The Construction of Masculinity within Boys’ Physical Education [1]

This case-study of a multiethnic, inner-city secondary school attempts to uncover the fundamental features of masculine construction within the lives of two groups of adolescent males. Placing these pupils at the centre of the research, an ethnographic analysis is presented whereby boys' physical education is located as a strategic site within the development of masculinity. Outlining the existence of various pupil masculinities within the school, the boys concerned provide evidence as to the way in which a selection of masculine forms may evolve according to differing internalised value structures, and how the academic ethos of the institution itself might influence the personal identity and hierarchical peer group position of certain individuals.     

Making Meaning and Using Natural Resources: Education and Sustainability

A natural resource is not given, but depends on human knowledge for its exploitation. Thus a 'unit of resource' is, to a significant degree, a 'unit of meaning', and education is potentially important not only for the use of resources but also for their creation. The paper draws on poststructuralism to confirm the intuition that it would be misleading to conceive of 'units' of meaning. However, it is commonly acceptable to conceive of 'units' of resource, as in much discussion around sustainability; but, if the latter concept is suspect, then so is the former. The error seems to arise from the assumption of identifiable points in space-time, already problematised by quantum mechanics and poststructuralism. Conceiving of 'now' as a moving in and with time, rather than as a point in time, human survival is construed as an ongoing process of meaning-making constrained though not determined by the carrying capacity of the planet. The Second Nature conception of John McDowell is critiqued with respect to this.     

High Stakes Testing and the Structure of the Mind: A Reply to Randall Curren

'High stakes testing' is to be understood as testing with serious consequences for students, their teachers and their educational institutions. It plays a central role in holding teachers and educational institutions to account. In a recent article Randall Curren seeks to refute a number of philosophical arguments developed in my The Limits of Educational Assessment against the legitimacy of high stakes testing. In this reply I contend that some of the arguments he identifies are not mine, and that others survive his critique.     

Consistency, Understanding and Truth in Educational Research

What do Elliot Eisner's discussions of objectivity mean for the strength of the link between consistency and truth in educational research? Following his lead, I pursue this question by comparing aspects of qualitative educational research with appraising the arts. I argue that some departures from the highest levels of consistency in assessing the arts are compatible with truth and objectivity, and that this is at least suggestive for how consistency in qualitative educational research should be viewed. In the final part of the paper I look at some problems inherent in comparing the value of works of art, and consider whether similar issues arise when we attempt to grade different kinds of educational research.