Publisher's Synopsis
Examing primary and secondary schools in disadvantaged areas of post-industrial ("rustbelt") cities, this volume makes a contribution to the debate about inequality in schooling. It provides concrete evidence that typical government policies in the Western world are not working, but are instead helping to create a permanent underclass. Thomson outlines an alternative approach to policy, which involves the whole of government and builds on the initiatives that have proved to make a real difference to educational outcomes. She draws attention to the influence of local geography - interventions which work in one school may not work in others. Schools are coloured by particular neighbourhoods, affected by national and global events and by complex networks of social relations. This text shows how to respond appropriately to these influences so that schools can be positively transformed.
