-RENOWNED HISTORIAN & POLITICAL SCIENTIST-
Professor Richard Willis
THE BOOKS
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Not all of Richard's books are shown here yet the most successful ones are displayed below. The History of the College of Preceptors in Victorian England is an e-book formerly published by Textbook Publications. Richard has also dabbled in fiction with the novella titled The Office Clerk and he ghost wrote a book published by SBPRA, a publisher located in the USA.
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The Struggle for the General Teaching Council
ISBN-0-415-35769-1 (hbk)
ISBN-0-415-35770-5 (pbk)
​Referred to by Professor Peter Gordon in the Times Educational Supplement as an ‘excellent work’, this book chronicles the history of the struggle to promote a self-governing body for the teaching profession from its early problems at the start of the twentieth century right through to the establishment of the General Teaching Council of England in 2000. It also explores the interest groups and policy makers who impeded its achievement and the attitude of teacher unions and the teachers themselves to the establishment of such a body.
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Testing Times
ISBN-978-94-6209-480-2
This book focuses on the delivery of public examinations offered by the main examining boards in England since 1850. The investigation reveals that the provision of examinations was as controversial in the nineteenth century as it is today, particularly since the government is now determined to bring in reform. Educational policy is primarily examined as well as some reference to the global scene. The study analyses archival material from a wide range of sources, including those records stored at the National Archives and the London Metropolitan Archives. An emphasis is placed upon the various institutions that contributed to the process, including the Royal Society of Arts, the London Chamber of Commerce, the City of Guilds of London Institute and the University of London. Attention is given to the findings of the Taunton Commission and the Bryce Commission and shorter reports such as the Northcote-Trevelyn Report which served to radicalise entry and recruitment to the Civil Service. The reader is given every opportunity to benefit enthusiastically in this account of examinations, and those engaged in education, whether teachers, examiners, students or administrators, will be able to gain useful insights into the workings of the examination system.​
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The Development of Primary, Secondary, and Teacher Education in England
ISBN-978-0-7734-2659-7
​This is the first history of how teachers were trained in England. It documents the establishment of the country's academic standards over the last century. The essential focus of the work is the foundation of the College of Teachers in England. The school and teacher examinations, lectures, and the professorship of education, the royal commissions on education, the registration issue, and events between 2000 and 2011 are also covered in this text. The book shows how governments persistently denied the College financial assistance and refused to make professional training for secondary teachers compulsory. Where public officials did intervene, their policies served only to weaken the ability of the College to expand or simply to maintain its markets. Interviews are an important part of this study. They were designed to achieve a holistic understanding of the work which identify the functions and purpose of the College since the 1960's. These interviews were approached less in terms of framing narratives of personal history and more with regards to narratives of organizational history. The large quantity of documentary evidence and interviews led to some conclusions about the College which shows its strengths and weaknesses.