Jean Esther Floud (''née'' McDonald; 3 November 1915 – 28 March 2013) was a prominent educational sociologist and later an academic. She was Principal of

Newnham College Newnham College is a women's constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college was founded in 1871 by a group organising Lectures for Ladies, members of which included philosopher Henry Sidgwick and suffragist campaigner Millicent ...

, Cambridge, from 1972 to 1983.

Early life

She was born Jean Esther McDonald to working-class parents and went to primary and secondary schools in her home town of

Westcliff-on-Sea Westcliff-on-Sea (often abbreviated to Westcliff) is an inner city area of the city of Southend-on-Sea, in the City of Southend-on-Sea, in the ceremonial county of Essex, England. It is on the north shore of the lower Thames Estuary, about 34 m ...

, Essex. In 1927, the family moved to

Stoke Newington Stoke Newington is an area occupying the north-west part of the London Borough of Hackney in north-east London, England. It is northeast of Charing Cross. The Manor of Stoke Newington gave its name to Stoke Newington the ancient parish. The ...

, north London where she won a free place at North Hackney Central School for Girls, a grammar school. She studied sociology at

London School of Economics , mottoeng = To understand the causes of things , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £240.8 million (2021) , budget = £391.1 millio ...

(LSE) under

David Glass David Glass may refer to: *David Glass (businessman) (1935–2020), American executive *David Glass (Canadian politician) (1829–1906), Canadian lawyer and political figure * David Glass (Israeli politician) (1936–2014), Israeli politician *Davi ...

, TH Marshall,

Morris Ginsberg Morris Ginsberg FBA (14 May 1889 – 31 August 1970) was a British sociologist, who played a key role in the development of the discipline. He served as editor of ''The Sociological Review'' in the 1930s and later became the founding chairma ...

and

Karl Mannheim Karl Mannheim (born Károly Manheim, 27 March 1893 – 9 January 1947) was an influential Hungarian sociologist during the first half of the 20th century. He is a key figure in classical sociology, as well as one of the founders of the sociolo ...

. She graduated from LSE as a Hobhouse Memorial Prize winner in 1936.

Academic work

Floud worked as the assistant director of education in Oxford (1940–46), then returned to LSE and taught there and at the Institute of Education (1947‑62). With

A. H. Halsey Albert Henry 'Chelly' Halsey (13 April 1923 – 14 October 2014) was a British sociologist. He was Emeritus Professor of Social and Administrative Studies at the Department of Social Policy and Intervention, University of Oxford, and a Fellow of ...

and F. M. Martin, she co-authored ''Social Class and Educational Opportunity'' (1956). Her next book was ''Education, Economy, and Society: A Reader in the Sociology of Education'' (1961), co-authored with Halsey and . ''Social Class and Educational Opportunity'' gave evidence that the 11-plus exam for grammar school entrance was unfair for working-class children. Floud wrote that "within wide limits, the educability of children is determined by the subtle interaction of the social influences of home and school". Their findings started a long debate on the value and fairness of the 11-plus exam.

Academic posts

In 1962 Floud was appointed as the second female Fellow of

Nuffield College Nuffield College () is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. It is a graduate college and specialises in the social sciences, particularly economics, politics and sociology. Nuffield is one of Oxford's newer co ...

, Oxford (1962–72). She was made an Honorary Fellow at Nuffield in 1983. Floud was a member of the committee who produced the Franks Report (1957) which proposed reforms to ensure a more efficient administration of Oxford University. Her membership of this led, in 1972, to an invitation to become Principal of Newnham College, Cambridge. Following her retirement as Principal of Newnham College in 1983 she was elected into an Honorary Fellowship of the college. She was made an Honorary Fellow of Darwin College, Cambridge in 1986 and also received honorary degrees from the universities of Leeds (1973), City (1978) and London (2003).

Honours

Floud was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire in the

1976 New Year Honours The New Year Honours 1976 were appointments in many of the Commonwealth realms of Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries. They were announced on 1 January 1976 to celebra ...

. She turned down the offer of a life peerage from James Callaghan's Labour government.

Publications

* ''Social Class and Educational Opportunity'' (1956), co-authored with A. H. Halsey and F. M. Martin * ''Education, Economy, and Society: A Reader in the Sociology of Education'' (1961), co-authored with A. H. Halsey and C Arnold Anderson * ''The Sociology of Education: A Trend Report and Bibliography'' (1965) * ''Dangerousness and Criminal Justice'' (Heinemann, 1981), co-authored with Warren A. Young

Personal life

Jean Esther McDonald was born in Westcliff-on-Sea, Essex. Her father was a cobbler and shoe salesman. Her mother was a shop assistant who suffered from frequent ill-health. While at LSE she met

Peter Floud Peter Castle Floud CBE, (1 June 1911 – 22 January 1960) was a British civil servant and official of the United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration, administering missions in Egypt, Iran, and Albania. He was also an authority on Will ...

, an Oxford graduate. The couple joined the

Communist Party A communist party is a political party that seeks to realize the socio-economic goals of communism. The term ''communist party'' was popularized by the title of ''The Manifesto of the Communist Party'' (1848) by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. A ...

and married in 1938. They had three children: Andrew (1948-1982); Frances (b. 1952); and Esther (b. 1956). Peter died of a brain tumour in 1960; their son Andrew died in a plane crash in 1982. After Newnham in 1983, Floud retired to Oxford where she died on 28 March 2013. During her retirement she travelled and continued to serve on university committees. She also spent time with her friends, her books, her music, and with the families of her two surviving children Frances and Esther.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Floud, Jean 1915 births 2013 deaths Alumni of the London School of Economics British sociologists British women sociologists Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Comprehensive education Fellows of Newnham College, Cambridge Fellows of Nuffield College, Oxford People from Westcliff-on-Sea Principals of Newnham College, Cambridge