Growing educational ambitions, today raised to a historically unprecedented level and shared by parents, the state and educational professionals, seem to not always result in happier children. With more parents apparently becoming more uncertain about their educational capacities, the variety of categories of children at risk is increasing, alongside unprecedented growth in welfare, educational investment, laws on children¿s protection and rights, and knowledge about children and education. This book addresses the topic of educational ambitions and spaces in a European context from the 17th century to the present, paying special attention to the Dutch case, from three perspectives. Firstly, it looks at how educational ambitions have changed from the 17 century to the present. Secondly, it looks at the role of the educational space. Finally, it addresses the issue of how the educational ambition of acting in the children¿s best interests is connected with the phenomenon of children at risk.

Contents: Educational ambitions and spaces in Europe from the 17th century to the present ¿ The relationship between acting in the children¿s best interests and the phenomenon of children at risk ¿ The shifting educational power between parents, state, and educational professionals ¿ Sources and paintings.

Jeroen Dekker is Professor of History and Theory of Education at the University of Groningen (Netherlands). He was a visiting professor at the European University Institute in Florence and at the European Institute of Columbia University in New York. A former President of ISCHE, he is Co-Editor-in-Chief of Paedagogica Historica. Among his publications are The Will to Change the Child (2001), Het verlangen naar opvoeden [The Educational Aspiration] (2006) and numerous articles in scholarly journals.