Catalyst of Change: John Guthrie Kerr and the Adaptation of an Indigenous Scottish Tradition.

The article focuses on the late 19th and early 20th Scottish private school administrator John Guthrie Kerr, who was headmaster of Allan's Glen private school in Glasgow, Scotland. Kerr's tenure there is examined in terms of his role in advancing the philosophy of education associated with private schools in England and its elite universities, Oxford and Cambridge. His introduction of organized sports as part of the school's activities and stress on the merits of physical education is considered. The benefits of sports and exercise were important tenets of the philosophy and organization of private schools and universities in England. Kerr's success in popularizing these ideas within Scotland's system of education is discussed.