Classroom Pedagogy and Primary Practice

A look at primary education as it struggles to create for itself a post-Plowden ideology. The author argues first of all that a "teacher- centred" approach to teaching in the primary school, especially in the later years, is actually in the best interests of the children. The teacher must be seen to have ultimate responsibility for what and how children learn. At the heart of the complex relationship between teaching and learning, is the subject matter of teaching defined in the broadest sense. The upshot of debates about teaching methods, matching, and curriculum organization, should be a focusing upon the tasks set for children, in order to foster their learning. McNamara then tries to define the distinctive professional expertise of the primary teacher - the application of subject knowledge within the special circumstances of the classroom - and to show how this body of educational knowledge is both derived from practice, and may be of practical use to others.

`This book is a welcome and important contribution to the developing balance of emphasis in teaching which considers the relative roles of teachers and children in the classroom.' - Design and Technology Teaching