This book provides a significant contribution to the sociology of education. Bringing together current academic debates in Europe and the Americas, the volume connects theoretical debates with empirical data, and a critical analysis of our existing social reality with a language of possibility and transformation. Critique and Utopia: New Developments in the Sociology of Education in the Twenty First Century is an important reading for all those interested in the role that education plays - and could play - in the struggles for democracy in the current context of neoliberal globalization and beyond.

Daniel Schugurensky, University of Arizona

This set of essays by prominent international scholars provides exciting new perspectives on the challenges facing education systems in a period of intensified globalization. Moving beyond penetrating critiques of the role national school systems play in maintaining inequitable social structures, the authors offer alternative visions of a liberating education that will lead to more just and democratic societies. The section on theoretical frameworks introduces fresh insights on the scholarly contributions of Basil Bernstein, Pierre Bourdieu, and Paulo Freire to a transformative education. Critique and Utopia will be of particular interest to students in the sociology of education, comparative and international education, and policy studies.

Robert F. Arnove