BOOK REVIEW Cooper, Gormally & Hughes: Socially Just, Radical Alternatives

Authors

  • Michael Gilsenan Newman University

Keywords:

Capitalism, Educational alternatives, progressive education, alternative education, difference, educational theory, educational philosophy, home education, education policy

Abstract

In setting the context for this book Cooper, Gormally and Hughes offer the well-evidenced proposition that policy and discourse about young people perpetuates a deficit model of youth.  Citing various reports that talk about the youth “crisis†and describing young people who engaged in the recent England riots as lacking in character, resilience and employability skills, they draw our attention to the view that according to the Riots, Communities and Victims Panel report (2012) these are problems that need to be addressed by schools. Even when discussing issues of disengagement from education they assert that “… the lens remains one of blame†(p. 2).  So, in a context of such negative discourse, the scope of the book, as they say, is to draw on a range of pedagogical and critical theories in order to “offer a reframing of how we think about working with young people†(p. 2)...

Author Biography

Michael Gilsenan, Newman University

Senior Lecturer, Youth and Community Work.

References

Riots, Communities and Victims Panel. (2012). After the riot: The final report of the Riots, Communities and Victims Panel. London: RCVP.

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Published

2016-01-31

Issue

Section

Book Reviews/Review Essays