Meghan Stacey 
The Business of Teaching [PDF ebook] 
Becoming a Teacher in a Market of Schools

This book explores the experiences of early career teachers in a profession that has become highly stratified by market processes. The author presents New South Wales, Australia as a case study: a state with a long history of academically selective and private sector schooling, which has become increasingly segregated under a series of neoliberalised policy reforms since the 1980s. The experiences of teachers in this book are rich and varied, from a variety of different contexts – ranging from public schools enrolling students experiencing significant educational disadvantage to elite independent schools serving much more advantaged student cohorts. Highlighting teachers’ experiences in themselves rather than their impact on students, this timely book will be of interest and value to scholars of sociology of education, teachers’ work and education policy.

Table of Content

Chapter 1. Born into the business: A study of the early career teacher as a market native.- Chapter 2. Who are our teachers?.- Chapter 3. Teachers’ work within the market: Cases from schools in the lower-tier.- Chapter 4. Teachers’ work within the market: Cases from schools in the mid-tier.- Chapter 5. Teachers’ work within the market: Cases from schools in the upper-tier.- Chapter 6. Supporting early career teachers across the market.- Chapter 7. A bad business: Implications of the market for teachers and systems.

About the author

Meghan Stacey is a lecturer in sociology of education and education policy in the School of Education at the University of New South Wales, Australia. She is also a former English and Drama teacher.