Allowing learners to take some responsibility may seem obvious yet what is actually afforded to them, and how this process works, remains difficult to grasp. It is therefore essential to study the real objects of devolution and the roles played by the subjects involved. Devolution and Autonomy in Education questions the concept of devolution, introduced into the field of education in the 1980s from disciplinary didactics, and described in Guy Brousseau’s Theory of Didactical Situations in Mathematics as: the act by which the teacher makes the student take responsibility for a learning situation (adidactic) or problem and accepts the consequences of this transfer. The book revisits this concept through a variety of subject areas (mathematics, French, physical education, life sciences, digital learning, play) and educational domains (teaching, training, facilitation). Using these intersecting perspectives, this book also examines the purpose and timeline of the core process for thinking about autonomy and empowerment in education.

Allowing learners to take some responsibility may seem obvious yet what is actually afforded to them, and how this process works, remains difficult to grasp. It is therefore essential to study the real objects of devolution and the roles played by the subjects involved. Devolution and Autonomy in Education questions the concept of devolution, introduced into the field of education in the 1980s from disciplinary didactics, and described in Guy Brousseau’s Theory of Didactical Situations in Mathematics as: the act by which the teacher makes the student take responsibility for a learning situation (adidactic) or problem and accepts the consequences of this transfer. The book revisits this concept through a variety of subject areas (mathematics, French, physical education, life sciences, digital learning, play) and educational domains (teaching, training, facilitation). Using these intersecting perspectives, this book also examines the purpose and timeline of the core process for thinking about autonomy and empowerment in education.

In practice, most education systems have both centralized and decentralized elements. Planners involved in a decentralizing reform must identify which components of the system are more appropriately managed at the central level and which at the local level. This book is intended to inform education policymakers, planners, and practitioners about international experience in the legal aspects of decentralizing basic education. It also provides a basic understanding of how laws and regulations can be used for education reform. For purposes of the discussion, decentralization is used to describe efforts to transfer decision making power in basic education from the administrative center of a country to authorities closer to users. The term is also used in a more technical sense to describe one of the many forms this type of reform can take, and in this sense it is contrasted with deconcentration and devolution as educational reforms. The first section examines the general legal aspects of decentralization, and the second looks more closely at decentralization laws and regulations. The third section is, in effect, a checklist of items that should be included in decentralization laws, and the fourth section provides a road map to help the planner prepare and implement the laws required for reform. Although an effort has been made to keep the discussion general enough for use in many countries, the analysis is based on the legal systems of the Western world or those that they inspired. (Contains 35 references.) (SLD)

This book is unique. It gathers texts which give the best presentation of the principles and key concepts of the Theory of Didactical Situations that Guy Brousseau developed in the period from 1970 to 1990. These texts provide a comprehensive presentation of the Theory. In order to facilitate the reading of certain points footnotes have been added, as well as preludes and interludes to place in context the chosen texts and clarify the construction of the book.

This book examines the development of Welsh devolution in the context of great economic and political uncertainty. Drawing on research carried out over more than a decade, it explores whether Welsh devolution has developed the capacity to resist internal and external pressures and to continue to pursue a distinctive political and policy agenda.

Dissatisfied with centralized approaches to delivering local public services, a large number of countries are decentralizing responsibility for these services to lower-level, locally elected governments. The results have been mixed. The paper provides a framework for evaluating the benefits and costs, in terms of service delivery, of different approaches to decentralization, based on relationships of accountability between different actors in the delivery chain. Moving from a model of central provision to that of decentralization to local governments introduces a new relationship of accountability-between national and local policymakers-while altering existing relationships, such as that between citizens and elected politicians. Only by examining how these relationships change can we understand why decentralization can, and sometimes cannot, lead to better service delivery. In particular, the various instruments of decentralization-fiscal, administrative, regulatory, market, and financial-can affect the incentives facing service providers, even though they relate only to local policymakers. Likewise, and perhaps more significantly, the incentives facing local and national politicians can have a profound effect on the provision of local services. Finally, the process of implementing decentralization can be as important as the design of the system in influencing service delivery outcomes.

Taking a multidisciplinary approach to the dynamics of political and economic decentralization in contemporary regimes, this comprehensive Handbook offers a critical examination of how the decentralization of governance affects citizen well-being.

The United Kingdom, Spain and Belgium have all undergone political devolution in recent years, with powers transferred from central government to regions and nations within these states. There is a rich literature on devolution, but surprisingly little on its consequences for public policy. This book explores the effects of devolution on the policy process, policy substance and policy outcomes in the UK, Spain and Belgium. The chapters study a range of policy spheres, including education, health care and general social policy, examining the scope for policy innovation and policy divergence between different levels of government. The analyses highlight the scope for comparison across devolved governments, which often face similar policy challenges and seek to exercise their autonomy within similar constraints. Each study underlines the importance of pre-existing policy communities, political cultures and institutions in shaping the scope for policy innovation within devolved governments. Each study also reinforces the need to consider devolved policy-making within the context of the nation-state. Devolution altered the relationship between the state and meso communities, but there remains a considerable degree of political and policy interdependence between governments at each level of the state. This book was previously published as a special issue of Regional and Federal Studies.

Margaret Thatcher's premiership from 1979 to 1990 had a profound impact on Scotland. David Stewart analyzes the impact of this period of Conservative government on Scotland, while examining the extent to which Conservative policy under Thatcher represented a break from the 'post-war consensus' in British politics. Focusing on the origins and impact of the poll tax, the campaign to save Ravenscraig steelworks, the sharpening of the North/South divide, the 1984/85 miners' strike, and the balance of power within Scottish civil society, he makes substantial contributions to the debates surrounding the decline of Scottish Unionism, the roots of Scottish devolution, the legacy of Thatcherism, and the changing British constitution.

First published in 1988. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.