On The Politics Of Educational Theory

On the Politics of Educational Theory considers the political significance of educational theory as a specific genre of public discourse. Rather than understanding educational theories solely as addressing issues of childrearing and instruction, this book aims to view educational theories in a broader socio-political context. It explores the role of educational theories in the construction of collective and political identities, and analyses them as rhetorical strategies operating as political discourses. Defining the methodological framework through the perspectives of Michel Foucault and Ernesto Laclau, each chapter examines the ways in which theories of education contribute to the creation of social realities and identities. Such issues as the construction of visibility and invisibility of power, the tropes of temporality, or the use of postulational language where theorists say what ‘should’ be done in and by education, are some of the threads that weave through particular theories – from Rousseau to the discourse of education in the knowledge-based society – analysed as ontological rhetorics constitutive of political identities. This book suggests a direction for a more conscious way of dealing with the political in education. As such, it will appeal to researchers, academics and postgraduate students in the fields of educational research, philosophy of education, curriculum studies, social and political theory, and theory of education.

First Published in 1999. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.

Complexity theory has become a major influence in discussions about the theory and practice of education. This book focuses on a question which so far has received relatively little attention in such discussions, which is the question of the politics of complexity.

The subject of education is a contentious issue in our world. The Politics of Education: An Introduction, critically examines the overt and covert political issues suffusing education. Questions of What is education?, What do we teach?, and How do we teach? are all political questions, the answers to which empower certain individuals, groups and viewpoints over others. This book explores the political contexts that shape our conceptions of education and guides our pedagogical practice. Contemporary educational theory and practice are taken to task for attempting to instill democratic values and a love of freedom anti-democratically with little to no freedom. For example, The Politics of Education considers the effects of standardized examinations on the individual and her ability to function in a democratic society. Critiques of contemporary educational theory and practice by Dewey, Foucault, Bourdeau, classical conservative thinkers and others are considered. This book examines education through historical and international lenses where appropriate. Alternative meanings and modes of education grounded in critical pedagogy are offered as steps in revolutionizing education. Tony Monchinski, a special education and social studies teacher in New York, has taught in the West Indies and Asia. He is a PhD candidate in Political Science at the Graduate Center of the City University of New York, where he studies the relationships between political ideologies and the uses of standardized exams. A freelance writer, Tony writes widely for a variety of publications, including a monthly column for MuscleMag International and frequent contributions to Cultural Logic, an online journal of Marxist theory and practice.

The essays in this collection address the relation between education and politics in new ways. Rather than understanding education simply as the object of political decision-making, or as preparation for politics, the authors of this volume see education as implicated in social conflicts and in the political processes that produce and change social structures. Education, then, is a practice that reconfigures the relations between subjectivities and the political. The collection focuses on several critical cases and theoretical debates where the relation between education and politics demands new articulations. It explores the potential of theoretical languages proposed by Rancière, Laclau, Derrida, Mouffe, Bakhtin, and other thinkers whose work has not yet been fully recognized in its pedagogical meaning.

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Stephen Ball's micro-political theory of school organization is a radical departure from traditional theories. He rejects a prescriptive 'top down' approach and directly addresses the interest and concerns of teachers and current problems facing schools. In doing so he raises question about the adequacy and appropriateness of the existing forms of organizational control in schools. Through case studies and interviews with teachers, the book captures the flavour of real conflicts in schools - particularly in times of falling rolls, change of leadership or amalgamations - when teachers' autonomy seems to be at stake.