| Abstract: | The Religious Society of Friends has a distinct public image, drawn from, in part, a jumble of perceptions drawn from a variety of sources (including the picture on porridge boxes). Friends themselves are sometimes reluctant to speak of a Quaker theology. It is easier to consider a sophisticated Quaker culture, which is predicated on experience and reflection, and the acting out of values rather than a complicated system of beliefs. Given this, what is a Quaker school? How does it transmit this culture to primary school children? Or is the only aspect of the school that is recognisably Quaker, the name on the school board on the gate? This article, through an analysis of the school prospectus and interviews, makes an initial exploration of the culture of a voluntary-controlled Quaker primary school and speculates on how consistent it is with values that are recognisably Quaker. It concludes by identifying a value system and code of expected behaviour that is consistent with Quaker values. The open statements made about that system and code in the school prospectus could allow it to be regarded, in Sergiovanni's terms, a virtuous school. |
