Includes bibliographical references and index.

Written prior to the introduction of the national curriculum, this volume argued for precisely that: a broad framework of a compulsory education at national level for all schools. The author considers the question of the content of his proposed compulsory curriculum in terms of principles derived from a fundamental ethical position and from an analysis of kinds of human activity that seeks to establish important educational priorities. The discussion covers arguments concerning intrinsically worthwhile activities, the need for a practical component of the curriculum and the priority that humanistic studies should have. It puts forward a case for a new concept of voluntary education, partly on the model of the Pioneer organizations of Eastern Europe, to supplement the compulsory curriculum.