ABSTRACT
This book provides an answer to one of the key questions of our time: namely, what constitutes a good education. Presenting a ‘four-dimensional’ model, it directly considers the essential elements a good education should include. Through forging this framework and outlaying its origins, implications and practice, the book explains how a good contemporary education can be defined and implemented. From the premise that such educational essentials are neither the preserve of the elite nor a minimum standard, White's exploration keeps the child at the heart of the discussion, focusing on every pupil's worth, identity, interactions and development.
The author offers a detailed and rigorous perspective reflecting on extensive professional experience, starting with a consideration of the current educational climate and progressing through the book's three parts:
- looking for a good education
- creating a model of good education
- applications, implications and implementation of the model.
A Good Education recognises the transformative power of education and reflects on the importance of human factors: teachers' provision for their pupils and students' ability to flourish. This book is addressed to those actively engaged in or concerned about educational provision: graduates entering teaching, school leaders, policy-makers and parents. It also speaks more broadly to all those who know that a good education really matters.
Introduction Part 1: looking for good education Chapter 1. What is a good education? Chapter 2. In search of educational ethos Part 2: creating a model of good education Chapter 3. Foundational values: the essential heart Chapter 4. Character traits: living it out Chapter 5. Educational principles: distinguishing practices Chapter 6. Practical outcomes: end results Part 3: applications, implications and implementation of the four-dimensional model Chapter 7. The four-dimensional school: values and principles in practice Chapter 8. The four-dimensional curriculum: breadth of attainment at the academic core Chapter 9. The four-dimensional curriculum: breadth of attainment in the wider sphere Chapter 10. The four-dimensional subject: achieving heights of excellence Chapter 11. The four-dimensional lesson: encouraging depth of engagement Chapter 12. A four-dimensional vision: fostering length of endeavour Afterword
