Nigel Gann explains how English schools provided by local councils and embedded in communities were grabbed by an authoritarian government and handed to billionaire business owners. Administrators and academics with knowledge and understanding built up over decades were replaced by a new ‘educational establishment’ of hedge-fund investors and political cronies. Utilising the ‘seven deadly sins’ of corporatised schools, a new ‘blob’ turned a public good into a milch cow for privately-educated politicians and their mates. Then they abandoned Europe and exploited a world-wide killer disease to corner the market in government contracts. But Gann offers a way forward. "Nigel Gann's analysis should be read by anyone who is interested in the reality of how control of our schools has become much less democratic. The account of this experienced school governor and teacher makes compulsive reading." Warwick Mansell, writer/editor of the website Education Uncovered. “The book is an excellent read . . . I recommend it to all those involved in the school system in England – you will gain new and important insights.” Chris James, Emeritus Professor of Educational Leadership and Management, Department of Education, University of Bath “Nigel Gann offers an impassioned rejection of the celebrated gains of ‘academisation’ in the English education system and communicates a new vision of education, with public trust, transparency and localism at its core.” Dr Andrew Wilkins, Goldsmiths, University of London “A fascinating read into the world of education through the lens of the forced academisation of a rural primary school.” Raj Unsworth, chair of governors, special advisor to Headteachers Roundtable

In this famous study, selected by the New York Times Book Review as one of the most important social science books of 1971, the author argues that the familiar correlation between educational training and job performance is a myth and that the upgrading of the supply of labor is meaningless unless we reconsider the nature of the demand. A lengthy new introduction by the author extends his critique into the 1990s. Originally published by Praeger in 1970.

In this famous study, selected by the New York Times Book Review as one of the most important social science books of 1971, the author argues that the familiar correlation between educational training and job performance is a myth and that the upgrading of the supply of labor is meaningless unless we reconsider the nature of the demand. A lengthy new introduction by the author extends his critique into the 1990s. Originally published by Praeger in 1970.

Educational commitments: An overview. Education in economic perspective. Job requirements and educational achievement. Demographic and managerial requirements. Educational achievements and worker performance. Educational achievements and job-related attitudes. The blue-collar worker: a special case. Education and public service. The great training robbery.

School Reform: The Great American Brain Robbery exposes the apparent takeover of the public schools by private bidders as well as the role that the current federal administration is playing to destroy a noble institution. The authors 50 years in public education are evident as he provides a non-jargon background for the reader. He debunks myths, half-truths, and sacred cows, such as the standards movement, which Orlich labels spitballs on the wall. School Reformis a must-read book to understand the problems, players and ultimate outcomes of the current school reform fiasco. The text actively engages the reader. A Decalogue of School Reform Fallacies is worth the price of the book alone. Each chapter illustrates the many unique issues attendant with public education. The book concludes with a blueprint of what authentic school improvement might look like, including elimination of the U.S. Department of Education.

From the bestselling author of Jurassic Park, Timeline, and Sphere comes an enthralling novel about Victorian London’s most notorious gold heist. London, 1855, when lavish wealth and appalling poverty exist side by side, one mysterious man navigates both worlds with perfect ease. Edward Pierce preys on the most prominent of the well-to-do as he cunningly orchestrates the crime of his century. Who would suspect that a gentleman of breeding could mastermind the extraordinary robbery aboard the pride of England’s industrial era, the mighty steam locomotive? Based on fact, but studded with all the suspense and style of fiction, here is a classic historical thriller, set a decade before the age of dynamite—yet nonetheless explosive…