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Abstract

This study examines the Tasmanian Education Department's policy document, Secondary Education: The Future. It seeks to place the succinct outline of principles into the wider context of local, national and international debate on secondary education. The study compares the finished document to the earlier editions, particularly those of January 1987, and the Discussion Paper of 1986 and refers to comments made by local educationalists during the discussion phase.
The study suggests that we need to examine the sort of society we want our children to create in a world which is increasingly stressing the connections between education and economic life and giving emphasis to instrumental and mechanistic approaches. Governments' stress on quality and excellence have also emanated, in some cases from limited educational views. These terms are examined together with those of equity, effectiveness and continuity.
The policy document argues for the central notions of fields of knowledge and experience and the competencies. These concepts are placed in their educational contexts and the practical implications of these curriculum ideas are discussed. The nature of adolescence is changing and the study refers to investigations of adolescence which give depth to the section on the student in Secondary Education: The Future. The study claims that a clearer statement on learning should be part of the policy document.
A central thesis of the study is that teachers are learners. The ideas on teaching, management and professional development in the policy document are placed into the context of educational discussion. The regularities of school life which detract from the potentiality of collegiality are described. The role of the Principal and the lack of reference to the significance of this role in the policy document are noted.
Schools are part of a network of communities. This network is discussed together with the concept of partnership. The need for schools to be more integrated with their communities for the encouragement of life long learning is explored.
Throughout this study reference is made to practical implications which flow from the statements of principles. The final chapter explores general principles about implementation and change which may be extracted from the literature but which were not part of the original document or in literature accompanying the release of the document to schools. The study maintains that these principles re-emphasise the need for teachers, Principals, support staff and administrators to accept the role of learner and collaborate in the development of evolutionary policies for self-renewing schools. Such schools are needed to guide education into the twenty-first 'century.

Item Type:	Thesis - Coursework Master
Authors/Creators:	Radford, RM
Keywords:	Secondary education : the future, Education, Secondary
Copyright Information:	Copyright 1987 the author - The University is continuing to endeavour to trace the copyright owner(s) and in the meantime this item has been reproduced here in good faith. We would be pleased to hear from the copyright owner(s).
Additional Information:	Thesis (MEd)--University of Tasmania, 1989
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