Jonathan Doney is a lecturer at the University of Exeter's Graduate School of Education where he teaches history of education and education policy. His research interests focus on educational policy development, methodological innovation and the transmission of educational ideas.

CHAPTER 1 - An Introduction to Statement Archaeology

Introduction

Becoming familiar with Statement Archaeology

Theoretical foundations

Foucault's principles for historical enquiry

Statement Archaeology in practice

Selecting appropriate starting points

Interrogating the statements selected

Contextualising English Religious Education

The introduction and maintenance of compulsory provision of RE

English RE a story of Indoctrination, Ideology and Instrumentalization?

Indoctrination

Ideologies in RE

Instrumentalization in English RE

Current debates in English RE

Structure of the book

Notes

CHAPTER 2 - How Did The Provision of RE Become Compulsory?

Introduction

The criteria of formation of Statement One

Circumstances of production

Authorship and authority of Statement One

The criteria of transformation of Statement One

Statement One in context

Assessing the originality of Statement One

1944 Education Act

Educational Reconstruction: the 1943 White Paper

Educational Aims - The Conservative and Unionist Party Report

The Green Book, June 1941

The Archbishops' Five Points of 1941

The programmatic nature of Statement One

The criteria of correlation of Statement One

Correlation between Statement One and its own domain of discourse

Correlation between Statement One and other domains of discourse

Religion in Education

The Times, 1940 and 1941

Subsequent repetitions of Statement One

How did it become possible for the provision of religious teaching to be made compulsory under the 1944 Education Act?

Notes

CHAPTER 3 - Making Little Christians

Introduction

The criteria of formation of Statement Two

Circumstances of production

The Institute of Christian Education (ICE) Study and Research Committee

Religious Education in Schools: The 1954 Report

Authorship and authority of the report

The criteria of transformation of Statement Two

Assessing the originality of Statement Two

The Programmatic nature of Statement Two

The criteria of correlation of Statement Two

Correlation between Statement Two and its own domain of discourse

Correlation between Statement Two and other domains of discourse

Subsequent repetition and non/repetition of Statement Two

Changing rules for the repeatability of Statement Two.

The rise and fall of proselytizational RE?

Notes

CHAPTER 4 - Unearthing Religious Pluralism in RE

Introduction

The criteria of formation of Statement Three

The context in which WP36 was produced

The Religious Education in Secondary Schools Project

Production, authorship and authoritative status of WP36

The criteria of transformation of Statement Three

Assessing the originality of Statement Three

Towards the origin of the statement

The programmatic nature of Statement Three

The criteria of correlation of Statement Three

Correlation between Statement Three and its own domain of discourse

Correlation between Statement Three and other domains of discourse

Reception and subsequent repetition of Statement Three

Unearthing Religious Pluralism in RE

Notes

CHAPTER 5 - The Changing Peculiarity of Compulsory Religious Education

Introduction

The criteria of formation of Statements Four and Five

The political context in which the Education Reform Bill was produced

Religious Education and The Education Reform Bill 1987

The criteria of transformation of Statements Four and Five

Assessing the originality of Statement Four and Five

The origin of Statement Four

Responses to the Consultation Document

Attempts to include RE in the National Curriculum

RE and the Basic Curriculum

The origin of Statement Five

Exposing ideological commitments

Attempts to prescribe the content of Religious Education

RE should be predominantly Christian...

The programmatic nature of Statements Four and Five

The criteria of correlation of Statements Four and Five

Correlation between Statements Four and Five and their own domain of discourse

Correlation between Statements Four and Five and other domains of discourse

Initial repetition of Statement Four

Initial repetition of Statement Five

Subsequent repetition of Statements Four and Five

The changing peculiarities of compulsory Religious Education

Notes

CHAPTER 6 - Indoctrination, Ideology, and Instrumentalization in English RE

Introduction

How did the compulsory provision of RE become and remain possible?

To what extent is the story of English RE one of 'Indoctrination, Ideology and Instrumentalization'?

Informing current debates

Should RE remain compulsory?

By whom, and to what ends, should the content of the RE curriculum should be determined?

Should there be a right of withdrawal (and if so, how should it work)?

Understanding the process of change

Conclusion

Notes

CHAPTER 7 - Applying Statement Archaeology

Introduction

Revisiting the theoretical underpinnings of Statement Archaeology

Why Statement Archaeology and not Statement Genealogy?'

Why focus so much on the search for discontinuities?

What makes Statement Archaeology different to other approaches to Critical Discourse Analysis?

Revisiting the use of Statement Archaeology in practice

Balancing the three criteria

Using multiple starting points

Which avenues of investigation to follow?

Interpretation of artefacts

Reflecting on the use of Statement Archaeology in other fields

What might Statement Archaeology reasonably achieve in your work?

What ethical issues should you consider?

What potential developments might affect your use of Statement Archaeology?

Using Statement Archaeology in your work

Conclusion

Notes

This book presents the theoretical basis and practical steps involved in using Statement Archaeology, an innovative method that enhances understandings of policy development, exemplifying its use in relation to one curriculum subject, Religious Education.
The book is the first of its kind to fully describe the theoretical foundations of Statement Archaeology and the practical steps in its deployment, acting as a methodological handbook that will enable readers to use the method subsequently in their own research. Further, the book offers an unparalleled contribution to the historical account of the development and maintenance of compulsory RE in English state-maintained schools and uses this to engage with key current debates in Religious Education policy. It unearths important insights into how the present is built, informs future policy direction and potential implementation strategies, and helps prevent the repetition of unsuccessful past endeavours.
This book will be of great interest for academics, researchers and post-graduate students in the fields of religious education, educational policy and politics, and research methods in education.