Who framed english? A case study of the media's role in curriculum change

Mapping the field of education research and media

“…Thomas (1999) notes which stakeholders are given the authority to speak about education; finding it was predominantly ministers of education rather than teachers (p. 41). Similarly, Gill (1994) analysed media roles in curriculum change, suggesting there is an absence of professional voices in the debates, with these voices often being conveyed as the 'drama of dissonant and often acrimonious voices' (p. 111). Other often excluded voices are those of children and young people (also see Chapter 2).…”

Where are the students? A close reading of priorities and silences in scholarly and public debates on VCE English (1990–2021)

“…The optimism aflame in the moment of its inception, of what a progressive model of VCE English might be for students and teachers, reemerges as nostalgia or melancholy in these accounts. What also emerges in these accounts is the perceived agency of political forces to constrain the lofty goals of the course (Doecke & Hayes, 2000;Gill, 1994;Huggard, 1997). Given that the VCE course emerged in the late 1980s from the imaginary of a newly elected Labor government emboldened by a reformist agenda to reshape post-compulsory education in Victoria (Howells, 2003(Howells, /2019, it is perhaps unsurprising that conservative commentators took issue with the curriculum.…”

“…Given that the VCE course emerged in the late 1980s from the imaginary of a newly elected Labor government emboldened by a reformist agenda to reshape post-compulsory education in Victoria (Howells, 2003(Howells, /2019, it is perhaps unsurprising that conservative commentators took issue with the curriculum. 2 Conservative commentaries about the "very unsatisfying and unsatisfactory" nature of the original Study Design (Bantick, 1992, p. 11) are likewise mirrored by media headlines of this period curated by Gill (1994) such as "VCE and the red peril" (p. 101) and "Curriculum change and the barbarians at the gates" (p. 104). These contemporary accounts and curriculum histories repeatedly gesture towards the power of politically conservative voices in the media and in universities (Teese, 2000) to constrain the egalitarian potential of the VCE English course (Gill, 1993(Gill, , 1994.…”

“…2 Conservative commentaries about the "very unsatisfying and unsatisfactory" nature of the original Study Design (Bantick, 1992, p. 11) are likewise mirrored by media headlines of this period curated by Gill (1994) such as "VCE and the red peril" (p. 101) and "Curriculum change and the barbarians at the gates" (p. 104). These contemporary accounts and curriculum histories repeatedly gesture towards the power of politically conservative voices in the media and in universities (Teese, 2000) to constrain the egalitarian potential of the VCE English course (Gill, 1993(Gill, , 1994.…”

“…These sweeping changes became the VCE: the standardised certification for all government and non-government schools, colleges and Technical and Further Education (TAFE) institutions. Under the Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Board (VCAB), VCE English was one of three core subjects to be implemented in 1990 alongside maths and Australian Studies, replacing the multiple and divergent Englishes taught across the state (Gill, 1994). Through various iterations in the following three decades, VCE English has maintained its status as a central feature of the VCE qualification as well as an area of keen public and scholarly interest.…”