Resources, unit costs and the curriculum : an analysis of changing priorities in local education authority secondary schools in England
There are major variations in education provision between areas yet their analysis remains undeveloped. This thesis examines variations in resources and the curriculum in English education in the early 1980s. It argues that these variations are one of the major outcomes of the relationships between actors in the education service established in the post-war era. Despite their importance, the patterns of provision have been subject to little previous systematic empirical assessment. The first part of the thesis develops a framework for analysis of the relationships between actors in education: central government, local authority and school. This framework provides the structure for the empirical analyses which follow. A hierarchical research design is adopted which facilitates the examination of the effect of each level on the distribution of resources and their translation into curricula. Four contrasted case studies were selected for analysis. The results of original surveys are drawn upon to examine the management context. The second part of the thesis presents an original analysis of the impact of changes to the system of central grants to local authorities. National data sources are used to examine in detail the impact of these changes on secondary education expenditure. The focus then shifts to examine the distribution of resources within the four case study areas and their relationship to the socio-economic characteristics of school catchments and 'technical' factors such as size. Having established the patterns of resource distribution, the thesis moves to an original examination of the translation of these resources into curricula. The curriculum profiles of the case study authorities are compared, and, for two areas, changes over time are analysed. In the final section, the thesis examines variations in the curriculum between schools, examining their relationship to school background factors and resource levels.
THE FINANCE OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT IN ENGLAND AND WALES SINCE 1948: Part III
(1) Is it practicable and desirable to increase the relative share of rates in the revenues of local authorities? (2) Is it practicable and desirable to find some new sources of local revenue? (3) Is it practicable and desirable to change the present balance between general and specific grants? (4) Is it practicable and desirable to use grants to equalize the fiscal resources of local authorities? (5) Is it practicable and desirable to regulate local authorities' capital expenditure by controlling their access to outside funds?
Educational innovation in Musical Language Course: responses and the overcoming of limitations
This article presents an innovative methodological proposal for the development of auditory education in the course of the Language of Music. Based on this proposal, we analyze an educational community’s response to the innovations implemented, and we identify the limitations recognized throughout the learning and teaching process, as well as the strategies developed to overcome them. To this end, we applied a qualitative methodology with the classroom-based research method. The compilation of data was carried out through participant observation, captured in the journals of the professor and researcher, interviews and analysis of documents. The research results demonstrate that patience, responsibility and perseverance in their work on behalf of the professors have been key to overcoming the limitations identified and in promoting that students enjoy and learn their class contents in meaningful ways. Recibido 05/02/2018 Aceptado: 09/03/2018