This book reappraises the British and American experience in curriculum studies, the curious way in which it has been dominated by certain ideas and introduces the reader to alternative ways of perceiving, defining and approaching its problems. It provides a radical critique of the whole area, presenting both Marxist and phenomenological perspectives on the current dilemmas that teachers face. The book argues that in order to understand the problems teachers face in coping with the curriculum, we must look at the situation from the point of view of the individual rather than prescribing a norm for all teachers.

Part 1 INTRODUCTION; Introduction; Chapter 1 THEORY AND PRACTICE AND THE RECONCEPTUALISATION OF CURRICULUM STUDIES, William Pinar, Madeleine Grumet; Part 2 CRITICAL REAPPRAISAL; introduction1 INTRODUCTION; Chapter 2 CURRICULUM STUDIES: A CRITIQUE OF SOME RECENT BRITISH ORTHODOXIES, Geoff Whitty; Chapter 3 RADICAL EDUCATION: THE PEDAGOGICAL SUBTEXT, Maureen Clark, David Davies; Part 3 NEW DIRECTIONS; introduction2 INTRODUCTION; Chapter 4 RESTITUTION AND RECONSTRUCTION OF EDUCATIONAL EXPERIENCE: AN AUTO-BIOGRAPHICAL METHOD FOR CURRICULUM THEORY, Madeleine R. Grumet; Chapter 5 SOCIAL STRUCTURE, IDEOLOGY AND CURRICULUM, Michael W. Apple; Chapter 6 THE DELIBERATIVE APPROACH TO THE STUDY OF THE CURRICULUM AND ITS RELATION TO CRITICAL PLURALISM, William A. Reid; Part 4 CURRICULUM PRACTICE; introduction3 INTRODUCTION; Chapter 7 GETTING INVOLVED IN CURRICULUM RESEARCH: A PERSONAL HISTORY, Rob Walker; Chapter 8 PRACTICE AND THEORY, Mike Golby; Chapter 9 CURRICULUM POLITICS AND EMANCIPATION, Martin Lawn, Len Barton;