Drawing on a lifetime's experience and research in education, Frank Coffield brings together some of his previously published papers to assess the impact of a wide range of national educational policies and to examine the role of the state in public education.

Frank Coffield has been a Professor of Education at the Universities of Durham, Newcastle, and UCL Institute of Education at the University of London.

1. Introduction; PART 1 Juvenile delinquency; 2. A Glasgow gang observed; 3. Entrée and exit; PART 2 Youth unemployment; 4. How young people try to survive being unemployed; 5. Is there work after the MSC?; PART 3 The world of work and Further Education; 6. Britain's continuing failure to train: The birth pangs of a new policy; 7. Resistance is fertile: The demands the FE sector must make of the next government; PART 4 Enhancing education; 8. Breaking the consensus: Lifelong learning as social control; 9. Learning styles: Time to move on; 10. Coffield's learning or teaching styles questionnaire (CLOTS 2008)(TM); 11. Rolling out 'good', 'best' and 'excellent' practice: What next? Perfect practice?; 12. If there's no such thing as 'best practice', how can we improve teaching?; 13. Running ever faster down the wrong road: An alternative future for education and skills; PART 5 Improving education systems; 14. Government policy is no longer the solution; 15. Why the McKinsey reports will not improve school systems; 16. From exam factories to communities of discovery: The democratic route; 17. Will the leopard change its spots? A new model of inspection for Ofsted; 18. The music in the word 'education'; 19. Final comments