STEPHEN J. BALL is Karl Mannheim Professor of the Sociology of Education at the Institute of Education, University of London. His work is in "policy sociology" and he has conducted a series of ESRC funded studies that focus on issues of social class and policy. His recent books include The Education Debate (Policy Press 2008), Education Plc (Routledge 2007), Education Policy and Social Class (Routledge 2006), and, with Carol Vincent, Childcare Choice and Class Practices (Routledge 2005). He has an honorary doctorate from Turku University, Finland, is a visiting professor at the University of San Andres, Buenos Aires, and is a Fellow of the British Academy.

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