Higher Education and Opinion Making in Twentieth-Century England (Woburn Education Series)

"This book traces the changing shape and nature of higher education in England in the twentieth century, interwoven with a study of some of the key writer-advocates of expansion and priorities, old and new, for the institutions. It is therefore the story of the English system and efforts to influence opinion on topics such as the role of the professor, Christian perspectives and the relationship of technology and the humanities. It analyses points at which the state itself became not only paymaster but also direction-setter and monitor - and the implications for the system and those who work in it. It moves from the creation of institutions in the early decades, the roles of writers and journals, through the social and international traumas of the 1930s and 1940s and books and debates about the role of universities in a democratic society. It goes on to the expansionism and controversies of the second half of the century, and then to the 'painful transformation' of the last decades. It discusses why the 'opinion makers' had disappeared or become silent by the beginning of the twenty-first century." "This is the first time the whole development of higher education and the views of many of its proponents has been subject to this kind of scrutiny."--Résumé de l'éditeur "This book traces the changing shape and nature of higher education in England in the twentieth century, interwoven with a study of some of the key writer-advocates of expansion and priorities, old and new, for the institutions. It is therefore the story of the English system and efforts to influence opinion on topics such as the role of the professor, Christian perspectives and the relationship of technology and the humanities. It analyses points at which the state itself became not only paymaster but also direction-setter and monitor - and the implications for the system and those who work in it. It moves from the creation of institutions in the early decades, the roles of writers and journals, through the social and international traumas of the 1930s and 1940s and books and debates about the role of universities in a democratic society. It goes on to the expansionism and controversies of the second half of the century, and then to the 'painful transformation' of the last decades. It discusses why the 'opinion makers' had disappeared or become silent by the beginning of the twenty-first century." "This is the first time the whole development of higher education and the views of many of its proponents has been subject to this kind of scrutiny."--Jacket This book explores the changing patterns of higher education in England in the twentieth century, the types of institutions and the emergence of a 'system' of education. At the same time it traces the relationship between the writer-advocates of higher education and the changing world of higher education and its contexts. There is therefore an interrelated story of higher education, the writers, their messages, their backgrounds and ideologies, the audiences they intend to address, and the impacts of the state and other external forces.
It is likely to appeal to higher education academics and administrators, politicians and other policy makers, staff and students on higher degree and professional programmes. It should be read by anyone who cares about English Universities and their future. This book explores the changing patterns of higher education in England in the twentieth century, the types of institutions and the emergence of a 'system' of education. At the same time it traces the relationship between the writer-advocates of higher education and the changing world of higher education and its contexts. There is therefore an interrelated story of higher education, the writers, their messages, their backgrounds and ideologies, the audiences they intend to address, and the impacts of the state and other external forces. It is likely to appeal to higher education academics and a