Social Efficiency And Instrumentalism In Education

Distinct among contemporary philosophical studies focused on education, this book engages the history of phenomenological thought as it moves from philosophy proper (the European phenomenological-hermeneutic tradition) through curriculum studies. It thus presents the "best of both worlds" for the reader; there is a "play" or movement from philosophy proper to educational philosophy and then back again in order to locate and explicate what is intimated, suggested, and in some cases, left "unsaid" by educational philosophers. This amounts to a work on education-philosophy that elucidates, through various permutations within the unique foci of each essay, the general phenomenological theme of the fundamental ontology of the human being as primordial learner. Reflecting his experience as scholar, teacher, and perennial learner, the author suggests how research in phenomenology might prove beneficial to the enhancement of both the theoretical and practical aspects of education; readers are invited to envision education as far more than merely a means by which to organize an effective learning experience in which knowledge is assimilated and skill sets are efficiently imparted, but rather as a holistic and integrated process in which knowing, acting, and valuing are original ways of Being-in-the-world.

Teachers not only serve as caretakers for the students in their classroom but also serve as stewards for society’s next generation. In this way, teachers are charged with responsibility for the present and the future of their world. Shouldering this responsibility is no less than an existential dilemma that requires not only professional solutions but also personal responsibility rooted in subjective authenticity. In the edited volume, authors will explore how the philosophy of Existentialism can help teachers, teacher educators, educational researchers, and policymakers better understand the existential responsibility that teachers shoulder. The core concepts of Existential philosophy explored in this edited volume imply that a teacher’s lived experience cannot be defined solely by professional knowledge or dictates. Teachers have the capacity to create subjective meaning through their own agency, and there is no guarantee that those subjective meanings will accord with professional dictates. Furthermore, there is no guarantee that professional dictates are more valid than the existential realities of individual teachers. The philosophy of Existentialism encourages individuals to reflect on the existential realities of isolation, freedom, meaninglessness, and death in an effort to propel individuals towards more authentic ways of engaging in the world. The chapters of this edited volume advance the argument that being and becoming a teacher must be understood – at least in part – from the subjective perspective of the individual and that teachers are responsible for authoring the meaning of their lives and of their work. ENDORSEMENTS: "At a time when the purpose of education is increasingly conceived in terms of attaining skills necessary for the job market, and teaching and learning are assessed in terms of objective outcomes, this collection of fresh essays on the existential dimension of education as an institution offers an indispensable corrective. In wide-ranging reflections on the professional and inter-personal aspects of education, the authors show how existentialism’s emphasis on subjectivity, authenticity, and lived experience can enrich our thinking about teaching and learning and improve our practices in the classroom as it exists now. Any educator seriously interested in his or her profession will find timely insights in this thoughtfully conceived volume." — Steven Crowell, Rice University Historically, education and educational science have been torn between, on the one hand, ideas stressing technical rationality, efficiency, and evidence-based approaches and, on the other hand, ideas highlighting the need for deeper understandings and imaginative orientations. In the light of these trends, the book Problematizing the Profession of Teaching from an Existential Perspective is a fresh contribution that offers new insights to the field of teacher professionalism and teacher development. I recommend this book to everyone who is interested in gaining a deeper understanding of what it means to be and become a teacher. — Silvia Edling, University of Gävle

"Schiro (Boston College) has written a text that examines curriculum theory for experience and pre-service educators with the purpose of understanding educational philosohpies or ideologies that they are likely to encounter in their teaching." —H.B. Arnold, CHOICE "The book provides readers with a clear, sympathetic and unbiased understanding of the four conflicting visions of curriculum that will enable them to more productively interact with educators who might hold different beliefs. The book stimulates readers to better understand their own beliefs and also to provide them with an understanding of alternate ways of thinking about the fundamental goals of education" —SIRREADALOT.ORG "A much needed, insightful view of alternative curriculum orientations. This is an exceptionally written book that will be useful to teachers, curriculum workers, and school administrators." —Marc Mahlios, University of Kansas "Curriculum Theory: Conflicting Visions and Enduring Concerns is a thought provoking text that invites self-analysis." —Lars J. Helgeson, University of North Dakota Curriculum Theory: Conflicting Visions and Enduring Concerns presents a clear, unbiased, and rigorous description of the major curriculum philosophies that have influenced educators and schooling over the last century. Author Michael Stephen Schiro analyzes four educational visions—Scholar Academic, Social Efficiency, Learner Centered, and Social Reconstruction—to enable readers to reflect on their own educational beliefs and allow them to more productively interact with educators who might hold different beliefs. Key Features Provides a historical perspective on the origins of curriculum ideologies: The book places our current educational debates and issues in a historical context of enduring concerns. Offers a model of how educational movements can be critically analyzed: Using a post-structuralist perspective, this model enables readers to more effectively contribute to the public debate about educational issues. Pays careful attention to the way language is used by educators to give meaning to frequently unspoken assumptions: The text's examination helps readers better understand curricular disagreements that occur in schools. Highlights the complexities of curriculum work in a social context: With an understanding of the ideological pressures exerted on them by society and colleagues, readers can put these pressures in perspective and maintain their own values, beliefs, and practices. Intended Audience This book is designed as a supplemental text for advanced undergraduate and graduate courses such as Curriculum Theory, Introduction to Curriculum and Instruction, Curriculum Philosophy, and Curriculum Theory and Practice in the department of education. Talk to the author! [email protected] To visit the author's web site, please visit: http://www2.bc.edu/~schiro/sage.html.

Drawing from studies with pre- and in-service teachers in Quebec, Smallest Circles First looks at how teacher agency engages with the educational calls to action from Canada’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission. Using drama education and theatre, Smallest Circles First explores how the classroom can be used as a liminal educational site to participate in reconciliatory praxis. Smallest Circles First presents several arts-based educational research examples that illustrate how the arts provide a space for students, teachers, and communities to explore and learn about reconciliation praxis and responsibilities. By implementing arts-based counter-narratives set against settler Canadian history and geography, Smallest Circles First considers the implications of systemic racism, colonization, and political, social, and economic ramifications of governmental policies. Tangible examples from the book showcase how teachers and students can use the arts to learn specifically about their responsibilities in engaging with Canada’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission, in addition to how this work can still meet curricular learning outcomes.

This edited book presents a critical vision of language and education policies and practices in Colombia, examining neoliberal perspectives which influence the promotion of English at all levels in the Colombian educational system. Some of the chapters emphasize questions of language teacher recognition and empowerment, while others focus on both teachers and students’ visions of national policies, particularly with regard to colonial and Eurocentric discourses and subsequent discriminatory practices. The volume throws light on recent language and education policies and practices in a South American country where much current research in this area is published in Spanish but not in English, and it gives visibility to voices that are often missing from the global conversation around English language teaching (ELT). Making these voices heard is part of a decolonial project that gives legitimacy to "unauthorized outlooks", embodies knowledge, and focuses on presenting alternatives to second language teaching-learning and research practices from the Global North ontoepistemology. This book will be of interest to students and scholars of ELT, Language Policies and Planning, Applied Linguistics, and Postcolonial and Decolonial Studies. It also has international appeal, as its localized gaze can bring about important considerations regarding other local knowledges.

Supervision: New Perspectives for Theory and Practice co-edited by two prominent scholars in the field (Jeffrey Glanz and Sally Zepeda),draws attention to supervision as a function that is often misunderstood, under-appreciated, and frequently controversial. Much has changed in the last two decades in the education world. These changes have inevitably influenced the theory and practice of supervision. This text includes some of the top scholars in the field in the USA to offer their insights to important topics and issues in supervision. To strike a balance, the editors also included award-winning practitioners who share their insights about supervision. We hope that this volume raises awareness to several critical issues that affect teachers, administrators, and policy makers. With the range of topics associated with supervision, we believe that the authors offer an informed and lively discussion of supervision in the present and future contexts of schools. Through our efforts, we believe that the multiple contexts in which supervision unfolds are examined alongside trends including high-stakes testing, the uses of data, the work superintendents do to supervise principals, and the type of supervision that builds a just and caring school culture that is culturally relevant and respectful for teachers and leaders.

In this volume, Pinar enacts his theory of curriculum, detailing the relations among knowledge, history, and alterity. The introduction is Pinar’s intellectual life history, naming the contributions he has made to understanding educational experience. Study is the center of educational experience, as he demonstrates in the opening chapter. The alterity of educational experience is evident in his conceptions of disciplinarity and internationalization, interrelated projects of historicization, dialogical encounter, and recontextualization. By reactivating the past, not by instrumentalizing the present, we can find the future, explicated in his studies of the Eight-Year Study, the Tyler Rationale, and the gendering and racialization of U.S. school reform. The interrelation of race and gender is emphasized in the chapters on Ida B. Wells and Jane Addams. The technologization of education is critiqued through analysis of the achievements of George Grant and Pier Paolo Pasolini. The educational project of subjective and social reconstruction is explored through study of Musil’s essayism, a genre that corrects the problems accompanying ethnography and created by identity politics.

This book proposes some insights and ideas into how education might be humanized. The chapters inform, provoke, and guide further inquiries into imagining and actualizing human education. It presents the view that education should be primarily understood as human education, which offers universal good for the entire planet. It centres around the significant values that make life, in a holistic sense, meaningful, worthwhile, and socially just. It discusses the fundamental idea that human education is the key to peace, individual and social freedoms, social justice and harmony, fraternity and happiness all over the world, and how educational ideals and methods must be reconsidered to achieve this end. This book originates from an international conference and round-table, “Human Education in the 3rd Millennium,” in July 2019 in Dharamsala, India.