Rethinking The Politics Of Education

Rethinking the Politics of Education provides an entirely original rethinking of the modern and contemporary mythology of education. Problematizing the ideas concerning education as fulfilment and redemption, the book critically reviews the association of education with projects of social justice, democracy and improvement. This book argues for a fundamental rethinking of what education is, exploring how things stand with education and educational apparatuses in the contemporary world. It examines relations between educational discourses and their implied ontological stances and offers new ways of thinking that draw on ontological positions from psychoanalytical, philosophical and social discourses. The book contends that education is an essential form of politics and must be understood through a careful examination of its history modes of operation and its basic structures, rather than an idealized version of what it might be. Presenting an original and alternative account of a theoretically informed political ontology of education, the book will be of great interest to academics, researchers and postgraduate students interested in the philosophy of education, the politics of education, educational theory and the sociology of education.

Advocates of school vouchers and other choice proposals couch their arguments in the fashionable language of economic theory. Choice initiatives at all levels of government have succeeded, it is claimed, because they shift responsibility for education reform from government to market forces. This timely book disputes the appropriateness of the market metaphor as a guide to education policy.

Education Now is a clear and persuasive account of the way in which popular seventeenth- and eighteenth-century theories about the human condition formed the basis for America's choices in the realms of politics, economics, and education. Theobald chronicles the fate of alternative, less popular ideas about the human condition-ideas that would have led to vastly different political, economic, and educational landscapes than those we experience today. This book exposes the flaws among prevalent theories and the strength of those alternatives that were dismissed or ignored. In so doing, Theobald points the way toward substantive changes across three dimensions ubiquitous to human life: politics, economics, and education.

This book offers a variety of outlooks and perspectives on the constitutive values and formative norms of a society, reflected by discourses on ethical-political education. It also discusses conceptual and critical philosophical works combined with empirical studies. The book is divided into three parts: the first part describes contemporary youth’s tangible experience of and reflections on ethical-political issues, while the second part explores the potential powers and pitfalls of educational philosophies, old and new. The third part highlights cutting edge issues within the humanities and social sciences, and examines the prospects of a fruitful rethinking of ethical-political education in response to today’s pressing issues. By addressing current dilemmas with diligence and insight, the authors offer solid arguments for new theoretical and practical directions to promote philosophical clarification and advance research. Intended for students, teachers and researchers, the book provides fresh perspectives on the many facets of ethical-political education, and as such is a valuable contribution to educational research and debate.

This collection discusses and analyzes the efficacy of media education around the world, paying particular attention to whether and how it improves the critical thinking skills of students. Many books describe the importance of media education, but few evaluate its effectiveness. Implicit is a belief that without a thorough understanding of the extent to which media education achieves its aims, or fails to do so, its potential cannot be fulfilled.

First Published in 2001. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.

Rethinking Knowledge within Higher Education argues for a higher education that is neither a romantic idyll of learning for its own sake nor an instrumental institution designed to train a willing workforce for the prevailing economic system. Instead, using analysis informed by critical theorist Theodor Adorno, this book argues that higher education should have social and economic roles at its heart, and that these should encompass the needs of all society. The key to achieving this purpose without privilege lies in the ways in which knowledge is understood and engaged with in higher education. Higher education has a special role in society as a place in which complex, contested and dynamic knowledge is engaged with, challenged and created. The realization of this purpose challenges traditional dichotomies between economic and social purposes, liberal and vocational education, and theory and practice. Jan McArthur shows that by interpreting and adapting some of Adorno's most complex ideas, the nature of knowledge and the pursuit of social justice within higher education is feasible and aspirational.

"Rethinking Online Education" analyzes online educational materials on the recent Iraq war aimed to be used by U.S. educators in elementary and secondary schools. It is suggested that far from being ideologically neutral, these educational materials weave together resources which provide a coherent view of the Iraq war theme, and can thus been seen as constituting a kind of an informal curriculum. Mitsikopoulou argues that the teacher resources adhere to different pedagogical discourses and constitute materializations of two broad approaches to education. A number of pedagogical issues are also raised in the discussion: What is the difference between critical thinking and critical pedagogy? How is the genre of lesson plan realized in different teaching philosophies and how do curricular texts change when they are delivered online? This important book highlights the need to explore the new forms of textuality which emerge from online curricular materials and to develop an understanding of the processes of text composition, distribution and consumption.