Examining the history of access to private education this work sheds light on the interaction of state, society and schooling. Organized historically, much of the analysis concentrates on contemporary political struggles, and evaluates the possibility of a unified educational system.

History of Education Review-"Tapper"s book will be of interest in Australia and New Zealand and, indeed, wherever governments have sought solutions to the reconciliation of public and private educational interests...To this reviewer"s way of thninking, Tapper"s proposal has considerable merit. Unlike the new consensual basis he detects for British education policy, however, Tapper"s disciplinary blueprint is less likely to find consensus in the scholarly community.