Closing the Gap: Conclusion

In this concluding chapter we wish to draw together some threads that are fundamental to closing the gap between the aspirations of those who would have teachers as functionaries and those whose desire is for teachers to transcend compliance and work towards transformational practices designed to ‘make hope practical’ as discussed at the conclusion of Chapter 11. To this end we wish to assert that the progressive notions of practice for which we are advocates are precarious in today's fiercely global society; that as one solution is generated it brings us face to face with new problems and new prospects; that we need to build resilience into professional practice as a means of strengthening the resolve to resist the more limiting impositions placed upon it, to consider what might constitute a ‘health check’ for the profession and to reflect upon what kinds of buffers might be put in place that will increase the scope of professional freedom.