Excitement and Representation: Toward a Sociological Explanation of the Significance of Sport in Modern Society

It is suggested that sport is not only popular but also plays a highly significant part in the lives of many. One explanation focuses on the analysis of the tension excitement generated by sporting encounters. Particular emphasis is placed on the work of Elias and Dunning, who suggest that in societies at a late stage in the “civilising process,” affect-control is strongly established, so that people's expressions of sentiment are strongly restrained. Excitement in such societies is thus to be found not so much in real-life situations as through mimetic or “imitative” excitement, which resembles that produced in critical situations in real life, but in a safe and pleasurable way. A second approach draws on a variety of theoretical perspectives, although the contributions derived from Emile Durkheim's later work on the sociology of religion are prominent. The argument is advanced that sports encapsulate symbolically the social natures, relations, and identities of the collectivities that generate them. Sport, therefore, is perceived as a form of collective representation that may be invested with great social significance. Finally, relationships between the two approaches are considered.     

Conductive Education: towards an 'educational model'

Caroline Coles, Headteacher of Horton Lodge School in Staffordshire, and Liz Zsargo, Lecturer in Conductive Education at Keele University, consider the development of Conductive Education (CE) in the UK, and place it in the context of some of the sociological analyses of disability. They argue that CE can provide the basis for an educational model of disability (in which disability is seen as a result of a complex interaction between the environment and the individual), that all children have the right to an education suitable for their needs, and that a lack of access to an appropriate education can be a disabling factor.     

Public understanding of science: from contents to processes

Public understanding of science is commonly seen in terms of lay persons' understanding of the contents of science. This article argues that it may be more salient to consider public understanding of the internal processes of science ‐ of the nature of scientific knowledge and of the sorts of information that science can reasonably be expected to provide. Drawing on the reported statements of non‐scientists in the media following the Chernobyl nuclear reactor accident, the article argues that the view of scientific knowledge that many people appear to hold is not one that can help them interpret and cope successfully with sts issues. The role that formal science education plays in sustaining this unhelpful view of science is discussed and some implications for practice are considered.     

Development of an informal learning opportunities assay

Learning that takes place outside the formal classroom, called informal learning, has been a difficult parameter to assess due to the heterogeneous nature of the subjects and everyday learning situations. To date, no instrument has been developed to effectively examine the wide variety of informal experiences a child may encounter. Central to this study was the development and field testing of such an instrument, the Informal Learning Opportunities Assay (ILOA). The ILOA was administered to a total of 2128 middle and high school students and was found to be ethnically neutral, easily scored, and flexible in design to accommodate practitioners and researchers. The instrument was found to provide a reliable assessment of informal learning opportunities.     

A Reply to MacCabe

This short piece is written in response to a piece by Colin MacCabe in the last issue of English in Education in which he commented on an article that I had written in Vol. 31, No. 3.     

Bernstein in the urban classroom: a case study

Despite a long-standing concern within the sociology of education for ameliorating educational inequality, the challenge of improving educational opportunities for disadvantaged students remains deeply entrenched. While ‘macro’ issues such as segregation and systemic inequalities in school funding and access to qualified teachers must be addressed as matters of social and educational justice, Basil Bernstein's novel focus on ‘relations within’ education as the site of pedagogic discourse offers teachers and those working inside school systems a particularly powerful vision for promoting more equitable outcomes for students. This paper examines this assertion through a case study of the ‘mixed’ pedagogical practice of a successful teacher in a fifth-grade urban classroom in the United States.     

Patterns of and influences on elementary school attendance in early Victorian industrial Monmouthshire 1839–1865

Issues associated with school absenteeism have attracted considerable attention and have long been one of the focal points of government strategies for school improvement. Pupil non-attendance is not a new phenomenon and featured prominently in Her Majesty’s Inspectors’ reports from 1839. This paper outlines the patterns of and influences on elementary education in early Victorian industrial Monmouthshire during the period 1839–1865. The twin problems of irregular attendance and early withdrawal of pupils are discussed together with the limitations and unreliability of contemporary statistics. An examination of the reasons for absence is then discussed together with the remedies proposed to alleviate the problem with particular reference to the contribution of the Prize Schemes. The paper illustrates the disadvantages of basing an educational system on voluntary endeavour and enlightened self-interest and highlights the paradox that, despite the introduction of mandatory attendance, the problem is still persistent and protracted and finding definitive solutions still remains elusive.