A Memoir and Essays
by W. Roy Niblett
With a Foreword by Sir William Taylor
ISBN 1-84289-002-6
In this book, the late Professor Roy Niblett CBE, chronicles his exceptional career from early days in a village near Bristol before the First World War, through to his work as a teacher and subsequently as a leading academic and member of educational policy-making bodies.
Effectively, Life, Education, Discovery is an historical document covering a period of important changes and developments in British education from the 1930s onwards, written by one who was involved.
One of Roy Niblett's more distinctive features as an educator has been his belief in the importance of moral substance and religiously-based values in the education we provide both for the young and in the training of teachers. At a time when government policy is recognising the power of religious belief in creating the basis for a sound education, Roy Niblett's long-held convictions take on new significance and importance. His ability to combine a liberal and humanitarian view of religion with a deep understanding of contemporary philosophical ideas makes this book a stimulating and informative experience. It is essential reading for anyone interested in the history and philosophy of education.
Roy Niblett is held in high esteem by a number of notable figures in British life. Among the comments Life, Education, Discovery has elicited are:
In a career that goes back to the early 30s, he has always endeavoured to ensure that the education we provide embodies humanity, moral substance and vision.
He continues in this penetrating, thoughtful and entertaining book to contribute to our thinking about the education and the values appropriate to the twenty-first century. His argument is rooted in a faith that there is much beyond human limitations of mind and sense, beyond human knowledge, which will help to bring us hope; to bring stability and confidence into our lives - and into the life of twenty-first century Britain. Sir William Taylor
I relived and refreshed myself by reading this book with great pleasure and admiration. It brings back so much within the context of a full and well-lived life. It is a splendid record. Richard Hoggart
I am delighted that Roy Niblett has been encouraged to publish this short autobiography and some of his seminal papers. I commend them strongly. His shrewd, lively and amusing comments on faith and life are as relevant as ever. Rt Revd David Jenkins (formerly Bishop of Durham)
Roy Niblett was the first person to be awarded a chair in Higher Education at a British university. Before that he was Dean of London University’s Institute of Education, his previous appointments having included professorships at Hull and Leeds.
His early career included an appointment as Senior English Master at Doncaster Grammar School and university posts at Newcastle and Durham.
His work as a lecturer and consultant in education has taken him all over the world - to such diverse places as Japan, Australia, New Zealand, Iran, South Africa, Hong Kong, Canada, the USA and pre-War Russia
Other commitments have included ten years service on the University Grants Committee, Chairmanship of the Education Dept of the British Council of Churches, of the Higher Education Foundation and the Governing Body of Westhill College, Birmingham. He has been a Trustee of Lucy Cavendish College, Cambridge, a member of the Council of Cheltenham Ladies' College, the Army Education Council, the West Riding and Gloucestershire Education Committees and the Bristol Polytechnic (now the University of the West of England).
Roy Niblett has been awarded a CBE for services to education.
Areas covered by Roy Niblett's collection of essays include:
- The Needs of the Child
- The Training of Teachers
- The Job of the Humanities
- Education as a Humane Study
- On Existentialism and Education
- Education: the status quo is not an option
- Being, Having and Believing
- An Absence of Outrage: Cultural Change and British Higher Education
- A Diagnosis
- Doubt Versus Belief - Now
- The Challenge to Evolution
- A Modern Samaritan
- Religion - Can We Do Without It?
Click here for an extract from Life, Education, Discovery :
Religion – Can We Do Without It?
The UGC as It Was in 1949-59
Life, Education, Discovery (softback) is available directly from the publisher or from good bookshops in the UK
ISBN 1-84289-002-6
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