<b>Randall Curren</b> is Professor and Chair of the Philosophy Department and Professor of Education at the University of Rochester, NY. He has published in philosophy of education, law, ethics, and history of philosophy, including <i>Aristotle on the Necessity of Public Education</i> (2000). He is the editor of <i>A Companion to the Philosophy of Education</i> (Blackwell, 2003) and of the journal <i>Theory and Research in Education.</i>
Selected for their focus on important issues of educational practice as well as their philosophical merit and readability, the readings include seminal selections from Plato, Aristotle, Socrates, Locke, Rousseau, Mill, and Dewey, as well as numerous contemporary writings. The five major sections of the text correspond to the five basic normative dimensions of educational practice: its nature and aims, the authority it rests on, its responsibilities, the manner in which it is conducted, and the content that is communicated or learned. This innovative framework gives the collection its comprehensive scope, while keeping the focus on the fundamental philosophical issues of educational practice and policy.