New publications

The final report of a review of England's primary curriculum is presented. The report calls for the curriculum to be organised through clearly visible subject disciplines, such as history, geography and physical education, complemented by worthwhile and challenging cross-curricular studies that provide ample opportunities for children to use and apply their subject knowledge and skills to deepen understanding. It also calls for a greater emphasis on personal development and wellbeing; a stronger focus on curriculum progression throughout the primary years, and development of children's ICT skills. Full text is available online.

This text outlines the results of a study undertaken as part of the the Researching Effective Continued Professional Development in Mathematics Education project, which analysed the types of professional development programs undertaken by mathematics teachers, and factors that contribute to effective professional development. Six case studies of professional development programs are included, and evidence of their success is outlined and analysed. Recommendations are made regarding ongoing professional development. Full text is available online.

The experiences of British teachers are outlined in this book, which also compares the British situation with those of teachers in Asia, America, Australia and New Zealand. Themes of stress and workload were persistent, and issues examined include inclusive education in practice, engaging with changing policies, teachers' loss of status, and teacher attrition. Chapters include Workload Agreements and the Rise of the Teaching Assistant; Balancing the Workload Equation: A Continuing Story; and Remodelling the Primary Teaching Workforce. Adapted from publisher's description.

Specialists in education, anthropology, and sociology report on a variety of data across diverse political and social contexts to analyse patterns surrounding school choice in countries including Australia, Canada, China, England, India, Japan, Singapore and the USA. The analyses indicate that 'school choice' rhetoric has arisen in each of these countries, but is interpreted within the relevant social and historical context. The authors argue that school choice initiatives do not eliminate equity concerns, but rather 're-embed them within new frameworks'. Adapted from publisher's description.

This report is based on a three-year evaluation of physical education in 99 primary and 84 secondary schools in England. Evidence was drawn from focused subject survey visits by school inspectors between 2005 and 2008. Part A addresses physical education teaching and learning in schools, and the achievement and progress demonstrated by physical education programs. Part B examines future directions in physical education, the monitoring and evaluation of ongoing programs, and the issue of obesity. The full report is available online.

Children's reading habits and the impact of reading role models have been investigated in a recent study in England. Findings are presented in this report. Responses indicated that a majority of young people enjoy reading, and are also frequent consumers of digital media. When asked to identify reading role models, children identified parents, friends and their teachers. Topics include an analysis of children's reading backgrounds, gender and socioeconomic differences in reading behaviour and role models, and a discussion of developing non-readers' reading habits. Full text is available online.