Scots at School: An Anthology

It is often argued that education is the defining Scottish experience. There have been other contenders for this status - Kirk, Law, Hampden Park - but school is the universal and enduring one. Its iconic function has been sustained through the stories and myths which have clustered around its chief features - pupils as lads o’ pairts , teachers as dominies , the ethos of the democratic intellect , and the village school as the skweel . The educational system has always been regarded as one of those civil institutions which have defined Scotland’s distinctive nationhood. Scots at School tells the story of Scotland’s educational experience, at school level, since the 1850s. The emphasis is on the first-hand testimony of those involved in its formative processes - pupils, teachers and parents. Material is drawn from biography, poetry and fiction, from contemporary journal and newspaper accounts, interviews and oral history. This strong focus upon personal testimony offers the reader a humanly vivid, accessible account of the experience of Scottish schooling. The anthologized material is balanced by the author’s text, outlining the history of the Scottish school experience over this period and drawing out the key themes of identity, nationalism, political power and social justice.