrounds have limited aspirations, and are disproportionately unlikely to go to university. Children's Lives, Children's Futures explores how children in their first year of secondary school feel about school, its place in their lives and its role in their futures. The authors use child voice to look at the ways in which children are active constructors of their lives, and the implications this has for the alignment between education and ambition. The authors explore the nature of children's engagement with education, the choices and constraints they experience and the reasons some young people fail to take advantage of educational opportunities.

Paul Croll is Professor in the Institute of Education at the University of Reading, UK. Gaynor Attwood is Professor in the Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities at the University of the West of England, UK.

'A timely book, given the current interest in extending the years of formal education and expanding universities. It is also a fascinating and important one...All in all, a book that should give hope to those who believe that children still both enjoy and believe in school.'Robin Barrow, Professor of the Philosophy of Education, Simon Fraser University, Canada 'Much lip-service is paid to the "voice of the learner", following the influential research of Jean Rudduck and Donald McIntyre. This book, however, takes that voice seriously and provides a persuasive and authentic account of that voice, demonstrating how it needs to be taken much more seriously in the life of the school and in the development of the curriculum - responding to their experiences, doubts and aspirations.'Richard Pring, Lead Director of the Nuffield Review 14-19 Education and Training, UK, and Professor of Education, Department of Education, University of Oxford, UK 'A significant contribution to the area of children's experiences of secondary education...of relevance and interest to students and academics in sociology and childhood studies, to policy-makers and to anyone with a wider interest in childhood and education.' Educational Review 'A timely book in educational research breaking the loud silence of children's voices in educational debates...Given the dearth of studies that take children's opinions seriously, the authors fill a large void, making a compelling case for extending research in this field.' Teacher Development