In <i>Aspirations, Education and Social Justice: Applying Sen and Bourdie</i>u, Caroline Sarojini Hart provides a new and innovative approach to understand how aspirations are developed and realized ... The strongest parts of the book are the chapters where Hart unfolds the impressive data set she produced through the Bradford and Sheffield studies. Especially, the insightful, thoughtful, and often witty interview extracts are introduced eloquently, and ... illustrate Hart’s eminence in conducting interviews ... <i>Aspirations, Education and Social Justice: Applying Sen and Bourdieu</i> is a well-written and well-researched book that introduces a new approach to evaluate the ways in which students build aspirations and how they transform aspirations into decisions ... The book is therefore highly recommended for scholars interested in Sen’s capability approach and for policy-makers involved in the education sector.

Journal of Human Development and Capabilities

This is a wonderfully probing work on the contribution of aspiration and confidence in education, along with the role of education in the pursuit of social justice. Caroline Hart combines lessons from her empirical investigations with a sharp understanding of the conceptual and analytical problems that bear on this centrally important issue in public policy and social ethics. The result is a deeply engaging book with important lessons on a neglected aspect of educational policy.

Amartya Sen, Thomas W. Lamont University Professor, and Professor of Economics and Philosophy, Harvard University, USA