Abstract

Presentation by Professor Nina Bascia, Chair of the Department of Theory and Policy Studies at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education at the University of Toronto (OISE), followed by discussion.

One feature of the recent book, ‘Reinventing Schools, Reforming Teaching’ by John Bangs, John MacBeath and Maurice Galton is the failure of successive governments to work with the teaching profession on developing and Implementing education policies. This is not simply an English phenomenon. Internationally the relationship among teachers, their organisations and governments are often fraught and problematic. Many in the media and government see teachers’ representative organisations as antithetical to school improvement. Can academic analysis lead to insights about the theory and practice of teaching profession/government relations?

Professor Nina Bascia of OISE has led the way for many years in exploring this relationship from a North American perspective. Her findings are directly relevant both to the leadership of teachers in England and to government policy making. John Bangs, Wolfson Fellow, senior research associate in the Faculty and former Head of Education at the National Union of Teachers will be the respondent. It should be a fascinating and instructive evening!