Book
The Education and Training of Public Servants
In this book, several international historians and public administration experts provide a comprehensive overview of the history of educating and training civil servants in various countries in Europe, the US, Canada and Australia since the early 19th century.
- Author
- Toon Kerkhoff and Denis Moschopoulus
- Date
- 02 February 2024
- Links
- Read the full book here
For this book, edited and co-authored by Toon Kerkhoff and Denis Moschopoulos (Ionian University - Greece), several historians looked at systems and practices of education and training for civil servants since the early 19th century. Chapters focus mainly on European countries, but also cover the United States, Canada and Australia. The book provides the first comparative analysis of the implementation, functioning and impact of public servant education and training in historical perspective.
Contributions in the book show how changing national political-administrative traditions and new administrative tasks - arising from social, political and economic events - led to changes in expectations of the 'good' civil servant and his or her knowledge and skills. The book thereby expands knowledge of the role of government, both as an employer and as a maker and implementer of policy, and shows how historical analysis is useful to also inform current debates on public service, government reform and good governance. In light of contemporary debates about civil service professionalism, ethics and civil service activism, (historically informed) discussions about their education and training should not be missing.