Description: This concise new study covers the development of education throughout Great Britain from the Industrial Revolution to the Great War, a period in which urbanization, industrialization and population growth posed huge social and political problems, and education became one of the fiercest areas of conflict in society. Drawing on recent research, W. B. Stephens critically assesses the major topics of current historical controversy including geographical, gender and class variations in experience and attitudes, the connection between education and the Industrial Revolution, the possible link between Britain's later economic decline and the determinants of the spread of popular education. The primary focus of the book is the interrelationship of education and economic and social change, and significant political and administrative aspects of educational provision are also thoroughly reviewed.