This essay explored the mechanisms of power and the socio-structure of a secondary school setting.  I explored how neo-liberalism had permeated the culture of school through the culture of Ofsted and accountability, leading to the de-professionalisation of educators. I applied the theories of Foucault (1977), to explore methods of physical and metaphorical surveillance concluding with an analysis of the conflict between participant-led models of learning and the institution of schools.  To highlight the discontinuity, I retrospectively analysed a project undertaken at masters level, where students were invited to produce a piece of self-generated art with no measurable outcome.  The essay concluded by hypothesising that the space for self-generated art within the art curriculum is limited, due to the problematic nature of measuring outcomes for assessment purposes within the school environment.

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