Markets and mobilities : dilemmas facing the comprehensive neighbourhood school

This article explores issues of mobility in education in terms of the neo-liberal and neo-conservative agendas which, it is argued, are absenting the state from its democratic obligation to educate an Australian public. The neo-liberal orientation to education legitimates 'market forces', placing school choice as a major driver of educational provision, while the neo-conservative agenda supports the rationing of education so that even families of modest means can set themselves apart from those who are poor or poorly educated (Lewis, Gewirtz & Clarke 2000, Gewirtz, Ball & Bowe 1995). These new agendas represent substantial shifts from the normative commitments of the past. From their creation in the late nineteenth century, Australia's public education systems offered a free education for all, and sought to establish a common civic culture funded by the state. Most importantly, they were intended to constitute the quality, character and virtues of the democratic nation-state. Yet the settlements that underpinned these systems contained unfortunate contradictions, setting up tensions that are still unresolved.