John White

John White proposes that concepts of intelligence, as expressed in England and America, and the school curriculum are, and have been, linked at the level of policy for centuries. He contests:

However influential the two core notions have been, if you look for sound supporting arguments behind them, you will be disappointed. There are no solid grounds for innate differences in IQ; and there are none for the traditional subject-based curriculum. p. 1

White, J. (2006) Intelligence, Destiny and Education: The ideological roots of intelligence testing. London; Routledge

John White's book has helped me make so much sense of what I found very puzzling and I have written a review of Intelligence, Destiny and Education for Gifted Education International saying why. I wrote two different versions so this may not be the one that is published. This piece in the Guardian 'What's the point of being bright as a button?' is a delightful introduction to this book and to John White

Have a read of his piece  Towards an Aims Led Curriculum on the QCA site.

or this one,

White, J. (2007) What are schools for and why. Impact No. 14 published by the Philosophy of Education Society of Great Britain. Notes. If you cant get it from a library then you can buy it from the society ordering online.

White, J. (2005) Howard Gardner: the Myth of Multiple Intelligences - Viewpoint 16. London Institute of Education. An interesting critique of Gardner's work before John published his Intelligence, Destiny and Education book in 2006.

A list of his publications can be found on the London Institute of Education