Community Shopping. Retail, social responsibility and support for schools.

Being asked by the cashier if we want ‘vouchers’ is now a regular occurrence in supermarkets. Rather than offering discounts, these vouchers help supply our children’s schools with technology and consumable materials. The significance of this phenomenon extends beyond mere marketing to the field of educational research for at least three reasons: 1) The relationship between public and private, market and education, which raises the issue of the relationship between schools, especially state schools, and companies. Does this not create a risk of overlapping consumer motivations and education? 2) Awareness within schools, where respect for the principle of meaningfulness is often lacking: before ‘what’ to buy or ‘how’ to use it in the classroom, we should be asking ‘why’. 3) The great educational tradition in corporate contexts, distinguished by captains of industry moved by profound pedagogical awareness and sensitivity. In light of points-collection programmes for schools, it is interesting to measure the degree to which this phenomenon still exists. These reasons form the basis of this book, which, by reflecting on the activities of three retail leaders in our country, is the first investigation in a field of research that will no doubt merit further study in future: the relationship between schools and the market in the case of large-scale distribution.