Showing papers on "Democratic education published in 2012"

Voz del alumnado y presencia participativa en la vida escolar. Apuntes para una cartografía de la voz del alumnado en la mejora educativa Student Voice and Participatory Presence in School Life. Notes for Mapping Student Voice in Educational Improvement

Abstract: This article sets out to analyse the different meanings conveyed by the concept of student voice. The expression student voice has come to be used as an umbrella term to cover any kind of initiative that enhances and encourages student participation in schools. However, it is in reality a polysemic term that refers to school experiences that vary greatly and range widely in pedagogical reach and meaning. A framework is therefore proposed with five axes of analysis for charting student participation in school life and reaching a better understanding of the depth and approach of different participation initiatives and the extent to which they truly contribute to school improvement and change. The size of the role played by the student in student voice initiatives can be an element/factor that supports radically different civic education models. The targets of student participation range from the more curricular sphere to the organisational, and the terrains in which students operate vary from the classroom to the community. In addition, participation is enacted differently depending on student age, personal conditions and academic status. Student participation can adopt various formats; there are certain things that each format silences or allows students to express. Lastly, the article seeks to open up channels for debate and to provide new arguments as to the possibilities of student participation in schools as a tool for a more inclusive, democratic education.

Sorting Citizens: Differentiated Citizenship Education in Singapore.

Abstract: Using Singapore as a case study, this paper examines how the discourses of democratic elitism and meritocracy help allocate different citizen roles to students and define the nature of the social studies citizenship education programmes for different educational tracks. While the Singapore education system is not unique in its stratification of students into distinct educational tracks with diverse educational outcomes, it is one of the very few countries with explicitly differentiated formal national citizenship curricula for students from different educational tracks. Students are formally allocated different citizenship roles and responsibilities according to the hierarchy defined by the state. Three distinct roles can be identified: (1) elite cosmopolitan leaders; (2) globally-oriented but locally-rooted mid-level executives and workers; and (3) local ‘heartlander’ followers. To cater to these different citizen roles, the three programmes encompass significantly different curricular goals, content, mo...

Implementing the democratic principles and practices of student-centred curriculum integration in primary schools

Abstract: Student-centred curriculum integration (CI) is a concept underpinned by democratic education. It places students at the centre of learning, involving them in classroom decisions and curriculum planning. Most research on this approach has been situated in the middle years, but this study focuses on primary schooling. This project examined what happened when three teachers, located in three New Zealand schools, explored the democratic principles and practices inherent in student-centred curriculum integration. The project utilised participatory action research (PAR) methodology supported by multiple data sources. The findings indicated that this form of curriculum design provides relevant, engaging and equitable learning environments. The teachers found that by slowly increasing the level of student inclusion they gained the confidence and competence to collaboratively co-construct curriculum with students.

Bringing more to participation Participation in school activities of persons with disability within the framework of the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health for Children and Youth (ICF-CY)

Abstract: As societies the world over move towards defining inclusive and effective education systems this presents the educator with the new challenge of providing an equal and democratic education environm ...

Democracy, Education and Development: Theory and Reality

Abstract: This article explores the relationships between education and democracy in developing countries. It discusses the nature of “development” and in particular the idea of political indicators of development. The paper then discusses modernisation theory in relation to education as providing a necessary, but not sufficient, bureaucratic basis for democratic political development. These ideas are then examined in relation to the realities of schooling in developing countries and the problems of providing learners with both an effective organisational experience and a democratic one. While there are many examples of good practice in relation to democratic education in developing countries, there are also many obstacles and the dominant model of schooling is still authoritarian. The article then focuses on South Africa as a case study of a developing country that has attempted to introduce more democratic forms of schooling but where authoritarianism persists in education despite some democratic progress. The paper ends by discussing why democratic education remains a minority practice globally and the key obstacles it faces.

The Importance of Belonging: Learning from the Student Experience of Democratic Education:

Abstract: This article grew out of an extensive piece of grounded theory research that explored students’ experiences of democratic education. A small democratic school in the south of England is used as a c...

Students' Communication and Positive Outcomes in College Classrooms

Abstract: Introduction Classroom communication is an important factor in developing students' learning in higher education institutions. According to Hubbel and Hubbel, "education is significantly more than information transmission and skill building. It is also very importantly a developmental process both for student and instructor" (2010, p. 351). Higher learning institutions provide students with various opportunities to develop their communication skills. Many of these opportunities involve giving students chances to participate in classroom activities that involve them academically and socially with both faculty and peers. Although "universities are currently facing the dual challenges of enhancing the quality of teaching and learning" (Murray & Summerlee, 2007, p. 88), faculty members routinely find ways of enhancing students' classroom experience by selecting an appropriate pedagogy that involves students in activities such as discussion, dialogue, debate, group work, and presentations. According to Petress, "students learn best when they take an active process, not a passive one" (2006, p. 821). Thus, while it is not easy to succeed in creating a classroom that is full of active participation (Weaver, 2005), the behavior and expectations established by the instructor influence students' learning; this is specifically true in regard to transformational leadership, as it positively effects students' learning outcomes and participation (Bolkan & Goodboy, 2009). Review of Literature Students' classroom participation has a positive impact on both students and their professors, as "classrooms are the workplace for the instructor and students, where statuses are defined, goals and tasks are laid out, and rules are specified" (Weaver, 2005, p. 571). Students' classroom engagement is therefore related to students' academic development in terms of their learning and overall experience (Cheng, 2004). For example, when students are actively involved in classroom discussions, they feel as though they are being treated as adults (Bradbury & Mather, 2009), and this positively enhances graduation and retention rates (Svanum & Bigatti, 2009). Factors Affecting Students "Classroom Participation: Motivation toward the course Beran and Violato (2009) found that students are primarily interested in participating in the classroom when they had positive reactions and were motivated in the course. The students were also more engaged in applied and elective courses. Also, course work load affect students' engagement, as students focused and engaged in the course when the work load required more involvement. However, there are some "students who are interested in a particular topic, maybe actively engaged, regardless of how the course is offered" (Beran & Violato, 2009, p. 2). The familiarity of the topic and its interest to the students can also motivate them for participation (Ezzedeen, 2008). Therefore, students' interest in participation may differ per course based on their level of interest and attractiveness of the topic. Some course content may be related to students' experiences, therefore they find it highly interesting to participate. However; other course content may be conceptually difficult and students may not relate or have no knowledge, therefore, they have no interest in participation. Faculty members David (2004) conducted a qualitative case study of six students concerning classroom interaction and participation. The study indicated that instructors often play a great role in facilitating or encouraging students' participation. The study results also found that some students knowingly dominate class discussions, while others are passive. However, regardless of the equality of participation, the students did not prefer to have the faculty require all of them to participate in a classroom discussion. Overall, it is found that active participation provides the faculty and students with an enriched environment for the improvement of democratic education (Patchen, 2006). …

Implications of EFL Critical Pedagogy : Theory, Practice and Possibility

Abstract: This paper offers a historical background of how critical pedagogy has emerged, and how it has been adopted to the field of language education. The author then provides support for Crooks’ (2010) argument that more practical examples of critical pedagogical EFL literature need to be reported. The paper also gives practical applications of this theory. Theoretical Background History The most prominent educational theory which should be studied in order to understand the historical background of critical pedagogy is progressivism. Darling and Nordenbo (2002) summarize the five main themes of progressivism to be the following: a criticism of traditional education, a new understanding of the conception of knowledge, a new understanding of human nature, a democratic education, and the development of the whole person. "Progressive" educators believe that knowledge should be based on the child’s natural interest and curiosity, and that traditional schooling does not serve the child's needs and interests. Progressive educators see humans as natural learners. This fundamental theory is integrated by identifying a mismatch between what children actually want to learn and what the traditionalists insist that they ought to learn, with the belief that traditional schooling is unsatisfactory. Crooks (2010) explains that Dewey, a well known figure in the evolvement of progressivism, is important in order to recognize and acknowledge regarding the historical tradition and practice of critical pedagogy. Dewey emphasized learning through activities rather than formal curricula, and he opposed authoritarian methods. His left-wing social reconstructionist theories and works are said to be responsible for the change in pedagogy that began in the United States

Leva och lära demokrati? : En etnografisk studie i två gymnasieprogram

Abstract: The aim of this study is to acquire knowledge regarding democratic education in upper secondary school programmes with different gender and social class profiles. It covers the teaching in and abou ...

The American Model of State and School: An Historical Inquiry

Abstract: Introduction: Weakness and Strengths of the American Model Chapter 1: Colonial Background New England Southern colonies Mid-Atlantic colonies Secondary Schools Chapter 2: The Idea of Forming Citizens Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Rush, and the Allies of Jefferson Resistance to 'republican' education Utopian Reformers Evangelical and Humanitarian Initiatives Chapter 3: Schooling in the New Republic Schooling for poor children Funding and local control The blurred public/private distinction Chapter 4: Schooling as Response to the Immigrant Threat Chapter 5: The Educator-State Horace Mann and Henry Barnard Pennsylvania: moderate reform Michigan: progress and retreat California Resistance to state leadership in popular schooling State authority and its limits. Chapter 6: Creating an Education Profession Redefining the Role of Women The State and the Training of Teachers Chapter 7: Religion Becomes the Focus of Controversy over Schools Recapitulation of the Ante-Bellum Situation The Developing Educational System after the Civil War The Influence of Church/State Conflicts in Europe Religious Expression in Public Schools Public Support for Religious Schools After the Second World War Chapter 8: Progressive Education as Movement and as Influence Kilpatrick and child-centered teaching Dewey on democratic education Progressive Education theory as established doctrine Educational and political progressivism Critics of Progressive Education What's Left of Progressive Education? Chapter 9: Concluding Reflections References.

Toward a ‘paideia of the soul’: education to enrich America’s multicultural democracy

Abstract: What role might education play in the reinvigoration of a robust American democracy? We argue that common understandings of democracy, citizenship, and democratic education are too anemic to right the political inequalities and stagnancies that have deadened American democracy. Instead, we look to notions of paideia and an educated, enlightened citizenry to shape a multicultural democratic education. Multicultural democratic education cultivates the full and flourishing lives and minds of all citizens in American democracy rather than focusing on narrow preparation for voting. It does this through the practice of critical and authentic caring, the cultivation of community across difference, the connection to a global context, and the opportunity for social action. Most importantly, multicultural democratic education takes as its starting point equity and justice in a pluralistic society by committing to the cultivation of the minds and intellects of all students – in stark contrast to the unequal and mind...

Individuality, Equality, and Creative Democracy--The Task before Us.

Abstract: Every semester I teach a typical social foundations of education course titled “Schooling in American Society.” I often begin class by discussing reproduction. I distinguish biological reproduction, the passing on of our genetic inheritance, from social and cultural reproduction. The latter reproduces social customs, norms of conduct, social practices, tool use, and language as well as beliefs and values. I observe that education is the site of cultural reproduction before distinguishing between schooling and education. Education is ubiquitous and inevitable; schooling is an institutionalized activity usually confined to designated times and places. Public schooling is subject to public regulation and control, presumably for the common good. I conclude by observing that true democratic education seeks educational equality as a way to educate individuals capable of criticizing and recreating society—not simply reproducing the status quo. Surprisingly, many of my student teachers find the notion of creative democracy puzzling. They assume our democracy is complete and only requires preserving. This essay arises out of my efforts to reply to their perplexity. Let us concentrate on the ideas of sameness and standardization. There is profound wisdom within William Blake’s epigraph above. The insights of John Dewey illuminate this wisdom in the context of creative democracy. We must assail the very idea of one-size-fits-all standards as a vehicle for educational equality in a democratic society, especially in such a society’s public school

Group Identity, Deliberative Democracy and Diversity in Education

Abstract: Democratic deliberation places the burden of self‐governance on its citizens to provide mutual justifying reasons (Gutmann & Thompson, 1996). This article concerns the limiting effect that group identity has on the efficacy of democratic deliberation for equality in education. Under conditions of a powerful majority, deliberation can be repressive and discriminatory. Issues of white flight and race‐based admissions serve to illustrate the bias of which deliberation is capable when it fails to substantively take group identity into account. As forms of Gilbert's (1994) plural subjects, identity group members holding the group identity can experience agency as the freedom to believe together with members of their group. I argue that attending to how group members acquire group beliefs through trust is a reasonable accommodation of group identity in deliberation.

Democratic/Utopian Education

Abstract: This article offers a conception of democratic education and an account of how that conception should inform our understanding of formal education for public schools. The goals of a democratic education are best secured by participating in self-government, as advocates of participatory democracy have always claimed. Broadly stated, those goals include encouraging and equipping individuals to become committed, self-governing, democratic citizens. More specifically, individuals gain through democratic participation political information and knowledge and, arguably, the skills, virtues, and normative commitments of democratic citizens. This conception of democratic education suggests in turn the desirability of what is here termed the democratic community school, in which students participate in the governance and pedagogy of their schools, the school and the local community it most directly serves become in various ways integrated, and the curriculum is politicized so as to advance democratic values and aspirations. The article concludes by identifying some of the key difficulties and obstacles that make the democratic school so difficult to achieve but also provides reasons for believing that working toward the utopian ideal of democratic schools is practically as well as normatively worthwhile.

Commitment, character, and citizenship : religious education in liberal democracy

Abstract: Introduction Hanan A Alexander and Ayman K Agbaria Part I: The Case for Religious Education in Liberal Democracy 1 An Inquiry into the Justification for Full-Time Religious Schools in the Liberal Democratic State Walter Feinberg 2 State Financial Support for Religious Schools: Issues and Models Stephen V Monsma 3 Between Memory and Vision: Schools as Communities of Meaning Steven C Vryhof Part II: Religion, Education, and Unity versus Diversity in Liberal Democracy 4 Religion and Citizenship: The Prophetic Tradition and Public Reason Kenneth A Strike and Jeffrey K Pegram 5 Religious Schooling and the Formation of Character James C Conroy 6 Maximal Citizenship Education and Interreligious Education in Common Schools Siebren Miedema 7 Judaism and Democracy - The Private Domain and Public Responsibility Rachel Elior 8 Why Did You Not Tell Me About This? Religion as a Challenge to Faith Schools Farid Panjwani Part III: Spirituality and Morality in Religious and Democratic Education 9 Religion, Character and Spirituality: Their Conceptual Relations and Educational Implications David Carr 10 Religion, Reason, and Experience in Public Education Hans-Gunter Heimbrock 11 Competing Conceptions of Authenticity: Consequences for Religious Education in an Open Society Hanan A Alexander 12 Democratic Schooling and the Demands of Religion Elmer John Thiessen Part IV: Opening Up Religious Education for Democracy 13 Teaching Islam in Israel: On the Absence of Unifying Goals and a Collective Community Ayman K Agbaria 14 Between Traditional Interpretation and Biblical Criticism: A Case Study of Bible Teaching in Non-Orthodox Jewish Israeli High Schools Iris Yaniv 15 The Contribution of Religious Education to Democratic Culture: Challenges and Opportunities Mualla Selcuk 16 Constructive, Critical, and Mutual Interfaith Religious Education for Public Living: A Christian View Jack L Seymour

“Lo mejor de todo es que nos escucháis”. Investigar el aumento de la participación de los estudiantes en los Programas de Diversificación y de Cualificación Profesional Inicial

Abstract: This research sets out to promote, sustain and analyse initiatives in improvements in education based on the increase in pupil participation within the framework of a Curricular Diversification Programme and also two Initial Professional Qualification Programmes (Retail and Warehouse Assistant in a Municipal Training centre, and Hairdressing Assistant in a Secondary School). These programmes were run during the 2009-2010 and 2010-2011 school years in different places in the Community of Cantabria (Spain). The initiatives have achieved a greater visibility for the agents of these programmes (considered in our training systems as a secondary route or secondary opportunity) in the different centres where the initiatives were run. Improvements were noted in the situation of the students, young persons who traditionally had held an underprivileged situation in the school. The methodology used was inspired by school ethnography and is clearly influenced by the so-called inclusive research. The work undertaken was founded on five research phases and the creation of mixed work teams made up of teachers and users. The results of the process show that, despite dealing with different education centres, in the three programmes in which we have worked both the students and the teachers face similar difficulties and dilemmas in terms of the participation of the youngest in the dynamics of the classroom and the training centre. The conclusions of the study reveal that despite the limitations that these programmes offer (in terms of length, selection of teaching staff, grouping of students, and so on,) it is possible to organize educational experiments that can actually convert the idea of a more democratic education into one which produces a true sense of community, incorporates the youngest students into the school’s education project and which actually provides the real possibility that all students will learn.

On the links between mathematics education and democracy : a literature review : review article

Abstract: This article reports the results of a literature review focused on identifying the links between mathematics education and democracy. The review is based on the analysis of a collection of manuscripts produced in different regions of the world. The analysis of these articles focuses on six aspects, namely, (1) definitions of democracy used in these texts, (2) identified links between mathematics education and democracy, (3) suggested strategies to foster a democratic competence in mathematics students (4) tensions and difficulties inherent in mathematical education for democracy, (5) the fundamental role of the teacher in the implementation of democratic education and (6) selected criticisms of mathematical education for democracy. The main contributions of this article are to provide the reader with an overview of the literature related to mathematics education and democracy, and to highlight some of the theoretical and empirical topics that are necessary to further development within this research area.

Thinking about the nature and role of authority in democratic education with rousseau's emile

Abstract: Educational authority is an issue in contemporary democracies. Surprisingly, little attention has been given to the problem of authority in Jean-Jacques Rousseau's Emile and his work has not been addressed in the contemporary debate on the issue of authority in democratic education. Olivier Michaud's goals are, first, to address both of these oversights by offering an original reading of the problem of authority in Emile and then to rehabilitate the notion of “educational authority” for democratic educators today. Contrary to progressive readings of Emile, he argues, Rousseau's position on this issue is not reducible to “education against authority.” What appears at first glance to be an education against authority is, in a deeper sense, an education toward and even within authority. Michaud contends that we have to embrace these complexities and contradictions that inform Rousseau's work in order to gain insights into the place and role of authority in democratic education. Michaud sheds light on Rousseau's stance on authority through a close study of specific topics addressed in Emile, including negative education, opinion, one's relation to God, friendship and loving relationships, and, finally, the relation Rousseau established with his reader.

On the links between mathematics education and democracy: A literature review

Abstract: This article reports the results of a literature review focused on identifying the links between mathematics education and democracy. The review is based on the analysis of a collection of manuscripts produced in different regions of the world. The analysis of these articles focuses on six aspects, namely, (1) definitions of democracy used in these texts, (2) identified links between mathematics education and democracy, (3) suggested strategies to foster a democratic competence in mathematics students (4) tensions and difficulties inherent in mathematical education for democracy, (5) the fundamental role of the teacher in the implementation of democratic education and (6) selected criticisms of mathematical education for democracy. The main contributions of this article are to provide the reader with an overview of the literature related to mathematics education and democracy, and to highlight some of the theoretical and empirical topics that are necessary to further development within this research area.

Schools as Ethical or Schools as Political? Habermas Between Dewey and Rawls

Abstract: Education is oftentimes understood as a deeply ethical practice for the development of the person. Alternatively, education is construed as a state-enforced apparatus for inculcation of specific codes, conventions, beliefs, and norms about social and political practices. Though holding both of these beliefs about education is not necessarily mutually contradictory, a definite tension emerges when one attempts to articulate a cogent theory involving both. I will argue in this paper that Habermas’s theory of discourse ethics, when combined with his statements on constitutional democracy and law, manifests this tension for formal education. Through a contrast with Dewey’s social-liberal view of education on the one hand, and the procedural liberalism and its associated view of education, common to Rawls and others writing in the contemporary Anglo-American tradition on the other, the questions of what this means for education and why it matters are raised and addressed.

Technology Education as ‘controversy celebrated’ in the cause of democratic education

Abstract: This paper is motivated by the challenge that Technology Education seems to encounter in the area of curriculum stability and identity. The search for ‘common ground’ amongst colleagues, theorists, or governments would suggest that finding agreement is an almost impossibility. The position is developed that, when Technology Education is viewed from a range of perspectives, controversy is an ever-present phenomenon. The spirit of the paper sees this phenomenon as an asset to the field and to society in general and, as such, it is something to be celebrated. The paper discusses the role of controversy in democratic and educational life using the notion of democracy-as-controversy. In turn, technologies are framed as sites of controversy and the concept of technologies as ‘controversial propositions’ is offered. The paper illustrates the range of sites of controversy present in Technology Education itself, including: competing stakeholder claims, curricular and epistemological contestations, professional values differences, and pedagogical genres. In ‘celebrating controversy’, it is argued that, despite systemic and governmental pressures toward conformity, controversy as core phenomenon of Technology Education should be embraced. This can be seen as (assertively) the emergence of ‘technology wars’ or (benignly) as Technology’s own complicated curriculum conversation (after Pinar et al. 1995).

Understanding and action: Thinking with Arendt about democratic education

Abstract: The question that has to be asked is whether the very ways in which higher education has been extended to a greater percentage of the population, and re-structured to serve the economy, run contrary to earlier democratic and social hopes and aspirations. Do some current developments actually marginalise social understanding and foster only individual means of dealing with problems of society, inhibit connection and collective commitment, encourage despair and a general lack of concern for the fate of others? Such critical questioning may lead to one of two conclusions. Either one can see that other identities are being fostered by the extension of higher education, at the expense of that of 'citizen', or a new form of citizenship is being constructed as an alternative to that which the social democratic state tried to promote. (Ahier, Beck & Moore, 2003:63)IntroductionAhier's quote sharply introduces the contradictory context within which tertiary institutions are expected to play a role in the development of citizenship. While processes of democratisation since the end of World War 2 have extended the right of citizenship to many more individuals, this citizenship, far from being conceived and practised as social, has been increasingly characterised by a preoccupation with the needs and aspirations of the individual almost to the exclusion of the social. The pre-eminence of the individual, coupled with the paramount role that market forces have played in determining the skills and competencies required by students in order to succeed in society, are not easily reconcilable with national and international higher education policy injunctions about the role of universities in educating for citizenship. In the UK, the Robbins Report (1963) indicated that "the transmission of a common culture and standards of citizenship" were among the goals of higher education (Ahier et al., 2003:1). More than a decade later, at the height of higher education reform in the UK, the Dearing Report (1997) confirmed higher education's role as a transmitter of citizenship and culture. In a very different context, the first democratic government of South Africa saw one of the fundamental aims of higher education as "to contribute to the socialisation of enlightened, responsible and constructively critical citizens" (Department of Education, 1997:1.3). What does this mean at a time when students are increasingly regarded as clients and when the market influences not only the programmes that universities offer, but also the identities fostered in university graduates? It seems to me that any attempt at giving serious expression in higher education teaching and learning to the notion of 'graduate citizens' has to start by grappling with the meaning of politics and citizenship and how these intersect.The literature in the field of citizenship and education is vast, encompassing studies on the role of the university as citizen itself and its capacity for, and orientation to community engagement (GUNI, 2009); studies on the contribution that extra-curricular programmes make to the development of civic attitudes in young people (Service Enquiry, 2003); studies on how institutions teach citizenship in specific curriculum (Gross & Dynneson, 1991; CHE, 2006b), and studies on the role that the curricular and the non-curricular can have in educating future citizens and democracy (Ahier et al., 2003; Bender, 2006; Dewey, 2004; Ehrlich, 2001; Giroux, 2008; Guarasci & Cornwell, 1997). In this article, I focus specifically on the conceptual preconditions that need to underpin the notion of 'teaching' citizenship through the university curriculum. I argue that the intellectual and moral habits that inform citizenship can be developed in the context of higher education. In doing this, I take as my point of departure the republican notion of citizenship and Hannah Arendt's contribution to thinking politics, citizenship and education to propose a political pedagogy that can help foster a citizenship identity that counters the individualist identities provided by the insidious influence of the market in higher education. …

Towards a Phenomenological Understanding of the Ontological Aspects of Teaching and Learning

Abstract: . In this essay, written for educators who might be unfamiliar with the more technical aspects of "existential-phenomenological" philosophy, I focus on diverse and alternative forms of meaning arising from the lived experience of educators and students in the process of learning, in order to reacquaint practitioners with the forgotten and more original aspects of education. Through a modified phenomenological method, I attempt to show how teacher/student alienation from the curriculum might be transcended through an understanding of authentic education, by means of recovering the forgotten ontological aspects of living and learning, which might lead in a positive direction to the reassessment of the standards, practices, and values of contemporary education. It is my claim that this "existential" form of insight into the human and education holds the potential to enrich our current notions of teaching and learning and inspire authentic professional development in order to improve the quality of our teaching and teacher education programs.Keywords: phenomenology, ontology, education, Heidegger, Sartre, social efficiencyThis paper falls into the following divisions: (1) I begin with a brief overview of "alienation" in education and focus on the crisis in contemporary education, which might be traced to two sources: the "professionalization agenda" in teacher education and "high-stakes testing" in public education, both of which emerge from social efficiency ideology·, (2) I move to consider how an authentic education might be conceived in terms of the phenomenological tradition in philosophy, specifically I focus on the philosophies of both Sartre and Heidegger,1 concerned with the potential contribution their thought might make to education by focusing on the "existential" understand ing of the human; and (3) In a conceptual and speculative manner, I reveal how these philosophies might inspire renewed ways of thinking about education by those who teach and those who educate teachers.1. The Crisis in Contemporary EducationThe current definitions of a good teacher, or "expert teacher" (Darling-Hammond & Bransford, 2005) and ideal Democratic student are grounded in sets of pre-determined competencies established and bureaucratically imposed. As Pinar (2004) rightly observes, contemporary American education is deterministic, and "in its press for efficiency and standardization," has the effect of reducing both teachers and students to "automata" (28). Ironically, by means of education, we have come to view teachers and students as "data," "numbers," "products," and "things," with mere present-at-hand existence to be manipulated, used, and discarded when their instrumental value is exhausted. We have forgotten what it means to be truly human from the "philosophical" perspective of what might generally be referred to as existential-phenomenological-ontology, with its perennial concern for what it means for us to be authentic communal beings engaged in heuristic acts of learning about our world through demonstrating a solicitous concern and care for our Being and the Being of others within learning communities, which always transcend the predictable and sterile conditions of high-stakes accountability within today's institutionalized education system. Teachers are increasingly becoming alienated from the curriculum (educational content and pedagogy), their students, and themselves with dire consequences to the overall view to authentic subject-hood and real education.There is a crisis in contemporary democratic education: radical achievement gaps in the public schools, a shortage of highly trained and effective teachers, and the continued bureaucratization of the American university where market place values dominate (Pinar, 2004; Spring, 2000; Solomon & Solomon, 1994). While a detailed, systematic diagnosis of this problem is beyond the scope of this essay, I consider two problems inhibiting the drive toward effective education emerging from the recent educational reform that produced the high-stakes accountability atmosphere linked with the ratification of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 2001, No Child Left Behind (NCLB, 2002). …

Direitos humanos e democracia na educação infantil: atuação do psicólogo escolar em uma associação pró-educação

Abstract: The issue of Human Rights education demands a discussion about the role of the school in developing student citizenship. This process should consider the need for the ideal of democracy to be in every level of the school context; from the pedagogical proposal to its administrative and political organization. In this research we used the knowledge obtained through an experience with school psychology at a children's education institution in Brasilia that is an association of parents, teachers and employees. The goal is to discuss how the school psychologist participated in implementing the notion of democracy into the school's routine, helped building coherence between the political and pedagogical project, in addition to the educational practices involving the children. The analysis showed how important psychology is in developing a democratic education that focuses not only on teaching the students their rights, but also on learning and developing practices of citizenship.

Possibly preventing catastrophes: Hannah Arendt on democracy, education and judging

Abstract: In this paper, I try to argue why it is worth turning to Hannah Arendt when reflecting on education. I am exploring her political theory in The Human Condition which, with the anthropologic category of natality, seems to offer an interesting approach for democratic education. Apparently everyone can participate in politics or even start a revolution. In Arendt's writings on education, however, tradition, conservatism and authority are required as educational key values. Wondering if Arendt's political theory can nevertheless be helpful for democratic education, I turn to The Life of the Mind. Judging might help us to prevent – through education – the reoccurrence of what happened in Germany during the Shoa. I come to the conclusion that in the end Arendt's thought is not contradictory but coherent if we consider her distinctions between the private, the social and the public as well as between the present, past and future.

The Importance of Case Studies for LIS Education

Abstract: Introduction LIS education is grappling with a rapidly changing work environment for newly graduating librarians and information professionals. The management of information and services is in constant evolution; technologies and tools are changing at a furious pace; the competencies required for success in today's digital and data-driven workplace are very different from a generation or two ago. In this transformational context, it is important to consider the value of case studies as an instructional strategy that can be highly beneficial for effective learning outcomes in LIS education. In this article, the co-authors describe the educational theory, the relationship to adult learning, the core competencies, and the learning outcomes that can result from utilizing the case study approach. Over 80% of graduates of LIS programs will be expected to supervise or manage others in the world place at some point in their career. Graduates of LIS programs should expect, as professionals, to be prepared to lead and manage staff, formally or informally, to participate in the management process by helping recruit, train and mentor newcomers, by chairing meetings, forming committees, representing the organization vis-a-vis external bodies, and "managing" donors, along with other groups. John Dewey and Active Learning It is instructive to begin this investigation with the educational philosopher John Dewey (1859-1952). As early as the turn of the 20th century, Dewey advised pedagogues that the best way to learn is by "doing." Regardless of one's propensity to accept John Dewey's philosophy of education, sometimes dubbed, "Dewey-ing," he nonetheless continues to enjoy an outstanding place in the history of 20th century education, as well as philosophy, liberal thought, and reform of school practices. Dewey outlines his basic theory on how learning takes place and the process which he believed is a "thinking process" just as a scientist approaches his/her craft. If one is to learn at all, one must learn to think: "the native and unspoiled attitude of childhood, marked by ardent curiosity, fertile imagination, and love of experimental inquiry, is near, very near to the attitude of the scientific mind." (Dykhuizen, 1973, p. 94). In one of his most popular teacher-training books, Democracy and Education, Dewey describes the kind of democratic education system needed for the 20th century (Dykhuizen, p. 139). Dewey contends that schools should endeavour to form a continuum with the child's experiences outside of school. Subject matters should center on his/her current interests, and learning must be accompanied by doing in order for theory and practice to develop together. Opportunities should be provided in the classroom for projects & activities in which the child's interest can be tested. Dewey wrote extensively on the value of "experience" in the learning process and deplored the tendency to downplay its value in schools in favour of theoretical coursework. "Experience is too often seen as something different from and inferior to knowledge." (Dykhuizen, p. 178) "Experiencing in purposeful activity is a way of understanding" (Dykhuizen, p. 272) as doing and making are integral passages to knowing. Whether one agrees entirely with Dewey's philosophy as applied to school children or to the school curricula, when it comes to adult learners, who often enroll in courses equipped with an abundance of practical "experience," capitalizing on such rich mines can only enhance the learning process. Courses in subjects such as chemistry, medicine, or engineering impart a specific, prescribed body of knowledge. However, when it comes to a subject as complex as management where a theoretical body of knowledge represents but a portion of the whole learning experience, how does one provide graduate students with challenging and practical learning opportunities? Theory alone regarding planning, directing, controlling, staffing, will not produce a good manager. …