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Questioning the Classroom
Perspectives on Canadian Education
Dianne Gereluk | Christopher Martin | Bruce Maxwell | Trevor Norris
 1
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Library and Archives Canada Cataloguing in Publication

Gereluk, Dianne, author

Questioning the classroom : perspectives on Canadian education /
Dianne Gereluk, Christopher Martin, Bruce Maxwell, Trevor Norris.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN 978-0-19-901003-5 (paperback)

1. Education--Canada. I. Martin, Christopher, 1978-, author

II. Maxwell, Bruce, 1972-, author III. Norris, Trevor, 1971-, author
IV. Title.

LB14.7.G47 2016 370.1 C2015-907599-8

Cover image: Barry Rosenthal/Getty Images

Oxford University Press is committed to our environment.

This book is printed on Forest Stewardship Council® certified paper
and comes from responsible sources.

Printed and bound in The United States of America

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 Contents
About the Authors ix
Acknowledgments x

Introduction: What’s the Point?! xiv

Part I • Why Should Children Be Educated?

1 What Are the Values and Aims of Education?
Introduction 4
Terminology: Does Education Have a Purpose? 6
Education versus Schooling 6
Changing Models of Education 9
Step One: Knowledge and Understanding as an Aim of Education 9
Step Two: Reaction and Criticism 12
Step Three: Well-Being as an Aim of Education 15
Conclusion 20
Review Questions 22
Further Readings 22

2 Can We Educate for Canadian Identity?

Introduction 23
What Is Civic Identity and What Is the Point of Educating for It? 24
Challenges to Education for Civic Identity 27
A Brief History of Citizenship Education in Canada 29
Conclusion 33
Review Questions 36
Further Readings 37

Part II • How Should Children Be Educated?

3 What Are Our Main Conceptions of Education, Where Did They Originate,
and How Do They Inform Our Current Practices?
Introduction 40
Metaphors We Live By 42
Three Conceptions of Teaching and Learning 44
Educational Rationalism: Teaching and Learning as Building Knowledge 45
The Developmental Conception of Education: Learning as Growth 48
The Guidance Conception of Education: Learning as Insight and Discovery 52
Conclusion 59
Review Questions 60
Further Readings 61

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 vi Contents

4 Are Students Becoming Consumerist Learners?

Introduction: What Is Consumerism? 62
Types of School Commercialism 64
Civic Identity or Consumer Identity? 67
Private Gain or Public Good? 68
“Me, Inc.” 69
Economistic Approaches to Education 70
Commodification of Knowledge 72
The Humanities and Economic Growth 73
Teacher Autonomy 74
Critical Thinking 76
Educational Risk and the Unexpected 79
Should Education Be “Easy”? 79
Conclusion 82
Review Questions 83
Further Readings 83

Part III • What Should Children Learn?

5 What Should Be Taught on the Curriculum?
Introduction 86
How Do Decision-Makers Decide What Should Be on the Curriculum? 86
Curriculum in Canada: A Look at the Past 91
Criticisms of What Is Taught on the Curriculum 94
The Changing Nature of What Should Be Taught in Schools 101
Conclusion 105
Review Questions 105
Further Readings 106

6 Should Teachers Teach Students about Controversial Subjects?

Introduction 107
What Is a Controversy? 109
What Difficulties Do Teachers Face in Teaching Controversial Issues in Schools? 113
How Can Teachers Navigate Controversial Issues with Dignity and Worth? 122
Conclusion 124
Review Questions 126
Further Readings 126

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 Contents vii

Part IV • Where Should Children Learn?

Chapter 7: Place-Based Education and the Rural School Ethic
Introduction 130
What Is Place-Based Education? 132
Well-Being, the Individual, and Community 136
The Limits of Place-Based Education 141
Conclusion 143
Review Questions 145
Further Readings 146

Chapter 8: Should School Choice Be Fostered in Public Education?

Introduction 147
What Is “Choice”? How Do People Choose? 150
The Merits and Demerits of School Choice 152
Criticisms of School Choice Policies 161
Conclusion 166
Review Questions 166
Further Readings 166

Part V • Who Should Control Education?

9 Should Cultural Restoration Be an Aim of Education? Justice, Reconciliation,
and Aboriginal Education
Introduction 170
Residential Schooling and Transitional Justice 170
Education for Canadian Identity Revisited 172
Residential Schooling and Canada’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission 175
Who Should Control Aboriginal Education? 181
Education and Deliberative Democracy 187
Conclusion 188
Review Questions 190
Further Readings 190

10 Should Parents Decide How Children Are Educated?

Introduction 191
Parens Patriae 192
Arguments in Favour of Parental Rights 195
Arguments against Parental Rights 201
Conclusion 206
Review Questions 206
Further Readings 207

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 viii Contents

Part VI • What Is the Role of Teachers’ Professional Identity?

11 To What Extent Do Teachers Have Professional Autonomy?
Introduction 210
Why Is Autonomy Important for the Work That Professionals Do? 211
Is Teaching a Profession? 215
Legal Issues 222
Conclusion 225
Review Questions 228
Further Readings 229

12 Conclusion: Teaching for the Canadian Ethical Environment

Philosophical Perspective in the Practice of Teaching 230
Why Professional Self-Cultivation? 232
Professional Self-Cultivation and Reasoning about Values 233
Self-Cultivation and Teacher Education 235
Teaching for the Canadian Ethical Environment 239
Review Questions 243
Further Readings 243

Glossary 244
References 251
Index 259

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 About the Authors
Dianne Gereluk is associate dean of the undergraduate programs in Education and associate profes-
sor in Leadership, Policy and Governance in the Werklund School of Education at the University of
Calgary. Her research examines the parameters of cultural and religious accommodations in schools
in liberal democracies. She is author of Education and Community (Continuum, 2006), Symbolic
Clothing in Schools (Continuum, 2008), Education, Extremism and Terrorism (Bloomsbury, 2012), and
Understanding School Choice in Canada (University of Toronto Press, 2016).

Christopher Martin is assistant professor in the Faculty of Education at the University of British
Columbia. His research is focused on the role of public deliberation in the construction of the ethical
and political foundations of educational policy and practice. He is the author of Education in a Post-
metaphysical World: Rethinking Educational Policy and Practice through Jurgen Habermas’ Discourse
Morality (Bloomsbury, 2012) and R.S. Peters: Bloomsbury Library of Educational Thought (Bloomsbury,
2013, with Stefaan Cuypers).

Bruce Maxwell is associate professor in the Department of Educational Sciences at the

University of Quebec at Trois-Rivières. His research deals with contemporary ethical issues in
education and schooling, moral psychology as it intersects with ethical decision making in work
settings, and pro-fessional ethics in teaching. He is the author of a number of works on these topics
including the book Professional Ethics Education: Studies in Compassionate Empathy (Springer,
2008).

Trevor Norris is associate professor in the Department of Graduate and Undergraduate Studies in
Education at Brock University. His research is focused on the political, philosophical, and peda-
gogical implications of consumerism on teaching and learning. He is author of Consuming Schools:
Commercialism and the End of Politics (University of Toronto Press, 2011).

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 Acknowledgments
General Acknowledgements
The genesis of this book was a recurring conversation over the past few years among Canadian phil-
osophers of education. On one level, concerns were expressed that philosophy of education and edu-
cational foundations seemed to be gradually pushed to the periphery of teacher education programs.
This is perhaps reflective of a global trend—increasingly evident in Canada—which promotes a narrow
view of education that undervalues the contributions of broader philosophical perspectives to our
understanding of education. Many regard this development as a tremendous detriment to the teach-
ing profession. On another level, it was clear that the philosophy of education books used in teacher
education in Canada tended to draw on American or British sources. These books did not always
reflect faithfully the way issues and debates in educational foundations play out in Canada’s unique
institutional, geographic, cultural, and historical mix. With regard to the first issue, as educational
scholars intensely involved in teacher education, we saw educational philosophy and foundations being
integrated thematically in various forms in teacher education rather than abandoned altogether. With
respect to the second issue, we were committed to the idea that it was essential to examine key edu-
cational issues that have been debated over the centuries from a Canadian point of view. Was there a
“Canadian way” to think and analyze philosophical debates, responses, and the recommendations that
informed and impacted provincial education systems? Those beginning conversations led the four of
us on a journey to consider what a Canadian perspective on issues in educational foundations might
look like and how this perspective might enrich the educational experience of the next generation of
Canadian teachers.
At first glance, writing is a seemingly quiet and solitary affair. In some respects, that is the case.
Yet, the contributions of the four authors in writing this book have been anything but solitary. In the
book, we wanted to showcase and celebrate the diverse and multiple viewpoints that are reflective of the
broader Canadian educational debates from different philosophical and regional perspectives, all with
the intended aim to cultivate the next generation of reflective and critically engaged educators. Given
the collaborative nature and engagement of the chapters by all authors, whether in the body of the text
or in our examples in “Pause for Thought” sections and case studies, there are traces of our philosoph-
ical training, our lectures, and our experiences with our students. The project has been terribly fun
and fascinating but keeping us on track in some coherent fashion could not have been done without
the tireless and patient guidance of our editors, Meg Patterson and Amy Gordon. To both of you, we
thank you for believing in us and this project, and putting all the pieces together. A debt of gratitude
is also owing to the anonymous reviewers of the initial proposal and to our colleagues from across the
country who paid us the invaluable service of providing detailed feedback on each of the book’s chap-
ters: Seth Agbo (Lakehead University), Theodore Christou (Queen’s University), David Waddington
(Concordia University), Fiona White (Queen’s University), and Karla Jessen Williamson (University
of Saskatchewan).

Author-Specific Acknowledgements
I have been privileged and excited to teach an Introduction to Philosophy of Education lecture over the
last thirteen years—seven of those years at Roehampton University in London, England, and since

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 Acknowledgments xi

returning back to Canada, at the University of Calgary. Each year I am excited to

go to class, engage in the philosophical debates of my first-year students, and see
them develop and grow as professional educators. Since my appointment as asso-
ciate dean of the undergraduate programs in education at the Werklund School of
Education at the University of Calgary, I have a greater sense of how these begin-
ning debates have helped to push their thinking over their entire undergradu-
ate program. So much of this book is in response to students’ probing questions,
insights, and experiences, and their changing and evolving philosophies about
education. The introductory chapter is in large response to the thousands of stu-
dents that I have taught, which on the first day, often had the expression of “What’s
the point?!” on their faces. Yet, much to my relief and excitement, those same stu-
dents find that once they begin to unpack and consider the theoretical principles
that underpin so many ideas, actions, and evaluations, so too do they begin to
understand the complexity and wonders of the teaching profession. So, to my stu-
dents who have asked those questions, you will see part of you in the chapters that
I wrote, through the ideas, the case studies, and the “Pause for Thought” sections.
I thank you for challenging me to grow too in constantly evaluating and reflecting
on the issues that matter most to children.
Some of the ideas in Chapter 6 (“Should We Teach Children about
Controversial Subjects?”) have been put forward in my earlier publication, “The
Democratic Imperative to Address Sexual Equality Rights in Schools,” Educational
Theory, 63(5), 511‒23. Chapter 8 (“Should School Choice Be Fostered in Public
Education?”) draws on my previous writings on the balance between parental
rights and state obligations, including the chapters “Parental Rights and the Aims
of Education,” Philosophy of Education: Introductory Readings (2013), and “Should
Parents Have a Say in Their Children’s Schooling?” The Philosophy of Education:
An Introduction (2010) and are a summary of the more fully developed debates in
Understanding School Choice in Canada (University of Toronto Press, 2016).
Finally, I would be truly remiss if I did not thank my own children, who
have always featured in these lectures. For when I talk about these broader philo-
sophical debates, I think how it would affect my children and those like them,
for a greater flourishing childhood for all children. To Katya and Roman—you
are the primary reasons that I am so passionate about my students’ learning. I
share your excitement, curiosity, and wonder about the world, and I hope that
in sharing those anecdotal moments of your childhood with my students, it will
create the same burning ember inside of them in striving to create a more just
and caring world.
—Dianne Gereluk

I was responsible for Chapter 1 (“What Are the Values and Aims of Education?”),
Chapter 7 (“Place-Based Education and the Rural School Ethic”), Chapter 9
(“Should Cultural Restoration Be an Aim of Education? Justice, Reconciliation, and
Aboriginal Education”), and Chapter 12 (“Conclusion: Teaching for the Canadian
Ethical Environment”). Graduate students in the Faculty of Education at the
Kelowna campus of the University of British Columbia played an important role in

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 xii Acknowledgments

shaping Chapter 1 and I am thankful for their excellent contributions to classroom

discussion that motivated the chapter. An early draft of Chapter 9 was presented at
the American Educational Research Association and some of the material from this
chapter was adapted from the article “Transitional Justice and the Task of Inclusion:
A Habermasian Perspective on the Justification of Aboriginal Educational Rights,”
Educational Theory, 64(1), 33‒53. I thank the audience of that conference session
for their excellent questions and feedback. Chapter 7 originated much earlier,
shaped by my early professional experience as a teaching principal in a two-class-
room school in a small Labrador community. I would like to thank the dedicated
parents and volunteers who continue to keep local schooling a viable option for that
community. All chapter materials were piloted in my undergraduate course, “The
School as an Ethical Environment,” and I would like to thank the students in those
classes for inspiring the nature and scope of Chapter 12—it represents my attempt
to answer their serious question regarding how a philosophical perspective on edu-
cation should be “used” once they enter the field.
I’d like to thank my wife, Vanessa Martin, for her helpful feedback on vari-
ous drafts of these chapters. Vanessa is a teacher and school counsellor for British
Columbia public schools. She provided a grounded, but positive, perspective on
the school experience that greatly helped to support the problem-focused approach
that was key to the original vision for this book. I continue to be inspired by her
dedication to the field.
—Christopher Martin

P reliminary versions of two of the chapters I took the lead on, Chapter 2
(“Can We Educate for Canadian Identity?”) and Chapter 3 (“What Are Our
Main Conceptions of Education, Where Did They Originate, and How Do They
Inform Our Current Practices?”), were presented at the annual conferences of the
Association for Moral Education and the American Education Studies Association
respectively. Thanks, then, are due to these scholarly associations for providing us
with a forum for fielding our ideas and to our colleagues, mostly from abroad, who
attended the presentations and offered their insightful and, at times, challenging
feedback. For its part, Chapter 12 (“Conclusion: Teaching for the Canadian Ethical
Environment”) wound up being a sort of memoir on how my thinking about the
issue of teacher autonomy has evolved since I began teaching a class on profes-
sional ethics at the University of Quebec at Trois-Rivières a half-decade ago. I am
grateful to my students for keeping me grounded by insisting that the class engage
directly with their experience as emerging teachers—and for acting as unwitting
guinea pigs! Most of the supplementary material in Chapter 12 was developed
previously for this class, and the material that wasn’t was piloted there during the
book’s writing. Parts of Chapters 3 and 12 were adapted from the article “‘Teacher
as Professional’ as Metaphor: What It Highlights and What It Hides,” Journal of
Philosophy of Education, 49(1), 86‒106.
My work on this book also owes much to the indirect influence of my sis-
ter, Lani Morden, who (unlike me) is a real teacher who works with real children
in real schools. She’s the audience I keep in mind whenever I write for teachers:

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 Acknowledgments xiii

smart, skilled, and passionate. Just the kind of teacher I’d like the students who
read this book to turn out to be.
—Bruce Maxwell

F irst, I am grateful to the by now several thousand students in Foundations of

Education and dozens of teaching assistants at Brock University who have been
wonderful sounding boards for my educational ideas, as they have evolved and
clarified. Parts of Chapter 4 (“Are Students Becoming Consumerist Learners?”)
were presented as a response to a review symposium on my book Consuming
Schools at a Philosophy of Education Society Conference, which appeared in
Policy Futures in Education in June 2013. I thank the three reviewers for their cri-
tiques. Parts of the case study on Canadian Geographic appears in Fall 2014 in
Our Schools/Ourselves as “Going with the Flow: Learning Canadian Geography
through Pipeline Pedagogy.” I am grateful to my wife Carly Stasko for continu-
ing to inspire me, question me, and challenge me. I would like to acknowledge
my father, who passed away during the writing of this book, who never went to
university but sought to understand what I do and often asked for updates about
the book during his final weeks. Last, I would like to express appreciation to my
exceptional co-authors whose original vision helped make this project possible
and who have challenged me to rethink what it means to be a Canadian, what it
means to teach in a Canadian context, and what is uniquely ambitious about the
Canadian educational project.
—Trevor Norris

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 Introduction
What’s the Point?!

Prior to enrolment in a Bachelor of Education program in Canada, all students will

have experienced some kind of educational process. While there are numerous sim-
ilarities evident in their experiences of educational processes, vast differences also
exist. Some students have attended public schools. Others have attended separate
or private schools. Some students have experienced rural education, others urban.
Some have attended such diverse forms of alternative education as charter schools,
independent schools, faith-based schools, or home-schooling. How do these vari-
ous cultural, ethical, and political experiences filter into pre-service teachers’
understanding and assumptions regarding the aims and purposes of education?
How do pre-service teachers’ personal perspectives affect their professional judg-
pre-service teachers ment in the classroom? How will pre-service teachers navigate through diverse,
Students enrolled in an often conflicting perspectives and assumptions in order to develop an informed
education program in
preparation for teach- and reasoned understanding of the Canadian classroom? This book responds to
ing certification. these questions by asking students to rationally construct and critically reflect
upon the principles that inform their own conception of the nature and scope of
educational practice as they enter the teaching profession.
Philosophy of education plays a central role in orienting pre-service teachers
by examining fundamental education questions that underpin key public debates
in Canadian schooling and education. The purpose of this book is to explore
enduring and contested educational questions. Such questions tend to elicit strong
public reaction and debate. Given the inevitability that consensus will rarely be
achieved, students may wonder why they should bother with philosophy of educa-
tion, considering these educational questions will never be resolved.
Ongoing ethical and political disagreement about educational matters does
not mean that professional judgments are irrelevant or arbitrary, or that there is
no point in thinking about them carefully. On the contrary, a coherent and philo-
sophically informed pre-service curriculum could help both aspiring and current
teachers better understand and negotiate more skillfully the diverse ethical and
political terrain of the Canadian education context. The process of listening to
various lines of reasoning about central educational debates, both past and present,
weighing the claims and evidence to support particular positions, and reflecting
upon current practices and possible recommendations is a worthy endeavour for

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 Introduction xv

the education professional. In our provincial systems of teacher preparation across

Canada, being a “reflective practitioner” entails crafting a reasoned stance that
takes into consideration the distinctive features of the Canadian political and his-
torical context.
This book does not advocate a particular position. Rather, individual chapters
introduce students to key concepts and ideas that inform and shape particular
issues. For instance, let us take four very different issues that are all up for debate
that have significant implications for teachers, and for the way in which we think
about schooling in Canada:

1. There is varying debate about whether and how sexual orientation should be
addressed in schools.
2. Provinces differ between assessment processes, with some providing stan-
dardized provincial achievement tests at particular points during a child’s
schooling, while other provinces will have other mechanisms to assess stu-
dent progress.
3. There are differing perspectives of when children should enter schools, and
when compulsory schooling should end.
4. There is a strong debate about how certain subjects should be taught in
schools.
a. Whether the curriculum should return to “back to basics” mathematics
that relied more heavily on memorization and rote practice, or whether
we should encourage “new” applied forms of understanding mathematics.
b. Whether English language should be taught using phonics or holistic
approaches.
c. Whether the humanity subjects should be separated into history and
geography, or whether it should be taught as an interdisciplinary subject
through social studies.

Each of these debates is of central importance to educators, and at the core of

it all is a philosophical stance. It is our hope that this book will help to foster one’s
ability to take a reasoned stance on issues such as these. As such, students’ inter-
pretation and reflection upon those concepts and ideas is guided though critical
engagement with key theorists working in various thematic areas. We encour-
age students to consider how educational debates have taken shape against the
Canadian backdrop, and additionally, to consider how they might proceed as edu-
cators in each of these instances.

What Is Philosophy of Education? rhetorical device A

manipulative language
technique that indi-
Philosophy of education typically focuses on two primary objectives. One object- viduals repeatedly use
ive is to provide critical analysis into the discipline of education. For example, to compel listeners to
agree with a particular
we might consider how individuals define what it means to teach or to learn, to perspective.
indoctrinate, or to facilitate. In other cases, we may clarify or untangle rhetorical

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 xvi Introduction

devices commonly used in education such as “promoting community,” “creating

citizens,” “becoming educated,” “learning to learn,” or “student-centred learning.”
And most notably, we might critically examine the arguments and methods used
in education, for schools, and for teaching and learning. In this way, we attempt
to make explicit and examine that which administrators, teachers, parents, or stu-
dents often take for granted in their work.
In addition to the critical analysis of concepts in education, a second objective
of educational philosophy considers how educators ought to proceed. When phil-
osophers find logical gaps or inconsistencies in particular concepts or methods
in education, the second task of educational philosophy is normative. That is, it
normative theory asks, “What should we do now?” Normative theories provide not only analysis or
A theoretical approach critique, but also offer an alternative set of principles or recommendations. In this
that investigates a
set of questions, and way, philosophy of education has a twofold importance. First, it draws attention
proposes principles to to and delves into commonly bantered-about terminology that may not have any
guide how one ought sense of clarity or consensus. Second, it offers the potential to create or bring for-
to proceed.
ward a foundation of reasoned principles for consideration.
In these two fundamental ways, whenever teachers engage in the process of
questioning and providing an argument for why they should proceed one way
rather than another, they are doing educational philosophy. Of course, teachers
do this all the time. Through this book, we hope to amplify this very normal daily
occurrence by explicitly exploring the discernments and judgments about some
of the most basic issues in education. We believe that becoming informed about
these issues and having an opportunity to reflect on them is an essential aspect of
pre-service teachers’ preparation for the classroom.

Repositioning the Way in Which We Think

about Philosophy of Education
This book starts with the assumption that philosophy of education is essential
canonical approach to to reflective teaching. Traditionally, in a canonical approach to philosophy of
philosophy An estab- education, pre-service teachers were required to read, understand, and critique
lished approach to phil-
osophy that prioritizes a succession of “great works” by philosophers writing on education. Under such
key theorists or thinkers circumstances, eminent thinkers took centre stage in the lectures and lessons of
in a particular tradition undergraduate students. Learning about the philosophical perspectives of Plato,
of thought.
Aristotle, Locke, Rousseau, or Kant helped students to elucidate the key philosoph-
ical traditions from which education would draw. Examining the underpinning
philosophical principles and arguments of these iconic thinkers was considered
to be a critical component of philosophical preparation for pre-service teachers’
professional work.
Growth in the discipline of philosophy of education has created a larger list of
influential philosophical thinkers who furthered the development of philosophical
thought specifically related to educational issues. In the United States, John Dewey
was arguably the most influential educational thinker, scholar, and writer of the
early twentieth century. Commonly touted as the father of progressive education

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 Introduction xvii

and a fierce critic of traditional approaches to education, Dewey raised important

questions about the aims of education, the purpose of schools, approaches to teach-
ing and learning, and the relation of schools to the larger democratic society. In
rural Brazil in the 1960s, Paulo Freire critically evaluated the misery and oppression
that surrounded him, and responded by repositioning the way in which marginal-
ized workers could challenge the traditional teacher‒student relationship. Freire was
instrumental in changing the student perspective away from that of “all-knowing”
teacher and ignorant student, to a perspective that empowered the student through
problem-posing education. Around the same time in England, R.S. Peters and Paul
Hirst created a vibrant analytic philosophical tradition of education (analytic phil- analytic philosophy An
osophy), clarifying the ambiguities found in educational concepts, examining prin- approach to philo-
sophical problems that
ciples that underpin what it means to become an educated person, and evaluating emphasizes language,
methods and practices commonly used by teachers but rarely called into question. the meaning of words,
Each of these philosophical thinkers is illustrative of a much more expansive list and the logical relation
between concepts.
of iconic individuals who informed and shaped the ways in which educators think
about teaching and learning. In one respect, these four individuals have vastly dif-
ferent approaches to their thinking and argumentation. Yet, in another respect, they
have in common the overarching aim of challenging assumptions, providing clarity,
and making recommendations for how educators ought to proceed.
While the canonical approach was once the standard approach to teaching
philosophy of education to pre-service teachers, we believe that the educational
landscape is changing for teacher education programs. The way philosophy of edu-
cation is handled in pre-service teacher education needs to reflect those changes.
First, because the educational background of pre-service students is increasingly
unlikely to have prepared them for meaningful engagement with canonical texts,
a canonical approach may seem like a pointless stroll down philosophical mem-
ory lane. Furthermore, the tone of today’s intellectual culture has changed, and
unquestioned respect for the ethical or epistemic authority of canonical thinkers
and approaches is much less sacrosanct. For instance, feminist theorists have chal-
lenged the male-dominated privilege in philosophical texts with few exceptions
until relatively recently. Second, students and the broader educational community
have criticized the canonical approach for being too detached from the real issues
and problems that inform real teachers’ practices. This perception was partly due
to the level of difficulty and historical nature of the texts used in philosophy of
education classes. The language of these texts did not make them popular among
undergraduate students and, for some students, created an impenetrable barrier
to understanding the essential components of the arguments. Hence, even in
cases where relevant issues were being addressed, the canonical approach did not
facilitate the students’ job of understanding how to reflect upon a current issue.
Moreover, canonical texts tended to discuss education in highly abstract and gen-
eral terms, with little concern for how these arguments would apply directly to
teachers. These points do not necessarily reflect badly on the canonical approach.
Rather, new and additional challenges indicate the need for considerable legwork
in order to promote students’ interest and understanding of the relevance for philo-
sophical principles as constitutive features of their teacher professional practice.

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 xviii Introduction

While philosophy of education is central to teachers’ development as reflect-

ive practitioners, we suggest that philosophy of education needs to be examined
from a problem-based approach, rather than the traditional canonical approach.
Using a problem-based approach, energies might be better utilized by beginning
with concrete and current educational issues that pre-service teachers are likely to
experience in their future work settings. By adopting this approach, philosophy
of education might better help teacher candidates to identify and work through
public and political problems that arise within the distinctly Canadian educational
context. We wish to be clear, however, that although this book is not organized
around a canonical approach, key canonical thinkers in educational philosophy
will feature throughout.

Using a Problem-Based Approach

problem-based learn- This books draws from the broader problem-based learning approach commonly
ing An instructional and used in multiple disciplines. Problem-based learning incorporates “real-world
learner-based approach
that integrates theory problems to motivate students to identify and apply concepts and information,
and practice, and work collaboratively and communicate effectively” (Duch, Groh, Allen, 2001, p. 6).
applies knowledge and In traditional contexts, introductory classes in philosophy of education (and edu-
skills to develop viable
solutions to a defined cation more broadly) was commonly taught using a lecture-based approach that
problem. would have the instructor pass on key philosophical principles to a largely passive
audience. It would not be uncommon, for instance, to find 400 students or more
in a large auditorium with the lecturing professor at the front of the classroom.
Interaction among students in such a format would be limited, with occasional
small breakout seminars, conducted by teaching assistants, for clarification of key
concepts presented in the large lecture. In these instances, many students felt such
lectures did not provide the kind of connections that pre-service teachers need in
order to understand how theoretical principles fit into their teaching practice.
Problem-based learning (PBL) develops alternative solutions through examin-
ation, critical analysis, and consideration of real-life problems. As Savery describes
it, “problem-based learning is an instructional and learner-based approach that
empowers learners to conduct research, integrate theory and practice, and apply
knowledge and skills to develop a viable solution to a defined problem” (2006,
p. 12). Here, theoretical understanding is not a standalone; rather, theoretical
underpinnings are combined with practical application in order to facilitate a solu-
tion-building process. In keeping with a problem-based approach to learning, we
start from the premise that in order to understand how philosophy is integral to the
teaching practice, students need to critically analyze and consider problems that
exist in the real world. The intent is not merely to find a solution to the problem,
particularly given the contested nature of enduring educational questions. Rather,
the aim is to assist students in becoming attentive to the multiaceted complexity of
an issue that simply does not have an absolute or universally correct answer.
A problem-based approach to philosophy of education for undergraduate
students is in itself invaluable. However, given students’ penchant for the “cor-
rect” answer regarding a particular problem, it is not uncommon for students

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 Introduction xix

to become frustrated by a PBL approach to educational philosophy. PBL assists

the philosophical process by asking for a “public articulation by the learners,”
by providing a coherent and compelling argument that addresses current issues
from the field (Savery 2006, p. 13). It challenges students to go beyond opin-
ion-based anecdotal experience, deepening their philosophical understanding
of education.
Our intent is to make philosophy of education engaging, interactive, and rel-
evant for students. In this way, introducing philosophy of education to students
ensures that all teachers will be attentive to the issues of contemporary society
and culture and, furthermore, will be able to respond to these issues in an explicit
and purposeful manner. While working within a large lecture format, reposition-
ing the nature of the questions and the introduction of interactive dialogues
among students and instructor may offer students greater possibility for question-
ing their preconceived assumptions and experiences of a particular school struc-
ture. Furthermore, in this setting, PBL may prompt students’ critical awareness and
openness to alternative ways of thinking about teaching and learning.

What Does This Book Do?

This book begins with problems central to the discipline of education, including:

• Why should children be educated?

• How should children be educated?
• What should children learn?
• Where should children learn?
• Who should control education?
• What is the nature and limits of teachers’ professional identity?

Within these central questions, pre-service teachers can clearly see the rel-
evance and applicability of philosophy to the real-life situations teachers must
negotiate on a daily basis. Such an approach provides context for the ways in
which these principles are experienced in Canadian contexts. A problems-based
approach can provide relevance in very tangible ways by looking at the specific
issues that shape Canadian teaching. Students are encouraged to examine how
the debates have been shaped particularly against the Canadian educational
backdrop, and to consider how they ought to proceed as educators in each of
these instances.
In this book, we contextualize the broader philosophical questions by draw-
ing upon current and pressing Canadian issues. We do not intend to ensure that
every chapter has equal representation from each of the provinces and territories;
rather, we select important current debates from a range of provinces as they apply
and are addressed in different geographical localities. While certain provinces are
highlighted to elicit broader philosophical principles, we encourage students to
reflect upon and search out parallel discussions in their particular locality and
examine distinctions or contrasts to the issues posed in this book.

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 xx Introduction

How Is This Book Organized?

Having purposely written this book to be conversational in style, our goal is to
make the material accessible to many students as their first exposure to philoso-
phy and philosophical thought processes. Each chapter starts with a central con-
tentious question chosen to elucidate key debates and principles. Throughout the
chapters, we interrupt the arguments presented with case studies, problems, or
vignettes identified as Pause for Thought. For readers, we encourage you to take
time to reflect and consider your response to the situation that is posed. Initially,
we expect you to draw upon your own experience in how you would address the
issue. However, we encourage you to push your own personal boundaries. Take
the time to consider alternative perspectives. Play the devil’s advocate. Search for
compelling features on both sides of the argument. If you cannot find anything,
try to put together a reasoned position for why you would take a particular stance
and whether you could provide a compelling and principled argument. If the case
study is geographically specific, consider how such an issue has overlapping or
distinct features within your own locality. How might this influence the nature of
the discussion and the debate? Would sympathies toward a particular perspective
play out differently in another locality? If so, why would that be the case? Part of
your task is to consider whether and how your views have changed as you consider
the various debates throughout the book.
The second major task is to provide justification in support of your position.
The intent of this book is not to convince you of our opinions, but rather for you
to enter into a dialogue about the opinions advanced and described in this book.
At times, case studies may be provocative in nature, and can potentially evoke
strong feelings that challenge your core values. Again, the point is not to offend
you, but to highlight the daily challenges you may need to address and facilitate
in working with students, parents, colleagues, staff, and the community. Keep in
mind it may not be possible to reach consensus among your peers on many of the
cases presented in this book, if not all of them. The point of this book, and indeed
that of philosophy of education in general, is not about student memorization and
regurgitation of information. Instead, the book is designed to help you to see the
complexity of issues that make teaching so incredibly wonderful, challenging, and
at times, difficult to negotiate.
Part I introduces the overarching educational question: Why should children
be educated? This first set of questions provides the philosophical foundation
for how we frame the big questions in education. Most individuals simply take
education as a given without much thought or reflection. We want to create a bit
of interruption with this all-encompassing question because how you answer it
will necessarily have implications for how educators ought to proceed. As such,
Chapter 1 starts with the basic philosophical question in education: What are the
aims, values, and purposes of education? This chapter examines competing philo-
sophical conceptions of education, as well as the aims and purposes derived from
those competing conceptions. Chapter 2 moves on from the broader aims and pur-
poses of education, to a commonly identified aim of education: Can we educate

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 Introduction xxi

for a Canadian identity? This chapter traces out some of the central features of
education for civic identity. It also discusses how multiculturalism, intercultural-
ism, and social cohesion could be framed as possible and contesting educational
underpinnings for a “Canadian identity.”
Part II considers the overarching question: How should children be educated?
If we have a sense of the overarching purposes of education, logically, pre-service
teachers must ask themselves how to meet these fundamental aims and purposes.
Chapter 3 presents an overview of the central issues related to the changing nature
of learning and teaching for pre-service teachers: What are our main conceptions
of education, where did they originate, and how do they inform our current prac-
tices? We extend this debate in Chapter 4 by asking: Are students becoming con-
sumerist learners? In this chapter, we will look at the influence of this new cultural
and social trend on education in Canada. Consumerism is about more than just
shopping, either online or in person. It is a way of life and a set of values and
beliefs about ourselves that we bring to everything we do—including education.
Are students “consumers” of education in the same way they may be consumers
of other things?
Part III moves the debate inside school walls and addresses the question:
What should children learn? It is insufficient to consider not only how we should
proceed, but also what curricular content is important in teaching and learning.
Chapter 5 asks: What should be taught in the curriculum? This chapter looks to
some of the various commonalities and distinctions placed on the curriculum
throughout various provinces in Canada. Chapter 6 takes the issue of curricular
content to a deeper level by asking the question: Should we teach students about
controversial subjects? Here, we consider some of the more highly charged public
debates that challenge our fundamental beliefs and values.
Part IV considers the issue: Where should children learn? Our purpose in
this part is to highlight the challenges associated with providing education in the
second largest geographical area in the world. Chapter 7 focuses on: Place-based
education and the rural school ethic. This chapter examines the extent to which
schools contribute to the life of small communities and a sense of “place” as an edu-
cational value. Chapter 8 considers the variety of schools being offered in Canada:
Should school choice be fostered in public education? This chapter examines the
contested debate surrounding public school choice policies across Canada.
Part V considers the individuals and groups who have a vested interest in edu-
cation: Who should control education? For pre-service teachers, this is important
to understand given competing interests of those who influence and determine
how children are educated. Chapter 9 asks the question: Should cultural restor-
ation be an aim of education? This chapter, which deals with justice, reconcili-
ation, and Aboriginal education, highlights the debates around the role of the
state and First Nations’ governance of education. Chapter 10 asks: Should parents
decide how children are educated? In this chapter, we look at the potential conflict
between parents’ right to decide and state obligations.
The final section, Part VI, concludes with the question: What is the role of
teachers’ professional identity? Chapter 11 places the teacher at the centre of the

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 xxii Introduction

question: To what extent do teachers have professional autonomy? This chapter

examines the concept of professional autonomy and the tension between teach-
ers’ moral obligations to students and their obligation to school district policies.
We conclude Chapter 12 with a reflective discussion: teaching for the Canadian
ethical environment. In this final chapter, we consider whether there is a need for
pre-service teachers to consider a Canadian conception of education.

Final Points of Consideration for Emerging

Philosophers of Education
We hope this book will serve as a welcoming introduction to the wondrous debates
at the core of reflective educational practice. As academics, we are incredibly pas-
sionate and excited about this discipline. For us, these are issues that matter. This
book is in part an invitation to share in this passion. Indeed, every individual who
holds a view, who has a particular position and is willing to defend it or call it
into question, is already a “closet” philosopher. We encourage you to amplify your
educational stance by interrupting taken-for-granted positions, challenging and
critiquing the ways that it has “always been done.” Furthermore, when something
seems to be working, we urge you to step back and consider the principles behind
why this seems to be the case. Developing and enhancing these dispositions is
what helps good teachers become great teachers—teachers who are principled,
fair, and critically reflective.
By the end of this book, we hope that you will see that part of the task of
philosophy is to help you make a reasoned defence of your position. If the book
is being used in conjunction with a class, you may be asked to write a philosophy
paper, take part in a debate, or present an argument in some way. As you begin
these tasks, consider these guidelines to help build a strong argument:

1. A philosophy paper needs to go beyond mere opinion. The primary task is

to offer an argument and defend your position by drawing upon reasons to
support your view. Drawing upon previous personal experience as a student
is generally considered a weak defence in philosophy. You need to state your
position on a particular contested issue, and provide a coherent defence of
that stance in terms of what is fair or right, or in the best interest of society or
of the people affected by the policy or action. Provide evidence or examples
to support your position.
2. Strong philosophy papers tend to make a small point, but are developed sub-
stantially. Do not try to take on the world. Avoid making grand statements.
They are difficult to defend and often weaken your overall argument.
3. Finally, keep in mind the purpose for writing a philosophy paper. Instructors
want to see that you can draw upon the readings and key ideas, and that you
can engage critically with the issue.

As you read the following chapters, consider how the big ideas and the con-
tested debates help inform your development as a teacher.

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 Introduction xxiii

Further Readings
Maxwell, B. (2011). Philosophy of education http://www.redjif.org/bp/index.php?op-
interrogates what we think we know about tion=com_k2&view=item&id=155:la-filo-
education. Bajo Balabra, 46(6), 41‒2. http:// sofía-de-la-educación-como-servicio-púb-
www.redjif.org/bp/index.php?option=com_ lico&Itemid=179
k2&view=itemlist&layout=category&task= Stanford Encyclopedia entry on “Philosophy of
category&id=18&Itemid=179 Education” written by D.C. Phillips and Harvey
White, J. (2011). Philosophy of education as Siegel at http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/
public servant. Bajo Balabra, 46(6), 49‒50. education-philosophy/.

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901003_01_Ch01.indd 2 02/12/15 3:51 PM
 Part I
Why Should Children Be Educated?

Part Overview
Begin exploring central questions of the book that are concerned with what makes
education a worthwhile and meaningful endeavour.
Examine unique features of education in the Canadian context and how education is a
part of creating a Canadian civic identity.
Reflect on your own thoughts and assumptions about what education is and what makes
it valuable.

Overview by Chapter
1 What Are the Values and Aims of Education? 4
• Think about what education is for, and why it is worthwhile, and if it is intrinsically
valuable.
• Question whether education should or can make us happy and more autonomous.
• Think about what an “educated person” might be.

2 Can We Educate for Canadian Identity? 23

• Begin inquiring into what civic identity is, and why it is important in Canadian
educational contexts.
• Learn about how citizenship education in Canada has evolved and taken its current
form.
• Explore ways to balance a unified sense of Canadian civic identity with recognition of
deep differences between groups within Canada.

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 1 What Are the Values
and Aims of Education?

Introduction
In a news report that received media attention across Canada, a university profes-
sor complained that Newfoundland and Labrador’s math curriculum was “failing”
students. As the professor put it, “these curriculums . . . have been quite extreme.
So the focus is predominantly on investigations and problem solving. The investi-
gations are designed to expose children to conceptual models of mathematics, and
in problem solving, you use the conceptual models. So there’s very little emphasis
on developing efficient skills in the use of algorithms, and so a lot of students are
not able to do mathematics” (CBC, 2013). As a result, the professor added, students
were unable to keep up with university math courses because they lacked the basic
skills needed for taking on more complex patterns and proofs. If we reflect on the
professor’s criticism, it is apparent that her concern is informed by some common
beliefs about the purposes of math education. According to many, being able to
complete math operations correctly, through repetition and training, should be
the aim of the school curriculum. Furthermore, the purpose of this training is
to prepare students for more advanced mathematics study at the university level.
Focus on preparation for advanced study also suggests a more general assumption:
that the main purpose of education is to acquire knowledge of academic disci-
plines such as math, science, and literature. We can see why under these terms a
math curriculum focused on problem solving and investigation supposedly fails:
it doesn’t meet these purposes.
But is this the whole story on why math is worth learning? Skill development for
university could be one reason why we should learn math (as well as a host of other
academic school subjects). But is this the most important reason? Let’s assume for
the moment that the whole purpose of education is to train students in the basics of
math or biology in order to prepare them for more serious study of academic disci-
plines at university. What does this mean for students who attend school but do not
go on to university? Does this mean that the study of math holds no value for them?
And what about those students that do go on to university? Math at the school level
may help us get even more math education at university, but this still doesn’t explain
why getting an education in math is worthwhile to begin with.

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 1 What Are the Values and Aims of Education? 5

Consider further that there may be more general reasons for teaching math
besides preparation for university. Math may be especially effective at fostering
critical thinking skills. Many see critical thinking as an ability that all citizens
should acquire. Then again, learning how math “works,” how it is used to help
understand the world in a very specific way, has value in its own right. Seeing
from “a mathematical point of view” is an important addition to the various ways
we can experience the world around us. Math also has practical value. It can help
us make important calculations regarding travel, construction, or home budget-
ing. Further, none of these reasons speak against a math curriculum focused on
understanding.
Most would agree that education is something good and worthwhile. We see
value in it. Yet, as the preceding example is meant to show, disagreement about
what education is for, and why it is worthwhile, can be found almost anywhere.
Something as straightforward as math education is caught up in that debate. How
can we have such strong agreement that something is good, yet disagree about
it so frequently and deeply? The questions of what education is for and why it is
worthwhile are complex. Addressing them is not easy. But as the example also
shows, our beliefs about the aims and purposes of education will have a direct
impact not only on what we teach, but on how we teach. The math teacher who
assumes that critical thinking is a basic aim of education is going to allocate much
of her instructional time to problem-solving and inquiry. The math teacher who
believes that education ought to prepare students for the workforce may change
his approach depending on the type of work readily available in the kind of society
he is teaching in. Still other math teachers, who think that advanced academic
knowledge is a central aim of education, may agree with the recommendations
suggested by the math professor.
In this chapter we will take a look at some of the major philosophical accounts
of the nature and purpose of education and different practical implications for
teaching and learning that might arise from these different philosophical accounts.
Along the way, you will be given an opportunity to reflect on and critically assess
your own beliefs about the aims and purposes of education, armed with a deeper
philosophical understanding of the nature and scope of education. We are all act-
ing on a set of beliefs about the aims and purposes of education, whether we know
it or not—and whether we know what it is or not.

Pause for Thought

What Is an Educated Person?
Take some time to list some of the aims and goals you think education
should aspire to. Another way to approach the question: What does it mean
to be an educated person? We will revisit your answer later in the chapter.

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 6 Part I • Why Should Children Be Educated?

Terminology: Does Education Have a Purpose?

Part of the difficulty in addressing the question of the point and purposes of
education is that the way we talk about education is itself a matter of debate. For
example, some have argued that it is wrong to talk about education as having a
“purpose” because it leads us into thinking of education as being like an assembly
line where the teacher’s job is to mass produce a certain kind of person according
to a predetermined objective.
values and aims of For the sake of simplicity we will refer to the values and aims of education.
education The goods When we refer to values of education, we mean that there are some specifiable
promoted by and
through education
reasons why education is good. For example, if you claim “Math is an important
and the specific goals part of education because you need to know math in order to manage a household
set out for students by budget,” you are assuming that one value of education is that it prepares learners
virtue of those values.
for economic life. When we refer to aims of education, we are making specific
judgments about what’s worth spending time and effort on. For example, if prep-
aration for economic life is an educational value, we might decide that teaching
practical knowledge about home economics (like being able to manage a house-
hold budget) is an aim of education. Educational values (the good of education)
inform our educational aims (the goals of education).

Education versus Schooling

Before we dive directly into a discussion of the values and aims of education,
we should make an important distinction between debates about schooling and
debates about education. The mathematics professor from the example in the
introduction may be right when she claims that schools are not doing a good job
of preparing students for university study. Preparing students for university study
is one responsibility of the public school system. However, it might be wrong when
she implies that a math curriculum focused on investigation has little educational
value. How is this possible?
Despite massive technological change, modern school systems remain the
dominant educational institution of our time. When people think about education
they almost always think of schools and schooling. However, it is for this very rea-
son that we should be careful not to confuse issues and debates about schools as
institutions that serve a number of roles in society, on the one hand, with a philo-
sophical inquiry into the aims and values of education, on the other. Schools are
responsible for pursuing educational aims but they also serve a number of other
roles. Let’s elaborate on this distinction a little more.
School systems are often seen as a useful means for implementing policy goals.
If children are increasingly overweight, schools should have more time allocated
to physical activity. If new Canadians are having difficulty adjusting to civic life,
schools ought to promote a stronger sense of Canadian identity. If young Canadians
aren’t voting enough, schools should focus on learning the history of Canada’s
major political parties. If the economy is slowing down, schools need to do a better
job encouraging children to innovate and start new businesses when they graduate.

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 1 What Are the Values and Aims of Education? 7

Yet, just because schools can meet a certain policy goal it does not necessarily
follow that we have good educational reasons for trying to achieve it. This doesn’t
mean that increased physical fitness or employability or entrepreneurial success
are unimportant. In fact, schools have a more positive impact on children’s lives
and on society as a whole when they are mindful of such policy goals. However,
some activities that take place in schools are directly related to educational aims
while other activities may be indirectly related to those aims—or not at all. We
should be aware of the distinction.
For example, some policy goals aim to support educational success but have
no direct, or logical, connection to education. This is less of a contradiction than it
seems. Consider children’s nutrition. If children don’t eat a healthy breakfast, they
will be less likely to focus and learn. Most philosophers don’t believe a healthy
breakfast is an aim of education (though teaching children how to make wise deci-
sions about their nutrition could be), but most would agree that breakfast pro-
grams, especially for schools in low-income areas, are essential if we want children
to achieve the educational aims we set out for them. Such programs and policies
are a useful means to supporting learning. There are worthwhile routines, out-
comes, and objectives part of the daily business of schools that have no direct
connection to educational values and aims.
Other policy outcomes may reflect educational values but haven’t been fully
thought through. For example, many argue that job training shouldn’t be an aim
of education. According to these people, basic education should be concerned with
acquiring a broad knowledge about the world. The specialization that comes with
job training should be for later in life. But much of this depends on what we mean by
job training. The idea that students should be employable may reflect deeper ideas
about what education should be about. After all, having a job goes some way toward
economic well-being. Therefore, some have argued quite convincingly that an abil-
ity to participate in the economy should be an aim of education (Brighouse, 2009;
Winch, 2002). And while education for economic well-being may require some job
training in terms of learning what kinds of work is out there, it also requires learn-
ing about how the economy works and how to plan for retirement. In fact, if we take
economic well-being seriously as an aim of education, we have good reasons for
steering students away from overspecialization and narrow job training for the rea-
son that their economic well-being may be vulnerable to a changing job market. The
experience of many Canadians who trained for the IT boom in the 1990s or fishers
caught up in Newfoundland’s cod moratorium can certainly appreciate this point.
So, schooling for the job market may, on reflection, link up to a more educationally
serious idea: education for long-term economic well-being.
This last point is especially important and it brings us back to the school/
education distinction. If education involves values that are distinct from, say, the
values of health care or child development or job training, we should be able
to explain what exactly those values are. We can do lots of activities in school,
but by being clearer on the nature, scope, and reasons for the aims or values of
education, we will be better positioned to engage in such activities in a way that
makes them more meaningful for both students and teachers. The difference lies,

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 8 Part I • Why Should Children Be Educated?

Pause for Thought

Reviewing Your Educational Aims
Revise your list of educational aims from the last section. What items on
your list lie closer to more specific, institutional aims of schooling? Which
items represent more general educational aims and values? What makes
the items on this list different from one another?

Pause for Thought

Argumentation and Education
Much of the material in the chapter, and in the chapters that follow, will
focus on arguments about different educational values and aims. Note that
when we use the term argument here, we don’t mean it in the sense of a
fight between two people. Rather, by argument we mean the use of logic
and reasoning in order to determine if a belief or idea is true or right. In
this book, we are interested in exploring how we can use argumentation in
order to figure out what the values and aims of education ought to be, and
how we should apply them to different issues in Canadian schools.
Why should new teachers be interested in these arguments? Isn’t it
more important that the early-career teacher become familiar with the
school curriculum and develop skills such as lesson planning and classroom
discipline? Knowledge of the curriculum, lesson planning, and classroom
discipline are indeed important, but this does not mean that educators
should not have an interest in arguments about the values and aims of
education.
Read Harvey Siegel’s (1995) essay “Why Should Educators Care about
Argumentation?” What values and aims of education does Siegel argue
are important? What reasons does he give for why teachers and educa-
tors should care about argumentation? Think of some examples in which
knowledge and understanding about educational values and aims might
be important for a teacher.

for example, in being able to say that we do sports with children in schools, on
the one hand, and saying that we educate children in sports and athletic trad-
itions, on the other. When we talk about educating in or for something, we aspire
to something greater. But what exactly does this greater aspiration involve, and

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 1 What Are the Values and Aims of Education? 9

what reasons might we have for taking up this challenge? This is where things get
interesting—and complicated.

Changing Models of Education

In the introduction of this book, we emphasized that thinking about the philo-
sophical issues in education, especially for those new to the topic, is best taken
on through a problem-solving approach. This chapter shares this approach. Here,
we will be exploring various philosophical perspectives on a basic problem in
educational thinking: what is education for and what makes it worthwhile or
valuable? In what follows, we are going to briefly trace the development of some
contemporary thinking about this problem. We will trace this development in
three broad steps:

1. The knowledge model. This model tries to solve the problem in the following
way: values of knowledge and understanding are the foundation for aims of
education. This model argues that the development of a knowledgeable mind
is what education should be aiming for.
2. Reaction and criticism. Here, we will look at some of the ways in which other
thinkers have found the knowledge-focused solution to be incomplete,
unsatisfactory, or outright wrong.
3. The well-being model. This model tries to solve the problem in the following
way: values that promote our well-being are the foundation for aims of educa-
tion. This model argues that the development of personal autonomy and wise
decision-making is what education should be focused on.

In working through each step we will limit our discussion to a few key think-
ers. The philosophers we focus on are simply representative of each model. The
idea is not to rehearse what these thinkers say but to help you understand the
educational values that they are working with and to help you assess those values
on your own terms. Nor is our overview of educational aims meant to be com-
prehensive. Some philosophers, for example, have argued that education should
be about exposure to the best a culture has to offer. Others have argued that
education should aim at political revolution. These perspectives are not taken
up here in any great detail (though see the “Further Readings” section at the
end of the chapter). The aim of this chapter is to help you to learn to think in a
philosophical way about values and aims and see how this thinking changes in
response to criticism.

Step One: Knowledge and Understanding

as an Aim of Education
As we mentioned in the Introduction, the work of British philosopher R.S. Peters
arrived at an important moment in the Western history of education. Peters pro-
duced his major work in the late 1950s and through the 1960s, a time when education

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 10 Part I • Why Should Children Be Educated?

was being opened up to more citizens, not only at the primary and secondary level,
but at the university level as well.
This is important to consider because prior to this period, education—and
especially higher education—was more or less something available only to a rela-
tively small, elite segment of society. Education aimed to acquaint those elites with
so-called high culture—Shakespeare, Latin, and ancient philosophy, for example—
as preparation for entry into positions of responsibility in government, religious
orders, and commerce. However, between the eighteenth and twentieth centuries
this picture began to change in a variety of ways. Education for national identity,
the rise of industry, and a growing movement focused on democracy in schools all
emphasized different values—often with conflicting implications for aims, policy,
and practice. This raised a serious question: among all of these competing values
and aims, which ones should teachers and students really be focusing on?
In this context of confusion, Peters was concerned that a focus on schooling
for jobs and economic growth would crowd out what he saw as more fundamental
educational values (Cuypers & Martin, 2013). For him, education should aim to
leave people better off in a more general and wide-ranging sense than employment
or skill development. Education has its own intrinsic ends and values.
intrinsic value When This peculiar idea—that education has its own intrinsic value—can be a dif-
something is valuable
ficult one to grasp. We usually think of education as a means to something else.
for its own sake.
But we can unpack this idea by comparing it to other values, such as health. For
example, one of the reasons why it is good to be healthy is that when we are healthy
we are better able to access other goods. When we are healthy we are more pro-
ductive at work and we can enjoy activities like going for walks and travelling.
Being healthy means that we don’t need to go to the doctor as much, saving us
time and money. When we talk about health in such terms, we are emphasizing its
extrinsic value When extrinsic value. That is, we see health as useful for getting other things we want.
something is valued for In a similar way, we can say that getting an education is a good thing, for example,
the sake of something
else, or its usefulness in because it helps increase our chances of being employed. This is one extrinsic
getting something else. value of education.
However, we can also say that being healthy is valuable, full stop. In other
words, even if being healthy didn’t make us more productive at work and even if it
didn’t mean fewer visits to the doctor, the very state of being healthy is a desirable
state to be in. Health has intrinsic value—a value that doesn’t depend on how useful
it is for getting other things. We all have a sense of what it means to “feel better”
and the role that being healthy has in this feeling. Peters thinks that same argument
could be made about education. He thinks that while education can be “put to use,”
it also has intrinsic value and this intrinsic value should be what teachers aim for.

Intrinsic Educational Values

What exactly are these intrinsic values? Peters thinks that education is about the
betterment of our minds. Having an educated mind is a desirable state to be in,
similar to the state of being healthy. Education brings us into this desirable state
by expanding our knowledge and understanding of the world around us, thus

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 1 What Are the Values and Aims of Education? 11

transforming us at an intellectual level. Peters defines this desirable, or educated,

state of mind in terms of three core educational values:

1. Worthwhileness. Education must involve the engagement of the learner with

activities that leave them better off. To say that an activity is educational is
to mean that it is worthwhile in some way (Peters 1963, p. 92). But not any
activity goes. We would not say, for example, that hockey is an educationally
worthwhile activity. It may be fun, but it has no educational value. This is
because education aims at exposing students to forms of knowledge that are
considered worthwhile—forms like science, philosophy, and art. We discuss
why activities like science and philosophy are worthwhile, while games or
activities like hockey are not, in the next section.
2. Understanding and care for what is worthwhile. Not only is the content of edu-
cation important, but so too is the way in which it is taught. Educationally
worthwhile activities should not be taken up in a way that leave the learner
indoctrinated or brainwashed. The learner must know the “reason why” of
things (Peters 1967, p. 18). Remember, we are talking about promoting valu-
able states of mind. An indoctrinated mind is not a desirable state to be in,
says Peters. Further, we should value what we learn. As he puts it, “[w]e would
not call a man ‘educated’ who knew about science but cared nothing for truth
or who regarded it merely as a means to getting hot water and hot dogs” (p.
96). This doesn’t mean that Peters thinks that basic cooking skills are bad.
What he means is that education ensures that the learner appreciates what is
learned for what it is. The educated person is one who is capable of pursuing
science or philosophy just because of their intrinsic value, not only because of
what use they can be put to (Peters 1967, p. 18). In other words, they see the
extrinsic and intrinsic value of an activity.
3. Breadth and depth. Education also involves activities that change (and
broaden) the learner’s perspective. Education cannot focus on learning a lot
about just one thing. A narrow state of mind is also not a good state to be in.
Students should be exposed to a variety of forms of knowledge because, when
taken together, they promote a broader view of the world around them.

Forms of Knowledge
As we have just said, Peters thinks that not just any activity that leaves us better off
is educationally worthwhile. So what activities are we talking about? Peters calls
the special activities of education—activities with intellectually transformative forms of knowledge
potential—forms of knowledge. Some examples of forms of knowledge include Intellectual traditions
art, philosophy, science, and mathematics. Peters makes the educational case for or activities, such as
science, math, art, and
these forms by way of contrast: “There is very little to know about riding bicycles, philosophy, that human-
swimming or golf. It is largely a matter of ‘knowing how’ rather than of ‘knowing ity has developed as
that’. Furthermore what there is to know throws very little light on much else” a way of better under-
standing the world.
(Peters 1963, p. 100). Compare this with bodies of knowledge such as history,

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 12 Part I • Why Should Children Be Educated?

Pause for Thought

The Forms of Knowledge: More than Subject-Based Teaching?
What kind of teaching would be required to help students access the
“forms of knowledge”? Is there a significant difference between teaching
school subjects as opposed to teaching forms of knowledge? In answering
the question, try to apply Peters’ educational values. How would we carry
out this different approach in a classroom setting?

science, and literature where “there is an immense amount to know, and, if it is

properly assimilated, it constantly throws light on, widens, and deepens one’s view
of countless other things” (p. 10). Science is a good example. Learning science can
transform, for the better, how one understands the natural world. Not only do we
learn many scientific facts about nature, we also learn what it means to see the
world through a “scientific” lens. Poetry is another example. It can also transform
how one understands the world. We find in poetry, for example, many different
ways of interpreting our natural surroundings. By reading poetry about nature
we can also learn how to experience these surroundings in a way that is mindful
of its beauty and awe. Both science and the arts offer distinct perspectives on the
world. When we put all these distinctive forms of knowledge together, according
to Peters, we are led to a better state of mind because our experience of the world
has been significantly expanded.

Step Two: Reaction and Criticism

Peters makes an important, and influential, case for knowledge and understanding
as a central aim of education. Many have shared in this view even if they differ in
terms of what this aim looks like in practice. However, this is by no means the last
word on educational aims. In what follows, we will look at some of the critiques of
knowledge-centred approaches to education.

Why Is an Educated Mind a Desirable State?

Many readers will find the idea of education for knowledge and understanding
to be basic common sense. The whole point of school-based subjects is to expose
young people to a wide range of worthwhile forms of knowledge.
However, some philosophers strongly disagree with the knowledge-centric
model. For example, many have argued that while Peters is clear about his view
of education he provides no justification for it—he gives no reasons why anyone

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 1 What Are the Values and Aims of Education? 13

should want this kind of education or why the “state of mind” promoted by
such an education is “desirable.” These critics have further claimed that Peters
bases his account of education entirely on his personal beliefs and doesn’t spend
enough time considering other views on education. Imagine, for example, the
value of education from the perspective of a fishing community in northern
Labrador. In such a community, knowledge of the arts and sciences may be val-
ued but it may nonetheless be far more important that education prepare stu-
dents to learn to make a living from the ocean, which would include practical
knowledge regarding how to build and repair boats, mend nets, and anticipate
drastic and dangerous changes in the weather. Why can’t practical knowledge be
a basic educational value?

Gender and the Educated Person

Some have argued that the development of mind doesn’t really leave all students as
better off as the knowledge model might suggest. For example, philosopher Jane
Roland Martin has argued that Peters’s educational values are biased in favour of a
traditionally male conception of education (Martin, 1981). She gives three reasons
for this view.
First, by focusing on education as a cognitive achievement (i.e., by focusing
on developing our thinking and reasoning) our emotional development is ignored.
Education is supposed to lead to a valued state of mind. What about a valued state
of heart? For example, Peters claims that education should lead us to care about
the forms of knowledge, but he says much less about the value of caring about
other people (Martin, p. 101). Care and other emotions in the knowledge-focused
paradigm, Martin points out, are given a lesser role, and are only valuable when
they serve our intellectual development.
Second, the forms of knowledge that Peters claims are so worthwhile and
important—science, philosophy, art—have long been historically dominated by
a male point of view. Initiating young people into such forms, then, means initia-
tion into a largely male-centric perspective on the world. While Martin does not

Pause for Thought

A Broadened Perspective
Peters’s account of education was criticized because he gave little justifi-
cation for why a “broadened perspective” on the world is a good state of
mind to be in. What reasons can you come up with in support of this view?
What reasons might you offer against it?

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 14 Part I • Why Should Children Be Educated?

say that these forms of knowledge are necessarily bad (she is herself, after all, a
philosopher), she does say that they are incomplete unless (and until) they include
more diverse points of view.
Third, Martin argues that while Peters is concerned with the public value of
knowledge and understanding—a world of academic debate, scientific inquiry, and
scholarly study—he does not consider the role of knowledge and understanding in
our private lives. Romantic partnerships, child-rearing, and family life all require
a certain degree of intellectual, practical, and emotional knowledge (Martin, 1981,
p. 106). This kind of knowledge seems to be arbitrarily excluded from Peters’s con-
ception of the aims of education.
Martin’s underlying point is that the kind of person that an education focused
on intellectual development leads to isn’t an especially well-off one. Educated
people may know about a lot about intellectual things, but without sufficient
focus on the emotions they may have trouble forming caring relationships with
other people. Knowledge is necessary for a desirable state of mind, but it isn’t the
whole picture.

Why Knowledge and Understanding?

Peters, along with many other philosophers, has assumed that knowledge is the
essential starting point for trying to figure out what the aims of education ought
to be. Talk about the aims of education is therefore limited to questions about the
promotion of knowledge and understanding in learners. Is this limitation justified?
Philosopher John White has strongly challenged this limitation. White’s criti-
cism of the United Kingdom’s national curriculum—which, like curricula in most
Canadian schools, focuses mainly on traditional subject areas such as math, lan-
guages, and science—is a good example of this challenge:

The National Curriculum has underlined yet again the traditional preju-
dice that knowledge is what is central to education—that curriculum
planning begins with some kind of carving-up of areas of knowledge,
considerations about aims and values being relegated to the periphery.
The more rational way to construct a national curriculum is to begin
with aims and then ask how best those aims might be realized. Different
types of knowledge would no doubt now come into the reckoning; how-
ever, there is no reason to think that acquiring these would constitute the
only such sub-objectives or necessarily the most important among them.
Virtues, attitudes and other dispositions would be likely to be among
their competitors. (White, 1991, p. 113‒14)

Note that White is not denying that knowledge is an aim of education. Rather,
he is suggesting that it is but one aim, and perhaps not even the most important
one. White thinks that, like the planners of the national curriculum, philosophers
that assume knowledge is the central aim of education are missing many other
important educational values.

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 1 What Are the Values and Aims of Education? 15

Step Three: Well-Being as an Aim of Education

In this last section we will look at a second major paradigm in educational thought
about aims, the well-being model of education. We can think of this paradigm
as a response to criticisms of the knowledge-focused paradigm. According to
the knowledge-focused paradigm, education leaves us better off by promoting
an intellectual state of mind. Knowledge just is the value of education. However,
many critics think that this latter assumption is unfounded. These critics argue
that while knowledge has an important role to play in a person’s well-being, it can
be overemphasized. According to the well-being model, deciding on the aims of
education involves figuring out what it means to live well. While knowledge plays
a part in living well, it is not the only part. Accordingly, different answers to the
question of what it means to live well will lead to different educational aims.

Hedonism and Happiness

Many would claim that well-being means being happy. When we hear good news
we say we are “happy to hear it”: the news has made us feel better in some respect.
subjective Something
When we use the term “happiness” in this way, we are referring to a subjective whose truth, goodness,
sense of pleasure (or displeasure) about the particular circumstances of our life. By or rightness is a matter
of personal taste or
subjective we mean that what counts as pleasurable, good, or satisfying is a matter
preference. Judgments
of personal taste or preference. A conception of well-being that focuses on such about art, for example,
a subjective sense of happiness or contentment is called a hedonic conception of are often thought to
differ depending on the
well-being (Ryan & Deci, 2001). Educational aims based on a hedonic conception
tastes of the individual
of well-being would therefore be focused on the promotion of such a subjective person viewing that art.
sense of pleasure or satisfaction about one’s life. Education should equip students
hedonic conception of
with those abilities, skills, or intellectual powers that will enable them to pursue
well-being Theories of
those things in life that make them happy in this subjective way. well-being that under-
In fact, the idea of happiness as an aim of education is becoming increas- stand well-being as a
matter of subjective
ingly popular, especially with the rise in research claiming that there is a “sci-
happiness.
ence” of subjective happiness (Layard, 2006; for an excellent discussion of this

Pause for Thought

An Education for Living Well
What do you think students should have if they want to live well? To what
extent can we educate for these things? Return to your list of educational
aims from earlier in the chapter. Some of your listed aims may not have
fallen under the knowledge model. Of those, which might fall under your
ideas about well-being?

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 16 Part I • Why Should Children Be Educated?

idea and its implications for education, see a series of articles edited by Cigman
and Davis, 2009).
Being happy might be part of what it means to live well, but is happiness the
same thing as well-being? If I say “I am happy,” does that mean I am living a good
life? It doesn’t take much reflection to see that happiness faces some serious lim-
itations. First, it could mean that knowledge has little or no place in education.
If teaching students uncomfortable truths leaves those students less happy about
their lives, it would lead to the educational judgment that those truths ought not
be taught. The effects of environmental change for the future of Canada’s Arctic,
our deeply problematic history with indigenous peoples, and the politics of immi-
gration—all involve knowledge that is important for Canadians. But this know-
ledge may leave students less happy or satisfied about their own lives. Is this a good
reason not to include such knowledge on the curriculum? Ignorance is bliss, as the
saying goes—but bliss and well-being are not necessarily the same thing.
Second, there are all sorts of decisions that make people happy but do so at the
expense of others. Lying, for example, is often tempting because it leaves the liar (or
the lied to) better off, at least in the short term. Education for happiness has difficulty
addressing the fact that there are occasions where we need to act in ways that won’t
leave ourselves or others happy in the subjective sense of the term. The truth hurts,
but this is not always a reason not to tell the truth (or learn about what is true).
Third, decisions that may make us subjectively happy can also make us less
well off, all things considered. A kindergarten teacher knows that handing out
chocolate bars at the beginning of the day will make the students happy. But doing
so would also make the students too agitated to learn. Individuals that cannot con-
trol their desires and always go for things that make them happy in the moment
may have difficulty living a good life.

Eudaimonic Happiness
As mentioned earlier, a more robust approach to education for well-being has
been taken up by John White (among others). In his book Education and the Good
Life (1991), White argues that well-being “consists in the satisfaction of one’s most
important desires, taking one’s life as a whole” (p. 30). The key here is that by
“taking one’s life as a whole,” we make sure the desires being fulfilled are informed.
What do we mean by “informed”? When someone has an informed desire, that
person is (1) clear on what that desire is really about, and (2) knows the conse-
quences for him- or herself and others if and when the desire is satisfied.
For example, after a late evening of work I may find myself with a strong
desire to go to the pub for a pint of beer. Should I? On the hedonic view of well-be-
ing, I should go because it will make me “happy.” But the informed desire approach
views this scenario very differently. First, I should have a better conceptual under-
standing of my desire before acting on it. When my desire is informed, I may
realize that it’s not really beer I want, but the company of friends of which a pint
at the pub has a strong association (note that this assumes I have both the ability
and motivation to reflect more deeply on what it is I really want). It turns out that

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 1 What Are the Values and Aims of Education? 17

my desire for beer is actually motivated by a desire for companionship. Second,

I can situate this desire within the bigger picture of my life. It may be the case that,
while I desire beer, I also have the higher-level desire not to desire beer, perhaps
because I have to get up early in the morning to teach a class or I’m training for a
marathon. Finally, I may desire beer but I promised a friend that I would help him
or her with some errands. Keeping promises is an important part of whom I am.
All things considered, then, I (reluctantly) skip the visit to the pub. I may not be
“happy” about my decision, but I know that it is a good one.
White thinks that informed desires enable one to make good judgments in
the interests of one’s long-term well-being. These decisions are “wiser” and bet-
ter thought through than the kinds of decisions that a hedonic approach would
promote. In fact, this conception of well-being draws from a very old tradition of
thinking about happiness, often termed the eudaimonic conception of well-being, eudaimonic conception
which goes at least as far back as the Greek philosopher Aristotle. This approach of well-being Theories
of well-being that
to well-being is focused on the cultivation of the knowledge, abilities, and motiva- understand well-be-
tions necessary for making good decisions about what one needs in order to live a ing as a matter of
good life in the long run. In contrast to hedonism, this conception of well-being is leading a good life. The
activities and pursuits
seen as objective. By objective we mean that the ingredients for living a good life that make for a good
are not always a matter of personal taste or preference. As Ryan and Deci put it: life are thought to be
objective, meaning
that some activities are
Eudaimonic theories [of well-being] maintain that not all desires—not more worth pursuing
all outcomes that a person might value—would yield well-being when than others, regardless
achieved. Even though they are pleasure producing, some outcomes are of what the individual
believes.
not good for people and would not promote wellness. Thus, from the
eudaimonic perspective, subjective happiness cannot be equated with objective Something
well-being. (Ryan & Deci, 2001, pp. 145‒6) whose truth, goodness,
or rightness is not
influenced by personal
Caring for others, being reflective about what we want, having informed tastes or preferences.
desires and an awareness of the larger consequences of our choices all involve The results of a
science experiment,
dispositions, habits of mind, and reasoning skills that go beyond education for for example, should
hedonic happiness. Some philosophers have characterized the difference in the not be affected by
following way: unlike pleasure-seeking, eudaimonic well-being involves having a the preferences of the
scientist conducting the
better sense of who we really are so that we can act in harmony with our “true” self. experiment.
A basic aim of education on the eudaimonic view, then, should be about help-
ing young people come to understand and be able to act on this “true” self. It cer-
tainly seems to be the case that we should put more thought into our well-being
than simply acting in terms of what makes us feel good. However, a eudaimonic
approach is not without its own challenges. First, what is our “true” self, and how
would we know it when we see it? Who decides what my true self is? Myself?
My family? My community? Further, some may see the eudaimonic conception of
well-being as too restrictive or limiting. Something may not be naturally good for
me, but I might want to do it anyway. Shouldn’t I have the freedom to live and act
the way I want? If so, couldn’t this mean that education for eudaimonic well-being
could turn out to be repressive? Finally, what role should schools play in all this?
The idea of teachers or governments telling people what their true self is, or how

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 18 Part I • Why Should Children Be Educated?

Pause for Thought

The Eudaimonic Account of Well-Being
Is the eudaimonic account of well-being a convincing one? It downplays
the forms of knowledge, but is this conception of well-being possible with-
out such knowledge and understanding? Is it possible that people who
have high levels of knowledge-based education may be less well off in
some ways?

they ought to live, could be an unsettling one in placing too much power in the
hands of a few. Is there something of a balance to be struck between a fully subject-
personal autonomy
The ability and motiva- ive and fully objective approach to education for well-being?
tion to live a self-deter-
mined life. Personally
autonomous people Personal Autonomy
determine their ends
and goals for them- The balance, according to White, lies in the concept of personal autonomy. What
selves. They are also
able to critically reflect
our true self is, and needs to be, will depend on where and when we live. A child
on, and choose among, born into a hunter-gathering society in tenth-century Africa will not have the
the shared values of the same kind of “self ” as a child born to a European aristocratic family in the nine-
community or society
they live in.
teenth century. Yet, in both cases, the expectations that society places on them will
significantly limit the freedom they will have in making choices about who they
intellectual autonomy want to be. However, one of the interesting features of the kind of society we live
The ability and motiva-
tion to think and reason
in today is that we are pretty much left to discover this true self through our own
for oneself, without efforts. Nobody can do it for us. Accordingly, education for well-being, in our kind
undue influence by of society at least, requires education for personal autonomy. We can explain this
external pressure or
authority.
concept in more detail.
The term autonomy means self-governance. But what self-governance means
moral autonomy The and why it is valuable can take many different forms. R.S. Peters (1966), for
ability and motivation
to make rational ethical
example, endorses autonomy when he claims that children should learn “the rea-
decisions for oneself, son why” of things. On this view, children should have intellectual autonomy.
without undue influence This simply means that they can think and reason for themselves. Similarly, some
by external pressure or
authority.
philosophers interested in moral education have argued that children should act
ethically because they understand the reasons why those actions are ethical. They
rational autonomy The shouldn’t act in a certain way simply because they were told to do so by parents or
ability and motivation
to make decisions
other authorities. This is called moral autonomy. Finally, some philosophers have
about one’s own self-in- argued that people should be free to make their own choices about what is in their
terest, without undue best interest. This is sometimes termed rational autonomy. Despite these differ-
influence by external
pressure or authority.
ences in emphasis, they share a core meaning: autonomy means to act, believe, or
choose on the basis of good reasons—reasons that are freely taken up by the actor,

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 1 What Are the Values and Aims of Education? 19

believer, or chooser and not imposed on them by an external authority or power

or by threats or intimidation.
As we have already suggested, White argues that in our kind of society per-
sonal autonomy is a key ingredient for well-being. Therefore, it ought to be a core
educational value. According to White, an individual who is personally autono-
mous possesses two capacities (1991, p. 82).
First, personally autonomous people live “self-determined” lives. They can
choose their ends and goals and prioritize among them. They choose their career,
their hobbies, their friends, how they spend free time, and so on. We could call this
the individual dimension of personal autonomy.
Second, personal autonomy has a social dimension. The personally autonomous
person has acquired a set of shared values through his or her social and cultural
upbringing. Those who are personally autonomous are then able to take responsibil-
ity for these shared values—they act on them, revise them, choose between them in
specific situations, and in some cases reject them altogether. For example, societies
like ours tend to celebrate and valorize individual accomplishments and success. As
a result, many people acquire a competitive disposition. Yet, we are also raised in a
liberal democracy where rule of law matters, and so we also acquire a sense of justice
and fairness. Being competitive and being fair can easily come into conflict. The
personally autonomous person is able to make independent choices between these
competing values when called on to do so. Such a person is able, for example, to
resist cheating in order to “win.” In sum, personally autonomous people are mem-
bers of a community but they are ultimately free and able to decide for themselves.
How does White justify personal autonomy as an aim of education? Why
would we want to be personally autonomous? Decision-making and choice, as we
all know, can be difficult and stressful. It can be all too tempting to let people make
decisions for us.
Personal autonomy stands out as an aim of education because in the kind of
political community we live in today—democratic, liberal, industrial—we have
immense freedom (in principle) with respect to how we go about the business of
living our lives and in terms of how we realize our goals and desires. Further, we
are expected to participate in the democratic process, to figure out for ourselves
what we want to do for a living, to choose our romantic partners, and to adopt
a faith or form an opinion. In some tradition-based societies, much of this has
been already figured out for us at the moment of our birth. Our “true self ” is
handed to us (or imposed on us) by the rules, traditions, or religious beliefs of
the community. You can be born a royal or a peasant, to use a common example,
and in such societies you can’t really choose to be otherwise. Modern societies,
for the most part, are supposed to be different in this respect. We have to con-
struct our true self for ourselves and figure out where we stand on the different
values of the communities we are born into. In this respect, personal autonomy is
indispensable for living a good life in the modern world (White, 1991, pp. 98‒103;
Raz, 1986). For White, then, personal autonomy requires more than the academic
subject-based curriculum. The kinds of skills, dispositions, and habits of mind
necessary in order to make well-reasoned and informed choices about how to

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 20 Part I • Why Should Children Be Educated?

live requires more than math, social studies, or other subject content. It even
requires more than Peters’s “forms of knowledge.” In this respect, White hopes
that a focus on personal autonomy and well-being can trigger a reimagining of
the curriculum beyond our traditional focus on the transmission of knowledge
and cognitive development.

Conclusion
In this chapter, we have looked at some major accounts and criticisms of educa-
tional values and the aims of education. We will conclude with some further con-
sideration to keep you thinking about this topic as you move along though the text.
First, as our societies change and encounter new challenges, the kinds of value
judgments we make evolve. For example, the aim of education for happiness is cur-
rently gaining significant traction in policy circles. Defenders of this aim argue that
the happiness of the child has been historically ignored or undervalued. Meanwhile,
others are beginning to advance the concept of mindfulness as an aim of education,

CASE STUDY
What Happened to Physical Education?
Many philosophers, educators, and curriculum theorists in the 1960s and
’70s were interested in the knowledge model of education that we dis-
cussed in the chapter. As should be clear by now, the kind of model you
adopt is going to inform what’s worth including on the curriculum. In other
words, some activities are going to fit in the model, and others are not. For
example, the knowledge model might be able to justify the inclusion of
science in the curriculum because science is the source of a great deal of
truths about the world around us. We learn, for example, that plants con-
vert sunlight into energy, or that we can learn that planned experiments can
help us find out if something we believe about the world is true or false. But
other activities that are not knowledge-orientated would be excluded from
the curriculum because, from the point of view of the knowledge model,
those activities have little or nothing to do with the basic values and aims of
education. Consider, for example, sports and athletics: some have argued
that there are few truths to impart to students through participation in activ-
ities like swimming, track and field, or hockey. Yes, students have to learn
how to swim or run a race. But swimming or running don’t do much to help
students learn important facts, truths, or other understandings about the
world. Games such as checkers may be fun and worth doing, but not in an
educational context.

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 1 What Are the Values and Aims of Education? 21

probably in reaction to the rise of distracting technologies such as smartphones and

social media. Sustainability is also an aim of education that is getting greater attention
in light of increasing evidence of environmental decline. These shifts and changes
don’t mean that educational values such as “knowledge and understanding” or “per-
sonal autonomy” or “well-being” are outdated or irrelevant. Some of these concepts
go back thousands of years. What these changes suggest is that how we apply different
educational values, and the emphasis we give them, will be informed by the practical
and real problems facing schools and classrooms in the here and now. A case in point
is White’s own account of education for personal autonomy. Personal autonomy is
especially relevant to societies that place a premium on individual freedom, personal
responsibility, and choice. As we will see in Chapter 8, some have claimed that too democratic aims
of education Value
strong a focus on individual freedom has been harmful to society. They have argued judgments about how
that personal autonomy means participating in and contributing to that same com- best to prepare young
munity. In fact, many philosophers are interested in what can be called the democratic people for a life in a
democratic society.
aims of education. Democratic aims of education concern value judgments about
how best to prepare young people for a life in a democratic society.

It should be no surprise that physical education came to be largely

undervalued in the knowledge-centric model. Philosopher Andrew Reid
(1996) summarized the range of possible responses to the exclusion of
physical education from the knowledge model as follows:

• Conclude that the knowledge model of education is basically correct,

to admit that physical activities have no real educational value and try
and come up with some non-educational reasons why schools should
have students involved in sports.
• Conclude that the knowledge model of education is basically correct
and come up with a way to teach the traditional content of the physical
education program in a way that fits with the knowledge model.
• Conclude that the knowledge model of education is mistaken and to
argue for a alternative model of education that is broad enough to
include “knowing how” activities, including physical activities.

What answers could you give for each of the three responses? Is it true
that sports and other physical activities are not educationally worthwhile?
If so, what other reasons do we have for including activities such as com-
petitive sports in schools? If not, what is it that seems to be lacking in the
knowledge model?

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 22 Part I • Why Should Children Be Educated?

We can see how various educational paradigms can reflect different assump-
tions about how to envision democratic aims of education. If you think that
education is knowledge-centric you are likely to conclude that a broad under-
standing of and care for the principles of democracy should be a fundamental
democratic aim of education. However, if you view education as properly focused
on well-being, you may think that schools should also aim to ensure that young
people participate as democratic citizens, and have the motivation to defend our
democratically established rights and liberties. (This latter approach is sometimes
called “civic education.”)
The topic of democratic and civic aims of education is a large one. We take it up
more robustly in the next chapter, with a specific focus on education for Canadian
democratic identity. However, we conclude this chapter with the idea of democratic
aims of education because Canada is a democratic society. Therefore, one way of
bringing together the many different strands of this chapter is to conclude with
another question, one that can be seen as a starting point for many of the chapters
in this book: what does it mean for people to live a good life in Canadian society,
and what role do educational aims play in the promotion in that kind of life?

Review Questions
1. This chapter focuses on a contrast between 2. What are the main differences between
two models of education: the knowledge subjective and objective accounts of
model and the well-being model. What are well-being? What limits or problems does
the main differences between the two mod- each account face? How does education for
els, and what arguments could be offered personal autonomy propose to solve these
in defence of each one? Finally, what limits or problems?
approaches to education might be left out 3. How might the teaching and learning of
of these models? school subjects differ from the forms of
knowledge?

Further Readings
Barnes, J. (2004). The Nicomachean ethics. H. Marples, R. (Ed.). (2012). Aims of education. London
Tredennick (Ed.). New York: Penguin. and New York: Routledge.
Dewey, J. (2004). Democracy and education. Mineola, Peters, R. (1979). Democratic values and educa-
NY: Courier Corporation. tional aims. The Teachers College Record, 80(3),
Gutmann, A. (1999). Democratic education. Princeton, 463‒82.
NJ: Princeton University Press.

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 2 Can We Educate for
Canadian Identity?

Introduction
Like people in most Western societies today, Canadians have ambivalent feel-
ings about the notion of educating for national civic identity. On the one hand, civic identity Typically
Canadians tend to have modern, multiculturalist ideas about what it means to be associated with a
geographical area
a Canadian and about the kind of country Canada is. Yet Canadian governments (e.g., country, province,
of the past attempted to inculcate a common national language and culture: from region, or city), civic
the 1839 Durham Report, which recommended assimilating French-speaking identity refers to one’s
sense of membership
Canadians into British culture, to the strict controls imposed on immigration in a political commun-
from southern and eastern Europe before the First World War (thought neces- ity defined by shared
sary to maintain the “racial purity” of Canada), to the system of Aboriginal resi- institutions, laws, cus-
toms, norms, practices,
dential schools, nearly everyone now accepts that these policies were wrongs that history, and so on.
deserve to be recognized, denounced, and—where possible—remedied. On the
other hand, many Canadians continue to think that there is something unique
about being a Canadian that might be about more than just residing in Canada. If
it didn’t mean something to be Canadian, why would Canadians take pride in the
accomplishments of Canadians at home and abroad and feel shame at their fail-
ures? What would explain the concern many Canadians have for the reputation of
their country on the world stage? What interest would they have in participating in
and working to maintain and build exclusively Canadian institutions and organ-
izations, from the Dairy Farmers of Canada to the House of Commons? And why
would the question of Quebec or Alberta separating from Canada ever amount to
anything more than a crass calculation of economic gains and losses? The sense of
civic identity still seems to be able to play a legitimate social role in making sense
of the collective experience of being Canadian and unifying Canadians into a sin-
gle political community. Despite the national civic identity’s sordid past, and in
the face of Canada’s undeniable cultural, religious, ethical, and linguistic plurality,
educationists and policy-makers across the country persist in vigorously espous-
ing civic identity formation as one of the fundamental goals of education in general
and of citizenship education in particular (Osborne, 2000; Sears & Hughes, 1996).
For them, the “feeling of being one people different from other people” (McLeod,
1989, p. 6) is not just something that is nice to have. Promoting civic identity is
basic to the work of teachers and to the educational systems they represent.

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 24 Part I • Why Should Children Be Educated?

Pause for Thought

What Makes Canadians Canadian?
People commonly talk as if Canadians are a “people” or “nation” like the
Russians, the French, or the Vietnamese. What makes a people? And why
should Canadians be considered one? In the popular imagination, shared
geography, language, political views, history, values, or faith are some of
the standard markers of nationhood. But Canadians share virtually none
of these. Canada’s geography is immensely varied, it has two official lan-
guages and over a hundred languages, including the many languages of
the First Nations, are spoken in Canadian homes, and Canada is one of the
most politically, culturally, and religiously pluralistic countries in the world.
List the five traits which, in your view, best capture what makes
Canadians unique as a group of people and being Canadian different from
any other national identity. Then, look at your list and consider whether
schools could play a role in ensuring that the next generation of Canadians
and newcomers to the country acquire these traits. What could schools do
to promote these traits?

The aim of this chapter is to try to sort through some of the mixed feelings
that Canadians have about education for civic identity in order to develop a pro-
posal for how educators should encourage the development of Canadian identity
in schools. We hope that readers will come out with a clearer understanding of
what civic identity is, will better appreciate some of the pitfalls in thinking about
civic identity education, and will be more confident in their ideas about the scope
and limits of education for civic identity in Canada.

What Is Civic Identity and What Is the Point of

Educating for It?
As McLeod’s (1989) definition suggests, civic identity refers to an individual’s sense
of belonging to a particular society that is unique among human societies. In large,
social identity One’s
complex societies like Canada, however, there is a distinction to be made right at
sense of belonging the outset between civic identity and what may be called social identity. Gender,
to a particular group ethnicity, social class, and profession are common sources of social identity. Social
of people who have
certain personal traits
identity is the sense of belonging to any subgroup within the larger society and
or interest in common, which together constitute the larger society. Undoubtedly, an individual can have
like gender or ethnicity, multiple social identities. For example, a female nurse of South Asian descent who
or even work role and
pastime activities.
owns a dog may have affiliations to her gender, her vocation, her ethnicity, or to
the other dog owners in her neighbourhood.

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 2 Can We Educate for Canadian Identity? 25

Social identity can be regarded as a localized version of civic identity insofar

as it serves some of the same functions and meets the same collective and indi-
vidual needs. Because there is in principle no limit to the number of people who
share a social identity, the key difference between civic identity and social identity
is not one of scale or breadth but of referent. The principal referent of civic identity
is the geographical area that one inhabits and one’s rights, responsibilities, and
experiences of the norms that regulate the collective life of the people living there.
Even when defined this way, civic identity can be seen as operating at various
levels. Countries or nations, provinces, regions, cities, towns, and possibly even
neighbourhoods can be referents of a person’s sense of civic identity. And when
one speaks of being a “global citizen,” one is asserting one’s identification with the
community of human beings living throughout the world.
Normally, the different kinds of civic identity all nest quite comfortably
together in people’s conceptions of who they are and where they are from, even
though it is not unusual for an individual to find one level of civic identity more
salient than the others. People whose life circumstances have led them to live in
several regions of Canada, for example, might have a civic identity that is more
directly linked to Canada as a whole than it is to the province, region, or town
where they grew up.
The primary point of reference for many French-speaking Quebecers’ civic
identity is Quebec rather than Canada. Of course, this prioritization is partly
due to politics and history but there is a lesser-known explanation for this phe-
nomenon. The language barrier significantly reduces Quebecers’ mobility within
Canada, restricts access to the national media intended for the English-speaking
majority, and limits their involvement in national organizations ranging from the
Boy Scouts of Canada to the Canadian Union of Public Employees—whose de
facto language of business is invariably English. Compared with English-speaking
Canadians, French-speaking Quebecers simply have fewer opportunities to
experience membership in Canada as a community and this can have important
repercussions for how their sense of civic identity emerges.
One way of accounting for the remarkable consistency with which fostering
civic identity is cited as a fundamental educational goal is in terms of the social and
personal goods that civic identity seems to confer (Osborne, 2000; Sears & Hughes, collective representa-
1996). Sociologists, philosophers, and psychologists theorize that civic identity is tions The ideas, values,
and beliefs about
conducive to social cohesion and social stability and meets basic human needs. collective life shared by
Society is not just a group of individuals who happen to live in the same geograph- people who have a civic
ical space. As just indicated, society is also a system of thought about how people identity in common.
should live and work together, which transcends (i.e., exists in abstraction from) social norms The for-
the individuals who make up the society. In sociology, the set of ideas, values, and mal and informal rules
beliefs about collective life held by people who share a civic identity are sometimes and customs that gov-
ern behaviour in groups
called collective representations (Durkheim, 2004/1912). Philosophers tend to and societies and oper-
talk instead about social norms in this connection (Habermas, 1992). An import- ate as a standard for
ant part of having a civic identity is understanding, respecting, and internaliz- judging whether social
behaviour is acceptable
ing the norms that govern group life—that is, making collective norms one’s own (“normal”) or not.
norms (Hoffman, 1983; Westphal, 2012). Indeed, the mere fact that people create

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 26 Part I • Why Should Children Be Educated?

and seek out group participation and membership is testimony to the importance
of belonging in larger social organizations. Making sure that civic identity in this
sense is constantly renewed through education is everyone’s business since both
individuals and society as a whole benefit from the coordinated actions of com-
munities and group solidarity (Flanagan, Martínez, & Cumsille, 2010).
Others have argued that civic identity plays a crucial role in motivating
the special obligations that citizens have to their compatriots, like paying their
taxes, volunteering, voting, and participating directly in democratic institutions
(Mason, 1997). Finally, some psychologists have suggested that civic identity, and
the attachment to collective representations that civic identity entails, may satisfy
an innate human need to feel part of a group, a need that humans have because
group solidarity facilitates the kind of close cooperation and coordinated action
that people depended on to survive throughout most of humanity’s evolutionary
history (Shweder, 1996).
A key question regarding education for a Canadian identity is: how can we
educate for a Canadian identity when people increasingly think of themselves as
consumers rather than as citizens or members of a political community with a
shared civic identity? Many educational thinkers argue that important dimen-
sions of education and civic identity are undermined by this process (Norris, 2011;
Molnar, 2005; Sandlin and McLaren, 2009; Giroux, 2009). A consumer identity is
based primarily on the pursuit of self-interest rather than meaningful connection
with others, and the premise that we have more in common with others who like
the same products than with others in the same political community. While there
may be problems with civic identity, it is generally thought to be more meaningful
and democratic than a community built around shopping.

Pause for Thought

Political Apathy
Political apathy is often cited as one of the major problems facing modern
democracies around the world today. Indeed, one of the reasons why cit-
izenship education was recently made a mandatory subject in England was
because the educational community felt that citizenship education can be
an important counterweight to the perceived growth of political apathy
among young people (Gibson, 2014). How big a problem do you think pol-
itical apathy is? What do you see as its causes? Do you yourself engage in
any civic or political activities aimed at changing society for the better? In
your view, is mandatory citizenship education a viable means of addressing
the problem of political apathy?

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 2 Can We Educate for Canadian Identity? 27

Challenges to Education for Civic Identity

Education for civic identity faces formidable challenges in any liberal society with
diverse populations and a particular set of challenges that are unique to Canada.

The Limitations of the Inventory Approach to Citizenship Education

Perhaps the most difficult general challenge to civic identity education is that it is
very hard to pin down a set of aims for civic identity education that everyone could
agree on (Marker & Mehlinger, 1992). An intuitively compelling approach to set-
ting out the goals of civic identity education begins by advancing a set of personal
traits that all those who share a civic identity should possess—a conception of the
“typical,” “good,” or “ideal” citizen. The promotion of those traits then becomes the
aim of education for civic identity. To illustrate the approach using a somewhat
facile example, one might say that Canadians are humble, hard-working, “nice,”
and hockey-loving, and so the aim of civic identity education in Canada should be
to promote these characteristics in young people in schools.
The problem with this standard, inventory-based approach to defining the
aims of civic identity education is that it runs counter to three rather obvious fea-
tures of civic identity as a psycho-social phenomenon. First, civic identity is at best
an ideal. Nobody does or could be expected to embody a conception of civic iden-
tity perfectly. In a liberal society like Canada, where people’s freedom to choose to
live the kind of life that seems good to them (within legal limits) is a fundamen-
tal political reference point, it would be unfairly exclusivist to a deny a Canadian
identity to someone who, say, likes soccer but has no interest in hockey or who
prefers taking it easy to working hard.
Second, civic identity has an essentially historical aspect. That is, conceptions
of civic identity undergo important transformations over decades and centuries.
They tend to reflect a country’s natural social and political evolution. A hundred
years ago, loyalty to the British crown would likely have been considered one of the
core characteristics of a good Canadian. Today, only a small minority of hard-core
monarchists would ascribe to this view. The lesson here is that even if a consen-
sus on the list of national traits for the purposes of civic identity education were
forthcoming, any such list, being highly specific to the time period in which it is
advanced, risks becoming quickly antiquated.
Third, civic identity is an essentially contested concept (Sears & Hughes, essentially contested
1996, p. 125‒6). What this means is that reasonable people can be expected to concept A com-
plex, multifaceted,
disagree about how to conceive of a country’s civic identity. They can be expected value-laden concept
to disagree because of the inherent complexity and value-laden nature of the task. or issue that reason-
Definitions of highly abstract, multifaceted terms like love, justice, science, peace, able, informed, and
well-intentioned people
and possibly even “Canadian civic identity” can be viewed as necessarily con- disagree about (e.g.,
densed theories about what the concept consists of (Osborne, 2000). Seen this way, equality, education,
it would be unreasonable to expect to find a single “correct” definition of Canadian Canadian civic identity).

civic identity that could be pinned down as the goal of citizenship education, only
more or less defensible ones.

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 28 Part I • Why Should Children Be Educated?

Political Challenges to Civic Identity in Canada

nation-state In contrast
with confederations, In addition to the challenges related to the inventory approach to civic identity
multinational states, education, several aspects of the Canadian political and educational landscape
and city states, a make Canada particularly hostile territory for civic identity education.
nation-state is a form
of political organization
The most obvious of these is that, legally speaking, Canada is not a nation-
that is the homeland of state but a “multi-nation”—a confederation of nations. Breaking significantly from
one relatively homogen- the typical European model of statehood, according to which states theoretically
eous people defined by
a common language,
exist to defend and promote the interests of a single people united by language,
history, religion, and culture, and history on the world stage (Miller, 1996), Canada’s constitutional
culture. documents recognize not one but three founding nations: the British, the French,
founding nations
and the First Nations (see the Constitutional Act of 1867). In this light, the idea
In the Canadian of promoting through education a monolithic Canadian civic identity could quite
political context, the legitimately be seen as an encroachment on the constitutionally enshrined sover-
three independent
“peoples”—the First
eignty of each of Canada’s traditional national groups.
Nations, the French, Complicating matters further is the fact that, in Canada, education is a fiercely
and the British—that guarded provincial jurisdiction. Unlike most other modern Western states, includ-
voluntarily agreed,
though the signing of
ing countries like the United States, Switzerland, and Germany, which have a federal
the Constitutional Act legal structure similar to Canada’s, Canada has no federal ministry of education.
of 1867, to unite to form Somewhat ironically, this absence of a central coordinating body for education
the confederation of
Canada.
at the federal level leaves the responsibility for promoting national civic identity
entirely in the hands of provincial education systems. Given the control that the
Canadian constitution accords to the provinces in the matters of curriculum plan-
ning and implementation, education for national civic identity ends up vying with
education for provincial civic identity for curricular attention and resources.
multiculturalism Last but not least, there is the influence of official multiculturalism on many
(1) In contemporary Canadians’ sense of civic identity. Canada’s federal policy of multiculturalism is
politics, a school of
thought favourable outlined in Table 2.1. In the early 1970s, federal policy on cultural and arts fund-
to the promotion and ing underwent a major shift. For decades, preferential treatment was accorded to
protection of cultural French-Canadian organizations with the explicit aim of preserving the numerous
and religious diversity.
(2) In Canada specif- isolated francophone communities strung out loosely across the country (Leman,
ically, a 1970s federal 1999). Virtually overnight, this policy framework was replaced by one that treated
policy on the funding all cultures equally. Initially, the rationale behind official multiculturalism was that
for cultural organiza-
tions that replaced the federal support for the cultural activities of immigrant communities—first-language
long-standing practice newspapers, arts festivals, community centres, and the like—was something the fed-
of prioritizing French- eral government could do to ease the integration of newcomers into Canadian society
Canadian cultural
organizations with a (Leman, 1999). However, for complex sociological reasons, not the least of which was
funding scheme for all English-speaking Canadians’ perpetual insecurity about what makes them different
cultural communities from Americans, the terms multicultural and multiculturalist were rapidly appropri-
present in Canada.
ated as buzzwords to describe the essence of the country and of what it means to be
Canadian. For better or for worse, multiculturalism’s emphasis on cultural preserva-
tion, respect for difference, and the celebration of cultures has helped create a polit-
ical environment in which it has become, in some circles, quite problematic to talk
about Canadian identity in anything but the most minimalist terms of obeying the
law, respecting others’ rights, participating periodically in elections, and looking after
one’s own—hardly a basis for a robust program of civic identity education.

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 2 Can We Educate for Canadian Identity? 29

Table 2.1 Three Aspects of the Canadian Federal Policy of Multiculturalism

Aspect 1: • Facilitation of social, economic, linguistic, and civic integration through policies and
Integrationism programs that seek to help immigrants to play a full and equal role in society, despite
their differences from the cultural mainstream.
• Recognition of cultural diversity and values pluralism as defining and permanent
features of society.
• Cultural diversity is embraced as a source of social, political, and economic capital.

Aspect 2: Facilitative • Funding and support of initiatives that aim to reduce racism and discrimination based
integration strategy on culture or ethnic origin and increase intercultural awareness and acceptance.
• Implantation and protection of practices to accommodate cultural and religious
differences to ensure ethnic and religious minorities’ capacity to participate in the
bureaucracy, government, and in other areas of public life (e.g., permitting Sikh police
officers to wear turbans on duty).
• Cultural diversity is taken into account in elaborating public policy, public programs,
and providing government services.

Aspect 3: Fixed legal • Affirmation of individual rights and freedoms.

and civic framework • Promotion of democratic institutions.
• Insistence on a public language (i.e., French-English bilingualism at the federal level).

Source: Waddington, Maxwell, McDonough, Cormier & Schwimmer, 2012

A Brief History of Citizenship Education

in Canada
Early conceptions of citizenship education in Canada were focused on attempts
to construct a particular kind of national identity based on a unitary vision of
the nation-state (Kymlicka, 2007). Within the sphere of education, one of the
key nation-building policies in countries around the world was the creation of a
national system of education accompanied by a standardized curriculum, whereby
the dominant group’s language, culture, and history became the national language,
culture, and history (Kymlicka, 2007). The early provincial ministries of education
followed this model of citizenship by attempting to assimilate minority peoples into
the ethos of the dominant culture and language, be it French or British/English.

The Assimilationist Period: Confederation to the 1960s

The primary aim of public schools in English-speaking Canada—which from the
end of the nineteenth century was receiving increasing numbers of immigrants
from outside Great Britain and the British empire—was to create a homogenous
nation built on a common English language and shared cultural values realized
through promoting identification with British institutions and practices (Hodgetts,
1968). Of the three million people who immigrated to Canada from 1896 to 1914,
more than 800,000 were neither of French nor British origin (Richardson, 2002).

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 30 Part I • Why Should Children Be Educated?

A school superintendent in Canada West speaking in 1896, for example, warned:

“If these [immigrant] children are to grow up as Canadian citizens they must be
led to adopt our viewpoint and speak our speech. . . . A common school and com-
mon tongue are necessary if we are to have a homogenous citizenship” (quoted
in Titley & Miller, 1982, p. 132). In attempting to ensure that minority commun-
ities adopted “our viewpoint,” this unitary understanding of Canadian identity
led to the creation of textbooks such as We Are Canadian Citizens stating that
“Canadians form but a small part of the British Empire, yet for other reasons our
country is one of the most important units of the Empire” (Goldring, 1937, p. 222).
The model of nation building that emerged in Quebec differed from the English
Canadian model largely due to the relatively small number of immigrants who
integrated into French-speaking society during this period (Banting & Kymlicka,
2010). Notably, leaders in Quebec were far more concerned about out-migration
where, from the late 1800s to the early 1900s, an estimated one million French-
speaking Canadians emigrated south of the border to take jobs in New England
textile mills and other industries. Schools in Quebec, which were controlled by the
Catholic Church and largely a local concern, however, similarly became a space
to promote a unified French-Canadian national identity. The historian Stéphane
Lévesque writes, for example, that the general purpose of history and geography
up into the 1920s involved “the rigid inculcation of religious, moral, and patriotic
beliefs in French Canadians, with particular focus on the ‘heroic’ character of their
French ancestors” (Lévesque, 2004, p. 57). In promoting these values, the religious
and political elite in the province sought to ensure “la surviance” or the survival of
French-Canadian nationality, language and culture, universally regarded as being
under continued threat of assimilation by the surrounding Anglophone majorities
in Canada and the United States (Lévesque, Létourneau & Gani, 2012).
Although the provinces’ autonomy with respect to education, particularly
Quebec’s, was a notable part of the British North America Act (1867), it provided
no parallel constitutional concessions to Canada’s Aboriginal peoples and their
diverse languages, cultures, and traditions. Instead, in 1876 the federal govern-
ment created the Indian Act designating Aboriginal peoples as “Status Indians”
and wards of the state. As a result of this legislation, the Canadian government
dictated how Aboriginal children would be educated. In many cases, government
agents forcibly took Aboriginal children from their families and communities to
be educated in off-reserve state-funded industrial schools (later called residential
schools) often run by the Roman Catholic Church or Protestant denominations
(Miller, 1996). Built on the assumption that Aboriginal culture and traditions
were inferior to European culture and traditions, the primary objective of residen-
tial schools was, as the deputy superintendent general of Indian Affairs Duncan
Campbell Scott stated, “to kill the Indian in the child” (quoted in Aboriginal
Affairs and Northern Development Canada, 2008). An amendment to the Indian
Act in 1920 made attendance at residential schools compulsory for all Aboriginal
children. When the last residential school was closed in 1996, it was estimated
that as many as 150,000 Aboriginal children went through the residential school
system (Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada, 2008).

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 2 Can We Educate for Canadian Identity? 31

Pause for Thought

Historical Narratives of Canada
Read the following opening excerpts from three textbooks that were com-
monly used in Canadian schools in 1913, 1942, and 1977 respectively.

• What strikes you the most when you read these three excerpts? Why?
• How does the historical narrative of Canada change from one narrative
to another?
• How do you think the narratives suggested in these prefaces might
be different if they were written by a francophone author for a franco-
phone audience in Quebec?

Preface
The aim of this book is to tell the story of our country simply, yet without sacri-
ficing historical content to simplicity. The story is one of colonization. It tells of
failure and success; of French failure through the folly of absolutism, monop-
oly, and feudalism; of British success through the wisdom of self-government,
freedom, and equality. Canada’s past is richly stored with those picturesque
incidents which make history fascinating as well as instructive.
David Duncan, M.A., Assistant Superintendent of Schools, Winnipeg, The Story of the
Canadian People, Toronto: Macmillan Co. of Canada, Ltd, 1913. p. v.

Chapter 17: First Steps toward Democracy and Self-Government

in a Free Empire
Canada is unique among American countries in the way in which it has
come to nationhood. Every other American country broke away from the
empire to which it belonged, and gained self-government by revolution.
The United States broke away first. Then, between 1810 and 1825, a series
of revolutions tore apart the Spanish and Portuguese empires and created
the Latin American countries of Central and South America. In contrast
with this, the colonies which later became Canada stayed within the British
Empire and grew to nationhood step by step.
George W. Brown, Professor of History at the University of Toronto, and Authorized by the
Protestant Committee of the Council of Education for the Province of Quebec, Building the
Canadian Nation, Toronto: Dent & Sons (Canada) Limited, 1942. p. 331.

Canadian Identity: The Humour of It All

Among the nations of the world, Canadians might be known as the people
least sure of who they are. At different times in our history, but perhaps
continued

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 32 Part I • Why Should Children Be Educated?

more anxiously in the past ten or twenty years, we have tried to define our
national “identity.” Perhaps our perennial search for a definition is one of
our national characteristics; perhaps the tendency to be too serious about
it is another.
Ronald C. Kirbyson assisted by Elizabeth Peterson, In Search of Canada, Volume 2,
Scarborough, Ontario: Prentice-Hall Canada, Ltd, 1977. p. 463.

The Multiculturalist Period: From the 1970s

Following the Second World War, changing demographics due to increased
immigration from outside Europe led to a rethinking of citizenship education in
English Canada. Additionally, from the 1960s, minority groups became increas-
ingly vocal in contesting exclusionary and assimilatory nation-building poli-
cies and, in their place, advocated for new “multicultural” policies and political
frameworks. With the explicit goal of promoting social inclusion and educational
equity for all students, two dimensions of multicultural theory and practice in
particular became central in the way citizenship education was conceptualized in
Canada (Kymlicka, 2004).
The first of these is a social justice dimension that seeks to engage and
overcome various forms of discrimination in society. Within the sphere of the
classroom, this would involve helping young people critically examine and con-
structively engage forms of prejudice in society including racism, ethnocentrism,
sexism, and other forms of discrimination (Lund, 2012). Exploring Canada’s long
history of discrimination and racism would also implicate the racist ideologies and
ethnocentric views that supported these official policies, predicated on the belief
that British cultural norms were superior. Related to the social justice dimension
of multiculturalism, is a “recognition of diversity” strand, informed by the prin-
ciples of multiculturalism, concerned with recognizing and accommodating cul-
tural difference and fostering intergroup harmony (Lund, 2012, p. 39).
While the social justice strand of multiculturalism offers a more critical stance
for addressing diversity in schools, those working in a multiculturalist conceptual
frame also focus on addressing ethno-cultural concerns. At the classroom level,
this involves opening up curricula to a wider range of materials that present the
perspectives of groups in society whose voices have often been excluded from
what is taught in schools. The purpose of including the perspectives of women,
Aboriginals, Canadians of African or Asian descent, and other historically mar-
ginalized groups in citizenship education is to encourage positive attitudinal chan-
ges towards these groups in both students and teachers (Kymlicka, 2003).
In addition to eliciting this important shift in the bodies of knowledge central
to education for civic identity, the more inclusive multiculturalist idea of whom
“Canadian citizenship” encompasses was often accompanied by a move from pri-
marily passive to more activist forms of civic engagement. Students needed not

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 2 Can We Educate for Canadian Identity? 33

only to know about issues facing the country, but they also needed to be able, as
stated in a Manitoba social studies document, “to frame defensible viewpoints on
them and be aware of possible courses of citizen action” (Kymlicka, 2003, p. 153).
Curricular directives like these reflected an increasing movement towards values
education and making social studies classrooms a space in which to engage social
justice concerns.
Programs of studies and textbooks began to emphasize helping students
become active decision-makers by working through social issues such as poverty
and racism. For example, a textbook entitled Human Rights: Respecting Our
Differences published in 1978, and used in multiple jurisdictions across Canada,
called on teachers to “help students gain empathy towards victims of discrimina-
tion and prejudice and actively contribute to making Canada a more just and car-
ing society” (McCardle, 1978, p. 21). Indeed, Sears and Hughes (1996) conclude
their comprehensive review policy documents on citizenship education in Canada
by observing that the emphasis on promoting active citizenship is the “common
countenance” of citizenship education in contemporary Canada. Despite the lack
of coordination between the provinces in the matter of curriculum development
and policy, all the conceptions of citizenship education that they examined “fall
towards the activist end of the continuum” (p. 133).

Conclusion
In light of this chapter’s discussion, how should Canadian educators understand
their mandate with respect to educating for national civic identity? What could
“education for Canadian identity” mean in this ethically and culturally plural, pol-
itically charged, rights-respecting, and historically aware contemporary Canada?
The first point to bear in mind is that there appear to be good reasons to
reject what we labelled the standard “inventory-based” approach to civic identity
education. Any attempt to boil down the aims of Canadian identity to a set of
national traits or values seems doomed to be underdetermined in three senses:
politically, in the sense it is right and good that Canadians are free to pursue a wide
range of conceptions about good citizenship; historically, in the sense that lists of
national values or national attributes are invariably snapshots taken at one par-
ticular moment in a country’s history; and finally, conceptually, in the sense that, in
any case, the question of what it means to be Canadian is complex and value-laden
enough to be the subject of reasonable disagreement even among smart, informed,
and well-intentioned people.
The second point to bear in mind is that education for civic identity educa-
tion needs to be sensitive to Canada’s unique historical, political, and sociological
makeup and the way that these factors continue to inform people’s understanding
of their own civic identities. Initially, Canada was conceived not as a state to fur-
ther the flourishing of a single people but as a political arrangement whose purpose
was to cooperate to protect and advance the interests of a group of nations. Many
Canadians, especially Aboriginals and Quebecois, still regard Canada as being
primarily a coalition of partner nations rather than a nation-state in the ordinary

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 34 Part I • Why Should Children Be Educated?

sense. If we appreciate this perspective, we can understand better why Quebec

might use the educational autonomy granted to the provinces in the Canadian
constitutional documents to opt out of education for Canadian identity. We can
also see why one of Aboriginal groups’ primary concerns today is to wrest greater
control over schools and schooling from the federal and provincial governments.
Education is now and has always been a key tool that communities have
to reproduce themselves culturally and try to ensure that they endure into the
future. And this fact is not lost on new communities in Canada. Conscious of the
values placed on cultural identity in Canada, newer cultural groups sometimes
strive to intervene in the formation of the next generation’s sense of civic identity
using legal provisions on private schooling—provisions that exist in every prov-
ince and territory.
Furthermore, it cannot be denied that nations, cultures, and “peoples” in the
broad sense are not the only points of reference for civic identity. The sense of
civic belonging occurs at multiple levels of society, from the micro-level of the
neighbourhood to the macro-level of the globe (cf. Osler and Starkey, 2003). As
sociologists and evolutionary psychologists insist, regardless of its specific geo-
graphical referent, civic identity has value for persons and communities insofar
as it is favourable to coordinated action aimed at the common good, helps make
sense of one’s obligations to group members of the group, and can contribute to
social cohesion and the individual’s sense of belonging. When approaching educa-
tion for Canadian civic identity, then, educators need to be aware that civic iden-
tity can have multiple meanings for individual young people, that Canadian civic
identity is just one face of a broader civic identity—and for many young people it
may not be the most important one. Far from regretting this situation as some-
thing abnormal or embarrassing, Canadian educators can embrace it as an honest
reflection of our common political landscape.
A last lesson to be drawn from this chapter’s discussion of civic identity is
about the intimate connection between the general orientation of citizenship
education in a given historical time period and what are perceived as being the
day’s pressing social and political problems. For example, we saw in the chapter’s
overview of the development of citizenship education in Canada that, in English-
speaking Canada in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, education-
ists recognized an urgent need to instill a sense of unity and common purpose
among diverse cultural groups, often living in isolated rural environments, speak-
ing different languages, and having sometimes significantly divergent cultural and
religious horizons. It is easy to forget, but before the arrival of the communica-
tion technologies we now take for granted, education and the church (and the
two were frequently indistinguishable from one another) were the primary means
by which new ideas could spread through large populations. Similarly, the later
multiculturalist turn in citizenship education can be seen, among other things,
as combating the notion of “race”: that physiological traits like skin colour or eye
shape correspond to fixed and determinate moral, intellectual, or social character-
istics (Blum, 2002). Starting in the 1960s, the issue of race was emerging in new

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 2 Can We Educate for Canadian Identity? 35

ways in Canada, owing in part to the pushback against institutionalized forms of

racism on the part of historically racialized groups in Canadian society (the black
populations of Halifax and Montreal, for example, and the Chinese populations in
British Columbia) but also to the shifting demographics in newcomers’ countries
of origin. Multicultural civic education reflects educational decision-makers’ new
appreciation that racism was a significant threat to justice and social cohesion in
Canadian society. We can see, then, that citizenship education in Canada has con-
sistently been more about creating the kind of society we want for the future than
preserving the past or maintaining the status quo. The role that the teacher has
been asked to play in citizenship education in Canada is more comparable to that
of the missionary than that of the curator.
The principal challenge in civic identity education is how to promote young
people’s sense of belonging to Canada and being Canadian in a way that is sensi-
tive to local contexts and the multiplicity of conceptions of Canadian-ness, accepts
that education for Canadian civic identity naturally overlaps with other poles of
civic identification, and is aware that civic identity education cannot be separated
from the pursuit of an ethical vision for the country’s future.
Clearly, meeting these challenges requires a considerable amount of flex-
ibility and open-mindedness about Canadian identity and tolerance for ambigu-
ity. While there is no one-size-fits-all approach to doing this, we find Osborne’s
(2000) description of “the most fruitful solution to the question of dealing with the
Canadian identity in the classroom” (p. 16) to resonate strongly with the concep-
tion of civic identity and civic identity education we have been developing in this
chapter. The central goals of education for civic identity, according to Osborne, are
to get young people engaged with the public issues that even now are shaping the
future of the country and help them acquire the knowledge and skills they need to
participate as fully as they can in the debates surrounding those issues.
Of course, preparing young people to participate in democratic decision-mak-
ing has long been a staple of citizenship education in Western societies. When
viewed as an approach to forging civic identity, however, it takes on a more refresh-
ing aspect. Osborne (2000) proposes to trade the search for consensus around a
set of shared values or traits that constitute the nation’s identity for a conception
of citizenship grounded in a sense of affiliation with a collective political project.
Seen this way, civic identity is grounded in the idea that what one has in common
with co-citizens is first and foremost a “shared fate” (Ben-Porath, 2012). What
defines the nature of Canada as a political community are the substantive answers
that Canadians have given to the questions that have confronted them as citizens.
Here are some examples of the disparate array of questions that have been
determinant in shaping the political culture of the country:

• Should we maintain a system of universal public health care?

• What steps can be taken to repair the damage done to Aboriginal cultures and
individual Aboriginals by residential schools?
• What levels of income taxation are acceptable?

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 36 Part I • Why Should Children Be Educated?

• Which is more effective, a criminal corrections system based on deterrence

or rehabilitation?
• Under what circumstances, if any, is assisted suicide ethically acceptable?
• How much environmental risk are we willing to assume for the sake of jobs
and the economy?

To participate intelligently in these debates, citizens need to acquire a signifi-

cant amount of relevant factual knowledge, an understanding of the perspectives
and assumptions of the concerned parties, and sort out how to engage in con-
structive and respectful dialogue with fellow citizens about matters of collective
concern. The potential for teaching and learning here are vast. From this perspec-
tive, being “one of us” has nothing to do with being nice and loving hockey, and
everything to do with feeling part of the unique and ongoing political experiment
that is Canada.

Review Questions
1. Look back at the list of the five traits issues played out on a local scale. In a
that define Canadian-ness we asked country like Canada, which, as we saw,
you to generate at the beginning of this faces formidable challenges to civic iden-
chapter. Do you think that the critique of tity on several levels, is there a danger that
the “inventory approach” to civic educa- “global citizenship education” could fur-
tion presented in this chapter applies to ther undermine an already fragile sense of
your list? More specifically, how contro- national unity? What justification, if any,
versial is your list? Does it seem to concern could there be for placing a limit on global
matters of civic identity that are particu- perspectives in citizenship education in
lar to twenty-first-century Canada? Does Canada? How can educators strike a bal-
it contain items that could be simply a ance between their sense of ethical respons-
matter of personal preference or reflect ibility towards all human beings around
stereotypes, a provincial or regional per- the world and their beliefs about Canada’s
spective, or socio-economic bias? value as a collective political project?
2. In this chapter, we saw that the focus of cit- 3. Choose one of the social questions listed in
izenship education in Canada has shifted the last paragraph of the chapter as play-
from the nation-state to more activist, ing an ongoing role in shaping the polit-
globalized conceptions of citizenship edu- ical culture of Canada. As a teacher, how
cation. In Canadian schools today, many would you go about preparing your stu-
of the issues dealt with in citizenship dents to get engaged with the question you
education—social justice, equality, the have selected? What would you do to try to
environment, development, peace, divers- equip them to contribute to public debates
ity, and so forth—are presented as global about it in a responsible way?

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 2 Can We Educate for Canadian Identity? 37

Further Readings
Callan, E. (1996). Creating citizens: Political educa- Kymlicka, W. (2003). Being Canadian. Government
tion and liberal democracy. Oxford: Oxford and Opposition, 38(3), 357‒85.
University Press. Levinson, M. (2012). No citizen left behind.
Hébert, Y., & Sears, A. (2001). Citizenship Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
Education. Toronto: Canadian Education McDonough, K., & Feinberg, W. (Eds.). (2005).
Association. At: http://www.cea-ace.ca/sites/ Citizenship and education in liberal-democratic
default/files/cea-2004-citizenship-education. societies: Teaching for cosmopolitan values and col-
pdf. lective identities. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

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901003_03_Ch03.indd 38 02/12/15 3:51 PM
 PART II
How Should Children Be Educated?

Part Overview
Begin exploring different conceptions of how to educate children.
Consider what it means to be a teacher or a student in Canada today.
Think about how attitudes towards teaching and learning are impacted by social
context.

Overview by Chapter
3 What Are Our Main Conceptions of Education, Where Did They Originate, and How
Do They Inform Our Current Practices? 40
• Question some of the dominant metaphors for how people talk about teaching and
learning.
• Think about the extent to which we use metaphors when we talk about teaching and
learning.
• Explore three common metaphors for teaching and learning: building knowledge,
learning as growth, and learning as discovery.

4 Are Students Becoming Consumerist Learners? 62

• Learn about the nature and role of consumerism in today’s schools.
• Question the risks and detrimental effects of consumerism on learning.
• Understand the role that consumerism plays in the learning process.

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 3 What Are Our Main Conceptions
of Education, Where Did They
Originate, and How Do They
Inform Our Current Practices?

Introduction
A moment’s reflection on the words that people use to talk about teaching and
learning confirms that the language of education is rich in metaphor:

• “Teaching that material to the class was like pulling teeth!”

• “Today’s lesson built nicely on what we saw yesterday.”
• “For the young men of the upper and middle classes, education consisted in a
nearly unrelieved diet of Greek and Latin.”

What is more, common metaphors for teaching and learning draw on a wide
range of domains of life and experience. In addition to the dental, construction,
and digestive metaphors in the examples above, one can also find in everyday talk
about teaching and learning:

• Exercise metaphors: “The brain is like a muscle. The more you use it the
stronger it gets.”
• Environmental metaphors: “Teachers need to do their best to create a class-
room climate favourable to learning.”
• Carceral metaphors: “Teachers are the gatekeepers of a society’s culture.”
• Liberation metaphors: “Good teachers can help their kids break free from the
influence of families and peer groups and learn to think for themselves.”

Metaphors are also commonly found in teachers’ professional vocabulary. Go

into any staff room in any school and you can hear teachers talking about coach-
ing/guiding/walking/racing through the material, providing learners with instruc-
tional scaffolding or structured lessons, how one lesson laid the ground for another
one or about how the light went on or the penny dropped when the teacher hit on
an effective way to explain a difficult notion. Teachers also spontaneously reach for
metaphors to characterize the work they do helping young people learn and grow
up. Teachers routinely compare themselves to actors, coaches, cheerleaders, part-
ners and guides. When things are not going so well in class, they may be tempted
to see themselves as animal trainers, herders, or prison guards.

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 3 What Are Our Main Conceptions of Education, Where Did They Originate 41

This chapter aims to introduce readers to competing conceptions of teach-

ing and learning that one encounters in teacher education and in school settings
through an exploration of historically recurrent metaphors of education. We have
chosen this approach for two reasons.
First, we believe that the language teachers use to talk about their work speaks
volumes, as it were, about how they understand what they are doing when they
teach and provides important insights into why they make the choices they make
in the classroom. For example, using the expression “we really drilled down into
the material” gives the impression that the teacher views herself as part of the class
and learning as something the class does together. “I built up their knowledge
base on the topic,” by contrast, assigns the central role in the learning process to
the teacher and suggests that learners are rather passive recipients of instruction.
A teacher who says a class needs to “get housebroken” (dog-training metaphor)
instead of, say, “given a chance to get used to me” indicates a certain authoritar-
ianism on the part of the teacher. Similar points about how language reflects a
teacher’s attitudes could be made about the choice to use the term “drills” (military
metaphor) as opposed to the more neutral “exercises” (sports metaphor), “explor-
ing the material” (adventure metaphor) as opposed to simply “going through the
material,” and referring to young people and their parents as “the clientele” (busi-
ness metaphor). These examples illustrate how the exploration of conceptions of
teaching and learning through metaphor can help reveal educators’ assumptions
about such fundamental issues as the purpose of education, the teachers’ role, and
the nature of the learning process—assumptions that often lie hidden in the lan-
guage we use to describe education. By making these connections explicit, one
is better placed to see how these assumptions impact on the way one perceives,
thinks, and acts as a teacher.
The second reason why we have opted to tackle the subject of conceptions of
teaching and learning through metaphor is because the historical perspective on
conceptions of teaching and learning it affords amounts to a convincing argument
in favour of a pluralistic conception of teaching. Whether in academic writing
or “on the ground” in schools and classrooms, different conceptions of teaching
and learning are often treated as clashing schools of educational thought, each
with weighty implications about young people’s well-being, the teaching profes-
sion, and the future of society as a whole. Teaching, it sometimes seems, has to be
focused on either instruction, or building young peoples’ self-esteem, or preparing
them to be competitive in the job market, or turning them into engaged citizens.
In this context, beginning teachers may feel a certain pressure to take sides in these
debates and affiliate themselves with one school of thought or another. We believe
that these are mostly false dichotomies and, again, as we hope to convince you
through this chapter’s sketch of the historically evolving language of education, as
well as in the other discussions of these issues elsewhere in the book, teaching is all
these things and more. Equipped with a healthy appreciation of the multifaceted
nature of teachers’ work, those preparing to enter the teaching profession will, we
think, be well placed to understand, face, and meet the multiple expectations that
parents, society, and the teaching profession have for teachers today.

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 42 Part II • How Should Children Be Educated?

Pause for Thought

Teaching Metaphors
Reflecting on your own experience as a teacher or student, find the meta-
phor that best resonates with your personal ideas of what teaching is or
should be all about. Then, extend your metaphor to these aspects of edu-
cation: the teacher, the student, the teaching process, and the objective
of teaching. Finally, identify three hidden assumptions about teaching and
learning that your choice of metaphor reveals.
Here is an example to get you started:
Metaphor of teaching:
“Teaching as playing music.”
Extended metaphor:

• Teacher as . . . musician
• Student as . . . audience member
• Teaching as . . . performing
• The objective of teaching is . . . to play music the audience will love

Three hidden assumptions:

1. Teaching involves various complex skills (technical, interpersonal,

emotional, artistic, etc.).
2. The teacher is the centre of attention in the class and students are
there to listen.
3. A main concern for teachers is that their students find class enjoyable,
even entertaining.

Metaphors We Live By
For cognitive scientists who study metaphor, the observation that metaphor-
ical language pervades the vocabulary of education would hardly be surprising.
Indeed, a central tenet of metaphor theory is that metaphor can virtually be found
wherever people talk about topics that are even slightly abstract or complex. We
are so used to metaphorical language that most of the time we don’t even real-
ize it when we are speaking metaphorically. Consider two examples of everyday
metaphors from George Lakoff and Mark Johnson’s (1980/2003) classic book,
Metaphors We Live By:

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 3 What Are Our Main Conceptions of Education, Where Did They Originate 43

Argument as war Time as money

Your claims are indefensible. You’re wasting my time.

She attacked every weak point in This gadget will save you hours.
my argument.

I demolished his argument. That flat tire cost me an hour.

I’ve never won an argument with her. I’ve invested a lot of time in her.

He shot down all my arguments. He’s living on borrowed time.

If you use that strategy, they’ll wipe you out. Do you have much time left?

These examples make apparent that, contrary to whatever our high school
English literature teachers would have had us believe, the role of metaphor in lan-
guage is not merely to embellish speech. Saying that a person “defended his pos-
ition” in an argument or “wastes his time” playing cards is hardly poetry. These are
the normal ways we talk about arguing and time. Parallel observations could be
made about any number of domains of life: communication as sending, the future
as being ahead but the past as back, health and life are up whereas sickness and
death are down. Metaphor imbues the vocabulary we automatically use to talk
about the most ordinary things.
The answer that cognitive scientists give to the question of why metaphor is
so pervasive in speech is, to put it metaphorically, that metaphors are like a short-
cut for thinking. Metaphors make the task of understanding complex, abstract
areas of life easier by comparing them with ones that are simpler and more con-
crete. Metaphor does this by taking a set of concepts from an area of life people
are comfortable and familiar with—this is the metaphor’s “source domain”—and
systematically transferring them over to an area that is more difficult to under-
stand—the metaphor’s “target domain” (Lakoff & Johnson, 1980/2003). The
source domain is typically a sensory-motor area like spatial orientation, size and
location, exchange, or fighting. So, for example, in the familiar “love as a journey”
metaphor, a decisive moment in a relationship becomes a “fork in the road,” a sig-
nificant disagreement becomes an “obstacle” or a “hurdle” to overcome, a period
of time marked by a series of disagreements becomes a “rough patch,” and the
desire to continue the relationship despite persistent disagreement is expressed as
“let’s keep going.” In metaphor theory, this systematic transfer of concepts from
the source domain to the target domain is called “cross-domain mapping” (Lakoff
& Johnson, 1980/2003).
The advantage that metaphors give us in terms of speed and ease of under-
standing, however, are paid for at the price of a loss in accuracy. That is, while
metaphor affords cognitive access to a systematic understanding of a particular

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 44 Part II • How Should Children Be Educated?

area of life, it systematically distracts us from aspects of the domain that are
inconsistent with the metaphor’s source domain. “Argument as war,” for example,
highlights the adversarial nature of arguing but hides the co-operative and dia-
logical aspects of arguing. An argument depends on mutual willingness to argue
and the point of arguing is often to come to an agreement. So the war metaphor
doesn’t give us a complete picture of what an argument involves. In the same
vein, “love as a journey” draws attention to the co-operative and creative dimen-
sions of a romantic relationship but downplays the passionate aspects of love.
Predictably, when people talk about that aspect of love they tend to reach for a
different metaphor, namely “love as madness” (“I’m crazy about/obsessed with
her,” “I just can’t help it, I need to be with him,” “She drives me wild,” etc.). The
subtle way in which metaphor draws attention to certain aspects of a domain
of life while obscuring others is called “hiding and highlighting” in metaphor
theory (Lakoff & Johnson, 1980/2003).
Last but not least is the influence that metaphor can have on thinking and
acting. According to metaphor theory, there is a relationship between the meta-
phors people use when they talk about a particular topic and their beliefs about
that topic. And by influencing our thinking, metaphors can affect our choices.
This dynamic was suggested in the example of different metaphors for love. There
are people—often people who avoid long-term commitment—who put an end to
romantic relationships when they sense that their passionate feelings have stopped.
A metaphor theorist might suggest that this is evidence of the “love as madness”
metaphor at work. For the person who understands love as madness, being in
love simply means being intensely passionate about another person at all times.
Those who adopt this metaphor to explain love believe that, in the absence of those
strong feelings, a person simply cannot be in love. This example of the powerful
but subtle hand that metaphor can have in potentially crucial decisions illustrates
what Lakoff and Johnson (1980/2003) want us to appreciate about metaphorical
language: far from being merely a feature of words, language, and talk, metaphor
can affect thought and colour perception—and in this case even alter major life
decisions. As expressed in the title of Lakoff and Johnson’s (1980/2003) book, we
can be said to live by metaphor.
In sum, metaphor is a kind of mental tool we use, mostly without conscious
intent, to understand abstract concepts and to organize our thinking about them.
It would follow, then, that the more difficult a concept is to grapple with, the
greater the variety of metaphors people will use to talk about that concept. The
fact that people seem to need so many metaphors to talk about teaching suggests
that the processes of teaching and learning are not simple matters.

Three Conceptions of Teaching and Learning

Teaching as building, learning as development, and teaching as guiding: these are
the three dominant metaphors of teaching and learning treated in this chapter.
They are of special interest because each one seems to inform and reflect a par-
ticular and familiar way of speaking and thinking about education. Construction

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 3 What Are Our Main Conceptions of Education, Where Did They Originate 45

metaphors convey that the main purpose of education is for the learner to system-
atically acquire a body of basic knowledge about the world; organic, or develop-
mental, metaphors portray the teacher as the facilitator of learning—the teacher’s
main task is to create learning contexts and experiences that are favourable to the
development of skills and abilities, and especially the intellect; guidance meta-
phors picture the teacher as playing an active, hands-on role in drawing out the
learner’s innate knowledge and capacities.
Why did we choose to focus solely on the construction, organic, and guidance
metaphors of teaching and learning? The sheer multiplicity of metaphors of teach-
ing and learning do make the task of isolating discrete metaphors a challenging
one, and they raise the difficult question of how to decide whether one metaphor
counts as a “dominant” metaphor for teaching and learning. The selection of the
three metaphors was based on the criteria derived from metaphor theory, outlined
previously. Metaphor theory implies that, just as one swallow does not make a
summer’s day (as Aristotle said), one person using one metaphorical expression
to characterize some aspect of teaching is not sufficient for a “metaphor of teach-
ing” in the sense of metaphor theory. As we saw in the previous section, for a
metaphor of teaching to count as a conceptual metaphor, it has to inform a gen-
eral vocabulary about education that any competent speaker of the language can
recognize. Furthermore, this vocabulary must be extended systematically to the
way people, and especially educators and others working in the field of education,
talk about the various aspects of educating—not just to what teachers do and to
what learning means, but to schools, the education system, and to administrators
and parents. Next, and as a result of the first two criteria, a conceptual metaphor
of teaching has to contain implications or recommendations for how education
should be. In sum, we were looking for metaphors that map onto different dom-
inant conceptions of teaching and learning and, from the many possible candi-
dates, the construction, organic, and guidance metaphors of teaching and learning
seemed to fit the criteria best.

Educational Rationalism: Teaching and

Learning as Building Knowledge
We begin the presentation of the three dominant sets of metaphors of teaching
and learning with the construction metaphor because it is likely the most familiar,
even though, as we will see later in the chapter, it may not necessarily be the oldest
metaphor for teaching and learning. A core assumption of the construction meta- enlightenment
Spanning the sixteenth
phor is that the point of education is to help a person acquire a systematic body of to the early-nineteenth
knowledge about the world. Davis (2004) argues that the construction conception century, the period of
of teaching and learning, and the metaphorical language with which it is associ- European history in
which science emerged
ated, emerged during the Enlightenment, a crucial period in the development of as the dominant way
European culture, which began around the beginning of the 1600s. Having some of understanding the
sense of the fundamental way in which many people’s thinking about the scope world and acquiring
new knowledge.
and limits of human knowledge changed during this period, and appreciating the

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 46 Part II • How Should Children Be Educated?

extent to which this relatively new way of understanding human knowledge is

still very much with us today, one is better placed to appreciate why construction
metaphors in education continue to be so compelling. So let us start by setting
out briefly the historical context of the emergence of construction metaphors of
teaching and learning.
The Enlightenment brought new confidence in human beings’ ability to
understand the world. Until the Enlightenment, the predominant view among
people who thought about such things was that the way the world works is mostly
unknowable to human beings. The world was generally regarded as a mysterious
divine creation. Try as one might to understand nature and humanity’s place in the
natural order through the exercise of the intellect, the most one could ever hope
for were occasional flashes of inspired insight.
In a short period of time in historical terms, a radical shift occurred in this
thinking. Rather suddenly, the idea that the world was a divine mystery came to
be increasingly substituted by the notion that the world was better understood as
like a great machine made up of a finite number of interlocking parts that oper-
ated according to precise and predictable rules or laws of nature. In other words,
the world came to be seen as a predictable and mechanical and, at least in prin-
ciple, completely understandable. So, like any machine, people began to try and
better understand how it works by “taking it apart”—using scientific investigation
in order to see how its different parts behaved. That said, seeing the world as
a great machine by no means implied becoming an atheist or rejecting a theo-
logical ideas cosmology. On the contrary, the vast majority of scientists during the
Enlightenment saw the project of understanding how the machinery of the world
works in religious terms: because the laws of nature were written by God, coming
to better understand them meant coming to better understand God’s great plan.
In this spirit, Galileo Galilei used precisely measured observations aided by
advanced mathematical reasoning to refute the old geocentric view of the uni-
verse (i.e., the idea that the Earth is literally the centre of the universe) in favour
of the heliocentric model (the idea that Earth revolves around the sun). This was
deductive reasoning In just one of the many scientific innovations that gave credence to the view that
contrast with inductive nature operates according to systematic laws, and that human beings possess a
reasoning, or reasoning
unique intellectual capacity—namely reason—to uncover and understand those
from observations to
general claims (e.g., laws. Through achievements such as Galileo’s and Isaac Newton’s elaboration
“Since all the ducks I of the basic laws of physics in terms of elegantly simple but incredibly accurate
have seen are brown, all
mathematical equations, the idea that “nature is written in the language of math-
ducks must be brown.”),
deductive reasoning ematics” began to gain wide currency.
consists in arriving at a Soon, mathematics came to be seen as a model for human knowledge of the
conclusion based only
world, and a symbol of humanity’s potential to master the workings of the world
on accepting that other
related statements are through reason. The power of mathematics to reveal truths about nature having
true (e.g., “If Toronto been so clearly demonstrated, great stock was placed in the notion that math-
is larger than Montreal
ematics, or at least the kind of rigorous reasoning associated with mathematical
and Montreal is larger
than Vancouver, then proof, contained the key to understanding everything there was to understand.
Toronto must be larger In essence, the sort of deductive reasoning characteristic of mathematics takes
than Vancouver.”).
as its starting point clear, self-evident truths (i.e., axioms) that most anyone can

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 3 What Are Our Main Conceptions of Education, Where Did They Originate 47

easily grasp. Axioms are then linked together in such a way that they make a new,
surprising, or obscure claim about the world necessarily true—or, at least, hard
to deny by anyone who has managed to follow the complex chain of reasoning
proposed. No longer just a tool scientists use to express theories about the natural
world, mathematics became the prime example of what could be achieved in terms
of knowledge through a careful, stepwise, systematic approach.
The fundamental change in thinking about the power of reason that occurred
during the Enlightenment, and the vistas of knowledge opened up by the develop-
ment of the sciences that started during this period, provoked a corresponding
change in how teaching, learning, and the point and purpose of education were
conceptualized.
A first change can be seen at the level of curriculum and therefore teach-
ers’ knowledge base. The emphasis came to be placed on ensuring that learners
acquire a comprehensive familiarity with the most significant findings of scientific
research. Curriculum planners tended to gravitate towards disciplines in which
there exists a systematic body of scientific knowledge as appropriate topics in
formal schooling. Correspondingly, they took a dim view of technical skills that
mainly involve practical know-how (e.g., carpentry, cooking, and typing). This
curricular prioritization of science-derived knowledge has had crucial implica-
tions for teacher preparation. Now, a teacher must be a trained specialist in an
intellectual discipline, be it mathematics, geography, or chemistry.
A second, closely related change occurred with respect to how the learning
process itself was conceptualized. The Enlightenment model of knowledge made
a strict separation between what is taught and who is taught. The key idea is that
there is a way that the world really is and that this reality exists independently of
any particular person knowing it. Scientific knowledge is our best current descrip-
tion of the world the way it really is. The central question for education, then,
is how to get learners to acquire these science-derived mental representations of
reality. The answer is to do it the same way scientists do: starting from simple
observations, and the known laws, rules, and principles governing a particular
domain of knowledge, to gradually build up a systematic, rational understanding
of a topic. This conception of teaching, the idea that teaching involves accom-
panying learners in an acquisition of inner mental representations of outer real-
ity, is called educational rationalism. Once learning is conceived in this way as a
step-by-step, deductive process of building up a systematic mastery of a particular
domain of knowledge, it follows naturally that the central task of the teacher is to
guide learners through the kind of logical, planned study of topics so common in
formal education today. Every aspect of learning can be planned and predicted,
and the learning situation is controlled so that little or nothing that is unexpected
or surprising can happen.
The view that teaching involves first and foremost helping learners systematic-
ally build up a coherent representation of outer reality, “teaching as construction”
becomes an apt metaphor for conceptualizing not only what teachers do but edu-
cation and educating in general. It comes as no surprise, then, that only since the
Enlightenment did the language of construction come to be one of the dominant

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 48 Part II • How Should Children Be Educated?

ways of talking (and thinking) about education, teaching, and learning (Davis 2004).
As Davis (2004) notes, it was at this time that “instruction,” which literally means
“building in,” began to be increasingly seen as simply another word for teaching. Of
course, it still is today, and the language of construction pervades the everyday lan-
guage of education. When teachers talk, for instance, about basic knowledge about
a topic as the topic’s foundations or insist that lesson plans need to be structured,
they are drawing on the construction metaphor of teaching and learning.

The Developmental Conception of Education:

Learning as Growth
The most recent innovation of the three conceptions of teaching and learning dis-
cussed in this chapter, the developmental conception and the organic metaphors
to which it gives rise, has at its core a new conceptualization of knowledge derived
from cognitive psychology and evolutionary theory: knowledge results from the
organism’s ongoing attempt to adapt to its environment. As such, knowledge has a
past and a purpose, and is first and foremost the fruit of each individual’s unique
lived experience. The developmental conception of teaching and learning is cur-
rently the most prominent conception of teaching and learning in academic circles
and university-based teacher education. It has inspired movements and reforms
in education as diverse and familiar as competency-based learning, the use of
manipulative teaching materials in the elementary mathematics classroom, the
project method, and, more generally, the emphasis on collaboration, co-operation,
and group work in teaching. It has also given rise to a way of speaking metaphor-
ically about teaching and learning that, despite its relative newness, has become
so common as to be easily taken as literal—classroom “climates” favourable to
learning, learning as “growth” or “development,” and so forth.
The developmental conception of learning and education reached ascendancy
in educational psychology and policy in the 1960s, and its subsequent impact on
policy and practice was considerable (Jardine, 2006; Elkind, 1976). The intellectual
innovations that it engendered had been percolating since at least the second half
of the 1700s when it began to appear in an embryonic form in the educational
writings of the philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau. There is, indeed, one quote
from Rousseau’s educational tract Émile (1762/1985), which is commonly cited
as a succinct expression of this new orientation: “Childhood has its own way of
seeing, thinking and feeling and nothing is more foolish than trying to substitute
our own for them” (p. 54).
Until Rousseau, it was something of a received idea that the behavioural and
intellectual differences between children and adults are simply due to the fact that
adults possess more knowledge and understanding of the world than children do.
The basic problem of education, then, was how to help children acquire the know-
ledge and understanding they lack. This assumption goes essentially unchallenged
by educational rationalism and the guidance conception of education. Converging
evidence from psychology, linguistics, education, sociology, and evolutionary

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 3 What Are Our Main Conceptions of Education, Where Did They Originate 49

theory through the nineteenth and especially twentieth centuries began to point
instead to the notion that the intellectual, emotional, and perceptual apparatus of
children differs in fundamental ways from that of adults. As one might express it
today, “Children’s brains are wired differently.” Seen this way, “learning” means
more than just acquiring new mental representations of the world. Learning also
elicits deep and generally irreversible structural changes in the very way the mind
operates. And these changes, in turn, significantly alter the way one perceives,
interprets, and interacts with the world.
Furthermore, according to the developmental conception of learning, the
primary educational means by which these deep cognitive changes occur is not
through instruction or telling but though lived experience—that is, concrete
attempts to resolve real problems in the real world. Piaget (1970, p. 107) captured
the essence of this idea in his well-known slogan: “education is the adaptation of
the individual to its social context.”
To illustrate the idea with a classic example, consider how a young child might
learn to drink from a tap. When first invited to drink from a stream of running
water, the child may wonder how doing so is possible, since the water flowing
from the tap looks solid. The child then attempts to bring the water to her mouth
by grasping at it as if it were a solid. The strategy fails and, realizing that she is
interacting with a liquid not a solid, she cups her hands and drinks. She will likely
never make the same mistake again. Here, we can see that central to the learning
process is a concrete experience that put the child’s prior schema about water to schema In cognitive
psychology, an inter-
the test. The adult’s urging plays a secondary role.
nally coherent set of
This new conceptualization of learning has implications about the role of beliefs about how some
the teacher in the learning process and, accordingly, the desirable qualities in a aspect of the world
works, which may or
teacher. According to the developmental conception of learning, the teacher’s
may not be accurate.
role is to provide learners with experiences that pose challenges to their current
schemas and hence require them to revise, refine, or adapt their thinking. Once
learning is conceived of primarily as a process wherein the individuals’ cognitive
resources become increasingly adaptive vis-à-vis the particular life environment adaptive A term
in which they find themselves, the teacher’s mastery of a discipline-based subject derived from evolution-
ary theory, “adaptive”
recedes to the background as an important quality. What becomes foregrounded in the context of
instead is the teacher’s pedagogical skill in creating and implementing learning learning theory refers to
situations that specifically address learning needs and priorities. The educator’s knowledge that helps
individuals effectively
key task is to put into place in classroom settings the conditions favourable to negotiate and solve
intellectual growth and development. Doing so involves negotiating the complex problems in a given
interplay between the learner’s highly particular, local understanding of a topic, social, technological, or
natural environment.
on one hand, and the universal psychological mechanisms that move learning for-
ward. To summarize: if for educational rationalism the ideal of the teacher is the
scientist, educational developmentalism holds up the applied psychologist as the
ideal type of intellectual the teacher should aspire to be.
When it comes to navigating the contemporary language of education, one
of the most confusing things is that the oft-repeated slogan of the developmental
conception of teaching—“learners construct their own understanding”—employs
an architectural rather than an organic metaphor. This requires some explaining.

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 50 Part II • How Should Children Be Educated?

CASE STUDY
Piaget’s Cognitive Development Tests
Although the developmental conception of teaching and learning is reflected
in the writings of progressive educationalists like Maria Montessori, J.H.
Pestalozzi, Friedrich Fröbel, and John Dewey, the Swiss psychologist Jean
Piaget’s singular contribution to popularizing developmentalism among
educators was to garner empirical support for it. Piaget’s cognitive develop-
ment tests, a series of elegant and easily reproducible experiments meant to
validate and refine Piaget’s theory of cognitive development, provide com-
pelling evidence that children of preschool age and younger do not share
some of adults’ most basic assumptions about how the physical world is: that
things don’t just disappear when you can’t see them, that a given volume of
liquid stays the same no matter what size container you put it in, that other
people don’t necessarily see the world the way you do, and so forth. Adults
take such assumptions for granted and rely on them to successfully navigate
the social and material world. The conservation of volume test, the conserv-
ation of number test, and the three-mountain test were designed as experi-
mental tools for empirically validating the claim that people are not born
with these assumptions but come to acquire them during early childhood
through a trial-and-error process of trying to solve problems in the world.
In terms of Piaget’s theory, the failure to pass these tests is evidence
that the child has not yet reached the developmental milestone of the
concrete operational stage. The systematic failure of preschoolers to pass
these tests provides striking confirmation that they have an understanding
of volume and number and a spatial perspective that is completely differ-
ent from that of adults. Or as Rousseau might have put it, “childhood has
its own way of seeing, thinking, and feeling.”
To view videos of children taking Piaget’s conservation of volume test,
conservation of number tests, and the three-mountain test, follow the links
below. Since none of these tests involves any risk for the children taking
them, and involve simple material that can be found in any residence, you
can definitely try them at home. Even so, if you are not using your own kids,
you should ask their parents first. The ideal research subject is between
four- and five-years old, as the literature shows that most four- to five-year-
olds fail all three tests. By age seven, most children pass them.

Conservation of volume: https://www.youtube.com/

watch?v=5D-ySO0p4zo
Conservation of number: https://www.youtube.com/
watch?v=RBvG-FG6hCE
Three mountain task: https://www.youtube.com/
watch?v=OinqFgsIbh0

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 3 What Are Our Main Conceptions of Education, Where Did They Originate 51

In certain educational circles today, the assertion that “learners construct their
constructivism
own understandings” operates as a kind of shibboleth indicating that the speaker A conception of
rejects the so-called “traditional” subject- and teacher-focused approach to teach- learning that views
ing and learning associated with educational rationalism and adheres instead to learning as process in
which learners actively
a developmental conception of teaching and learning commonly called construc- modify and correct their
tivism (or its group-work-focused version inspired by the work of the Russian current beliefs in light of
psychologist Lev Vygotsky, socio-constructivism). To make sense of this use of experiences and ideas
that pose a challenge to
an apparently architectural metaphor to capture the essence of the developmental those beliefs.
conception of education, the first point to take into consideration is that the slo-
gan could, with as much right, be applied to the rationalist conception of teaching socio-constructivism
Associated with
and learning. As we saw in the discussion of educational rationalism, the idea that Vygotsky, a version of
learners play an active role in learning is in fact one of rationalism’s fundamental constructivism that con-
assumptions. Hence, as Davis (2004) observes, the frequently voiced accusation siders that working with
others on problems in
that educational rationalism pictures learners as passive recipients of instruction groups is favourable to
demonstrates a basic misunderstanding of educational rationalism. the active construction
That said, in Jean Piaget’s influential work on cognitive development, the of new knowledge.

terms structure and construction are key terms used to describe basic theoretical
concepts. Apparently overlooked, however, is the fact that Piaget uses these terms
in a biological, not an architectural, sense. When Piaget talks about “cognitive
structures” or schemas as a “structured cluster of concepts” or a stage of cogni-
tive development as a “structured whole,” he has in mind “structure” in the sense of
the organized forms of a living organism’s physiology—“structure” as in “molecu-
lar structure” or “the structure of a tree’s branches.”
Appreciating the organic sense of “structure” in Piaget’s work on children’s
development is in fact crucial to understanding what his work is all about and
thinking in an intellectually responsible way about the educational principles that
can be derived from it. Piaget often remarked that the origins of his contribution
to research in psychology and education lay in his training as a biologist. In his
early work on the physiology of mollusks, Piaget marvelled at how, given a highly
specific set of environmental conditions, something as biologically simple as an
egg or a seed could unfold into the complex arrangement of specialized structures,
which enable the organism to survive and reproduce in its natural environment.
From there, it was a small step to wondering how human babies, who are born with
extremely limited cognitive abilities, could grow up to become adults capable of
such intellectual achievements as nano-engineering, neurosurgery, or Bach’s cello
suites. In a telling phrase, Piaget characterized his theory of cognitive develop-
ment as “genetic epistemology.” The reference here is not to “genes” or “genetics”
in the sense of the study of DNA but in the more basic sense of the biology-based
psychological process that explains the origin and the emergence of human know-
ledge and understanding. Piaget’s basic answer to the question of how intelligence
emerged was that, like the developing mollusk eggs he observed as a teenager, the
latent cognitive potential of human minds is incredible but the realization of this
potential depends largely on the environment in which people find themselves, and
in particular, whether that environment is favourable to cognitive development. So,
the basic mechanism of learning is understood as being analogous to the biological
process of growth. This is why, despite the talk of “structures” and “construction

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 52 Part II • How Should Children Be Educated?

of knowledge,” Piagetian constructivism can be considered paradigmatic of the

developmental conception of education and why its adherents have a tendency to
resort to organic metaphors when talking about teaching and learning.

The Guidance Conception of Education:

Learning as Insight and Discovery
Educational rationalism, and the construction metaphors for education it engen-
ders, are today commonplace in education but, as noted, this conception of teach-
ing and learning initially arose to challenge a previously dominant one that takes
“guidance” as its central metaphor. According to the guidance conception of teach-
gnosis A type of know- ing and learning, which finds articulations in virtually all human civilizations,
ledge centred on the education and learning are all about retrieval of knowledge that is innate, or which
meaning of the world
the learner has somehow forgotten or lost.
and humanity’s place in
the cosmos. Classical forms of the guidance conception of education picture education’s
aim as coming to understand in a deep and even mystical sense the world and
episteme A type of
humanity’s place in it. This type of knowledge, sometimes referred to as gnosis,
knowledge centred on
facts about the world stands in contrast with the kind of knowledge that is, as we saw, at the centre of the
and the laws and causal rationalist conception of teaching and learning: episteme, to use the ancient Greek
relations that explain
term for it. Whereas episteme is concerned with information about the world that
how it operates.
explains how it works and helps people function well in it from a pragmatic or
technological point of view (i.e., facts, causal relations, natural laws, etc.), gno-
sis refers to discovering the meaning of the natural order (i.e., how and why the

CASE STUDY
The Argument for Inborn Knowledge in Plato’s Meno
What could the idea that “learning is remembering” mean? One answer
can be found in a curiously convincing argument from the ancient Greek
philosopher Plato’s work, Meno (Plato, fourth century bce/1998) that chal-
lenges the received idea that when we learn we acquire new knowledge.
The argument, which still has philosophers puzzling 2500 years later, begins
with Meno’s paradox.
Meno’s paradox states that, if you start from the assumption that
learning involves coming to knowing something you did not know before,
then the search for new knowledge is either impossible or unnecessary. It
is impossible because if you do not know what you are seeking to know
before starting to look for it, then you will not be able to recognize it even

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 3 What Are Our Main Conceptions of Education, Where Did They Originate 53

world even came to exist in the first place and how people should live in light of
those deeper truths). An assumption common to the multiple educational trad-
itions that can be associated with the guidance conception of education is that
learners are born with a set of insights or intuitions into the great questions of life.
However, since, as a matter of fact, few people actually possess gnosis, finding the
answers requires the learner to attend to, explore, and expand these intuitions.
Clearly, with the guidance conception of education we are a long way from the
paradigm of formal school-based learning. So far that from this paradigm virtu-
ally any experience can be considered “educational” as long as it leads the learner
towards gnosis. “Even a stone can be a teacher,” as the well-known Buddhist saying
expresses this idea. Conceived in terms of guidance, then, the objective of teach-
ing is not to achieve curricular goals or mastery of subject-related content but
rather to lead the learner towards as-yet-unrealized personal potential of insight
and understanding.
To contemporary ears, the idea that learning is a kind of recollection, and that
teaching involves guiding the learner through a process of recollection or retrieval,
may at first sight seem strange and exotic, and perhaps ill-adapted to the realities
of the contemporary world. However, this mode of thinking about teaching and
learning has modern variants that exercise considerable influence on contempor-
ary educational discourse. The modern variants of the guidance conception of
education reinterpret the focus of the basic educational process of discovering
innate truths in terms of such concepts as self-discovery and self-realization.
Highly critical of the mentalist conception of education and the systems of
rationalized mass education, which, since the nineteenth century, have grown up to

if you find it. But if knowing what you are looking for is necessary to finding
it, then the search is unnecessary. You already know it.
It is generally recognized in philosophy that Meno’s paradox depends
on some argumentative sleight of hand, but Plato takes the paradox as
an opportunity to introduce a somewhat more plausible argument that all
knowledge is innate. In effect, Plato’s argument for inborn knowledge, as it
is sometimes called, “solves” Meno’s paradox by suggesting that the para-
dox only arises if we start from what Plato considered to be the unfounded
assumption that learning involves acquiring new knowledge. Plato’s writings
typically take the form of a dialogue and feature Socrates as the main char-
acter. In the dialogue “The Meno,” where the argument for inborn know-
ledge is put forward, Plato has Socrates call over a young slave known to
have had no mathematical education. Socrates presents the youth with a
continued

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 54 Part II • How Should Children Be Educated?

mathematical problem that can be stated simply enough: for any given
square, how much longer do the sides of the square need to be to yield a
square with exactly double the area of the initial square? The slave guesses
“twice as long” and then “three times as long.” Realizing with the help of
Socrates that both answers are wrong, Socrates explains that if you draw a
straight diagonal line from one corner of the square to the other, you form
a right angle triangle whose area is exactly half the area of the initial square.
Then, if you create a square composed of four half squares, you get a
new square with an area equal to exactly twice that of the initial square. The
slave (and the reader of the dialogue, presumably) is able to follow every
step of Socrates’ reasoning and cannot deny its veracity. Socrates con-
cludes that the slave boy “knew” all along that the answer to the problem
was that, to yield a square with exactly double the area of an initial square,
the sides of the new square need to be exactly the length of the hypoten-
use of the triangle formed by drawing a straight diagonal line from one
corner of the square to the other corner of the initial square. All Socrates
did was to show him what he already knew and, on this basis, Socrates con-
cludes that learning is really remembering.

Pause for Thought

Is Socrates Convincing?
Is Socrates’ demonstration that “all learning is remembering” convincing?
Why or why not?

serve it, modern proponents of the guidance conception of education characteristic-

ally claim that institutional education is actually miseducational on the grounds that
it focuses on instruction at the expense of what they think really counts in education:
healthy, positive, and authentic personal development. The details of this critique
vary from author to author but, in general, the idea is that the that overemphasis on
direct instruction and linear teacher-guided progress through subjects in education,
and especially the authoritarian teacher‒student relationship associated with direct
instruction, is an obstacle to the free development of one’s personality. Far from being
favourable to certain desirable “natural” human dispositions like curiosity, commun-
ity-mindedness, and the love of learning, modern schooling makes it harder for these
dispositions to emerge, according to this critique. What education should be striving

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 3 What Are Our Main Conceptions of Education, Where Did They Originate 55

The wrong answer is “twice as long.” The surface area of the

new square is clearly much larger than that of the initial
square, four times larger to be exact.

The right answer is “as long as the hypotenuse of a

right-angle triangle created by dividing the initial
square in half diagonally.” Four times half the initial
surface area equals twice the initial surface area.

Figure 3.1 How much longer do the sides of a square need to be to

produce a new square with double the area of the original one?

for instead are forms of general, desirable psychological achievements such as hap-
piness, (Neill, 1960; Noddings, 2004), self-esteem, (Emler, 2001; Stout, 2000), and
self-realization (Rogers, 1969; Adler, 1984).
More radical versions of this critique charge the institution of formal school-
ing as manifestly serving to reproduce social inequalities. According to this line of
critical thinking in education, through a subtle and complex system of evaluation,
rewards, and punishments that hardly anyone involved in schooling consciously
grasps, schools sort young people into social roles defined by class, gender, race,
occupation, and so on. Despite the official discourse that schools exist to “ensure
that young people realize their full economic potential” or “break down class bar-
riers,” schools really slot young people into pre-existing social roles in order to
maintain the social order (Bordieu, 1990; Illich, 1971; Willis, 1981).
A testimony to the guidance conception’s venerable place in the history of
educational thought, the guidance metaphor is apparent in the etymology of the
very word education. Given the pervasiveness of metaphor in the language of edu-
cation, it is a small wonder that the etymology of the verb educate is ambiguous
with respect to the metaphor to which education was originally linked. Reference
works standardly give two distinct etymological roots: “to breed or to raise” (from
the Latin educere) or “to lead or bring out” (from the prefix ex- + ducere). It is
certainly telling that, from early on, the idea of education was associated with
the notion of bringing out or calling forth innate, intuitive, or latent capacities.
However, to infer from this observation that the guidance conception of education

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 56 Part II • How Should Children Be Educated?

is more correct than others is unwarranted, as the meaning of words can change
dramatically over time. (A particularly striking example of such a semantic shift
can be found in the word awful, which initially meant “to inspire veneration, won-
der, or awe” but now means something altogether different.)
Any figurative ways of talking about teaching and learning that emphasize
that the main purpose of teaching and education is to draw out the learner’s hid-
den potential are instances of the guidance metaphor in the language of education.
The metaphor is discernible, for example, in common descriptions of teaching as
“nurturing,” “fostering,” or “tutoring.” All these usages imply that the role of the
teacher is to provide the supportive care necessary for the realization of the learn-
er’s latent talents.
The notion that the teacher acts as a knowledgeable guide suggests that the
learner, not the teacher, occupies the place of privilege in the teacher‒student
relationship. By regarding teachers as experts in a subject whose task it is to
transmit the essentials of their discipline to the students, the construction con-
ception of teaching situates the teacher at the centre of the learning process. In
the guidance conception of teaching, by contrast, the expertise of teachers resides
not only in being wiser and more experienced—teachers need to possess insights
into learners’ particular potential for learning or self-realization and should know
what to do to lead them along the path towards the fulfillment of their potential.
This kind of keen, even empathic attentiveness towards each learner’s individual
needs as a learner is typically invoked by the common expression “learner-cen-
tred teaching.”
Two enduring metaphors for the teacher, taken from opposite ends of the
historical spectrum, represent the guidance conception of teaching and the learn-
er-centred pedagogy it entails: “teacher as midwife” and “teacher as therapist.”
The teacher as midwife metaphor, and the so-called Socratic method of teaching
to which it is related, comes down, again, from Plato’s educational writings. The
Socratic method of teaching, which we saw in the discussion of the argument for
innate knowledge (see the Case Study box on page 52), shuns the direct provi-
sion of “right answers” in favour of using probing questions designed to challenge
learners’ misconceptions. The Socratic method assumes that learners already know
the answers to their own questions—or at least possess the capacity to find them
by themselves—but just need help getting them out. Hence the midwife metaphor.
The teacher as therapist metaphor, for its part, found its most ardent spokes-
person in the twentieth-century psychotherapist Carl Rogers. According to
humanistic psychology Rogers’s highly influential application of the principles of humanistic psychology
A school of thought to education, the teacher avoids direct teaching and acts instead as a facilitator of
in psychology and
psychotherapy that learning, as in the Socratic method. For Rogers (1969), however, education should
regards the realization serve first and foremost the individual’s self-realization. Rogers does not necessar-
of one’s innate talents, ily reject the idea that time in school should be spent learning about traditional sub-
true personality traits,
and personal potential jects like science and languages. He does insist, however, that if traditional topics
as one of people’s most are to be taught, they must be taught in a way that furthers the more basic goal of
fundamental needs. greater personal fulfillment and the development of a positive self-concept. Like
the person-centred psychotherapist, the learner-centred teacher’s main role is to

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 3 What Are Our Main Conceptions of Education, Where Did They Originate 57

create and maintain a classroom atmosphere and orchestrate educational experi-

ences that are favourable to advancing the goals of self-actualization. That means,
primarily, establishing authentic, trusting interpersonal relationships with learn-
ers and striving to make classroom learning relevant by linking it to learners’ daily
reality and past experiences.

CASE STUDY
Student-Centred Teaching
In terms of its impact on teachers’, teacher educators’, and policy-makers’
thinking, one of the most remarkable applications of basic social science
research to educational practice was the student- or child-centred teaching
movement.
The basic ideas behind student-centred teaching—a rejection of rote
learning, the promotion of the idea that school-based learning should
strive to be stimulating and meaningful, that educators should be con-
cerned with social and emotional learning and personal growth, not just
academic skills and knowledge—have deep historical roots in Western
educational thought (Laverty, 2014). Even though the basic principles of
child-centred learning go back at least as far as Rousseau’s work in the
eighteenth century, and the fashion for child-centred education ebbed and
flowed through the late-nineteenth and early-twentieth centuries (Laverty,
2014), in the 1960s various cultural, political, and economic factors con-
spired to make the idea of student-centred learning seem particularly
attractive to many teachers and educationalists.
At that time, student-centred teaching found its greatest advocate
in the American psychologist Carl Rogers who, in his widely circulated
articles and best-selling book Freedom to Learn (1969, 1983), strove to
apply humanistic psychology to education. Believing that both teaching
and psychotherapy share the aim of promoting positive personal growth,
Rogers argued that teaching practice should be modelled on the tenets
of “client-centred therapy.” Applying the “necessary conditions of thera-
peutic personality change” to teaching, Rogers advanced that “significant
learning” in schools depends on teachers adopting a new and personally
demanding professional posture: teachers must be sincere, honest, and
authentic; they must have unconditional respect for learners; and they
must be empathic in the sense of continually striving to understand, from
the learners’ perspective, the unique difficulties they face as they grapple
with new material and deal with life at school. Rogers also articulated and
promoted the still popular idea of the teacher as “facilitator of learning,”
which he defined in terms of 10 key ideas.
continued

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 58 Part II • How Should Children Be Educated?

Facilitation

1) The facilitator has much to do with setting the initial mood or climate
of the group or class experience.
2) The facilitator helps to elicit and clarify the purposes of the individuals
in the class as well as the more general purposes of the group.
3) He relies upon the desire of each student to implement those pur-
poses which have meaning for him, as the motivational force behind
significant learning.
4) He endeavours to organize and make easily available the widest pos-
sible range of resources for learning.
5) He regards himself as a flexible resource to be utilized by the group.
6) In responding to expressions in the classroom group, he accepts both
the intellectual content and the emotionalized attitudes, endeav-
ouring to give each aspect the approximate degree of emphasis which
it has for the individual or the group.
7) As the acceptant classroom climate becomes established, the facilita-
tor is able increasingly to become a participant learner, a member of
the group, expressing his views as those of one individual only.
8) He takes the initiative in sharing himself with the group—his feelings
as well as his thoughts—in ways which do not demand nor impose but
represent simply a personal sharing which students may take or leave.
9) Throughout the classroom experience, he remains alert to the expres-
sion indicative of deep or strong feelings.
10) In his functioning as a facilitator of learning, the leader endeavours to
recognize and accept his own limitations.
Source: Rogers, C. (1969). Freedom to Learn. Columbus, Ohio: Charles Merrill, p. 164.

As a testimony to the popularity of Rogers’s ideas, they found their way

into numerous policy reports and papers, including Ontario’s Hall-Dennis
report (1968) and the Plowden report (1967) in the United Kingdom, whose
recommendations helped shape educational policy, practice, and curricu-
lum in Europe and America in the second half of the twentieth century.
For many educators, Rogers’s vision of teachers as authentic, respect-
ful, and empathic facilitators of meaningful learning continues to resonate
today. Have you ever had a teacher who seemed to aspire to or embody
Rogers’s ideal of the student-centred teacher? If so, and with that teacher
in mind, describe some of the professional characteristics or teaching
approaches you would associate with the notion of “teacher as facilitator
of learning,” as described by Rogers. What educational values seem to
underlie this ideal of the teacher-student relationship? Finally, for a prac-
tising teacher, what would seem to be the main interest of this approach?
What are some of its pitfalls?

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 3 What Are Our Main Conceptions of Education, Where Did They Originate 59

Conclusion
This chapter presented three broad and influential conceptions of teaching and
learning through an exploration of three corresponding dominant metaphors:
education as building, developing, and guiding.
The construction conception of education highlights instruction. In this
view, the main purpose of education is to master a systematic body of factual
and practical knowledge about the world. Learning is understood primarily as a
psychological process in which individuals construct increasingly accurate mental
representations of the natural and social world. Here, the teacher’s main task is to
lead learners through logically structured lessons and hence practical skills and
non-academic topics (e.g., religion, art, and sports) are of secondary importance
as taught subjects in schools.
Organic metaphors depict learning in evolutionary and highly pragmatic
terms. The developmental conception of teaching and learning sees education as
aiming to develop the flexible skills and relevant knowledge that the individual
needs to function effectively in the social world and make a positive contribu-
tion to collective technological and social progress. Imparting “knowledge for
its own sake” or providing young people with positive personalized support as
they emerge into adulthood are at best secondary goals of teaching. According to
the developmental conception, the teacher’s main task is to provide learners with
experiences that challenge their prior notions, force them to revise and refine their
thinking, and acquire useful skills and knowledge.
Guidance metaphors of education, for their part, put the emphasis on the
realization of the self rather than the mastery of bodies of science-based know-
ledge. In this view, the most valuable kind of learning is learning that provides
insight into how to live well based on a deep understanding of the workings of the
world and the self. In this view, the teacher’s role is mainly that of a guide, helping
young people understand the things they need to understand to achieve positive
personal outcomes like wisdom and authentic personal fulfillment.
Important lessons are to be drawn from the study of metaphor in the language
of education for beginning and experienced teachers alike. The most important
and general of these lessons, perhaps, is that while a particular metaphor might be
more or less consistent with one’s own personal preconceived ideas about teach-
ing, the search for a single “right” metaphor for education will almost lead to an
oversimplified, truncated conception of teaching and learning. The reason for this
can be linked back to the essence of conceptual metaphor: metaphor structures
thought but it also constrains thought. No single metaphor is up to the task of
capturing the many faces of teaching, and none of the corresponding conceptions
of teaching and learning that can be associated with the dominant metaphors of
education can fully capture teaching’s complex and multifaceted nature.
As Cook-Sather (2003) has suggested, a healthy appreciation of teaching’s
complexity afforded by the study of educational metaphors can be liberating in at
least two senses. In one sense, it can help teachers see more clearly the limits that
the metaphors they use to describe teaching impose on their thinking about the

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 60 Part II • How Should Children Be Educated?

choices they make in the classroom. More positively, it can equip them with an
open-minded but critical outlook on the competing conceptions of teaching and
learning they will encounter in practice, putting them on guard against the all-too-
common tendency in education to try to reduce teaching to a catch-all formula or
magic bullets like “child-centred classrooms,” “the project method,” “flip teaching”
and “brain gym.” The first step towards wisdom in teaching, then, may be to admit
that good teaching will never be a simple matter. The history of how educators in
the past have struggled to grasp teaching though different metaphors lucidly illus-
trates teaching’s multifaceted and contested nature.

Review Questions
1. Considering what you have learned in this 3. From Dead Poets Society (1989) and
chapter about the construction, organic, Dangerous Minds (1995) to Entre les Murs
and guidance conceptions of teaching and (2008), the inspirational movie about
learning, which one do you personally find teaching has become a film genre in its own
the most truthful or appealing and why? right. Think of a teacher movie in which
What influences from your own experi- one or more of the conceptions of teaching
ence either as an education student or and learning addressed in this chapter was
growing up could be cited to explain your portrayed or promoted. Explain and dis-
preference? cuss your reflections.
2. One of the key ideas introduced in this 4. In the animated video “Changing Edu­
chapter is that the metaphorical language cation Paradigms” (2010) (https://www.
one uses to talk about teaching and learn- youtube.com/watch?v=zDZFcDGpL4U),
ing has a concrete impact on the way one Ken Robinson makes frequent use of meta-
perceives, thinks, and acts as a teacher. We phorical language to develop his critique of
have seen what the construction, organic, conventional schooling. What is the main
and guidance metaphors seem to imply metaphor used to describe conventional
about the main purpose of education, what schooling? What other metaphorical lan-
kind of knowledge is the most important guage did you observe Robinson using in
kind of knowledge to possess, and teachers’ the video? Why does Robinson think the
professional qualities. Now extend these conventional model is unviable? Analyze
metaphors and discuss how the adoption Robinson’s critique in terms of the three con-
of these metaphors might affect one’s views ceptions of teaching and learning discussed
on such issues as evaluation, class manage- in this chapter. Does he seem to favour or
ment, and special education. oppose one conception over the others?

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 3 What Are Our Main Conceptions of Education, Where Did They Originate 61

Further Readings
Davis, B. (2004). Inventions of teaching: A genealogy. teachers: Toward a systematic typology for the
London: Routledge. language teaching field. System, 26, 3‒50.
Gutek, G.L. (1996). Philosophical and ideological Patchen, T., & Crawford, T. (2011). From gardeners
perspectives on education, 2nd ed. New York: to tour guides: The epistemological struggle
Pearson. revealed in teacher-generated metaphors of
Moore, A. (2004). The good teacher. New York: teaching. Journal of Teacher Education, 62(3),
Routledge. 286‒98.
Oxford, R.L., Tomlinson, S., Barcelos, A., Harrington, Saban, A. (2006). Functions of metaphor in teaching
C., Lavine, R.Z., Saleh, A., & Longhini, A. and teacher education: A review essay. Teacher
(1998). Clashing metaphors about classroom Education, 17(4), 299‒315.

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 4 Are Students Becoming
Consumerist Learners?

Pause for Thought

A Shift in Priorities
The language that is used to describe practices in education and school-
ing may suggest a particular shift in priorities and emphases. This is def-
initely the case in looking at Chapter 2 in regarding how educators have
attempted to create a particular Canadian identity. Consider, however, the
phrases that are increasingly being used by individuals to describe aspects
about schools:
• “I was shopping around for a school for my child.”
• “Students are our customers.”
• “I need to consume everything as a learner.”
How is consumerism impacting education in Canada today? Are stu-
dents becoming consumerist learners? What happens to education when
it takes place in a society oriented around consumerism?

Introduction: What Is Consumerism?

While we must consume things like food and health care in order to keep our bod-
ies alive, consumerism is something quite different. Consumerism is a relatively
new way of life and a set of values that emphasizes the acquisition of goods and
services based on endless wants and acquisitiveness. However, “there is an import-
ant difference between consumption as a function of biological survival, and con-
sumerism as an ‘ism’ or ideology” (Norris, 2011, p. 13). From clothing to food to
media, youth in Canada are deeply immersed in the world of advertising images
and commercial logos. What makes consumerism so significant is that it is about
more than just shopping—either online or in person. It is a way of life and a set of
values and beliefs about ourselves that we bring to everything we do—including

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 4 Are Students Becoming Consumerist Learners? 63

education. “As an ideological force, consumerism is not simply a habit of shopping

but an entire way of being in the world” (Norris, 2011, p. 12). The experience of consumerism A way of
life and a set of values
being a consumer reaches into all other parts of society. that emphasizes the
Consumer choices are often based on impulse and emotion more than acquisition of goods
thought and reason. In a consumerist society there is tremendous pressure to base and services based
on endless wants and
one’s sense of identity and value as a person on shopping and possessions, human acquisitiveness. In a
relationships are often construed as mediated by commodities, and everything in consumer society one’s
the world is considered a commodity that is available for human use. Given these sense of identity and
value as a person is
observations, this chapter will focus on these key questions: How is consumerism derived from shopping
impacting education? Are students “consumers” of education in the same way that and possessions, human
they may be consumers of other things? What are the educational implications relationships are medi-
ated by commodities,
of consumerism? What do we learn about education when we look at how con- and everything in the
sumerism is impacting it? world is seen as a com-
At first, consumerism may seem to promote empowerment, choice, freedom, modity that is available
for human use.
and democracy—but this appearance is deceiving. A libertarian would argue that
there is nothing wrong with consumerism and we should be allowed to do what
we want with our money, and that corporations should be able to advertise to
kids in schools. This is because consumerism seems to involve people in deci-
sion-making, to allow their personal preferences and individual desires to have an
influence. However, we don’t just invent our desires and interests out of thin air,
and we don’t just “naturally” begin to think of ourselves as consumers. Powerful
economic and social forces are at work, which encourage people to think of them-
selves as consumers. In this sense, our identities as consumers are carefully and
deliberately constructed.
Consumerism impacts all aspects of our daily lives, including our experience
of public education. Examples of how consumerism is becoming more prevalent in
schools range from advertising in schools and textbooks, to corporate-sponsored
assemblies and school events, to sponsored educational materials such as curricu-
school commercialism
lum documents and lesson plans, to fast food in the cafeteria, to the many exam- The development of
ples of consumerism that students themselves bring to schools. relationships between
In the first section of this chapter we will look at the different types of school schools and commercial
interests who seek to
commercialism that are happening in Canada. Although many of these changes gain access to students
are also evident in other countries around the world, there are unique ways in and their parents to
which consumerism is impacting education in Canada, due to cultural differences promote certain prod-
ucts and services, build
and because education is organized and administered in a manner different from brand loyalty, or shape
other countries. After that, we will consider how these commercial inroads into values and beliefs.
schools are impacting education with regard to the development of civic iden-
human capital The
tity (the focus of Chapter 2). A discussion of the tension between the public and total amount of skills,
private aims of education leads into an examination of economistic approaches knowledge, and values
to education such as an emphasis on human capital creation or return on invest- that are required in
order to perform tasks
ment, the commodification of knowledge, and the erosion of the humanities. The tied to economic value.
chapter then considers the impact of consumerism on teacher autonomy and Schools are considered
students’ critical thinking. Then, we look at the impact of consumerism on the to be key sites in the
creation of human
opportunities for risk-taking and encountering something new and different, and capital.
the expectation for education to be easy and not involve confusion or distress. In

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 64 Part II • How Should Children Be Educated?

the final section, we will discuss what can be done—and in some cases is being
done—about this trend.
The huge growth of the advertising and marketing industries means that
young people today are “spoken to” more often as consumers than as students. It
may be accurate to say that advertising plays just as important a role in influen-
cing—perhaps even “educating”—young people today as do schools and teach-
ers. What does consumerism “teach”? What happens to democracy and education
when more money is spent on advertising than on public education? What is
the difference between a student and a consumer, or a citizen and a consumer?
What happens to the civic and democratic aims of education when consumerism
becomes so dominant in schools and society?
There are several reasons why it’s important to learn about this topic. First,
in order to be an effective teacher it’s necessary to develop some familiarity with
this issue because it will help you better understand your students and what is a
dominant part of their lives, what they bring with them when they walk into your
classroom. Second, it is also an issue of professionalism. For example, the Ontario
College of Teachers, which regulates the teaching profession in Ontario, outlines
several Standards of Practice intended to promote professionalism, such as “com-
mitment to students,” which includes being “sensitive to factors that influence stu-
dent learning.” Third, teachers are not immune to the impacts of consumerism,
and they should attempt to develop a critical awareness of themselves as consum-
ers and as targets to consumer interests. It is important, just as with other key
social issues such as race, class, and gender, for educators to invest in their own
self-awareness and to understand the ways that cultural and economic influences
may shape their own assumptions—especially given their influential role in the
classroom and broader community.

Types of School Commercialism

Consumerism is influencing education simply because it is so present in the rest
of the culture. Increasingly, schools are sought out as key places where consumer
values and beliefs can be promoted. There are some specific and direct ways in
which schools are promoting consumer values and beliefs, through what educa-
tional scholars call “school commercialism.” Why would corporations want to get
in schools? Consider six commonly cited reasons why corporations seek access to
public schools:

1. First and most obviously, schools provide a direct opportunity for immedi-
ate profit, and corporations are in pursuit of the money spent every day by
students, which today is in the billions. This can also include money directly
spent by governments on education through the sale of computers, sports
equipment, cafeteria food, and so on.
2. Schools are vast sorting sites that students are obligated to attend, where
they are organized by age and grades, which marketers note creates “very
refined and specific targeting and message segmentation.” Marketing firm

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 4 Are Students Becoming Consumerist Learners? 65

Youthography notes on its website that schools provide a much more targeted
market than that available to TV broadcasters, as schools contain specific age
groups and are also organized by income, race, and language, reflecting the
local ethnicity and economic status of the surrounding population.
3. Advertisers compete to reach a market in an environment of growing “clut-
ter” or “noise” from other advertisers. Kenway and Bullen note, “with ‘ad
glut’ or ‘clutter’ a major problem, advertisers are finding it increasingly
difficult to make products appear distinctive in a marketplace saturated
with ads. As they are relatively commercial-free, schools offer advertisers
a largely competitor-free environment.” Students in schools are what mar-
keters call a “captive audience,” required to “be there approximately 6 hours
a day, five days a week, nine months a year until the age of 16” (Kenway &
Bullen, 2001, p. 96).
4. Once their parents are bypassed in this way, kids in turn can market back
to their parents on behalf of advertisers through what marketers term the
“nag factor” or “pester power.” In fact, this is its primary advantage over other
forms of advertising. Children become corporate representatives within the
family and exert tremendous sway over their parents’ spending habits.
5. Corporations seek access to schools because they are sites where cultural
values are taught and ideological messages are internalized. Consumerism
shapes the values and world views of students, who have been called “con-
sumers in training.” They are developing “brand loyalties” that may last for
their entire lifetime, and may include life-long addiction to tobacco, cola, and
other substances. Considering how young they are, and that they have years of
consuming ahead of them, they are a much more sought-after demographic
than older consumers. Marketers measure this in terms of “customer lifetime
value,” which calculates the total amount of money expected to be made from
a customer through his or her lifetime.
6. Last, and perhaps most abstractly, corporations capitalize on the positive
public perception associated with schools because corporate involvement in
schools can be construed as benevolent and used to improve their image.
Erica Shaker of the Canadian Centre of Policy Alternatives argues that
“merely by being associated with the school, the product and the sponsoring
corporation appear to have additional legitimacy and the implicit endorse-
ment of the educational system.” Such partnerships are a “cheap and effective
way for corporations to gain goodwill in the community, and in return . . . the
schools can give them an enormous amount of exposure” (Shaker, 1998, p. 4).
Even as their public image is improved, corporations are also eligible for tax
deductions—creating a loss in revenue that could have gone to the schools in
the first place.

This trend happens in part because consumerism has become normalized and
naturalized since it is so prevalent in the larger culture, but also because of funding
shortages to education and a growing expectation that schools be “entrepreneur-
ial” and seek out new sources of revenue. See Table 4.1 for some examples.

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 66 Part II • How Should Children Be Educated?

Table 4.1 Examples of School Commercialism

Example

Corporate sponsored school programs and activities Payment for school contests and events by corporations
in exchange for the right to associate their name with
the event

Appropriation of space for advertising Renaming spaces such as classrooms after corporations;
advertising in classrooms, halls, gyms, etc.

Sponsored educational materials Resources such as lesson plans, free curriculum

materials, etc., which include direct or indirect
promotional material

Electronic marketing Provision of technology equipment in exchange for the

right to advertise

Incentive programs Commercial rewards for academic achievement

Privatization Shifting school management to private for-profit

corporations

Fundraising Rewards programs in which a portion of sales go to

schools

Source: Froese, Hawkey, Larose, McAdie, & Shaker, 2006.

Pause for Thought

Corporations in Schools
Consider the various ways that corporations might be present in your school:

• Have you ever encountered commercialism in your education?

• Do you recall any brand names that were prominently displayed in the
school?
• Do you recall any literature/brochures/activities/events that were
sponsored by a corporation? What did you think at the time?
• Do any of the ideas presented in this chapter lead you to think differ-
ently about the presence of commercial interests in schools?

The growing influence of consumerism on students and schools challenges

us to rethink what exactly education is about, and how educational institutions
might be different from other institutions in Canadian culture. For example, how
are schools different from churches, temples, synagogues, mosques, or other

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 4 Are Students Becoming Consumerist Learners? 67

institutions? While schools may increasingly allow corporations to advertise to

students in order to raise funds, what would you think of a religious institution
that allowed advertising inside, or that named parts of their buildings after cor-
porations? In the military context, what would you think of military bases that
allowed advertising in them, or named military buildings after corporate spon-
sors? Could you imagine a battleship named after a corporate sponsor? What do
these potential differences say about education?

Civic Identity or Consumer Identity?

Chapter 2 looked at the nature of Canadian civic identity and how it relates to
education. From their founding, perhaps the most important task of schools in
Canada has been to make political citizens and create a sense of shared civic iden-
tity. New research into the impact of consumerism reveals that one consequence
of consumerism is that people begin to think of themselves as consumers first
and foremost, more so than they think of themselves as having a civic identity or
being members of a political community. Consumerism provokes intense iden-
tification with and preoccupation with brands and their symbolic meaning. To
oversimplify, people might identify with Tim Hortons more than the Charter of
Rights and Freedoms, or think of themselves as Tim Hortons customers more than
as Canadians, or even blur the lines between a nation and a commercial and think
that there is no difference between Canada and Tim Hortons—despite the fact that
Tim Hortons is no longer a Canadian-owned company. To illustrate this point, in
a first-year lecture class, the task was given to the class to consider what makes
an “ideal Canadian.” One response was from a student who stated: “Me. I am a
Tim Hortons‒drinking, hockey-loving, Newfie.” The class laughed at the quick and
lighthearted remark of the student. Yet, it indicated the prevalence of corporations
as part of our understanding of what identifies individuals as Canadian, and those
who may be excluded who do not like Tim Hortons coffee or watch hockey, or res-
ide in Newfoundland. What does it mean to be a Canadian when people think of
themselves as consumers? How can we educate for a Canadian civic identity when
people increasingly think of themselves as consumers rather than as members of a
political community with a shared civic identity?
Chapter 2 talked about the “social and personal goods” that come with a sense
of civic identity. Like civic identity, consumerism draws on our natural desire to
belong to a group of like-minded people. Like civic identity, it also promises to
help us differentiate ourselves from other groups or communities. However, many
scholars who analyze consumerism demonstrate that the bonds of affiliation and
commitment between people are generally weaker and less meaningful when they
arise because of consumer habits rather than civic identity. For example, it is hard
to imagine anyone cheering for a corporation that makes their favourite product
with the same passion that they would cheer for their country during the Olympics.
In fact, it could be argued that if civic identity becomes weakened then people will
turn instead to consumerism in pursuit of the same social and personal goods.
This is why education for civic identity is increasingly more important today.

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 68 Part II • How Should Children Be Educated?

But how can we support education for civic identity when youth identity is
increasingly oriented around brands and their meanings? While there may be sig-
nificant debate and dispute regarding the importance and meaning of civic identity
formation, consumer identity may present a significant and seductive alternative
form of identification—though one less oriented around nation, community, or
citizenship and more about brands and their constructed symbolic meanings that
turn people away from participatory democracy and towards materialism and
individual gratification. But a question arises: could education for civic identity
include a critique of consumer values?

Private Gain or Public Good?

A central debate about the aims of education concerns the tension between the
personal and public benefits of education. Who is the primary beneficiary of edu-
cation: you—or the community of which you are a part? If you are the only benefici-
ary, why should someone else pay taxes to support your publicly funded education?
public good To some extent education can be considered to be a public good. One way of
Something that can be understanding a public good is as something that can be enjoyed by one person
enjoyed by one person
without taking away without taking away the opportunity for another person to enjoy the same good,
the opportunity for which can often be enjoyed again and again. Some examples include fresh air, sun-
another person to enjoy light, knowledge, street lighting, rainwater, parks, radio, lighthouses, and so on. The
the same good, which
can often be enjoyed opposite of a public good is a private good, meaning that people can be excluded
again and again. Some from consumption, and that once consumed, it cannot be enjoyed by others.
examples include fresh More and more educational institutions promote themselves based on their
air, sunlight, know-
ledge, street lighting, capacity to offer a greater return on investment (ROI) than their competitors. ROI
rainwater, parks, radio, is calculated by adding all the expenses that come with education (tuition, books,
lighthouses, and so etc.), plus lost wages from being in school rather than earning an income. This
forth.
cost is deducted from the increase to wages compared to what the wages would
be without that additional education. Education can thus be monetized. This con-
ception of education promotes a way of thinking of yourself and education as
consisting of skills that have value only in how they increase your economic value.
This is not only intensively individualistic but also primarily an exclusively eco-
nomic approach towards the value and meaning education. The purpose of educa-
tion is to enhance your economic productivity and economic value.
Of course, there is much truth and value to this conception of education:
while it may be true that education often contributes to increases in employability
and income, one could argue that such a focus might narrow or misrepresent how
education might affect a person. This is not to say that economic and employment
concerns are not important. They certainly are—and it would be not only callous
but also misinformed to disregard them. However, perhaps this issue might be
better portrayed as a question of balance or emphasis: education may be in part
about making a living, but it may also be about more than that.
This intensively individualistic conception of education overlooks the
extent to which there are non-economic public benefits for the whole commun-
ity, such as living in a country where more citizens are aware of the history of

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 4 Are Students Becoming Consumerist Learners? 69

that country—or aware of the different cultures within it, aware of what is going
on in the world outside of that country, and so on. The democratic character
of Canada depends greatly on an educated population, and to some extent you
are contributing to democracy by pursuing education. However, in a consumer
society we are decreasingly a political community with shared interests and val-
ues concerned with the public good; it is increasingly the case that we are separ-
ate consumers concerned with individualistic self-gratification. Consumers are
primarily focused on self-interest and material gratification and can be easier to
influence because they value image over reflective thought. Where is there space
for reasoned debate and reflection on questions of public good? As discussed in
Chapter 2, democracy rests on a shared civic identity. What happens to democ-
racy when people think of themselves more as consumers than as citizens?

“Me, Inc.”
To some extent, human capital theory advances the idea that education is tied
to self-interest and personal gain, with less consideration of others or the larger
world around them, and less concern with broad theoretical and open-ended
questions and more oriented towards strategic application and “use” defined in a
very narrow way. The kind of knowledge and education that is considered valuable
is one that can be immediately and easily put into practice, one that will have easily
evident and concrete benefits that can be measured quantitatively and with a clear
contribution to economic growth.
Researchers have tracked a considerable shift in attitudes towards education
in recent decades away from broad-based and publicly oriented aims towards indi-
vidual and economic aims. One study indicated that

The primary reasons given by incoming students for wanting to go to col-

lege in the 1960s and early 1970s was, “to become an educated person,” or
“to develop a meaningful philosophy of life.” Beginning in the 1990s, the
most frequent reason given for attending college had changed to “make a
lot of money,” outranking not only the reflective reasons noted above, but
also “becoming an authority in my field,” or “helping others in difficulty.”

This is a profound shift “away from values of community, spirituality, and integrity,
and toward competition, materialism, and disconnection” (Levine, 2007).
Educational theorist David Labaree describes this shift from public to private
economic aims:

From one perspective, we have seen schooling as a way to preserve and

promote public aims, such as keeping the faith, shoring up the repub-
lic, or promoting economic growth. From the other perspective, we have
seen schooling as a way to advance the interests of individual educa-
tional consumers in the pursuit of social access and social advantage. . . .
[E]ducational consumers have long expressed a consistent preference

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 70 Part II • How Should Children Be Educated?

(through their enrollment choices and their votes) for a school system
that was less focused on producing benefits for the community as a whole
than on providing selective benefits to the students who earned its diplo-
mas (Labaree, 2011, p. 351).

Educational theorist Gert Biesta notes that as a result, “learning ceases to be

a collective good and increasingly becomes an individual good” (Biesta, 2006, p.
73). Not only are people learning by themselves—that is, as an individual activ-
ity—but also the content and purpose of these forms of learning has become more
focused on the individual. Education becomes “learning” in the most narrow
sense: an individual issue and an individual responsibility for individual benefit.
individualization Individualization is increasingly evident in the representation of learning as a
Process whereby private undertaking for private gain and construed as an investment in one’s own
education becomes an
individual issue and an human capital measured in terms of return on investment.
individual responsibility This is evident in the new discourse of “Me, Inc.,” which construes people as a
for individual benefit. collection of instrumental skills in a hypercompetitive arena of utility maximizers,
It is evident in the rep-
resentation of learning in which the right educational investments will empower one as the master of
as a private undertaking one’s own self-branding. A conference in Vancouver called “Me, Inc” claimed to be
for private gain. “a career exploration and personal development conference designed for first- and
second-year students” (http://www.meinc.ca/conference_overview.html). A book
entitled Me, Inc.: How to Master the Business of Being You claims that “whether you
like it or not, you are the CEO of Me, Inc.” (Ventrella, 2007, p. 2). Forbes Magazine
celebrates “The Brand Called You,” and notes that you can increase your own brand
value through injecting knowledge through education: “Big companies under-
stand the importance of brands. Today, in the Age of the Individual, you have to
be your own brand. Here’s what it takes to be the CEO of Me, Inc.” (Peters, 1997).
Education becomes construed only in terms of economic relations and objectives
of maximizing production and consumption. The notion that education is a public
good, a good that is both non-instrumental and more than economic, is lost.

Economistic Approaches to Education

Such a deeply “economistic” approach to education is also taken by national gov-
ernments who want to increase the total amount of human capital in order to
compete in the global economy. (The concept of human capital is also discussed

Pause for Thought

Benefiting from Education
How might other people benefit from your education? How might you
benefit from other people’s education?

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 4 Are Students Becoming Consumerist Learners? 71

in detail in Chapter 7.) Increasingly, economic progress is one of the central aims
of education, and education that doesn’t contribute to economic value and eco-
nomic growth is considered less important and worthwhile. Just as it’s possible to
determine the ROI of an education degree for a specific person, so too is it possible
to determine the sum total of the creation of human capital in a nation. Human
capital is considered to be the total amount of skills, knowledge, and values that
are required in order to perform tasks tied to economic value. Schools are con-
sidered to be key sites in the creation of human capital: “politicians and other
actors wish to create the best growing conditions for human capital in schools, as
it is an important resource in terms of developing future welfare and increasing
the economic profit of the society” (Saeverot, Reindal, & Wivestad, 2013, p. 444).
In the United States in the 1980s, an influential national educational strategy
outlined in “A Nation at Risk” emphasized the imperative to ensure that education
helped protect the nation from foreign economic threats:

We live among determined, well-educated, and strongly motivated com-

petitors. We compete with them for international standing and markets,
not only with products but also with the ideas of our laboratories and
neighborhood workshops. America’s position in the world may once
have been reasonably secure with only a few exceptionally well-trained
men and women (National Commission on Excellence in Education,
1983, p. 8).

In Canada, this is the way that education is portrayed by many think-tanks

and lobby groups such as the Fraser Institute and C.D. Howe Institute, and large
international organizations such as the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the
World Bank, and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
(OECD). For example,

According to the World Bank’s website, education is important because it

lays the foundations for sustained economic growth. In 2007 the OECD’s
main webpage on education plainly stated that “both individuals and
countries benefit from education. For individuals, the potential benefits
lie in general quality of life and in the economic returns of sustained,
satisfying employment. For countries, the potential benefits lie in eco-
nomic growth and the development of shared values that underpin social
cohesion.” Nothing further is added about the non-economic benefits or
functions of education (Gilead 2012, p. 113).

This is not to downplay the very real and legitimate aim of gaining economic
opportunity and economic well-being through education (though perhaps uni-
versity education does not provide the same kinds of career opportunities it once
did). The point is that national economic interests are used to advance a certain
conception of education that increasingly aligns it with a consumer culture. There
is a significant narrowing of the range of what education may offer:

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[H]uman capital theory cannot explain the behaviour of someone who

wants to spend her time studying something without any prospect of
economic returns from this education. In human capital theory, as in
the other parts of mainstream economics, human beings act for eco-
nomic reasons only. That people might act for social, religious, moral,
emotional, or other non-economic reasons, cannot be accounted for by
this theory. The second problem with human capital theory is that it is
entirely instrumental: it values education, skills and knowledge only in
so far as they contribute (directly or indirectly) to expected economic
productivity” (Robeyns, 2006, pp. 72–3).

In this instance the student is the commodity and the school system is
the factory that is trying to create a highly valuable consumer product for the
global economy.

Commodification of Knowledge
Knowledge is a central focus of education: its transmission, its creation, its trans-
formation. Knowledge is widely seen as a public good. When a good is public, we
mean that nobody can be prevented from using it, and the use of that good by
some does not make it less available to others. For example, you can look up how
to repair a car engine. Nobody can stop you from learning how to fix a car, and
learning how to fix a car does not reduce the availability of that same knowledge
for others. What conception of knowledge is promoted or present in a society so
oriented around consumerism? There is a growing literature on the phenomenon
of the “commodification” of knowledge. To “commodify” is to turn something that
is a (public) good or service into something that can be bought or sold, privatized,
or limited in certain ways. By commodification, we mean that knowledge is con-
strued as a discrete, atomized “thing” or object that is possessed by the teacher
and can be directly transmitted or “sold” to the student. In other words, students
“buy” bits of knowledge. This process changes knowledge from a public good to
a private good.

Pause for Thought

Metaphors for Education
In Chapter 3 we looked at how metaphors shape how we think and speak
about teaching and learning. In what ways does the metaphor of “stu-
dent as commodity” and “school as factory” influence our thinking about
education?

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 4 Are Students Becoming Consumerist Learners? 73

This is the conception of knowledge that educational theorist Paulo Freire

(1970) criticizes in his well-known book Pedagogy of the Oppressed. According
to this model, students are portrayed as empty vessels into which teachers “pour”
knowledge, and learning is about accumulating knowledge as if it can be stored
in a bank. Freire describes banking education as follows: “The teacher makes banking education
deposits which the students patiently receive, memorize, and repeat. This is the A model of the teacher-
student relationship
‘banking’ concept of education, in which the scope of action allowed to students articulated by Paulo
extends only as far as receiving, filing, and storing the deposits” (p. 58). Freire in which students
When knowledge becomes a private commodity, the idea that knowledge—or are portrayed as empty
vessels into which
ideas—are a public good, is lost. For example, if a corporation contributes to a teachers “pour” know-
research project at a university, should it be permitted to “own” the knowledge that ledge, and learning is
is created? Furthermore, the idea that knowledge is something that is co-created in about accumulating
knowledge as if it can
the classroom between teacher and students, or that knowledge is something that be stored in a bank.
is dynamic and changing and open to revision, is lost. This may not only misrepre-
sent knowledge but also narrow what education might be about.

The Humanities and Economic Growth

One consequence of this emphasis on the contributions of education to economic
productivity and economic growth concerns the type of educational priorities
that are emphasized in Canadian education policy across various provinces. If
education is construed as something that is primarily for personal and national
economic gain, then certain kinds of knowledge and certain disciplines will be
prioritized. For many years there has been concern that a broad-based humanities
education is falling by the wayside. Humanities include such “soft” disciplines as
English literature, history, philosophy, cultural studies, and languages. However,
the fastest growing fields on most university campuses are engineering, business,
and the sciences because they are considered to serve the Canadian economy bet-
ter. Further, academic achievement in kindergarten through Grade 12 has often
been focused on skills that are construed as directly economically productive.
How can one defend history or philosophy or literature when they don’t contribute
as much to the Canadian economy?
Scholars who research the nature of the humanities and its contribution to
culture indicate that there are several problematic implications for democracy
(Nussbaum, 2010) and for human thought (Arendt, 1958) if the importance of the
humanities is reduced in educational institutions. An education in the humanities
is also said to promote happiness (Noddings, 2004)—but how is that happiness dif-
ferent from the kind of happiness promised by consumerism? In Chapter 1 eude-
monic and hedonic happiness were distinguished, where eudemonic happiness is
“informed” by consideration about “one’s life as a whole,” whereas hedonic happiness
is based on momentary pleasure. How would consumerism fit into that distinction?
One could argue that it is becoming increasingly the case that the kind of happiness
the humanities offers is less attractive, less exciting, less immediately stimulating than
the happiness offered by consumer satisfaction. One unique feature of the human-
ities is that they are considered to be good in themselves, or valued for their own sake

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 74 Part II • How Should Children Be Educated?

rather than for some predetermined aim or objective. This is sometimes called their
“intrinsic” value (also distinguished in Chapter 1). Some note that the sciences and
engineering may not be able to address the underlying causes of the problems that
we see emerging because of impacts caused by science and engineering (Weiseltier,
2013). Some note that humanities may be needed in order to address some of the
very problems that are created by the prevalence of consumerism. However, if edu-
cational policy-makers do not see the value of the humanities—or rather, if they only
define “value” in purely economic terms in promoting consumerism—then many of
the features of education outlined in Chapters 1 and 2 may be lost.

Teacher Autonomy
In some cases, such school‒business partnerships may in fact undermine the aca-
demic freedom of teachers, whether formally or informally. For example, teachers
may be discouraged from teaching lessons that might portray a particular cor-
poration in a negative way if that same corporation has a contract with schools.
Someone who teaches civics, world issues, or family studies may be hesitant to
criticize the health or environmental consequences of Coke if the school has a
contract with that corporation. Likewise, teachers using free curriculum resources
from an oil company in their chemistry class may be reluctant to discuss prob-
lematic environmental consequences—even if they are never explicitly prohibited.

CASE STUDY
Canadian Geographic and the Fossil Fuel Industry
Canadian Geographic is one of the oldest and best-known environment-
ally oriented magazines in Canada, long used in schools across the coun-
try in geography and science classes. It has traditionally been focused on
endangered species, fragile ecosystems, addressing the challenges that
technological progress presents, and the importance of environmental
stewardship and environmental education. This has enabled it to become
a trusted source and familiar name among teachers, students, and parents.
normalize The process
through which ideas,
However, the focus of the magazine has recently shifted. The spring
values, and actions are 2014 issue, titled “Energy Nation,” promotes classroom-based activities
presented in a manner that normalize fossil fuel consumption, such as oil and gas, and promote
that appears unbiased,
neutral, and culturally
a lifestyle and culture oriented around dependence on fossil fuel con-
“normal”—yet any rea- sumption. To emphasize the importance of the oil and gas industry to the
sons to oppose it have Canadian economy and how it fits into the Canadian landscape, the maga-
been omitted.
zine partnered with the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers

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 4 Are Students Becoming Consumerist Learners? 75

(CAPP), which is portrayed as a non-partisan, non-profit organization, but

is widely recognized as an advocate for the Canadian oil and gas industry.
Canadian Geographic developed this close relationship with the oil
and gas industry in order to fund the distribution of educational resources
to schools across the country. Canadian Geographic Education, with finan-
cial aid from CAPP, has developed an “Energy IQ” program, which “aims to
increase energy and geographic literacy in Canada” (https://energyiq.can-
adiangeographic.ca/main/about). Two of its popular resources are an inter-
active energy map and a giant floor map. These free floor maps are as big
as a classroom, and the website states that “Students will enjoy learning
about the often-unseen system that plays such a big part in their daily lives
through engaging, teacher-created activities” (http://www.canadiangeo-
graphic.ca/educational_products/energy_production_floor_map.asp).
Whereas students once learned about the flows of rivers and pat-
terns of species migrations and the shape of mountain ranges, they will
now learn about the natural world from the perspective of the oil and gas
industry and through the framework of fossil fuel extraction and distribu-
tion. Students learn geography through the system of pipelines set up
across the country, and learn about science through the lens of its benefits
for industry.
Fossil fuel consumption is portrayed as normal and natural and con-
strued as benign and inconsequential. While environmental issues are still
presented, they are downplayed in relation to the benefits of scientific
exploration—or exploitation—of the natural world. Alternative sources
of energy, and alternative sources of transportation, are not extensively
presented.
While Canadian Geographic doesn’t take an overtly political stance,
there is no mention of such issues as climate change or frequent pipe-
line leaks, but instead it attempts to be only descriptive—for example, by
emphasizing the importance of pipelines to the Canadian economy. This
conveys the impression that there is nothing controversial about this issue,
nothing to potentially object to or question. However, when Al Gore’s docu-
mentary about climate change called An Inconvenient Truth was shown in
schools, many corporations demanded that teachers emphasize how the
documentary was biased. A National Post article critical of teachers who
show the documentary stated that teachers are “unaware” that there are
other sides to the argument (“Gore’s Inconvenient Truth,” 2007). In the
United Kingdom, schools are required to issue a warning about the bias of
the documentary (BBC, 2007). However, there is no requirement to declare
a bias on the CAPP-sponsored classroom resources being distributed by
Canadian Geographic.

continued

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 76 Part II • How Should Children Be Educated?

Some concerned high school students in Vancouver—where a pipeline

spill occurred in a residential area in 2007—have written a letter entitled
“We’re Young, Not Stupid,” which outlines why they oppose this partner-
ship (Webb, 2013).
While there are many resources available for teachers who would like
to teach about the oil and gas industry in their classrooms, some teachers
and students are concerned that the oil and gas industry benefits from
exploiting a trusted, iconic, public resource (Webb, 2013).
This initiative by Canadian Geographic raises several important ques-
tions about the nature and aims of education—or perhaps who should
control the ways that specific aims are promoted. Should oil corporations
be permitted to gain access to schools and classrooms and shape curricu-
lum? How compatible are commercial interests with educational object-
ives? Should education reproduce consumer values or aim to critique
them? What is the difference between educating students and acquiring a
new market of consumers?

Critical Thinking
One of the most frequently stated goals of education, evident in all subjects and
throughout all ages, is the notion that education is about the creation of critical
thinkers and the promotion of critical thinking abilities. Critical thinking is con-
sidered to include the ability to think clearly, rationally, and independently. Such
skills as problem solving, seeing connections between ideas, determining bias in
arguments, identifying inconsistencies in one’s own positions, seeing something
from multiple perspectives, making judgments, justifying beliefs, examining one’s
own thoughts, and questioning the habits or values of others are all considered
to be different aspects of critical thinking. It is a kind of higher-order thinking
or “reason assessment,” which can involve challenging the norm—or confirming
the validity of it (McPeck et al., 1990). It may involve revealing what is behind
what might otherwise seem to be straightforward. There is a level of self-aware-
ness that critical thinking requires, an awareness of what is going on in one’s
own thoughts, how one is going about thinking. It is for this reason that critical
thinking is sometimes called “thinking about thinking” or “metacognition.” The
Foundation for Critical Thinking describes it as follows: “Critical thinking is self-
directed, self-disciplined, self-monitored, and self-corrective thinking” (http://
www.criticalthinking.org/pages/our-concept-and-definition-of-critical-thinking
/411). All of these skills required for critical thinking are in fact of use across all
subject areas. Perhaps it could be said that to be educated is to be able to think
critically. But to be clear, thinking critically isn’t necessarily about having negative
or judgmental opinions. It is about questioning assumptions and trying to take in
multiple perspectives.

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There are two other important features of critical thinking. First, critical
thinking is often contrasted with the accumulation of knowledge or facts because
it emphasizes the active process of analysis. Thus, critical thinking is not neces-
sarily concerned with the content of thought (what it is that we’re thinking about)
as much as how we go about thinking about that content. Thus, critical think-
ing is a process, an attitude, and a disposition. Second, leading critical thinking
expert Robert Ennis (1995) notes that while critical thinking might at first seem to
be exclusively cognitive, its importance extends far beyond the individual mind:
“Critical thinking is also important to the survival of a democratic way of life. If
the people in a democracy do not make reasonable decisions in voting and the
conduct of their everyday public life, then the democracy in which they live is
threatened” (p. xvii). While all these aspects of critical thinking emphasize its
importance, it is quite easy and even natural to live and think in an uncritical way.
Indeed it is often more difficult and discomforting to attempt to live and think in
a critical way, which may be part of the reason why consumerism has become so
prevalent and successful.
It might at first appear that advertising is not particularly problematic. For
example, it’s natural—and perhaps desirable—to think you’re not very impacted
by advertising. However Alex Molnar, a leading authority on the impact of school,
contends that “whereas any single piece of advertising may seem trivial, all adver-
tising contributes to a global message reflecting the values, stories, and morality
that promote a consumer culture” (Molnar, Bonninger, & Fogarty, 2011, p. 2). It
might at first appear that critical thinking and consumerism are compatible, that,
for example, critical thinking might be construed as how best to decide which
products you prefer—how best to maximize your self-interest and consumer satis-
faction. However, that is to constrict the range of what critical thinking might
offer: a critique of a society so oriented around consumerism and a critique of
consumerism itself.
Molnar argues that school commercialism “discourage[s] aspects of
critical thinking that might lead to disagreement with or discrediting of the spon-
sor’s message—especially critical thinking skills having to do with identifying and
evaluating sponsors’ points of view and biases, considering alternative points of
view, and generating and evaluating alternative solutions” (2011, p. 9). While con-
sumers can be savvy in terms of how they make choices, and while it may be true
that creating good advertising requires lots of critical thinking, often the aim is to
ensure that the types of thinking that consumers engage in is quite limited. For
example, Thayler and Sunstein’s Nudge (2008) discusses how to bypass cognition
by using “choice architecture” so that we are directed into making certain choices.
When acting and thinking like consumers we often don’t consider whether we can
afford something, if it’s good for our health or the environment, or whether we
really do want or need it. As citizens influenced by consumerism we may be more
likely to vote impulsively based on short-term concerns, to prefer candidates who
appeal to our emotions and promise to satisfy our consumer wishes, and become
more concerned with the accumulation of possessions than the larger common

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good. Many of these problematic tendencies can be addressed by promoting and

engaging in critical thinking.
It is imperative that education promote the habits of critical thinking, best
developed in classrooms that encourage students to engage in slow and careful
thinking. However, Alex Molnar argues that the influence of commercial forces on
education may in fact have the opposite effect. Molnar points out that

It is not in the interest of corporate sponsors to promote critical think-

ing. Far from it: their interest is in selling their products or services
or—telling their story. Encouraging children to learn to identify and crit-
ically evaluate a sponsor’s point of view and biases, to consider alterna-
tive points of view or products and services, or to generate and consider
solutions to problems other than the ones sponsors offer would, from
a corporate point of view, be self-defeating. For this reason, sponsored
messages will necessarily avoid touching on anything that might lead to
thinking inconsistent with the intended message. (Molnar, Bonninger, &
Fogarty, 2011, p. 28)

If schools develop close commercial relations with corporations seeking to influ-

ence students’ products preferences, teachers are unlikely to encourage critique of
that corporation for fear of losing money.
Molnar notes that advertising doesn’t promote the same values as education
does, and advertisers don’t value students for the same reasons that educators
do: “The tension between the educative mission of schools and the corporate
imperative to earn profits means that when corporations enter the schools, there
is going to be pressure to create student experiences and shape student attitudes
in ways that support, or at least do not undermine, the corporate bottom line.
This pressure is inherent in the relationship” (2011, p. 8). This shows that there is
a direct contradiction between the commercial messages that promote consumer
values and the kinds of things that children learn in class. Unless one is going to
try to equate education with advertising, and claim that teachers are just “selling”
something the same way that marketers are, it would seem that advertisers and
educators share different values and are motivated by different objectives. While
advertising aims to persuade young people to like and to buy certain products,
educators ideally are helping their students become independent critical thinkers.
Because the aim of advertising is to persuade rather than promote critical think-
ing, schools become less likely to be sites where critical thinking is promoted—at
the same time that it is even more needed due to the prevalence of advertising.
Corporations want customers to want their products, and to stay loyal to them,
whereas ideally schools want students to think independently. “Consumerism,
however, undermines the critical task of education, reducing it to a process by
which students become increasingly acquisitive yet decreasingly inquisitive”
(Norris, 2011, p. 8).

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 4 Are Students Becoming Consumerist Learners? 79

Educational Risk and the Unexpected

One of the remarkable features of education is that it’s full of surprises. One
can never be sure the kind of impact certain topics or experiences will have on
students—or teachers. In fact, perhaps attempting to control every aspect of educa-
tion may potentially undermine the pedagogical potential of schools. Philosopher
of education Gert Biesta argues that “Education always involves risk . . . that if we
take the risk out of education, there is a real chance that we take out education alto-
gether” (Biesta, 2013, p. 1). But education is unpredictable and risky to teachers as
well as students. A teacher can never be sure what the impact will be on students.
What kind of risk does education always involve? The risk that you might change,
that you might come out of your educational experiences as a different person,
and the risk that you might not know how education will change you. It is only
when we are open to the new and different, only when we see ourselves as limited
or incomplete in some sense that education can happen. There is no promise of
“getting what you paid for” because no one can guarantee that it can be provided.
Biesta argues that education is increasingly required to be predictable and con-
trollable, always with clear and measurable outcomes. The desire to put education
under total control, to ensure that its outcomes are predictable, is to ensure that
students are never made uncomfortable, never surprised; that students know what
they want when they enter the classroom—and should get what they want before
they leave. But a consumer expects something quite different: to get what they paid
for, to know what they’re going to get—often with a guarantee of money back. But
how can you “risk” anything in education if it might mean that you end up getting
something different from what you came for? To try to ensure that education is
like a consumer relationship rather than risky and unpredictable and potentially
uncomfortable is to undermine what education has to offer: “This makes the educa-
tional way the slow way, the difficult way, the frustrating way” (2013, p. 3).

Should Education Be “Easy”?

In the article “The Happy and Suffering Student,” Avi Mintz criticizes “the widely
held belief that frustration, confusion, distress, and other painful moments in
education inhibit learning,” and that this may leave students “denied meaningful
challenges and deprived of important educational experiences” (Mintz, 2012, pp.
249‒50). He notes that the famous educational philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau
argued that “educational theorists ought to concern themselves with identifying
and eliminating harmful or useless pains while encouraging and facilitating stu-
dents’ experiences of beneficial ones” (p. 252). This is based on the notion that
suffering, pain, and discomfort may in fact have pedagogical benefits, that edu-
cation wouldn’t be fully educational without it, and that teaching should be con-
ducted in such a way that students are never extensively given time to see their
own errors, “that educators shield students from distress that might arise from
engaging in meaningful challenges and encountering valuable criticism” (p. 251).

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 80 Part II • How Should Children Be Educated?

To some extent, this varies between cultures. For example, a comparative

study of Japanese versus American math teachers noted that Japanese teachers
presented the field of math in such a way that they conveyed the impression that
math was exciting even if it was sometimes confusing and difficult. They would
begin their lesson by presenting a dilemma or problem, and then spent the rest
of the class exploring solutions. When students had a hard time, they were left to
wrestle with the problem. In contrast, American teachers “tried to jazz up the les-
son and increase students’ interest in non-mathematical ways: by being entertain-
ing, by interrupting the lesson to talk about other things like last night’s local rock
concert; or by setting the mathematics problem in a real-life or intriguing context,
such as measuring the circumference of a basketball” (Stigler & Hiebert, 1988,
p. 2). In other words, math was only as interesting as the “real world” problem and
application made it seem to be. While it may be true that it’s exciting to see how
math fits into everyday life, “teachers act as if the interest must come from outside
mathematics” (p. 2). In Japan “the teachers seem less concerned about motivating
the topics in non-mathematical ways” (p. 3). American teachers assume that the
subject of math is not interesting, and thus need to find other things to make it
interesting. This may say a great deal about the extent to which consumer values
about ease versus discomfort are evident in different cultures.
This discomfort may also take the shape of difficult encounters with social
and political injustice that challenge and even threaten deeply held beliefs. In
Feeling Power, Megan Boler explores resistance in her account of the peda-
pedagogy of discom- gogy of discomfort. Discomfort is likely to arise when “educators and students
fort Students may feel engage in critical inquiry regarding values and cherished beliefs” (Boler, 1999,
uncomfortable when
critical inquiry into p. 165). For example, if students hold to the belief that racism no longer exists,
cherished and deeply or that gender equity has been achieved, discomfort may be so strong that stu-
held values and beliefs dents may vehemently resist any arguments or evidence to the contrary. Boler
occurs in educational
contexts. May provoke suggests that such discomfort may even provoke a “refusal” of new information,
resistance or a “refusal” that “when new information is introduced that suggests a radical alternative
of new information or to our accepted and/or common-sense ways of thinking and being, how do
evidence that disrupts
their comfortable and we react? Refusal is certainly one possible reaction” (p. 166). She calls this the
familiar beliefs. “shattering of world-views.” It is unlikely that someone who strongly identifies
as a consumer more than a citizen or learner would not be willing to go through
such an emotionally difficult experience. Some people may even resist or refuse
to learn new critical ideas about the impact of consumerism on education if it
challenges their previous beliefs.
Not only are narratives shaped by consumer interest focused on achieving
specific economic behaviours (i.e., “buy our stuff ”), they also deny other forms
of behaviour or ways of being. What kinds of stories, racial or gender stereotypes,
body types, and economic classes are more likely to be represented and celebrated
in consumer narratives? Public education is for the public and needs to recognize
the diversity of the populations within its walls and the world that students are
being prepared to contribute to. That level of diversity is often lacking in commer-
cial narratives. For example, most pictures of families on vacation feature white

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 4 Are Students Becoming Consumerist Learners? 81

Pause for Thought

Advertising Schools
Can you imagine a school or university advertising itself using a message
about ease or instant gratification? What about a professor at the begin-
ning of a course you are taking? Why might you object?

people, and most commercials for household cleaners feature women. Despite
efforts to increase diversity in mass media and advertising, certain images, life-
styles, body types, or economic circumstances risk creating a certain level of dis-
taste or discomfort that could discourage consumption. Not all narratives make us
feel good and not all problems have quick solutions that can be purchased—but
those are the kinds of topics and stories that skilled educators can help students
navigate but marketers would rather bypass. However, is education based on the
ability to pick and choose what subjects to study based on what makes us feel good
and comfortable?
Many of the aspects of consumerism discussed here demonstrate an import-
ant difference between consumer values and the kinds of values required for edu-
cational success as described by Mintz, Biesta, and Boler. “Yet we live in impatient
times in which we constantly get the message that instant gratification of our
desires is possible and that it is good” (Biesta, 2013, p. 6). One retailer makes the
difference between educational values and consumer values remarkably transpar-
ent with an “Easy” button to promote itself, using the slogan “It’s just that easy.” The
retailer even sells the bright red button itself ! If you happen to know what retailer
this is, then you are proving how successful it has been.
That’s not to say that education should be a miserable and unpleasant
experience! Much of the history of education involves not only frustration or
confusion but often outright violence and humiliation. Corporal punishment
was a central part of education for much of our recorded history. Many “adults
and educators believed that social order, good behaviour, and moral develop-
ment required the regular use of disciplinary instruments such as the rod and
the strap” (http://www.cea-ace.ca/education-canada/article/banning-strap-end-
corporal-punishment-canadian-schools). Even as recently as the 1950s and
1960s it was common practice to beat students in front of the class for not com-
pleting tasks or for speaking out of turn. The Toronto District School Board only
outlawed corporal punishment in 1971, and it was as recently as 2004 that the
Supreme Court of Canada ruled that “corporal punishment was an unreasonable
application of force in the maintenance of classroom discipline.”

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 82 Part II • How Should Children Be Educated?

Conclusion
There are many things that can—and are—being done to address the impact
of consumerism on schools and students. For example, some provinces have
developed restrictions on advertising to kids in schools and on TV. For example,
Quebec has banned all fast food and toy advertising aimed at children under age
13 in electronic and print media since 1980. Using Statistics Canada data, Dhar and
Bayliss compare household spending and consumption of fast food in Ontario and
Quebec and note that the ban reduced fast food consumption in Quebec by 13 per
cent, or a reduction of 11‒22 million fast food meals per year. In 2005 Quebec had
one of the lowest obesity rates in Canada (Dhar & Bayliss, 2011, p. 803). Following
the 69th meeting of the United Nations General Assembly in August 2014, a
report addressing cultural rights recommended banning commercial advertising
in schools (UN Secretary General, 2014).
Another approach is to educate students, teachers, and the general public. For
example, curriculum resources can help teach students how to deal with challen-
ges that consumerism presents, whether regarding diet, Internet usage, personal
budgeting, or shopping habits. This can be addressed in many courses such as
family studies, economics, accounting, media literacy, or physical education.
A final strategy would be to ensure that there is adequate funding for schools
so there’s not such an intense pressure to develop commercial relationships. Why
has funding for education slipped in proportion to the growth in the advertising
and marketing industry? This is a larger but very important question to ask about
education in Canada. For example, several new prisons have been built in Ontario in
order to accommodate a federal initiative to mandate longer prison sentences. But
many studies confirm that the best way to reduce crime is by investing in education.
Instead, new prisons are built while schools are underfunded and forced to develop
relationships with advertisers. What does it say about Canada that advertising has
become a bigger and bigger part of our culture and the daily life of students?
Consumerism’s impact on education in Canada raises important questions
about the aims of education and the values we hope to advance in our culture.
This chapter brought to light several ways in which consumerism is impacting
schools and students. Considering how quickly it has become a central part of
Canadian education and culture, it is likely to remain an issue for the foreseeable
future, and exploring it will help anyone who will be spending time in schools to
be better able to understand and contend with these changing dynamics.

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 4 Are Students Becoming Consumerist Learners? 83

Review Questions
1. How is consumerism impacting education? 3. How are consumer values in tension with
2. What are some tensions between con- civic values?
sumer values and educational values? How 4. What are some ways in which the poten-
compatible are consumer values with the tially problematic impacts of consumerism
aims of education such as well-being, hap- can be reduced?
piness, autonomy, and the good life, as out-
lined in Chapter 1?

Further Readings
Barber, B. (2007). Consumed: How markets corrupt Levine, M. (2007). Challenging the culture of
children, infantilize adults, and swallow citizens affluence: Schools, parents, and the psycho-
whole. New York, NY: Norton. logical health of children. Independent School
Boyles, D. (2000). American education and corpora- Magazine, http://www.nais.org/Magazines-
tions: The free market goes to school. New York, Newsletters/ISMagazine/Pages/Challenging-
NY: Falmer Press. the-Culture-of-Affluence-150274.aspx.
Giroux, H. (2010). The mouse that roared: Disney and Sandlin, J., & McLaren, P. (2009). Critical pedagogies
the end of innocence. New York, NY: Rowman of consumption: Living and learning the shadow
and Littlefield. of the “Shopocalypse.” New York, NY: Routledge.
Klein, N. (2000). No logo: Taking aim at the brand Schor, J. (2004). Born to buy: The commercialized
bullies. New York, NY: Picador. child and the new consumer culture. New York,
NY: Scribner.

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 PART III
What Should Children Learn?

Part Overview
Begin interrogating what is taught in schools and why.
Think about how you will integrate your understanding of what is important for students
to learn into your teaching practice.
Learn some strategies (and start to brainstorm others) for working against external
forces that negatively impact what is taught and how it is taught in the classroom.

Overview by Chapter
5 What Should Be Taught on the Curriculum? 86
• Question where the curriculum comes from.
• Learn the history of curriculum reform in Canada.
• Understand the current trends in curriculum reform.

6 Should Teachers Teach Students about Controversial Subjects? 107

• Learn the definition of controversy, and discover what makes something controversial.
• Question the role of controversy in education.
• Understand how to navigate controversial subjects with dignity and worth.

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 5 What Should Be Taught on
the Curriculum?

Introduction
Broadly speaking, curriculum simply means a planned series of instructional goals.
The word has Latin origins and means a course that one runs around, coming
from currere or curro meaning “to run” or “to race.” Some other words in English
from the same root are courier and current. Another related term is curriculum
vitae, or CV for short, which literally means “the course of one’s life.” Keeping this
origin in mind, curriculum could be thought to refer to the course of actions and
experiences through which one must pass.
At first glance, it might seem that what should be taught on the curriculum is
a fairly straightforward and relatively uncontested notion. Yet, as you will discover
in this chapter’s explorations, a completely unbiased or impartial curriculum is a
difficult thing to achieve. In order to become familiar with various commonalities
and distinctions regarding curriculum development in Canada, we examine the
notion of curriculum from various viewpoints. In the first part of the chapter,
we examine the diverse ways educational philosophers, theorists, and teachers
have debated and contested the notion of curriculum. In the next part, we examine
the historical foundations for curriculum in Canada. The third part is concerned
with three criticisms that commonly surface in debates regarding curriculum,
specifically that the curriculum is entrenched and unchanged, that it does not reflect
overarching aims or objectives, and that it is too prescriptive and instrumental and
too ambiguous and undefined. In the final part of the chapter, we examine how
subjects have shifted their emphasis on a particular positioning of knowledge over
time. We consider some of the current debates on the disciplinary subject matter
particularly related to mathematics, English, and the sciences.

How Do Decision-Makers Decide What Should

Be on the Curriculum?
Provincial educational authorities make numerous decisions regarding what
should be taught in schools. They decide which subjects should be compulsory,
as in the case of English or mathematics. Yet, disagreements may arise regarding

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 5 What Should Be Taught on the Curriculum? 87

whether students should learn a second language, have compulsory music classes,
or participate in mandated physical education. How is it possible to decide what
should be taught in Canadian classrooms?
When educational aims and purposes emphasize particular directives for
schooling, such aims inevitably shape and inform curricular practices in schools.
That is why provincial authorities over educational matters draw from a spectrum
of perspectives regarding what should be taught on the curriculum within the
cultural norms and practices of a particular region. On an intuitive level, such
an approach to curriculum seems like a matter of common sense. Developing
curriculum seems like a relatively uncontested matter because we can readily
agree that what is taught in schools should align and contribute to the overall aims
for our students. Given this, one might suggest there is little philosophical debate
on the matter of curriculum. Yet, a quick stroll through the literature reveals this
is not the case.
In fact, the question about what should be taught in the curriculum is a deeply
contentious and unresolved—and perhaps irresolvable—issue in Canada. For
starters, Canada is not necessarily one entity. There are deep rifts and differences
between regions of Canada—in religious perspectives regarding what should be
taught in the curriculum, as in the provision of the Logos Christian school within
Edmonton Public Schools; in ethnic or racial views, as in the Africentric schools in
Toronto; in linguistic perspectives, as in the Ukrainian heritage language programs
in Winnipeg; and in viewpoints of national history, as in Quebec. To what extent
should the curriculum in Canada be consistent across the country? Parents may
have one view of what should be taught in the curriculum (see Chapter 10) while
teachers and other educational experts have other views.
For many philosophers of education, curriculum is a contested term
that demands thoughtful consideration and deliberation. Before we can even
consider what constitutes a curriculum, Paul Hirst (1974) explained, we must
consider overarching aims and objectives. Consider two potentially contrasting
aims of education like you are asked in the Pause for Thought feature below.
One overarching aim of education might be that we need to foster citizenship.
If the primary aim is this, then a curriculum might consider subjects from the
humanities, philosophy, ethics, political science, or linguistics, more so than from
the sciences. In contrast, if the primary aim of education is to develop economic
prosperity, we might have a different set of priorities that focused on trying to
align our subjects with the demands of current and future society. For instance,
we might see greater emphasis on developing the sciences, mathematics, or
technology if that is perceived to be what the greatest economic trends are for the
future. Unless we know what stated end goals might entail, prescribing particular
curricular objectives is a meaningless endeavour. Hirst interprets curriculum as
“a program of activities designed so that pupils will attain by learning certain
specifiable ends or objectives” (Hirst, 1974, p. 2). Curriculum, in Hirst’s estimation,
cannot be separated from definable goals and objectives.
In another approach, John Wilson (1977) proposed a more fully
conceptualized interpretation by attending to three “learning” conditions as

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 88 Part III • What Should Children Learn?

Pause for Thought

Autonomy, Flourishing, Citizenship, and Economic Prosperity
To get a sense of how educational aims may influence what is taught in
schools, let us look at four key concepts that are commonly used in aims
and objective statements for education: autonomy, well-being, citizenship,
and economic prosperity. For each of the categories, choose five course
subjects that you think would best achieve the broader educational aim.
For instance, what course do you think would best foster the broader aim
of citizenship? Write down five top subject areas (e.g., history, mathematics,
science, music, foreign language, ethics, religion, physical education,
computer science, etc.) that you think would best achieve this goal. You may
wish to consider subject areas that are not currently offered in your locality,
or think of topic areas that go beyond particular traditional subject areas.

Economic
Autonomy Well-Being Citizenship Prosperity
Subject 1
Subject 2
Subject 3
Subject 4
Subject 5

Consider the following:

• Which subjects are consistent across all four categories?

• What distinctions exist between the categories?
• How did you decide which subject should be prioritized over another?
• Which of your listed subjects are currently not offered in your locality?
• How does your curriculum look similar and different to the curriculum
currently offered in your locality?

necessary to what constitutes a curriculum. First, curriculum can only be defined

when a specific learning objective has been articulated. Second, the curriculum
must be intentional or planned, rather than informal or unintentional. Finally,
curriculum should be conceived as something sustained over a period of time,
rather than random or haphazard. One perception of curriculum is “properly
used for planned, sustained and regular learning, which is taken seriously, which
has a distinct and structured content, and which proceeds via some kind of stages
of learning” (Wilson, 1977, p. 68). Such a conceptualization of curriculum as

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 5 What Should Be Taught on the Curriculum? 89

contended by Wilson imposes high expectations—what might be described as

the aspirational goal of a robust curriculum.
Another view of the term curriculum focuses on the distinctions that may official curriculum
What the state and
occur when curriculum is conceptualized and implemented. For instance, Larry district officials set forth
Cuban (1995) identified four kinds of curriculum: official curriculum, taught in curricular frameworks
curriculum, learned curriculum, and tested curriculum. The official curricu- and courses of study.
Contained in formal
lum “is what the state and district officials set forth in curricular frameworks and documents that teach-
courses of study” (p. 5). The official curriculum is those policies and programs ers are provided with
of study that articulate explicitly what needs to be taught in the specified cur- and the general public
has access to through
riculum. The taught curriculum refers to how teachers implement and teach the government websites.
official curriculum. In other words, how teachers actually use or implement the
official curriculum documents. Similarly, the learned curriculum comprises how taught curriculum How
teachers actually use or
students learn from this particular positioning of key topics and areas of study. implement the official
The tested curriculum sounds like what it suggests: it includes types of formal curriculum documents.
assessment that reflect and capture the official or taught curriculum. Finally, a fifth
learned curriculum
term is sometimes used in critical discourses: the hidden curriculum expresses How students learn
the implicit norms and behaviours learned by students within a broader ethos or from this particular posi-
school culture. tioning of key topics
and areas of study.
Following from Larry Cuban, other researchers have termed particular types
of curriculum to describe the various nuances inherent in curriculum, such as tested curriculum
null curriculum, extra-curriculum, integrated curriculum, and student-centred Types of formal assess-
ment that measure
vs. teacher-centred curriculum. The null curriculum is curriculum that is not the official or taught
taught. In such cases, teachers select skills and subject matter that they believe stu- curriculum.
dents should learn and consciously do to not teach certain parts of the curriculum
hidden curriculum
either because the topic is controversial or they do not feel comfortable teaching The implicit norms and
it. This is particularly relevant for the controversial issues that are central to the behaviours learned
discussion in Chapter 6. Extra-curriculum entails activities that do not earn cred- by students within a
broader ethos or school
its; it is extra, or over and above the required curriculum. While the activities are culture. Hidden cur-
optional, in many cases where there may be resource allocations or time restric- riculum is the learning
tions during the formalized curriculum, students’ feelings about themselves, their that happens without
students intending
identity, their desire to come to school, and their need to belong to part of a group to, consenting to, or
can greatly be influenced by extra-curricular activities. Consider for example, the even knowing about. It
activities that tend to function around the formal instructional hours. Commonly, includes the transmis-
sion of norms, values,
clubs that further the fine arts, athletics, or youth activism and leadership tend and beliefs, and is
to complement the existing formalized curriculum. Integrated curriculum com- nevertheless a signifi-
bines concepts and skills from different subject areas. Later in the chapter, we cant component of what
is taught and learned in
return to this idea, particularly given the move toward the development of the sci- schools.
ences, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) disciplines, which have
received increased support for an interdisciplinary approach to the sciences. null curriculum
Curriculum that is not
Hidden curriculum is the learning that happens without students intending taught.
to, consenting to, or even knowing about. It includes the transmission of norms,
values, and beliefs, and is nevertheless a significant component of what is extra-curriculum
Activities that do not
taught and learned in schools (Hafferty & Franks,1994). It is driven by implicit earn credits, and are
ideological objectives that might otherwise be directly objected to if they were considered above the
widely acknowledged or discussed. required curriculum.

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 90 Part III • What Should Children Learn?

integrated curriculum
A significant question is whether the learning that arises from the hidden
Part of curriculum that curriculum is intended or unintended, and if intended, by whom and for whose
combines concepts benefit. A common critique of the hidden curriculum points out that much of
and skills from different
subject areas.
the way that daily life in schools is organized—from routines like sitting and
listening quietly to structuring time around the bell—prepare students to
become subservient workers and docile citizens (Willis, 1981). Students learn not
only to be subservient but also where the power lies in society. For example, if
English classes only include male authors, the hidden curriculum might be “Only
men produce worthwhile writing.” Such a statement may never appear in any
curriculum documents or course readings, or ever be mentioned in class or even
stated by students—and may not even be the teachers’ intended “lesson”—and
yet students may internalize this perception by the omissions that the lesson has
created. However, one might critique the notion of a hidden curriculum in that it
is an oxymoron because by definition the curriculum is not “hidden,” but explicitly
planned and publicly promulgated. On this view, critics might contend that while
a curriculum is not “hidden,” but is explicit and purposeful, teachers’ facilitation
of how the curriculum is implemented is not neutral. (This issue is particularly
heightened when teachers address controversial issues. See Chapter 6.)
In more recent deliberations from another relevant viewpoint, Brent Davis,
Dennis Sumara, and Rebecca Luce-Kapler (2000) have brought attention to the
linear curriculum notion of a linear curriculum—an approach anchored in the acknowledgement
Curriculum that requires that “human consciousness is small” and “learners deal with only a handful of
teachers to narrow
details at a time” (p. 210). A linear curriculum requires teachers to narrow their
their focus, using a
one-concept-at-a-time focus, using a one-concept-at-a-time approach to instruction. For instance, a
approach to instruction teacher might decide to teach one idea before moving along to the next idea,
before moving on to
much like you would if there was a linear continuum of how to get from
the next concept.
point A to point B. While this approach to curriculum may work for certain
subjects, Davis, Sumara, and Luce-Kapler (2000) argue that a linear curriculum
is not the only possibility and that it may actually be a poor choice. Their
emphasis is on curriculum that promotes human learning in sensory rich, all-
at-once situations. They advocate curriculum that steps away from isolated
ideas, pre-specified sequences, and artificial boundaries around concepts to
incorporate teaching structures that promote learning in ways that “enable
teachers to direct attentions without stripping ideas from the contexts that
render them meaningful” (p. 211). For Davis, Sumara, and Luce-Kapler (2000),
teaching should come from a purposeful curriculum that develops around
the exploration of focal events—investigating something general by attending
spiral curriculum
to something specific. In this way, purposeful curriculum considers not only
Revisiting certain terms
or concepts once again, the conceptualization of curriculum but also what happens when teachers take
based on the notion steps to implement curriculum in the classroom.
that when they revisit
Spiral curriculum means that since learning doesn’t necessarily always
certain material they do
so with a deeper under- happen in a linear and predictable manner, it may be necessary to revisit certain
standing of the context terms or concepts once again—even after learning more advanced concepts. This
and meaning of that
does not mean that learners are regressing, only that when they revisit certain
particular concept.
material they do so with a deeper understanding of the context and meaning of

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 5 What Should Be Taught on the Curriculum? 91

Pause for Thought

Personal Experience
Reflect on your personal experiences at the elementary and secondary
levels. How would you describe the predominant type of curriculum that
you received? How did the type of curriculum that was offered impact your
own learning?

that particular concept. One of the best-known proponents of this idea, educational
psychologist Jerome Bruner, notes that “A curriculum as it develops should revisit
these basic ideas repeatedly, building upon them until the student has grasped
the full formal apparatus that goes with them” (Bruner, 1960, p. 13). This notion
contrasts with the idea that learners move through fixed stages in their cognitive
capacity. Bruner claims that students can learn even complex material if it is
presented in a way that incorporates several revisits of a topic or question, based
on the idea that learning is deepened and reinforced with revisits, and that prior
knowledge can be activated before incorporating new knowledge. It is important
to note the reason it is called a spiral curriculum rather than a circular curriculum:
there is improvement and progress that arises as a result of revisiting, which spirals
learning upwards.
From our exploration thus far, you can see how discussions of curriculum
take various distinct paths, including overarching objectives and aims, connection
to learning, the levels of official, taught, learned, tested, and hidden, as well as the
notion of curriculum as linear and purposeful.

Curriculum in Canada: A Look at the Past

How Canadian provinces and school boards consider what should be taught is
most certainly linked to the historical positioning of curriculum in Canada. As
stated throughout this book, the early historical foundations of public education
in Canada necessarily still exist in our present day. In what follows, we examine
the strong connection between our Canadian past and the current nature of
curriculum in Canada.
The development of Canadian public education is necessarily intertwined with
the social, political, and religious factors that inform and influence discussions in
education. For instance, it is common in Canadian history of education courses to
note the influences of Bishop Laval in Nouvelle France, Egerton Ryerson in Upper
Canada, and John Jessop in British Columbia as three visionary individuals for the
early establishment of public education in Canada (Wotherspoon, 2014). Let us look
at brief biographical narratives of each of these individuals (see the Case Study).

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 92 Part III • What Should Children Learn?

CASE STUDY
Foundational Leaders in the Formation of Education
in Canada

Bishop Laval
François de Montmorency Laval was born in 1623 in Montigny-sur-Avre,
France. Appointed by Pope Alexander VII in 1658, Laval moved to Canada
as Bishop and Vicar Apostolic to the French colony of Nouvelle France.
With a dream of expanding the Catholic Church in Nouvelle France and
also training and teaching its future leaders, Bishop Laval founded the
Séminaire de Québec in 1663. His primary role was training priests to
establish parishes in remote areas of the French colony and spreading the
religious faith of the Catholic Church.

Egerton Ryerson
The son of a United Empire Loyalist, Egerton Ryerson was born in 1803
in Upper Canada’s Chartotteville Township (present-day Ontario). Having
grown up under the influence of the Methodist ministry, Ryerson worked
during his early adulthood as a missionary among the Chippewa Indians,
advocating the Methodist faith through worship and education. He
even travelled to England to facilitate a union between the Canadian
Methodist Conference and the Wesleyan Conference of England in 1833.
Following his return to Canada, Ryerson was increasingly influential in the
political affairs of Upper Canada. Lord Metcalfe appointed Ryerson as
Superintendent of Education for Upper Canada in 1844. Drawing from his
visits to schools throughout Western Europe and the United States, Ryerson

Canadian historian and comparative scholar Marianne Larsen (2011) made

a noteworthy observation—that Canadian school subjects have experienced little
change over the past century of educational history. An examination of commonly
taught courses reveals that Canadian school subjects remain relatively entrenched
and uncontested. In looking at our Canadian educational past, we see how
nineteenth-century educational reforms were closely tied to “the construction of
the nation-state” (Larsen, 2011, p. 6). Public education was envisioned as a means
to address the problems and needs of Canadian society, wherein the Elementary
Schools Act of 1816 in Upper Canada prioritized what was considered essential
to becoming functioning, literate citizens. Writing at the end of the nineteenth
century, Ross (1896) noted that as a rule “the [Canadian] curriculum was limited

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 5 What Should Be Taught on the Curriculum? 93

was instrumental in conceptualizing the beginnings of schooling for Upper

Canada. Ryerson’s School Bill of 1846 would provide the main principles
that underpin school legislation for Upper Canada.

John Jessop
John Jessop was born in 1829 in Norwich, England. He moved to Upper
Canada in 1846 where he joined the Methodist congregation of Whitby.
Jessop prefaced his career in teaching by attending a normal school (a
school to train teachers) in 1855. Following a number of teaching positions
in Upper Canada, Jessop moved to Victoria, British Columbia, in 1860,
where he was instrumental in setting up a free, non-sectarian, common
school system. Jessop’s educational philosophy was based on the principle
that schools were fundamental to the peace and order of society. He
envisioned schools as institutions whose purpose was to provide a strong
moral framework for children to grow up as respectable citizens of society.

Look at the distinct biographies of these individuals.

• How do you think their personal backgrounds might have influenced

the kind of curriculum they would advocate for?
• What key curricular topics might arise given their personal biases and
perceptions?
• How would the political and social climate in their time impact what
might be taught in the curriculum?
• Which other movements or individuals during this time might also
have impacted the kind of curriculum taught in schools?

to reading, writing, and arithmetic, with a moderate British history and the
geography of the world, so far as then known” (p. 8).
Looking at these subject areas a century later, we suggest there has been
little change regarding fundamental educational priorities. Education in Canada
remains clearly committed to a continuation of the three Rs—reading, writing,
and ’rithmetic. We might even argue that educators persist in teaching the relative
same number of courses for roughly the same portion of time per day with little
variance or diversion. This tendency is hardly unique to Canada. That said,
why has Canadian education remained so steadfast in its conceptualization and
implementation of curriculum? One perspective might take the stance that the
three Rs provide the foundations for children’s learning. Another stance might

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 94 Part III • What Should Children Learn?

Pause for Thought

Compulsory vs. Optional Courses
• Which subjects are mandatory or compulsory in your locality?
• Are there any subjects that are not included that should be?
• Are there any mandatory subjects that you think should be removed
from the curriculum?

respond by suggesting that little has been done to critically and reflectively evaluate
how these subjects meet the needs of today’s changing educational contexts.
Looking at the combination of influential individuals together with the
pertinent social, political, and historical surroundings, we see how the Canadian
educational curriculum has been shaped by various broad societal factors. In
our Canadian context, numerous considerations influenced the nature of what
is taught on the curriculum. First, the political union of the Confederation of
Canada formally influenced curriculum beginning with its need to develop the
citizenry for a new colony. We explored this topic in Chapter 2 as related to the
construction of the Canadian identity, particularly as documented in British and
French history texts. Second, key influential individuals with strong ties to the
Methodist and Catholic faiths influenced what is taught on the curriculum. Thus,
a strong Christian ethos was evident in the curriculum, with the aim of fostering
moral fortitude in all Canadians. For instance, the Catholic Church controlled
public education in Newfoundland until 1992, when it was overturned with the
Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
Finally, early formations of the curriculum emphasized reading, writing, and
arithmetic, with history and geography having a lesser place. This is in keeping
with other public schooling initiatives in the western hemisphere that derived their
educational framework from Great Britain’s template of education for the masses.
(We address this aspect later in the chapter.) Many governments responded to
their responsibility in providing public schooling and developing a common
curriculum by developing curriculum as a colonial offshoot of Great Britain’s
expansion in the New World.

Criticisms of What Is Taught on

the Curriculum
As we have seen thus far, numerous educational philosophers, theorists, and
teachers have debated and contested what should be on the curriculum. We
continue our discussion of the curriculum by examining three criticisms that
commonly surface in educational debates:

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 5 What Should Be Taught on the Curriculum? 95

• The curriculum is entrenched and unchanged.

• The curriculum does not reflect overarching aims or objectives.
• The curriculum is too prescriptive and instrumental and too ambiguous and
undefined.

Interestingly, these criticisms are indicative of competing values regarding the

curriculum’s purposes. Let’s consider each point accordingly.

The Curriculum Is Entrenched and Unchanged

This first criticism addresses the perceived stagnation of subjects as entrenched and
unchanged. Recall that in Chapter 3, we examined how the principles of classical
education promoted the teaching of literature, poetry, drama, history, art, and
languages as most appropriate. Prior to the introduction of compulsory public
schooling in the 1800s, study of the classics was explicitly positioned in many elite
institutions as the necessary platform for fostering the next generation of leaders and
thinkers of society. As indicative of the radical changes to education that occurred
during the 1800s in Great Britain, three national reports demonstrate the adoption
of educational curriculum specifically defined in terms of three levels of social class:

• The Clarendon Report for the upper class

• The Taunton Report for the middle class
• The Newcastle Report for the working class (White, 2007, p. 6)

The upper-class report was based primarily on the classics, focusing the
educational curriculum on poetry, literature, philosophy, history, art, and
languages. The middle-class report provided a “modern” curriculum based on a
comprehensive range of academic subjects, while the working-class report focused
mainly on the three Rs.
In nineteenth-century Great Britain, the introduction of public schooling had
an immediate impact on the dominance of classic educational thought. Specifically,
public schooling provoked a reconsideration of appropriate subject areas and the monitorial instruction
need for experimentation with the systematization of schooling practices. In order The method of instruc-
to effectively provide basic schooling to a larger public domain, the educational tion whereby older stu-
dents assist the teacher
process known as monitorial instruction was conceived and implemented. The in teaching concepts
first monitorial schools consisted of children “learning facts shared by monitors, to younger students
youngsters of their own age who had but recently—often the same hour—acquired through drill and repeti-
tion exercises.
their information from adults” (Hager, 1959, p. 164). Through this experimental
approach, the impact of monitorial schools was significant, changing not only the monitorial schools
nature of what was taught on the curriculum, but also how the curriculum was Schools in which more
advanced students
delivered to the masses of children attending school. The curriculum of monitorial teach large numbers
schools shifted from the classics to a more rudimentary conception of curriculum of younger students
consisting of writing, simple arithmetic, geometry, and geography (Hager, p. 165). through a process
of repetition and
Furthermore, the instructional mechanisms of memorization and recitation were recitation.
adopted as appropriate to the systemization of education.

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 96 Part III • What Should Children Learn?

Looking at the contrasting approaches of classical education and the monitorial

schools of nineteenth-century Great Britain, it is interesting to consider Canadian
parallels in the curriculum and how it is still taught in many of today’s classrooms.
Despite the demise of monitorial schools 50 years after their inception due to poor
quality and “unimaginative and inelastic monitorial instruction,” the remnants of
this teaching style remain evident in the “kill and drill” approach to certain subjects
in Canadian classrooms. We simply cannot ignore the prevalence of efficiency
mechanisms that prioritize literacy, numeracy, and history through the primary
processes of recitation, memorization, and recollection. While from the classics
perspective in Canada, we note how independent schools frequently position
themselves within a classic educational approach, hoping to provide students
with a smooth transition to post-secondary institutions as a preparatory school.
Yet, examination of these contrasting educational positions reveals a noteworthy
blurring between the nature of the subject itself and the nature of how the subject
is taught to students. There is a perception that classic educational thought is
aligned with elite private institutions, while the heavy emphasis on what might
back-to-basics A term be called the basics of reading, writing, and arithmetic is deemed appropriate for
used to describe a
return to an adherence
public schooling systems, particularly in lower socio-economic populations. Yet,
to the fundamental we fully acknowledge the rise in public debates regarding the classic educational
principles through curriculum, the “modern” curriculum comprising a comprehensive range
traditional forms of
instruction.
of subjects, and the popularity of a nostalgic return to the three Rs commonly
referred to as going “back to basics.”

Pause for Thought

What Forms of Knowledge Are Privileged in the Curriculum?
• Consider the claim that classical education is still propagated in many
of the elite independent schools in Canada.
• Choose one private school and examine to what extent it follows a
classical education curriculum.
• At the other end of the spectrum, consider to what extent the dis-
course on reading, writing, and numeracy continues to comprise the
main curricular emphasis in Canadian public schools.
• What do you think a “modern” curriculum consisted of in the early
formations of Canada? To what extent has this comprehensive range
of subjects shifted to present day?
• What are some examples of other forms of curriculum that have
remained fairly entrenched?
• Do you see areas where you think that the curriculum has shifted?

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 5 What Should Be Taught on the Curriculum? 97

The Curriculum Does Not Reflect Overarching Aims or Objectives

Moving on from the previous criticism that taught subjects are rigid and
unchanging, the next critique addresses whether subjects are appropriately
aligned with current aims and objectives. Most teachers can easily identify the
number of subjects taught during a school day and quite rapidly list them. What
seems unclear in this exercise is: Can teachers identify how the subjects contribute
to achieving an overall aim or objective? It seems relatively apparent that before
educators consider what subjects should be taught, they need to know the aims or
purpose of the curriculum. It would be logical that any subject should necessarily
relate and contribute to greater educational aims otherwise students may leave
school without achieving the overarching aim of schooling. Teachers may do
students a disservice by simply making them study for years without any greater
goal in mind—simply keeping them busy.
Challenges to the curriculum may occur in discussing, articulating,
and developing overarching aims and objectives. Unknowingly, a team of
educators, policy-makers, or key stakeholders may create a list of subject areas
that do not necessarily align with their intentions. Their efforts may result in
a mismatch.
To illustrate, in his examination of Great Britain’s 1988 National
Curriculum, philosopher John White (2007) noted the tension between
overarching aims and subject areas. A cursory glance suggests the 1988
implementation of compulsory subjects was merely a reflection of the courses
implemented under the 1904 Regulations for Secondary Schools (Aldrich, 1988).
Tensions regarding the curriculum were further compounded in 1999 when
Great Britain identified broader aims under the Handbook on the National
Curriculum. While this was seen as a long overdue project to conceptualize
the purpose of schools and address the need for overarching aims, it failed
to consider the impact of those entrenched subjects that did not necessarily
align with the broader aims and purposes. Specifically two broad aims were
identified in the 1999 New National Curriculum:

Pause for Thought

Aligning the Aims of Education to the Curriculum
• What overarching aims and purposes exist in your locality?
• Which courses might have been removed as a result of amendments
to these aims?
• Which courses might have been added as a result of amendments to
overarching aims?

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 98 Part III • What Should Children Learn?

(i) To provide opportunities for all pupils to learn and achieve,

and
(ii) To promote pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural develop-
ment and prepare all pupils for the opportunities, responsibil-
ities and experiences of life (Bramall & White, 2000, p. 10).

Having added these two overarching value statements, it was placed on an

already developed curriculum of “English, mathematics, science, design and
technology, history, geography, art and design, music, physical education, and modern
foreign languages” (Bramall & White, p. 19). While these subjects may attend to the
overarching values, there was little clear understanding of how the curricular elements
within the subjects would foster these overarching values—it was just assumed that
these subjects would do so. Little discussion emerged regarding whether history
needed to play a more prominent role in the New National Curriculum, and perhaps
mathematics should take a lesser role. It was again assumed that subjects already in
place aligned perfectly with the overarching aims.
Yet, there is an additional thorny issue we must consider in this critique of
curriculum. As John White explains, we can easily create a set of aims that would
align with any subject area through a skillful articulation (or manipulation) of
the overarching aims. For example, if we identify overarching aims in terms of
“successful learners, independent thinking, and reasoned judgments,” it is possible
that any subject area could fulfill those overarching aims. Consider the following
phrases as the basis or preface to an aims statement:

• Are creative, resourceful, and able to solve problems

• Have enquiring minds and think for themselves to process information, rea-
son, question, and evaluate
• Communicate well in a range of ways
• Understand how they learn and learn from their mistakes
• Are able to learn independently and with others (White, 2007, p. 19)

On a certain level, any subject could contribute to the values inherent in these
value statements. Under such circumstances, the notion of overarching aims and
objectives does not help us in developing an intentional approach to what should
be taught in the curriculum. We have no way of discerning which subjects might
or should be chosen over others. In effect, all subjects could justify their existence
on the curriculum because the nature of the aims provides little direction for
making decisions about which subjects ought to take priority. The problem of
vagueness and ambiguity becomes apparent where the aims statements provide
little direction regarding the priorities and direction for curriculum.
For educators to develop curriculum in the twenty-first century, there are
multiple challenges—not only to find an alignment between overarching aims and
what is taught in schools, but also to discern the fit of subjects most appropriate to
meeting the overarching aims.

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 5 What Should Be Taught on the Curriculum? 99

CASE STUDY
Inspiring Alberta Education
Following dialogue with multiple stakeholders and the general public,
Alberta Education (2010) released Inspiring Education—its vision for
Alberta’s future schools. With the goal of preparing students for how
Albertans envision themselves in 2030, Inspiring Education’s vision can be
summarized as “the Three E’s” of education for the twenty-first century.
The three E’s represent the qualities and abilities Albertans told Alberta
Education the Kindergarten to Grade 12 (K–12) system should try to instill in
Alberta youth. The following philosophical principles form the overarching
aims (three E’s) of Inspiring Education:

• Engaged Thinker: who thinks critically and makes discoveries; who

uses technology to learn, innovate, communicate, and discover; who
works with multiple perspectives and disciplines to identify problems
and find the best solutions; who communicates these ideas to others;
and who, as a life-long learner, adapts to change with an attitude of
optimism and hope for the future.
• Ethical Citizen: who builds relationships based on humility, fairness
and open-mindedness; who demonstrates respect, empathy and com-
passion; and who through teamwork, collaboration and communica-
tion contributes fully to the community and the world.
• Entrepreneurial Spirit: who creates opportunities and achieves goals
through hard work, perseverance and discipline; who strives for excellence
and earns success; who explores ideas and challenges the status quo; who
is competitive, adaptable and resilient; and who has the confidence to
take risks and make bold decisions in the face of adversity. (pp. 5-6)

Consider the following:

• What is your reaction to the overarching aims as stated in Inspiring

Education?
• Does this statement of aims suffer from the problem of vagueness
introduced earlier?
• What subjects do you think would be required to achieve these over-
arching aims?
• What subjects may have been amended to reflect the shift in aims in
Alberta?
• Which subjects may not foster these overarching aims?
• Look at the aims of another province. How do the subjects align with
the stated overarching aims?

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 100 Part III • What Should Children Learn?

The Curriculum Is Too Prescriptive and Instrumental and Too

Ambiguous and Undefined
Granted the importance of subjects being in alignment with overarching aims and
objectives, this final criticism of curriculum draws attention to a concern about how
subjects are articulated in provincial curricular documents or programs of study. At
one end of the spectrum, a heavily prescribed list of objectives within a particular
subject area may provide increased clarity and direction in determining how the
curriculum will meet its overall objectives. Yet, such a dogmatic stance may lead
to criticisms of over-prescription and loss of teachers’ professional autonomy (see
discussion of teacher autonomy in Chapter 11). Furthermore, a heavily prescriptive
curriculum may undermine aims and objectives by reducing the overarching
theoretical principles to task-driven, instrumental teaching. As Linda Darling-
Hammond explains, heavily prescribed task-driven curricular documents may
actually change the nature of the subject itself—a kind of compartmentalization
and dissecting that inhibits a deep or holistic understanding of the discipline itself.
To get away from a reliance on overly prescribed curriculum, Darling-Hammond
suggests that many countries are looking to Finland’s educational model as an
example of successfully shifting the nature of core curriculum: “The [Finnish] core
curriculum provides teachers with recommended assessment criteria for specific
grades in each subject and in the overall final assessment of student progress
each year. Local schools and teachers then use those guidelines to craft a more
detailed curriculum and learning outcomes, along with approaches to assessing
benchmarks in the curriculum” (p. 170). In the Finnish educational context, the
curriculum is not perceived as an itemization of pedagogic tasks teachers check
off one by one. Rather, this important document is interpreted as the overarching
conceptual framework for how teachers will engage with students in a teaching
discipline that is highly contextual, relevant, and deep in understanding.

Pause for Thought

How Prescriptive Should the Curriculum Be for Teachers?
Look at a specific subject area in your own locality.

• How prescriptive is the curriculum? How are subjects framed? To what

extent is teacher discretion permitted or required?
• What supplementary materials and resources might be mandated or
recommended?
• As a beginning teacher, how do you feel about this level of prescrip-
tion? Would you feel the same way as an experienced teacher?

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 5 What Should Be Taught on the Curriculum? 101

The Changing Nature of What Should Be

Taught in Schools
In this final section, we consider an aspect that overlaps with the previous concern
that over-prescription of a subject may change the nature of the discipline itself.
Paul Kelley (2010) suggested the actual fixing of subjects and their inherent topics
may distort the nature of the learning process and, in effect, create a “subject ghetto”:
“The power of subjects and how they are structured into a programme for learning
is actually quite important in determining learning in an education system” (Kelley,
2010, p. 31). In this way, the evolving nature of disciplinary knowledge might
not align with the way in which subjects are currently structured or delivered.
Creating subject areas may actually skew the way in which disciplines merge and
are blurred, may be interdisciplinary or interconnected, and may inadvertently
create a territorial defence that creates false borders between disciplines.
We take up Kelley’s concerns about the potential for subject ghettos to
consider how subjects might be evolving and how the positioning of knowledge
might be changing. One of the more vociferous debates regarding what should be
taught on the curriculum is concerned with the longstanding core discipline of
mathematics. Let us consider the following.
Developments in “new mathematics” or “new math” were initiated largely in
response to a perception that traditional mathematics teaching methods required
a major reconceptualization of how mathematics ought to be taught to children. In
the United States in the 1950s and 1960s, a number of university and government
projects were initiated to create new mathematics curricula (Walmsley, 2003). This
was in response to the belief that traditional ways of learning mathematics were not
improving children’s overall ability in mathematics. Deficiencies in mathematics
instruction became most evident during the World War II recruitment of soldiers
when mathematicians were brought in to train soldiers with the new technologies
needed for combat. The mathematicians noticed the apparent weakness among
the recruits’ mathematical abilities.
To strengthen the mathematical knowledge needed to ensure the United
States’ position of power as a world leader, a new mathematics curriculum was
devised with the goal of increased student engagement and understanding of
mathematical principles. Similar to many other educational movements in Canada,
reform in American mathematics teaching would also fundamentally impact
Canadian mathematics curriculum, challenging many of the processes inherent
in the teaching of mathematical discipline. Traditional mathematics curricula
emphasized the strategies of drill and practice, memorization, and recitation
as the means to developing an automatic or internalized skill in mathematical
computation. Many examples of mathematics curricula highlighted the notion
of “mad minutes”—a one-minute test whereby students completed calculations
as fast as possible. In this way, traditional mathematics instruction drew heavily
upon the use of algorithms and teacher-centred learning (Baker, 2010). Critics
of such traditional mathematics approaches responded by pointing out the
evident weaknesses: teaching concepts were outdated; students developed limited

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 102 Part III • What Should Children Learn?

understanding of their own calculations; students developed limited ability to

apply fundamental mathematical concepts to more advanced mathematics; and
there was minimal relevance to contemporary issues in science and technology.
The new mathematics movement shifted how mathematics was taught by
encouraging student flexibility in solving mathematical problems and moving away
from the automaticity of basic drill and practice. New mathematics emphasized
an inquiry-based approach to learning, attending to the problem at hand and
having students consider multiple ways for solving problems. The shift in how
to teach mathematics was designed to ensure students develop deep conceptual
understandings of mathematical concepts rather than simply rely on memorization
(Green, 2014). Ever since the introduction of new mathematics reform in the 1950s,
critics on both sides of the discussion have vociferously debated its relevance and
effectiveness for improving students’ mathematical understandings.
Fundamental disciplines such as mathematics and English remain a contested
site of debate for academics and educators alike, while other subjects remain on
the periphery in the hope of being more fully acknowledged amongst entrenched
subjects. For example, in regards to foreign languages, music, art, and physical
education, cases are made about the correlation between the subject area and
children’s cognitive, emotional, physical, and spiritual development. Yet, debates on
entrenched subjects inherently shed light on the priorities that policy-makers make
in determining how best to cultivate children’s development in the finite time of a
school day. The limitations of resources and expertise may also influence decisions
about the nature of curriculum. While learning a second language may be deemed
as fundamentally essential to all children, the scarcity of second language teachers
may render such programs unfeasible. Similarly, we may argue how the arts
necessarily impact children’s learning and how different forms of representation of
learning may enhance students’ overall achievement and engagement with all areas
of learning. Yet once again, we may encounter difficulties in securing resources to

Pause for Thought

Controversy Surrounding Changes to the Curriculum
Similar to the mathematics movement, consider how English language arts
has evolved and been contested:

• What debates emerge when we consider the phonics and whole lan-
guage movement from a curricular perspective?
• What are the debates between digital literacy and the need for chil-
dren to learn cursive writing?
• What key literature has been identified as classics for children to read?
What has been banned?

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 5 What Should Be Taught on the Curriculum? 103

a sufficient level for all schools and all children. While the philosophical rationale
may provide strong support for a particular subject, the argument may succumb
to logistical or pragmatic issues.
In recent years, the discipline of the sciences has seen a shift from very distinct
fields of study to the emerging notion of interdisciplinary studies often referred
to as STEM (sciences, technology, engineering, and math) or STEAM (sciences,
technology, engineering, arts, and math). The STEM initiative’s intent is twofold:
first, to address the current shortage and interest in the STEM disciplines as related
to requirements in modern society; and second, to demonstrate how integration
of the four disciplines could be applied in everyday life. Similar to the debates
following the landing of Sputnik in the 1950s that created concern among Western
nations that the Soviet Union was a more scientifically advanced nation, and that
students in Western countries were falling behind in the maths and sciences,
advocates of STEM suggest a concerted privileging of the STEM disciplines will
foster greater economic prosperity and secure positional power in Western nations.
The evolving development of subjects and disciplines is an integral part of the
discussion about what is taught on the curriculum. When we examine education
documents, we may see a continuum of similar subject areas with vastly different
emphases that parallel the political and social climates of the era. We may also see
how pendulums shift toward particular disciplines as demonstrated in movements
away from the arts and humanities towards the prioritizing of sciences and
technology. Further, in attempts to be attentive to the changing needs of society,
we see how experimentations with subjects may evolve, merge, or be created anew
to reflect the current perceived needs of children. In this light, let us examine two
Canadian case studies.

CASE STUDY
Case Study One
Ontario is one of the only jurisdictions in the English-speaking world to offer
philosophy courses in a publicly funded school system. Within this discipline,
certain questions have arisen. One of these questions concerns the place of
non-Western or non-traditional figures and concepts, which raises questions
about inclusion and exclusion. For example, the potential inclusion of
Buddhism raises questions about the relationship between philosophical
inquiry and cultural practices, and the tension between faith and reason,
with some arguing that Buddhism is hostile towards the emphasis on
debate, inquiry, and concepts that characterize philosophy. Regarding the
issue of feminism and the presence of women: what is the most effective
continued

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 104 Part III • What Should Children Learn?

way to address both the misrepresentation of women and their frequent

lack of representation in traditional constructions of the philosophy canon?
Regarding the issue of inclusion of famous contemporary political figures
such as Nelson Mandela and Martin Luther King, some argue that although
both have written about politics, justice, and so forth, they have been more
significant and influential as political actors than philosophical thinkers.
Debates about the inclusion of various figures take place in the context
of limited time and space in the curriculum. In a perfect world it would be
possible to include all of these thinkers, but in practice the inclusion of one
thinker or topic often necessitates the exclusion of another.
These curricular disputes reveal central questions that get to the heart
of what a subject is and is not, revealing that not only does curriculum
provoke debate but also that every subject is not a monolithic or unified
field of knowledge, but contains within it divergences, grey areas, overlap
with other subjects, and unanswered questions.
Consider the following:

• What criteria can be used to determine what is reasonable to cover

within a given time?
• When is the inclusion of topics or questions in curriculum documents
moving beyond the appropriate scope of that particular subject?
• According to what criteria can that be determined?
• How can curriculum best capture this without overwhelming students
and teachers while remaining as “true” as possible to that subject?

Case Study Two

One of the most controversial new sets of courses to be offered in the
Ontario curriculum, which began in 2013, is four equity studies courses
offered at the Grade 11 and 12 level: Gender Studies; Equity, Diversity,
and Social Justice; Equity and Social Justice: From Theory to Practice; and
World Cultures.
The curriculum documents state: “The four equity studies courses
differ in their focus. Yet, regardless of whether the topic is social justice,
gender studies, or world cultures, all of these courses, at their core, address
similar fundamental issues: the social construction of identity; the nature
and impact of power relations; the importance of respecting diversity;
and the role of personal engagement and social action.” (See this link
for more information: www.edu.gov.on.ca/eng/curriculum/secondary/
ssciences9to122013.pdf.)
One of the more controversial statements in the curriculum documents
is that gender is a social construct rather than something that is natural or
innate. In other words, the way in which boys and girls act and the values
that they hold are socially constructed.

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 5 What Should Be Taught on the Curriculum? 105

Consider the following:

• Should this be included as a mandatory component of the curriculum?

• What if parents, teachers, administrators, or students disagree with the
notion that gender is a construct?
• We can see just how controversial curriculum documents can be when
curriculum mandates certain topics or perspectives.

Conclusion
One of the most exciting and challenging aspects of being a teacher is how you
will make a relational link between the curricular material and the child’s under-
standing and development. The aim of this chapter was to note the nuances and
complexity of what should be taught on the curriculum—it is not simply picking
up the subject material and teaching it to the children. A purposeful process of
deciding what will (and what will not) be taught in the curriculum is necessarily
entwined in a larger discussion about the overarching aims of education, how it
is conceptualized and implemented within classrooms, and how it is relevant for
student understanding. Further, debates will remain regarding the prevalence of
particular fields of study that have maintained a high level of status in schools,
and those disciplines that remain on the periphery. Finally, it requires each of us
as educators to continually reflect and articulate the justification for what is being
taught, how it is being taught, and how it informs and influences the whole child.

Review Questions
1. Some curriculum documents distinguish learning in that subject? What do you
between specific skills needed to study think?
a given subject and the subject itself. For 2. How should the curriculum balance chan-
example, some people say it is necessary ges in subject areas with parts of the subject
to learn grammar at the start of a course that do not or have not changed? Consider
before reading literature, necessary to learn the following examples: new discoveries in
how to “think” historically before looking the sciences; new changes in approaches to
at specific events or people in history, and literature relevant to English curriculum;
so forth. Or can these skills be learned at and new nutritional information relevant
the same time that students are actively for family studies curriculum.

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 106 Part III • What Should Children Learn?

3. What curricular expectations should be 4. How should curriculum balance an

mandatory and what should be optional? emphasis on memory with an emphasis on
According to what criteria are these deci- creative, original, and independent think-
sions about curriculum to be made? ing and analysis?

Further Readings
There are a number of British Impact brochures Education Society of Great Britain. http://
that have been published by the Philosophy of o n l i n e l i b r a r y. w i l e y. c o m / d o i / 1 0 . 1 1 1 1 /
Education Society of Great Britain that attend imp.2013.2013.issue-20/issuetoc
to the question of what should be taught on Gingell, J. (2006). The Visual Arts and Education.
Impact No. 13. London: Philosophy of
the curriculum. These specific brochures are
Education Society of Great Britain. http://
targeted to a broader educational audience o n l i n e l i b r a r y. w i l e y. c o m / d o i / 1 0 . 1 1 1 1 /
beyond the philosophy community, writing imp.2006.2006.issue-13/issuetoc
about the philosophical debates in a way that White, J. (2007). What Schools Are for and Why.
is accessible and attentive to the broader public. Impact No. 14. London: Philosophy of
Education Society of Great Britain. http://
Archard, D. (2000). Sex Education. Impact No. 7. o n l i n e l i b r a r y. w i l e y. c o m / d o i / 1 0 . 1 1 1 1 /
London: Continuum. http://onlinelibrary.wiley. imp.2007.2007.issue-14/issuetoc
com/doi/10.1111/imp.2000.2000.issue-7/issuetoc Williams, K. (2000) Why Teach Foreign Languages in
Barnes, P. (2009). Religious Education: Taking Schools? A Philosophical Response to Curriculum
Religious Difference Seriously. Impact No. 17. Policy. Impact No. 5. London: Philosophy of
London: Philosophy of Education Society of Education Society of Great Britain. http://
Great Britain. http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/ o n l i n e l i b r a r y. w i l e y. c o m / d o i / 1 0 . 1 1 1 1 /
doi/10.1111/imp.2009.2009.issue-17/issuetoc imp.2000.2000.issue-5/issuetoc
Davis, A. (2011). To Read or Not to Read: Decoding
Synthetic Phonics. London: Philosophy of

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 6 Should Teachers Teach
Students about Controversial
Subjects?

Introduction
Controversial subjects are often difficult for teachers to navigate in schools.
On the one hand, teachers want their students to be informed about issues that
are commonly most pressing in broader society; on the other hand, teachers
recognize that certain controversial subjects may provoke unwanted student and
teacher anxiety and negative repercussions from parents and the community.
No matter how impartial and objective teachers try to be in dealing with a
controversial issue in class, they run the risk of being accused of abusing their
position of authority by trying to persuade their students to adopt the teacher’s
view. Given these sensitivities associated with certain forms of controversy, the
question remains: Who is responsible for broaching controversial subjects with
students? Should parents, teachers, or counsellors address topics that rarely (if
ever) achieve consensus?
Given that we may never come to agreement regarding whether schools should
teach controversial topics, how are teachers to negotiate this space? Three common
responses might be taken by teachers, schools, or school boards. First, controversial
issues should not be addressed by schools, given the lack of consensus and emotive
response such topics provoke in the broader society. Second, controversial issues
that are debated in society should be addressed by schools. Third, if we choose
to address controversial issues then teachers must be equipped to address these
subjects in school settings in a way that protects individuals’ dignity and worth. One
way to protect one’s dignity and worth might be that teachers ensure that students’
representations of their views are considered and that there is a recognition of this
perspective. Understood this way, recognition is not simply a task to be done; it
also has a vital impact on the development of one’s identity:

Our identity is partly shaped by recognition of its absence, often by the

misrecognition of others, and so a person or group of people can suffer
real damage, real distortion, if the people or society around them mirror
back a confining or demeaning or contemptible picture of themselves.
Nonrecognition or misrecognition can inflict harm, can be a form of

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oppression, imprisoning someone in a false, distorted, and reduced mode

of being. (Taylor, 1995, p. 225)

It is arguably one of the reasons why teaching about controversial issues is

challenging. Schools ought to foster recognition of a diverse range of perspectives,
and in this way, foster students’ dignity and worth in understanding that it is
possible to live cohesively despite our competing values and interests. Easy enough
to say, but incredibly challenging to enact.
The overarching aim of this chapter is twofold. We begin by distinguishing
the differences between a controversial issue and a non-controversial issue. We
introduce criteria for how teachers might decide whether a topic is controversial
or not. In the latter part of this chapter, we elucidate the skills needed in order to

Pause for Thought

Controversial Issues in Education
Take a moment to consider your position on the following issues in
education:

Controversy Would You Teach It? Why or Why Not?

Prostitution
Immigration
The legalization of marijuana
Abortion
Sex education
Same-sex marriage
Capital punishment
Climate change
Physician-assisted suicide
The existence of God

• What factors do you consider in making decisions about whether you

would teach the particular issue?
• Are you consistent across all issues, or did your stance change
depending on the nature of the issue?
• What other controversial issues would you add to this list?
• Which of the issues would you consider as non-controversial?

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 6 Should Teachers Teach Students about Controversial Subjects? 109

respond to controversial issues—how teachers may broach controversial subjects

in their classrooms in a responsible and educationally productive way.
As we consider the philosophical arguments that underpin the notion of
controversy, we encourage you to reflect on these initial thoughts. Later in this
chapter, we return to these same issues to examine whether your position has
shifted, and if so, why.

What Is a Controversy?
Ironically, any attempt to create a universally accepted definition of controversy
may in itself be perceived as a controversial task. Coming up with an agreed-
upon understanding of controversy might be considered controversial because
not every person views controversy from the same perspective. In this respect,
what one person considers as controversial may or may not be shared by others.
For example, as you reflected on the commonly identified controversial issues in
education mentioned earlier, you may have disagreed with our claim that certain
topics are controversial. This was purposeful on our part. Most likely, some of
you considered the issues to be controversial, while others disagreed. So, then,
how do teachers decide whether or not a topic is controversial? How can teachers
determine what criteria contribute to an issue being controversial in the first place?
Historically, philosophers have contributed to this debate by examining the criteria personal opinion
of controversy from two competing conceptions: the behavioural criterion and behavioural criterion
the epistemic criterion. The behavioural criterion develops principles based on To develop criteria or
principles based on
dispositions to human behaviour and social factors. A simple way to consider this dispositions to human
is that people may attend to controversy as a matter of their personal opinion. They behaviour.
take issue with a particular topic from a standpoint that their opinion is “right,”
epistemic criterion
and any other opinion is “wrong.” In this way, the good-versus-bad argument takes Criterion related to
hold and the matter of controversy becomes a matter of opinion, right or wrong, factors based on reason
without any nuances of discussion. In this case, the controversy arises when or knowledge.

consensus is not achieved among a number of people on a particular topic. evidence/reason

Charles Bailey argues that controversy is determined as a matter of behavioural
criterion. Under such circumstances, “that an issue is controversial, is of course,
a matter of social fact. That is, an issue is controversial if numbers of people are
observed to disagree about statements and assertions made in connection with the
issue” (1975, p. 122). This commonly held viewpoint proposes that controversy
results from lack of consensus by the broader public about a particular issue. In
the most basic cases, we can point to contested issues in society that fall easily
into this kind of category: abortion, capital punishment, sexual orientation. The
merits of each side are less important drawing upon the behavioural criterion,
and rather what is prioritized is that there is no consensus on how to settle the
matter. The debate is simply contentious. Yet, if this is the only basis on how we
determine whether something is controversial, then there are obvious limitations
to this premise.
Robert Dearden (1984) challenged the perspective of the behavioural
criterion, suggesting that lack of social consensus is not necessarily an indication

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of controversy. As examples of this limitation, for a long time people disagreed

about whether the earth was flat and whether slavery was an acceptable economic
practice, but just because they disagreed about them does not mean that they
should be considered controversial. Seen in this light, defining controversy as a
result of individuals disagreeing, social fact, or lack of consensus about particular
assertions seems less than compelling. In other words, defining controversy based
on personal opinion or dichotomous perspectives—that controversy is produced
when individuals’ personal opinions differ in regards to particular assertions—
may not accurately reflect a controversy.
To overcome the limitations of controversy as a lack of social consensus,
Dearden suggests that the epistemic criterion might serve as a more accurate
reflection of controversy. From this perspective, “a matter is controversial if
contrary views can be held on it without those views being contrary to reason.
By ‘reason’ here is not meant something timeless and unhistorical but the body of
public knowledge, criteria of truth, critical standards and verification procedures
which at any given time has been so far developed” (1984, p. 38). The epistemic
criterion develops principles based on propositional knowledge and evidence
that is presented. Again, let us break down what this means. The idea is that in
entering into a dialogue with another, the controversy emerges, is explored,
and potentially or not potentially resolved. In this way, controversy is not just a
matter of knowledge; it is a matter of the engaging discussions that come when
knowledge is put into action. In this way, the controversy attends to controversial
issues through conversation, discussion, and interaction involving the currently
available knowledge.
Dearden offers four ways in which epistemic criterion may be applied:

1. An issue might be considered as controversial when there is insufficient

evidence to settle the matter.
2. An issue might be considered as controversial when there is agreement on the
considerations to support a position, but disagreement on the weight or value
of such considerations.
3. An issue might be considered as controversial when there is no agreement on
what criteria should be used to make a judgment on the matter.
4. An issue might be considered as controversial when differences exist not
simply at the individual level, but in the broader frameworks for understanding.

These four applications of epistemic criterion are demonstrated in the following

examples of controversy.
In the first instance, Dearden suggests the aspect of insufficient evidence. For
instance, we might suggest that the existence of unidentified flying objects (UFOs)
is controversial, as there is insufficient evidence to settle the matter. Given the lack
of evidence, various hypotheses emerge. Instances of individuals seeing something
in the sky that they cannot identify may be sufficient to state that UFOs exist. A
person might further take the stance there is a high likelihood that the galaxy has
other intelligent life forms, but we have yet to explore these uncharted areas. On

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the other hand, we might counter by saying that the fact that the entire universe has
not been explored does not confirm that aliens exist. We might further conjecture
that there may be a false correlation of individuals who state that because they false correlation
cannot identify an object in a sky it must mean that it is a UFO or alien. In ancient A presumption that two
variables are correlated
China, a solar eclipse would be considered a heavenly sign of the emperor’s future when in reality they
prosperity. This would be in contrast to others who saw the solar eclipse as a sign are not. Sometimes
of the end of the world. Given the lack of understanding the issue, the solar eclipse this is called spurious
correlation.
came to be known as an “omen, as astrological portent, and as the outcome of
diabolical magic, but also as a natural phenomenon scientifically understood”
(Carrier, 1998, p. 1).
An example of the second application—disagreement on the weight or value of
pertinent considerations—is demonstrated in controversial issues associated with
climate change. While all parties may agree that climate change is occurring in terms
of increases to the earth’s core temperature as a result of multiple environmental
factors, controversy may arise from the weight given to the explicit factors at play.
Certain persons may put greater weight on the impact of cyclical historical weather
patterns, or the sun’s impact on the earth, while others emphasize the impact of
carbon emissions related to global warming. Here, disagreements on the validity
of specific arguments concerning climate change may produce controversy within
discussions on its causes and the need for a response to its impending effects.
An example of the third application—disagreement on criteria presented—is
manifest in such controversial issues as abortion, wherein individuals draw upon
different criteria to make their case. On the one hand, individuals supporting abortion
may promote a woman’s rights to her own body in addition to such mitigating
factors as rape and a fetus unable to achieve full term, whereas individuals opposing
abortion may underscore religious perspectives, advocating the fetus’s right to life
and condemning abortion as inherently immoral. In this way, controversy arises
because the individuals concerned with abortion cannot agree on what criteria
should be employed in order to make an informed decision on the matter.
In the final application, controversy emerges not at the individual level but
within the broader frameworks developed by societies in order to understand
themselves and frame their particular way of life. For example, controversial issues
arise from the fundamental differences between Western European and Indigenous
perspectives regarding matters of government, education, and lifestyle. In this case,
differing world-views and societal viewpoints create tensions that draw attention
to how arguments on controversial issues are presented, validated, and resolved.
Controversy emerges because the collective identities at play are rooted in their
own specific traditions, cultural attitudes, entrenched theories of knowledge, and
highly valued histories.
In summary, the behaviour criterion and epistemic criterion portray two
distinct and competing conceptions of controversy. The behavioural criterion
identifies controversial issues as particular matters for which there is no agreement
between individuals based on social facts or opinion. The epistemic criterion places
a different emphasis on the notion of controversy by looking at the propositional
knowledge presented that lacks consensus.

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Pause for Thought

Kinds of Controversy
Take a moment to re-examine your thoughts on the commonly identified
controversial issues in education presented earlier in this chapter.
If we start from the behavioural criterion, you should realize quickly
that all of these issues would be considered controversies given that the
social facts are the determinants of whether it is considered a controversy.
However, drawing upon the epistemic criterion, consider whether each of
the controversies falls under (1) insufficient evidence, (2) disagreement on
weight or value of a particular consideration, (3) no agreement on what
criteria should be used, or (4) differing societal viewpoints.

Controversy The Kind of Controversy

Evolution
Immigration policy
Abortion
Sex education
Sexual orientation
Capital punishment
Climate change
Religion
Politics
UFOs

At this point, you should have a pretty fair understanding of the distinctions
between behavioural criterion and epistemic criterion.
Before we move on to the pressing matter of whether teachers should teach
controversial issues, let us consider one further distinction between those issues
that may be sensitive and those issues that are controversial. Once we understand
the distinctions between these two terms, we might suggest that some issues
are sensitive controversies. We might note some issues that are sensitive, but not
controversial. For instance, we may find that the topic of death is a difficult topic
for children to address given the emotional gravitas it has on their personal lives.
Yet, we may not view it as necessarily controversial, as it is a pretty safe assumption
that death is not contested. It will happen to everyone. However, one might argue
that “a topic qualifies as a sensitive controversy when it is both a matter of public

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dispute or contention and an issue on which people are easily moved to distress,
anger or offence” (Hand, 2008, p. 1). In this sense, we might suggest that the topics
of abortion, capital punishment, and sexual orientation might be considered
sensitive controversies, in that they not only lack consensus but they normally
create a particular emotive response by individuals in the stance that they take.
As teachers, we may find ourselves in a quandary. Sensitive controversies
reflect the larger debates that influence and inform our society. However, they
may be difficult to negotiate and, moreover, may have significant repercussions
from students, parents, the profession, and the broader community. At least three
normative questions need to be asked about the teaching of sensitive controversies
in schools:

1. Should sensitive controversies be addressed by teachers at all?

2. If so, how do we address the topics?
3. When, if ever, should schools promote a particular view on a sensitive
controversial issue?

Let us now turn to the first question posed regarding whether teachers ought
to address sensitive controversies, and if so, how one should do this.

What Difficulties Do Teachers Face in Teaching

Controversial Issues in Schools?
Controversial issues come with challenges and obstacles. What is interesting about
these challenges and obstacles is that controversies involve two kinds of difficulties.
First, there are the challenges specific and inherent to any particular controversial
issue. Second, and more significantly for this exploration, controversies involve
challenges and obstacles embedded in the surrounding environment, obstacles that
come from the landscape in which the issue is situated. In this way, teachers face
challenges in teaching controversial issues even before they enter the classroom.
So, it seems appropriate that teachers should know about the hurdles they are up
against long before teaching controversial issues.
Teaching sensitive controversies can be incredibly difficult to navigate, with
potential repercussions in terms of criticism from the public and parents—and
a teacher’s potential dismissal if handled incorrectly. Consider the following
Canadian case.
One might suggest, given the very difficult balancing act of addressing such
topics, that one should not address controversial issues in the classroom for the
following reasons:

1. Schools should not have to shoulder the burden of society’s troubles.

2. Little consensus exists for how one should address an issue, particularly given
the nature of schools and that of addressing issues with children.
3. Parents have the right to raise their children in a particular way—not the state.

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4. Teachers will not be able to address the issue in a fair way and will
unintentionally have certain biases toward a particular view.

Let us consider each of these justifications in turn.

CASE STUDY
Freedom of Expression in the Classroom
Richard Morin, a teacher in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, was
removed from the classroom for showing Grade 9 students a BBC film
critical of Christian fundamentalism (Waddington, 2011, p. 59). Ten years
of legal disputes with the school board ensued. In 1998, Morin brought his
case before the Trial Division of the PEI Supreme Court where he argued
that the decision to stop him from showing the film had violated his right to
freedom of expression under section 2(b) of Canada’s Charter of Rights and
Freedoms. Justice Armand Desroches upheld the school principal’s original
decision, maintaining it was neither the principal’s intention to restrict
freedom of expression, nor did his action have the effect of restricting
freedom of expression (Morin v. Board of Trustees of Reg. Admin. Unit
#3, 1999). In 2002, the Prince Edward Island Court of Appeal ruled that a
teacher’s rights regarding freedom of expression had been violated.
While the results of Morin’s case indicate teachers have a right to free
expression in performance of their duties, it does not mean that teachers’
rights are unrestricted. This is because section 1 of the Charter of Rights
and Freedoms (1982) gives government the power to place “reasonable
limits” that can be justified in a “free and democratic society” upon the
rights set out in the Charter. Nonetheless, freedom of expression is a right
that can and does apply to the classroom. As Justice Webber indicated:
“There may well be some content limits that are justifiable under Section 1
. . . but the very need to justify those limits is what ensures that freedom of
expression will exist as a general right rather than an exceptional privilege”
(Morin v. Reg. Admin. Unit #3, 2002, p. 35).
Morin was removed from the classroom in 1988. How has teachers’
autonomy in the classroom changed or not changed since that time?
Given the importance and relevance of the Morin case, why have
its results remained largely under-acknowledged at the level of teacher
practice?
What does the Morin case reveal about the scope of teachers’ free
expression in the classroom?

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1. Schools Should Not Have to Shoulder the Burden of Society’s

Troubles
The first difficulty regarding challenges in the controversial issue landscape relates
to educators’ complaints that schools are increasingly asked to address unresolved
or contentious issues from the broader public sphere. This phenomenon is defined
within the discipline of philosophy of education as educationalization, a term educationalization The
“used to indicate that government (in particular) has inappropriately imposed on tendency to look to
educational institutions
educational institutions responsibility for providing the solution to some social or to resolve pressing
economic problem” (Bridges, 2008, p. 461). Consider the recent demands placed social problems.
on schools. Schools are called upon to raise achievement levels in students’ literacy
and numeracy. Increasingly, teachers require students to develop critical capacities
and reflection, and to be engaged thinkers to meet the demands of the twenty-
first century. We criticize schools for not teaching enough history and science, yet
add new demands for addressing the prevalence of youth obesity through more
physical education and health classes, and develop their sense of creativity through
arts and humanities. And we ask schools to do this within the confines of the six-
hour day, reduced budgets, and changing demographics of families and students.
Surely, this is a tall order to fill. And if we ask teachers and schools to meet all of
these demands, we expect that they will do it well, without extra financial provi-
sions or support to ensure its success.
Given the numerous and sometimes competing expectations that are placed
on teachers to address in schools, one might suggest that adding controversial
issues to the list of things to do is sufficient reason to keep such issues out of
the classroom.
You might suggest the fact that teachers’ jobs are demanding is an insufficient
reason to not address controversial issues. Let us move to the criticism there is
little consensus about how a teacher should approach certain topics.

2. Little Consensus Exists Regarding How Teachers Might Address

Controversial Issues
Schools are complex organizations that demand attention on many levels.
Developing consensus on controversial issues within such complex educational
settings can pose challenges for teachers even before they address actual
controversies in the classroom. In a larger public context, we might think that
individuals have a right to discuss controversial issues as part of their right to free
speech, particularly in a democratic society. One may take this stance and state
that given that we live in a democratic society, schools should also be a place where
individuals can foster those dispositions to deliberate and consider the various
positions on any particular given issue. However, a person might suggest there are
special considerations that must be taken into account when we think about the
school environment.
Bryan Warnick (2013) takes this view. He advances seven characteristics that
make the school environment “special”:

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Pause for Thought

Consider the Claim
Consider the first claim that controversial issues should not be taught in
schools because there are simply too many other things to do.

• How persuaded are you by this claim?

• Do schools shoulder the burden of society? Is this appropriate?
• What should be the main priorities for schools to teach?
• If you had to choose the top 10 things that a teacher ought to teach
in schools, what would they be? What did you keep and what did you
leave out? Why?

1. The age of students. The vast differences between the children who are different
ages and cognitive abilities can span approximately 15‒20 years.
2. Mandatory attendance laws and the semi-captive nature of school populations.
Unlike any other institution, schools are public places where mandatory
attendance is compulsory.
3. The focus on safety considerations in school. Compulsory schooling heightens
safety concerns because schools, unlike many other places, cannot be easily
avoided even if they are dangerous.
4. The public accountability considerations surrounding schools. Schools are
different from many other places in that we expect public schools, or private
schools that accept public funds, to be at least partially accountable to
the larger democratic community.
5. The school-associated nature of much student action. Schools differ from other
social institutions in how they work to enable, or even co-create, individual
student actions. Much of the student action that comes out of schools is, in
reality, a co-operative endeavour between the school and the student.
6. The multiple constituencies that schools must serve. At least three constituencies
or groups have a controlling interest in schools. First, the government has
a legitimate interest in the development of its future democratic citizens.
Second, schools act on behalf of parents, and at least part of their job is to
respond to parental preference. Third, schools are thought to act on behalf of
the children themselves.
7. The school responsibility to promote learning and accomplish educational
goals. The defining character of schools is that they are supposed to be places
where learning takes place in pursuit of certain educational goals. Schools
need to be able to accomplish their raison d’être, and accomplishing this task
will necessitate some tailoring of student rights (Warnick, 2013, pp. 27‒59).

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To apply these seven principles to the special characteristics of schools, let

us look at a Charter case made by the Supreme Court of Canada (Chamberlain
v. Surrey School District No. 36), where a teacher sought permission to use three
supplementary reading texts that depicted same-sex parental relationships for use
in the kindergarten and Grade 1 family values unit.
The Surrey School Board did not approve the request, stating that the books
“would engender controversy in light of some parents’ religious objections to
the morality of same-sex relationships . . . [that] children at the K‒1 level should
not be exposed to ideas that might conflict with the beliefs of their parents; that
children of this age were too young to learn about same-sex parented families
and that the material was not necessary to achieve the learning outcomes in
the curriculum” (Chamberlain v. Surrey School District No. 36). If we look at the
reasons provided, we see the rationale that the school district provided drew upon
a few of Warnick’s seven factors, specifically: (4) the constituency of parents with
particular belief systems that did not condone same-sex families; (1) the material
for young children might be too difficult to understand and negotiate, and (7) the
material was not necessary in order to learn the objectives found in the family
unit curriculum.
The majority of the Supreme Court, however, ruled that in the school district’s
concern over those families who might object to same-sex relationships, it failed to
consider the legal rights of same-sex families and their children who are entitled to
equal respect and recognition in the school system. The family values unit requires
that children discuss a variety of family models, which also includes same-sex
relationships. The Court ultimately decided, “The Board must act in a way that
promotes respect and tolerance for all the diverse groups that it represents and
serves” (Chamberlain v. Surrey School District No. 36, para. 5). In the wake of this
decision, the Surrey School District became the first district in British Columbia
to offer an inclusive curriculum that includes discussion of same-sex relationships.
Following Chamberlain, the provincial government amended the education
curriculum such that it is inclusive of diverse relationships regardless of one’s
sexual orientation.

3. Parents Have the Right to Raise Their Children in a Particular

Way—Not the State
Another difficulty teachers encounter in the landscape surrounding controversial
issues has to do with parental rights in raising their children (see Chapter 10 for a
deeper examination of parental rights).
Parental rights have a clear connection to teachers addressing controversial
issues in schools. For instance, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948)
states that parents have the right to choose the education they want for their
children. While this is not a legal document, it does carry strong moral weight,
and it is commonly included in educational documents and policy statements. If
we agree with this stance, you might develop an argument that controversial issues
may not be appropriate to address in schools because it does not give the parents
the final authority to raise their children in a particular way.

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A parent might couple this claim with that of a “negative claim right,” which
is the right to not have interference by another individual. If we apply a negative
claim right to parental authority, the stance is that the state does not have the
right to interfere with the parental authority of how to raise their children. If you
agree with this statement, you might uses phrases that express this sentiment by
stating:

• “The government is increasingly becoming a ‘nanny state.’”

• “Teachers have no business interfering with the way I raise my children.”

negative freedom The In both instances, the quotes are expressing a negative freedom (also known as a
absence of external negative liberty) whereby education and particularly schools should not be in the
constraints, barriers, business of teaching children issues that are highly sensitive to the belief and value
or interference on an
individual. Also known systems of families.
as a negative liberty. If we flip the argument, there are competing rights that make the issue of
whether parents are the final moral arbiters of a child’s education a matter of
welfare rights Those
rights that protect debate. While the Universal Declaration of Human Rights does indeed state that
the well-being of parents have the right to choose the education they want for their children, it is
individuals. balanced with two other rights: welfare rights and agency rights (Brighouse, 2002).
agency rights Those Welfare rights are those rights that protect the well-being of individuals. Agency
rights that foster an rights are those rights that foster an individual’s ability to make informed rea-
individual’s ability to soned decisions about how to lead one’s life. In this way, the state has an interest
make informed rea-
soned decisions about in the education of its citizens, and has an obligation to protect children from
how to lead one’s life. threats to their physical or emotional well-being, which may include threats from
their family members. Let us consider how the state may be obliged to interfere
positive freedom The
freedom to do some- with a family’s decision to raise their children in a particular way, when either of
thing. It is the ability to these rights is compromised. The state may implement a positive freedom (also
take advantage of the referred to as positive liberty) whereby the state intervenes in order to protect the
opportunity or possi-
bility by being able to individual’s freedom to be able to do make decisions about how to lead one’s life. In
control one’s life. Also this way, the government creates conditions necessary to allow individuals to have
known as a positive their freedoms protected. A clear example is that a government may create human
liberty.
rights legislation. The state intervenes by ensuring that individuals can lead their
lives without fear of prejudice or discrimination. Let us consider how a positive
freedom may be invoked in order to protect welfare or agency rights in the context
of children and schools.
A clear example of a welfare right occurs when a child is being physically neg-
lected or abused. If a teacher were to observe that a child was abused or neglected,
the teacher would have the obligation to report the case to the authorities. In this
way, the state (in this case, the teacher) has protected the well-being of the child,
particularly protecting the child’s welfare rights. However, in order for children to
understand, debate, and negotiate how to address controversial issues, you might
suggest that the teacher has the obligation to address the controversial issue in
protecting the child’s agency rights. Only understanding one perspective of the
controversial issue, which is narrowly fostered by one’s family, is insufficient to
make a reasoned and informed decision about the issue. Let us consider a Supreme
Court decision that illustrates this point.

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The principles of parens patriae come into play here, regarding who has
parens patriae Latin for
ultimate authority over children. The legal term parens patriae is Latin for “par- “parent of the nation.”
ent of the nation.” It commonly refers to the power of the state to intervene in A doctrine that grants
the inherent power and
the development of children’s lives in two ways: “Children are harmed not only
authority of the state
when parents abuse or neglect them but also when parents foreclose opportun- to protect persons who
ities to flourish—whether by denying consent to medical treatment or access to are legally unable to act
on their own behalf.
diverse conceptions familiar in the former context than the latter” (Blokhuis, 2008,
p. 405). We will spend more time on the notion of parens patria in Chapter 10, but
note it here as it plays into the specific issue of whether controversial issues should
be addressed in schools.
At this point, your head might be spinning between the various rights that
may influence your perspective. We have negative freedoms that state an individ-
ual has a right not to be interfered with by another person. Then you have a posi-
tive freedom that provides opportunities for an individual to do something. We

CASE STUDY
Jones and the Alberta School Act
In R. v. Jones ([1986] 2 S.C.R. 284), a fundamentalist preacher had been
teaching his own children (and others) in the basement of a church in
Alberta. The preacher (Jones) did not want his children being taught in
school, and instead sought to educate the children himself. Jones did not
have an accredited private school, nor was granted provisions under the
home-school curriculum. Jones was charged for truancy under the Alberta
School Act.
In his defence, Jones argued the rule that required government
approval to educate his children involves “his acknowledging that the
government, rather than God, has the final authority over the education of
his children” (para. 19) and this contravenes his right to freedom of religion
under section 2A of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, and his right to
have control over how his children are educated, which is protected under
section 7.
The Supreme Court of Canada rejected Jones’s claims stating that
the School Act served “to foster religious freedom in the education of its
citizens rather than curtail it.” Justice L.A. Forest, speaking on behalf of the
majority, further noted that “It should not be forgotten that the state, too,
has an interest in the education of its citizens” (para. 51).
This early Charter decision is central to this issue of whether we can
address controversial issues in schools. The preacher did not want his
continued

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 120 Part III • What Should Children Learn?

children to be exposed to the mainstream curricular objectives in the

school, and sought to teach his (and others’) children in the basement of
the church that was aligned with their particular belief system.
The Supreme Court of Canada, however, limited his parental authority
in protecting the children’s agency rights.

• How do you feel about the decision made by the Supreme Court of
Canada?
• What implications come into play when the state interferes with par-
ents’ rights over their children?

have a welfare right that protects the well-being of an individual (food, health,
safety) and an agency right that protects the person to have control over one’s life
(informed decisions about how to lead one’s life). And overarching all of this, the
notion of parens patriae grants the state to protect persons who are legally unable
to act on their own behalf.
For the sake of the argument, let us move on to the final section and start with
the assumption that teachers do have an obligation to teach about controversial
issues in schools. If we start with this premise, the next question is “How should
teachers teach controversial issues in schools?”
You may still remain unconvinced that schools have little to no role in address-
ing controversial topics. Indeed, some may argue that in order to develop individ-
uals’ capacities to make informed reasoned decisions, teachers need to provide
opportunities for students to learn the dispositions to deliberate in a reasoned
and purposeful manner. Arguably, one of the primary goals for education is to
develop democratic citizens, and one of the primary ways in which to do this is to
understand and respond to the pressing debates in society. If you agree with this
statement, then the difficult task becomes how a teacher is to walk this tightrope.

4. Teachers Have Unintentional Biases That Limit Their Ability to

Fairly Address Controversial Issues
This final difficulty teachers face in addressing controversial issues has to do with
teachers’ own approach to teaching controversial issues. To explore this obstacle,
we examine the work of Hess et al. (2008) and McLaughlin (1994).
Given the nature of the controversy, one might suggest that a teacher should
remain neutral and allow for open facilitation to the extent that it is possible. Letting
students come to understand and reconcile their feelings and understandings of
the issue may provide greater awareness of the issues at hand. Hess et al. (2008) con-
sidered the extent to which the disclosure of teachers’ opinions affected students
and the implications of teachers’ disclosure to that of their own alignment of the
views of the teacher. In the particular study, teachers were found to sit along a con-
tinuum regarding the extent to which they should disclose their own views. At one
end of the spectrum, teachers thought that in order to create a safe environment

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 6 Should Teachers Teach Students about Controversial Subjects? 121

where students could explore their understanding and views on particular issues,
it was critical that teachers remain neutral and not express their own viewpoints.
At the other end of the spectrum, teachers think it is facile to attempt to remain
neutral on a topic, and have instead taken the view that one should disclose on
particular issues. And for the most part, teachers struggled with issues of disclosure
generally, particularly if they were “so heavily invested emotionally, intellectually
into these issues” (Hess, 2009, p. 100).
The concern with disclosure is not in sharing a particular view per se, but
the power of authority and influence that a teacher has on the development of
students’ understandings and perceptions about the world. The nature of the con-
troversial issue is such that any set of reasonable opposing views toward an issue
must then require teachers not to put forth a particular stance for fear of being
biased. Taking an ideological stance, particularly when the issue is contested, may
prove not only controversial but also may be a legal liability and may be cause for
dismissal (Associated Press, 2007). The main concern is that students may align
their views with those of their teachers who are particular authority figures—who
not only provide and present knowledge and values, but also assess the students.
The fear is that students may simply align their views with those of the teachers,
with little critical reflection or understanding, simply to gain the teacher’s favour.
By letting them work it out for themselves, they are not just going through
the pros and cons of a particular debate, but are consciously working through the
merits of the debates and trying to come to terms of the issue on their own (Hess,
2009). Further, Hess noticed that if teachers did disclose their views, a number
of unintended consequences may arise. For instance, if teachers provided their
perspective first, students may simply talk less. Being handed a perspective by the
teacher does not allow for children to construct their own knowledge. It is a top-
down perspective that makes students passive in their learning. Second, students
thought that the tone of the classroom might change if the perspective of the
teacher was known. Finally, students felt that they would need to “work harder to
understand the issues when they do not know the teacher’s opinions” (Hess, 2009,
p. 108). The onus and responsibility in a classroom where the teacher does not
disclose rests with the student.
Yet, even if a teacher tries to remain neutral and not disclose anything, schools
are inherently value-laden (McLaughlin, 1994). Arguably, it is impossible to
remain neutral. McLaughlin notes:

Every statement and action of a teacher is value-laden, and so is every

omission. Nor can teachers escape from value by attempting to be “neu-
tral” or “non-judgemental.” When properly conceived, such attempts
themselves involve (sophisticated) value stances. Similarly, every aspect of
the school (including its management, organization and physical appear-
ance) contain value assumptions and convey a value “message,” whether
explicitly or implicitly. . . . A value free education is not just practically
impossible or undesirable but a contradiction of terms (McLaughlin,
1994, p. 455).

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 122 Part III • What Should Children Learn?

On the one hand, Hess argues that non-disclosure may create more oppor-
tunities for children to deliberate and work through the issues on their own.
McLaughlin contends that while one may not explicitly note one’s values, our
omissions may also note particular value stances.
It would seem that, in all those cases, the school has not remained neutral.
Each stance, whether implicitly or explicitly, will create a particular moral stance
on a controversial issue, such as Gay-Straight Alliances.

How Can Teachers Navigate Controversial

Issues with Dignity and Worth?
Thus far, our exploration has shown that discussions involving controversial
issues take place within the messy and divergent realities of life. Conversations
about controversies emerge from and are influenced by the arguably turbu-
lent yet stimulating environment surrounding such issues. Given the challen-
ges associated with teaching controversial issues—both internal and external
to the issues themselves—how can teachers navigate controversial issues with
dignity and worth?
Robert Kunzman (2006) suggested that a particular pedagogical framework
may offer some principles for the type of deliberation that might be necessary
in cases where there are substantial and divided ethical differences. As is the

Pause for Thought

Gay-Straight Alliances
Let us consider a current controversy in Canadian schools. In 2012, Ontario
required that all schools permit students to form Gay-Straight Alliances
(GSAs) as part of a larger Bill 13, Accepting Schools Act.

• What values are inherent in requiring schools to permit students to

form GSAs?
• What values are inherent if schools did not comply with this legislation
to permit GSAs in their school?
• What values do you think would be implicit if teachers did not bring up
the topic of GSAs in their classroom?
• What values would be emphasized if teachers discussed GSAs with
their classroom without disclosure of their own values?
• What values would be emphasized if a teacher took a particular moral
stance on GSAs?

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 6 Should Teachers Teach Students about Controversial Subjects? 123

case in questions about same-sex relationships where there are deep and divided
contestations from various religious and ethical frameworks, he starts with the
premises that:

1. Reasonable people will often disagree about the best way to live.
2. We can recognize that others’ views are reasonable (i.e., we can see why they
could reasonably think the way they do) and still believe that they are wrong.

Kunzman argues that a distinction is required between the private and the
public sphere. Within the public sphere he suggests there is a civic and political
component. Individuals will develop a particular ethical perspective in which to
govern their beliefs and actions on how to live their lives, but there is a civic com-
ponent that is necessary in which individuals must consider the various ethical
frameworks in how we can live together despite these divergent positions. “Public
schools are one of the key elements of this civic realm” (Kunzman, 2006, p. 81).
The emphasis, Kunzman argues, is one of “understanding” and “evaluation”
rather than on the political power of the state to invoke a particular perspective.
Civic dialogue in the classroom involves a commitment to recognition of the var-
ied ethical perspectives upon which students draw. Yet, it requires moving past
their individual ethical perspectives in relation to the varied and often contested
stances of other ethical frameworks toward a notion of mutual respect as civic
equals. It further allows for a pluralism that balances the private interests of the
individual with the public values that are necessary for stability and cohesion in
civil society.
If we take Kunzman’s stance, controversial issues ought to be discussed as
part of the larger civic dialogue. The emphasis is on the political values that are
non-negotiable and part of a democratic society. An individual may not wish to
pursue a particular belief system or lifestyle, yet the individual must understand
that such a possibility exists for other individuals which should both be respected
and acknowledged as a possible way in which to lead one’s life. The discussion
about a particular controversial issue needs to realize there is no consensus in
society, but the teacher has a role in guiding students’ understanding to respecting
that opposing perspectives are part of being in a democratic society.
Within a classroom discussion, one could envisage students expressing rea-
sonable dissent on a particular controversial topic. While this would be within
the permissible parameters of discussing controversial topics, the boundaries of
such discussion would necessarily hinge upon directing students to the requisite
legal obligations and protections under the broader political principles of liberty
and equality. There is a clear political directive of the teacher to make students
aware of the protections that have been given to individuals. What civic deliber-
ation in a classroom requires, rather, in a democratic society, is that individuals are
exposed to differing perspectives, in order to make their own reasoned decision
on a particular issue. This in turn helps foster students’ dispositions of how to live
cohesively in society despite our competing values.

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 124 Part III • What Should Children Learn?

CASE STUDY
Mandatory Curriculum in Quebec
In 2008, Quebec introduced new mandatory curriculum program for all stu-
dents in public and private schools in the province: Ethics and Religious
Culture. This course replaced the former Protestant and Catholic religious
courses for all students, as well as the non-confessional “morality” option.
Specifically, the curriculum has two overarching objectives and three broad
competencies that students are to develop throughout their years in school
as a means of achieving the curriculum’s educational objectives. The main
objectives are:

(1) Learning to recognize others’ rights and (2) learning to pursue

the common good. The three broad competencies at the cen-
tre of the program are: (1) reflecting on ethical issues, (2) dem-
onstrating an understanding of different religions; (3) practicing
dialogue. (Éducation Loisir et Sport Québec, para. 2)

Briefly summarized, the curriculum aims to equip citizens with the skills
and dispositions to participate in the democratic process of establishing
and maintaining rules for living together in a society where citizens have
highly divergent ethical and religious beliefs that respect citizens’ funda-
mental equality and basic rights (Waddington et al., 2012. p. 12).
The religious culture component of the curriculum has been particu-
larly controversial. Shortly after the curriculum was introduced, a movement
of parents emerged, with the backing of religious groups, who felt that the

Conclusion
The central debate about whether teachers should address controversial issues in
schools commonly strikes a central emotional chord. Why is this so? Deciding not
to enter a controversial debate may be perceived as controversial. One’s silence on
an issue may elicit a particular position. However, controversial issues in schools
are an enduring educational debate. It forces us to consider the balance between
parents’ rights to raise their children as they deem fit and state obligations to
ensure children’s welfare and agency rights. It makes us consider our moral dut-
ies as teachers to teach about particular values to children or to remain silent or
neutral. It reminds us of our political obligations to ensure that children have the
necessary dispositions to negotiate these debates in the broader society. It requires

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 6 Should Teachers Teach Students about Controversial Subjects? 125

curriculum unfairly interfered with their right to provide a religious edu-

cation for their children. One of their main objections was that, by being
exposed to information about various religious traditions present in con-
temporary Quebec society, children would be led to adopt a “relativistic”
view on religions, seeing all religious as equally true or worthy of adher-
ence. A group of Catholic parents who requested that their children be
granted an exemption from the program went up through the courts to
be ultimately turned down by the Supreme Court of Canada in the ruling
S.L. vs. La commission scolaire des Chênes (2012). The judges argued, in
effect, that the curriculum does not prevent them from meeting their reli-
gious obligation to pass their faith onto their children (thereby not violating
the parents’ right to religious freedom) on the grounds that the level of
exposure to different religious traditions afforded by the curriculum was
not significantly greater than the level of day-to-day exposure to different
religious beliefs and practices that could be expected in today’s society.
Given the aims of the course, consider the following questions:

• Should the course be mandatory for all students?

• Should students be exempt from the course if they disagree with the
primary objectives of the course?
• Would this course be too difficult to teach? Why or why not?
• What training may be required for teachers to teach this course well?
• If you were a teacher in such a course, how would you facilitate the
discussion among students?

that in the end, we can somehow hope that our children, and our citizens, can live
cohesively despite our differences in a pluralist society.

Some contend that despite its thorny nature, controversial issues in education
are at the centre of what it means to be a democracy:

Democratic education without controversial issues discussions would be

like a forest without trees, or an ocean without fish, or a symphony with-
out sound. Why? Because controversies about the nature of the public
good and how to achieve it, along with how to mediate among competing
democratic values, are intrinsic parts of democracy. If there is no contro-
versy, there is no democracy. It is as simple as that (Hess, 2009, p. 162).

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 126 Part III • What Should Children Learn?

If this is the case, the task becomes not whether controversial issues should
be addressed in schools, but how to elevate the discussion beyond mere emotive
knee-jerk responses, to thoughtful dialogue, deliberation, and engagement. It
requires a form of recognition to those who hold competing views, and a level of
dignity and worth that ought to be afforded to all individuals.

Review Questions
At the beginning of the chapter, we asked you to reflect about which issues you would feel com-
fortable teaching.

1. Fill out the list again:

Controversy Would You Teach It? Why or Why Not?

Prostitution
Immigration
The legalization of marijuana
Abortion
Sex education
Same-sex marriage
Capital punishment
Climate change
Physician-assisted suicide
The existence of God
UFOs

2. Has your view changed since reading this chapter? Why or why not?
3. What principles have you drawn upon in deciding how you will approach controversial issues
when you become a teacher?

Further Readings
Gereluk, D., Farrell, M., Donlevy, J.K., Patterson, P., Haydon, G. (1997). Teaching about values: A new
& Brandon, J. (2015). Parental rights, teachers’ approach. London: Cassell.
professional autonomy and contested pedagogy Hess, D. (2009). Controversy in the classroom: the
under the Alberta Human Rights Act. Critical democratic power of discussion. New York and
Education, 6(2), 1‒18. London: Routledge.

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 6 Should Teachers Teach Students about Controversial Subjects? 127

McAvoy, P., & Hess, D. (2014). Debates cations for teachers’ free expression.
and conversations: From the ground Interchange, 42(1), 59‒80.
up. Educational Leadership, 72(3), Warnick, B., & Spencer, S. (2014). The con-
48‒53. troversy over controversies: A plea for
Waddington, D.I. (2011). A right to speak flexibility and for “soft-directive” teach-
out: The Morin case and its impli- ing. Educational Theory, 64(3), 227‒44.

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 PART IV
Where Should Children Learn?

Part Overview
Understand how the context of learning impacts students.
Think about what debates learning context raises, and that context is not neutral.
Clarify students’ own positions on context.

Overview by Chapter
7 Place-Based Education and the Rural School Ethic 130
• Understand key issues in rural education, and how rural schools are different from
urban schools.
• Learn links between rural schools and place-based education (PBE).
• Explore connections between PBE and community, autonomy, and liberty.

8 Should School Choice Be Fostered in Public Education? 147

• Understand the factors that impact how decisions are made regarding school choice.
• Learn the different kinds of schools that may be available in Canada for parents to
choose from.
• Question the impact of school choice and what makes it a controversial issue.

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 7 Place-Based Education and
the Rural School Ethic

Introduction
Chances are that at least some students reading this chapter will be looking at
teaching in a rural school setting as their first teaching assignment. Rural settings
are an attractive option for early career teachers. While urban school systems
sometimes suffer from an overcrowded job market, a small or remote community
may have several full-time positions available. In some cases, teacher candidates
are from a small community and a rural school is an opportunity to return to their
roots. Rural schools can also present personal and professional opportunities not
readily available to urban or suburban settings. For example, smaller class sizes
and multi-grade teaching, a closer relationship between school and community,
and greater opportunities for outdoor and environmental education are oft-cited
reasons why teachers should consider rural education.
Yet, rural settings pose a variety of challenges. As Canada becomes more
urbanized, dropping school enrolments and cuts to funding have led to school
closures in rural communities across the country. Are such closures justified? Is it
fair to ask children to travel increasingly long distances to get a basic education?
Is it right to take away from the community what, in some cases, may be its only
public institution? Is virtual schooling a viable option where there are few schools
or fewer teachers with particular areas of expertise? The reasons for rural school
closure and consolidation are usually economic—it is far more cost effective to
educate a large number of students in one large building as opposed to small
numbers of students scattered across numerous buildings. While educational
researchers have challenged the efficiency argument (Bard et al., 2006), and there
is growing evidence that rural and urban areas in particular require more funding
compared to their suburban counterparts (Roscigno et al., 2006), economic
efficiency plays a large role in policy decisions about rural school closure.
However, a growing number of critics argue that the educational value of
rural schooling trumps economic efficiency. These critics together represent an
educational movement called placed-based education (or PBE for short). In brief,
place-based educators argue that education should aim to develop a strong sense
of community in the learner. Community necessarily happens in a place defined

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 7 Place-Based Education and the Rural School Ethic 131

by its people and its natural surroundings. Local schools are essential to fostering
placed-based education
a sense of place. Therefore, closing such schools and forcing students to learn
(PBE) Education that is
elsewhere undermines education for the community. focused on developing
In this chapter, we want to hone in on some of the philosophical issues raised the learner’s sense of
place or community and
by place-based educators. We’ll assess PBE, not only as an argument for keeping
can include a focus on
rural schools open, but as an alternative pedagogy that teachers should adopt the natural environment.
regardless of where they happen to be teaching. We take this approach for two
main reasons.
First, rural settings offer some distinct differences from work in urban
and suburban schools. Highlighting these differences, and expecting that
beginning teachers adjust their practice in accounting for these differences, is not
unreasonable. However, some PBE defenders make a stronger claim: that rural
ways of life, or what we might want to call the rural school ethic, can support
educational values that ought to be adopted by all schools, including those in
urban settings. PBE theory frames the values and practices of rural life, with
its traditional focus on place and community, as a much needed alternative to
contemporary public schooling. We suspect that the romantic vision of education
outlined by PBE advocates will be an attractive one for many up-and-coming
teachers. It promises to remedy what many see as serious shortcomings of modern
schooling (and modern life) such as a focus on competitiveness, alienation,
extensive media usage, material gain, and commerce (as outlined in Chapter 4).
The spread of these values in modern culture contributes to a growing loss of a
sense of physical place in the world. Students spend more time in front of screens
than they do outside in their neighbourhood. The theory’s appeal, however, is
a good reason to place it under scrutiny. As we emphasized in Chapter 1 and
Chapter 3, teachers should think critically about the values and aims that support
different approaches to teaching and learning. Should we accept PBE theory and
focus strongly on place and community, or do we have reason to proceed with
some caution?
The second reason why we have opted to examine rural schooling through
the lens of PBE is because it relates directly to an ongoing debate about the proper
relationship between two political values that are of tremendous importance to
the well-being of citizens in democratic societies such as Canada: freedom and
community. In a democracy people are seen as free and equal. Part of our well-
being lies in the ability of each of us to determine for ourselves the kind of life
best suited to our interests and talents—what we termed personal autonomy
in Chapter 1. However, in a democratic society people should also be able to
participate and contribute to a larger community greater than themselves. A
quick reflection on the importance of family and friends makes this idea clear.
The centrality of community is in part based on the notion that lives have
meaning in relation to other sorts of lives. The freedom to live as one chooses
lets us become the kind of person we want to be, and our flourishing comes from
that freedom. However, membership in a community provides us with a sense of
collective purpose and the security that comes with supporting one another in
our common aims and goals.

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 132 Part IV • Where Should Children Learn?

These two political values can easily conflict. Many philosophers interested in
personal autonomy as an aim of education would claim that, while freedom and
community are both important political values, our individual freedom should
come first. PBE theorists, on the other hand, would argue that emphasis on individual
freedom has led to so many of the problems we face in schools today. Community
and place should be the priority. Accordingly, exploring PBE can help beginning
teachers understand the complex relationship between freedom and community,
including how different takes on that relationship can lead to different educational
priorities and different beliefs about what children need in order to live a good life.

What Is Place-Based Education?

PBE encompasses a number of different educational theories, but a consistent
thread running through all of them is the idea that modern schools do not value
the role of a sense of place within the larger picture of what students need in order
to live a good life (Nespor, 2008; Ruitenberg, 2005; Usher, 2002). Paul Theobald, a
well-known PBE theorist, sets out an agenda for PBE theory in his book Teaching
the Commons (1997, p. 1):

[W]herever a school exists, the professionals who work within it must

focus their pedagogical energy on the immediate place inhabited by
the school; that is, they must make the word “local” in the phrase “local
school” mean something if we are ever to be successful at elevating a
sense of community in this society. . . . We need to foster a sense that
community is a valuable societal asset, something to be promoted rather
than destroyed. Rural schools, through concerted pedagogical and
curricular attention to the dynamics that impinge on their particular
place, can rekindle community allegiance and can nurture that suppressed
part of us that finds fulfillment in meeting community obligations.

How is this “rekindling” supposed to be a step above our current approach?

Answering this question involves saying a little more about the problem that PBE
is trying to solve.
One very influential idea about the purpose of education in our modern
human capital The education system is education for human capital. Human capital theory argues
total amount of skills, that education contributes to society by transmitting the knowledge, skills,
knowledge, and values
that are required in and attitudes necessary in order for people to produce greater economic value
order to perform tasks (Robeyns, 2006). For example, if you know how to design car engines, you can
tied to economic value. use that knowledge to contribute to production of commercial cars. If people
Schools are considered
to be key sites in the produce more economic value, they not only earn more money for themselves but
creation of human also increase the wealth of the nation (in fact, one of the first major statements of
capital. human capital theory was Adam Smith’s Wealth of Nations).
Let’s look at an example to help demonstrate some PBE views. Think about
the kind of education that human capital theory would suggest is best suited to
making sure that people did a good job working in an industrial economy. This

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 7 Place-Based Education and the Rural School Ethic 133

kind of preparation would be very different from the kind of education needed
for rural life. First of all, industrial work requires specialization. If you’re working
in a factory, for example, you are part of a larger division of labour. You have one
specific job—fastening bolts, quality control, or packaging the product—that
you are expected to excel at. This would be different from the rural farmer who
would need to be proficient at many different tasks. Second, you have to be both
punctual and efficient with the use of your time. The factory system requires that
everyone start working at exactly the same time and at the same pace or the whole
system falls apart. The rural worker must be efficient as well, but he or she is more
dependent on changes in the environment in terms of the when, the how, and the
pace of work. A snowstorm, an early spring, shorter days—the rural worker’s time
is structured more by the constraints of nature than the company clock. Third,
your special labour skill should follow a universal standard. That is, you are not
trained to work at one particular factory at one particular place in one particular
way—the factory system is set up so that you can take your skills with you: you
can easily move from one place to the other and jump into the labour process with
little disruption. The technique of bolt fastening should be the same in one region
of the country as another—place should not matter. The rural worker, on the other
hand, must have an intimate knowledge of land and sea to be able to work well.
Fishers have be very aware of how changes in ocean currents affect the location of
certain stocks, while hunters need to know the migration patterns of wild animals
within their local grounds. Knowledge of the local and the particular is key to
success in the traditional rural setting. For these reasons, there are significant
differences between rural/agrarian and urban/industrial education.
The skills that human capital theory recommends differ depending on the
kind of work required. Canada has gradually moved to a post-industrial economy post-industrial
economy An economic
focused less on manufacturing and more on skilled trades, information technology, system focused on
and customer service. For example, the Government of British Columbia’s (2014) service and the
“Jobs Plan” policy calls for a focus at all levels of the education system on preparing production of know-
ledge (as opposed to
students for work in the oil and gas sectors. Regardless, PBE theorists point out that manufacturing).
education for the market economy has overtaken the school mission to the point
that it completely defines the world view being passed on to students. Think, for
example, of the emphasis that schools place on showing up on time or how the
curriculum is separated out into specialized disciplines. The routines and practices
of the modern school are designed to prepare students for economic productivity.
(You can review this idea by re-watching the “Changing Educational Paradigms”
video from the end of Chapter 3.)
Many educational historians might agree with this claim. For PBE theorists
in particular, however, this historical development has been harmful to our
well-being because the kinds of qualities that people need to live well—a sense
of place, an interest in the shared good of the community, care for the natural
environment—are now the very qualities that education for the market economy
tries to “weed out” of young learners. Education for work in today’s “globalized
world” ignores the “local world” and is especially hostile to the traditional norms
and values of local communities.

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 134 Part IV • Where Should Children Learn?

A good example of PBE analysis is the idea of students as risk-takers. Theobald

(1997) argues that in stable communities, individuals are less likely to take serious
risks because such risks can harm everyone in that community. Again, the rural
setting is served as an exemplar: consider a farmer who has the opportunity to
try out a new, but untested, chemical for improving the crop yield. We can assess
the risk in at least two ways. From the standpoint of the individual farmer, the
risk might make good sense: the potentially greater profit from growing more
crops is high. The farmer can always set aside just enough food to get through the
winter in case things go bad. If the experiment permanently damages the land,
the farmer can always move elsewhere. As economists might say it, the farmer
can “internalize” all the risk. However, from the farmer’s standpoint as a member
of a community, the risk calculation may be quite different. First, the farmer has
the important social responsibility of providing food to the rest of the community.
A crop failure could hurt those who depend on him. The cost of the experiment
going badly is being carried by the community, not just himself, and so taking this
risk would be unfair. Second, the farmer has relationships and bonds that connect
him to where he lives—not just with other people but also with the farmland. It
is not such an easy thing to pack up and leave if the experiment poisons the soil.
The “rural ethic” of the communal or common good understandably sees
the “risk-taker” as selfish and reckless. In a market economy, however, we usually
praise the successes of maverick risk-takers of the world—such as Richard Branson
or Steve Jobs—who break with convention in order to achieve greatness (ignoring,
of course, all those who may have been harmed along the way or who paid the
price for their early failures). For PBE theorists like Theobald, education for the
modern economy, which includes a focus on education for risk-taking, has put
individual self-interest ahead of concern for the community:

[W]e have designed schools so that they structure in significant risk for
students on a daily basis. What happens between kindergarten and high-
school graduation is that we weed out those insufficiently prepared to
take risks, which is to say, we weed out most children in the building. . . .
We teachers are rarely aware of the process. Convinced that we have the
knowledge our children must come to know, we ask them in front of their
peers if they can, in fact, provide us with the right answer. After years’
worth of having the wrong answer . . . students become silent, indifferent,
unaffected by what is going on in the classroom. Those with greater
stamina for taking risks survive the process. Although they may not be any
more intelligent (as conventionally defined), they have learned to work
the system we call schooling. They are headed for advanced placement,
for programs for the gifted and talented, and ultimately, they will move on
to the interesting jobs in society (which is to say, nearly synonymously, to
jobs in urban and suburban America). (Theobald, 1997, p. 46)

On the PBE account, the modern school functions to promote individual suc­
cess in a competitive global economy. Values such as risk-taking, comp­etitiveness,

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 7 Place-Based Education and the Rural School Ethic 135

and individualism are even written into our approach to curriculum design. PBE
theorists such as Gruenewald (2003), for example, have argued that standardized
approaches to curriculum such as “prescribed learning outcomes” or “behavioural
objectives,” which are designed to ensure that all students achieve the same
complement of economically worthwhile knowledge and skills, ignore and perhaps
even disrespect the particular places and communities that students come from.
These are strong claims to make about our current system. If true, where does
rural education fit into the PBE solution? Different PBE theorists and educators
have pursued different strategies. In general, however, the creation of large
“factory-style” schools is seen as harmful to both rural and urban communities
alike. The solutions, then, revolve around restoring both the small school and
knowledge of the local community in a way that involves a return to something
like a rural ethic. Further, rural schools in particular (though not exclusively) are
seen to play a prominent role in restoring a sense of community because of their
ability to make “place” the focus of the curriculum. On the PBE view, for example,
learning about our dependence on nature and our responsibility to protect the
environment is key to our long-term well-being. This could involve activities
designed to help students learn about the extent to which, and ways in which, their
local community relies on certain supplies of fresh water, or how seasonal changes
affect the local flora and fauna. This is in stark contrast to the dominant economic
model of education that would see the natural environment mainly as a resource
base (oil, coal, natural gas) for students to learn how to exploit for greater profit.

Pause for Thought

Education and Work
Reflecting on what businesses need in order to be successful in a global
economy, list some values and skills that employers would be on the lookout
for. You may have already come across such values and skills in curriculum and
policy documents that call for a greater focus on education for a “knowledge
economy” or “innovation.” Then identify ways in which that economic value
or labour skill could have a harmful impact on the community.
For example, labour mobility, the ability of workers to change their labour mobility The
type of occupation or place of occupation, is one important value that often ability of workers to
change their occu-
comes up in discussions around economic efficiency. Mobility is important pation or place of
for economic efficiency because a mobile labour force can move to where occupation.
work is needed, or change the kind of work that needs to be done, quickly
and cheaply. However, a harmful impact is that members of the community
will be more likely to abandon the community in order to work elsewhere,
meaning that their commitments to community will not run as deep.

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 136 Part IV • Where Should Children Learn?

A focus on positive experiences with nature and place can also teach children how
they can work to help the environment instead of making them feel powerless in
the face of oft-repeated lessons about environmental disaster and decline (Sobel,
1996). Rural schooling is thought to be especially primed for such pedagogy
because of the rural setting’s greater proximity to, and obvious dependence on,
delicate ecosystems. This does not mean that urban schools cannot achieve similar
education goals; rather, the rural school tradition can be a model through which
urban and suburban schools begin the process of shifting their practices away
from a human capital focus.
Another example is the PBE focus on commitment to the local community.
Here the curricular focus is not only about preparing children for a future life in a
global economy; rather, a focus on life in one’s own present community drives the
educational experience, encouraging children to have a better appreciation of the
contributions they can make in the here and now. This could involve community-
based projects where students intelligently solve problems in the local area. These
projects do not shy away from the larger world and can respond to the realities of
globalized living. Sobel (2004), for example, discusses a high school marketing
class that helps a locally based Internet business by applying principles of economic
development and environmental preservation in order to improve sales. This is in
contrast to the human capital approach where the importance of education for the
economy has led to a focus on transferable skills and labour mobility. This focus,
it is argued, assumes that anyone who wants to live a good life should be able and
willing to abandon their home in order to seek out their fortune elsewhere. Their
commitment should not be to the community within which they currently live;
rather, it is to their future life in the market economy where they will better their
chances at success (Theobald, 1997).
PBE encompasses a wide variety of approaches and theories; however, one
should have a sense of how it puts itself in opposition to today’s educational
priorities. For the PBE theorist, education should aim at preparing children for
a better understanding of the particular community within which they live, of
their dependence on fellow community members, and on the natural environment
that surrounds them. These broader values, not human capital, are the essential
conditions for well-being. Of course, PBE theorists may be offering an interesting
alternative vision for education. Some teachers may well find this vision attractive.
But is this vision justified? Can PBE theorists give clear reasons why a focus on
place and community is key to well-being? Is the freedom to engage in risk-taking
or competition in the market economy really all that bad? In order to help answer
these questions, the next section will take a closer look at some of the philosophy
underling the PBE perspective.

Well-Being, the Individual, and Community

Now that we better understand the PBE perspective, in what follows we will take a
closer look at some of the philosophy underlying that perspective so that we can
better assess the kinds of values and aims PBE theorists are suggesting that teachers

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Pause for Thought

Community Membership and Well-Being
Can you think of some reasons why membership in a community is important
for our well-being? Compare these reasons with the communitarian
philosophy explained in the next section.

should take up. First we will take a closer look at the philosophy underlying
our modern approach to schooling. Liberalism is a political philosophy that
believes society should be organized on the assumption that every person is free
and equal. Those subscribing to this philosophy see a close connection between
liberalism A polit-
freedom and well-being. Second, we will look at a philosophical position that ical philosophy that
is highly critical of liberalism. Communitarianism is a political philosophy believes that societies
should be organized
that believes that a person’s identity is defined by the community. Proponents
on the assumption that
of this philosophy see a close connection between community membership and every person is free and
well-being. equal. Philosophical
liberals see a close con-
nection between free-
dom and well-being.
Liberalism and Education for Personal Autonomy
communitarianism
In Chapter 1 we discussed personal autonomy as an aim of education. Personally
A philosophy that
autonomous citizens are those who are willing and able to reflect on their interests believes that a person’s
and desires and decide, on the basis of that considered reflection, what their life identity is defined by
the community.
should look like. In our kind of society, personal autonomy is absolutely necessary
for living a good life. The jobs we choose, the kind of post-secondary education or
training we get, the kinds of relationships we enter into, how we use our free time—
modern life works on the assumption that we are free to choose for ourselves.
Yet, children do not yet have the capacity to decide for themselves in this way.
Therefore, one of the core responsibilities of a liberal democratic society is to
ensure that children have the dispositions and intellectual capacities necessary to
lead personally autonomous lives (Haydon, 1977).
Note that the ideal of personal autonomy has a stronger connection to one of
the two political values we mentioned in the introduction of this chapter: freedom.
This makes sense because personal autonomy not only requires that we are able to
choose for ourselves—that we know what we want and how to get it—but that we
are free to do so. Legitimate marriage contracts, for example, are entered into as a
matter of consent, not force. And while we do not always end up in the occupation
we desire, society is organized so that individuals are free to compete for jobs. The
effect of this competition is to link the kinds of work people get with what they
are qualified to do, instead of people inheriting those jobs from family or having
them assigned by some higher power. Further, we generally believe (and often

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 138 Part IV • Where Should Children Learn?

expect) people to have, and freely express, their own thoughts and opinions. In
sum, freedom as a political value is a cornerstone of modern democratic life.
Now, we might agree with freedom as a political value, and further, we might
also agree that education for personal autonomy is one important way to ensure
that students can properly exercise that freedom. However, the liberal emphasis on
individual freedom is not without its critics. Philosopher John White characterizes
one of the shortcomings of individual freedom in the following character sketch:

I heard the other day of a young woman who works as a home help in
the day and as a security officer in a company at night, snatching a little
sleep in the afternoons. She is saving up for her wedding in December.
Her dress will cost her £1000 and she is inviting 700 guests. At the same
time she has cut herself off from all interest in the outside world beyond
her immediate family and friends. She has no idea what is going on in
the wider world and does not care. As she says, she lives only for herself
and sees nothing wrong with this. Although the details of her case may
be unusual, there are many people in our society, I suggest, who have
broadly the same attitude to life. They delight in the fact that that they
can make their own choices about how they are going to live—about
their marriage-arrangements, jobs, even patterns of sleeping and waking.
But are such people autonomous if they simply accept the conventional
structures around them and never question them? (White, 1991, p. 100)

The picture presented to us here is of someone who uses her freedom to put
herself first in each and every instance of her life, never stopping to apply her talents
in order to make society a better place for everyone. The concern expressed here is
that our liberal emphasis on personal autonomy has created a society too focused
on the interests of the individual as opposed to the needs of the community.
We can see evidence of this individualism in one of the most famous writings
on freedom, J.S. Mill’s On Liberty. Mill’s book sets out an important argument
about the value of freedom in a democratic society. As he puts it, “[t]he only part of
the conduct of any one, for which he is amenable to society, is that which concerns
others. In the part which merely concerns himself, his independence is, of right,
absolute. Over himself, over his own body and mind, the individual is sovereign”
(1999/1859, p. 52). Respect others, he says, but otherwise do as you wish. This is
harm principle The sometimes called the harm principle, the belief that a person’s free action should
belief that a person’s only be restricted when that action will cause harm to others. So while there are
free action should only
be restricted when that many ingredients that go into living a good life, liberals like Mill see individual
action will cause harm freedom as the most important. Only under very rare conditions, Mill would
to others. argue, should we be able to restrict the freedom of individuals to live and choose as
they wish in order to protect the well-being of the community. As long as it doesn’t
harm the crops of his neighbour, we should not prevent the farmer from trying out
a new chemical on his crops. And as long as they don’t harm other people along
the way, we should not stop young people from pursuing their individual interests,
even if we think these interests are selfish or superficial.

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 7 Place-Based Education and the Rural School Ethic 139

Communitarianism and Education for Social Values

This is where the PBE critique of modern education begins to have real bite. While
liberals value the right of individuals to choose for themselves, the priority of
the individual over the common good has resulted in a withering of any sense of
shared community. Our modern school practices, the PBE theorist might argue,
only reinforces this individualistic attitude. As Chapter 4 discussed, for example,
in a consumer society the focus becomes more on material self-gratification at
the expense of the larger community. Here, society is viewed as a collection of
individuals all looking out for number one and trying to maximize their own
personal self-interest, at the expense of commitments to the common good or
development of a larger civic identity.
PBE theory, then, is based on a different philosophy of well-being from the
liberal tradition, one that sees the political value of community and the common
good as having a greater role. This philosophical position is sometimes called
communitarianism. Callan and White clearly characterize the communitarian
philosophy as follows:

Might not liberalism exaggerate the place of individual choice and well-
being in its interpretation of the good and just society? Much of what
enriches our lives is found in associations of family, culture, and creed
that we do not initially or perhaps ever choose. And if the good society
is a place where our lives are woven together by a shared adherence to
a common good, does not liberalism sponsor attitudes that alienate us
from one powerful source of human fulfillment and social cohesion? . . .
Communitarians believe that liberals have no satisfactory way of
answering these questions. A different political philosophy is needed
to give community its due. And a different educational philosophy is
necessary too since liberal educational thought is said to be infected with
the same . . . false individualism that its political philosophy expresses.
(Callan & White, 2003, p. 102)

We can unpack this description a little more. Note, for example, that
communitarians do not believe that freedom is unimportant to well-being. Rather,
they think that putting individual well-being first is the wrong way to promote
freedom, at least in the long run. Consider the liberal emphasis on freedom of
religion—the freedom to adopt (or reject) whatever religious beliefs one wishes.
Children should be educated so that they have the capacity to make such choices,
to be able to critically reflect on and determine for themselves what to believe
and not believe. Now, communitarians might not reject freedom of religion. But
they might offer a qualification. Liberals are wrong to think that individuals can
simply go about picking and choosing religious beliefs as a matter of free will.
The communitarian would point out that the kinds of choices individuals make,
including what they choose to believe, are defined and shaped by the communities
within which they live. In other words, it is the community that makes individual

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 140 Part IV • Where Should Children Learn?

choice, and the exercise of personal autonomy, possible in the first place.
Educationally speaking, then, the communitarian might argue that children must
first be initiated into the spiritual or religious traditions of the community before
they can learn to decide for themselves (Haldane, 1986). In this and in other
aspects of the educational experience, the transmission of the norms and social
values of the community come first.
As White’s vignette of the young woman suggests, the communitarian might
further argue that self-determination—choosing by ourselves, in a social vacuum,
without consideration of others—is far too narrow a way to think about well-being.
On the contrary, says the communitarian, the kinds of choices that truly promote
well-being should be informed by the values and principles of the community to
which we belong. Without an education in community, the individual is left with
largely superficial and meaningless decisions. His or her life is limited to questions
about how much money he or she wants to make, what products to buy, or how
extravagant a wedding should be. These choices, while certainly important in
some sense, lack connection to a larger sense of identity, community, place, and
purpose. And yet it seems true that most of the worthwhile choices we make in life
happen within the context of community. Marriage, for example, often represents
a commitment to build a family in alignment with the values and beliefs of a
religious faith. In a secular context, marriage is a legal agreement that publicly
acknowledges the rights and responsibilities of each party in the relationship.
In both cases marriage is a social practice that has meaning for more than the
individuals themselves. The same goes with choice of occupation. Teaching, for
example, is more than a type of paid work. It is an ethical tradition with specific
norms and values. Teachers serve a public good that has consequence for the
entire community. The choice to become a teacher is, on this view, a commitment
to the well-being of the students under one’s care. All members of the professional
community share in this commitment.

Pause for Thought

Community and Place: What’s the Connection?
It’s clear why personal autonomy would be an important educational aim
for liberals. Personal autonomy promotes our individual freedom.
The connections between place-based education and communi­
tarianism are not always so clear. Communitarians want educators to focus
more on community membership and social values. Place-based theorists
have a communitarian point of view. But what is the connection between
community and place? Just what is it about place that is so important for a
healthy community? How is this particularly relevant to rural education?

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 7 Place-Based Education and the Rural School Ethic 141

The Limits of Place-Based Education

Communitarians see education for personal autonomy as seriously misconceived
by liberal thinkers. Their focus on self-determined choice and individual freedom
has led to a society focused on competition and individualism—values that leave
people with little interest in working toward a common good. One can see many
elements of the communitarian philosophy at play in PBE. For the PBE theorist,
schools need to bring balance to the well-being of society by shifting away from
personal autonomy and toward community identity. Further, a sense of place is key
to that identity. The natural environment that surrounds us, our relationships with
the neighbours who live next door to us, knowledge of our history and roots—all
are believed to be essential features of a healthy community.
Is PBE a good alternative to today’s education system? The educational value
of many of the pedagogical practices recommended by PBE is hard to deny.
Experiential and project-based learning, community engagement, connecting
abstract knowledge to local context, and a focus on the environment are all
matters that beginning teachers should seriously consider bringing into their
practice. Further, the PBE reminder of the school’s contribution to the life of local
communities gives us a reason to weigh against the hasty closure and consolidation
of remote and rural schools in the rush to cut spending.
However, PBE theory may come at a cost to other educational values and aims.
Recall that the communitarian philosophy supporting PBE argues that we should
not only reform our existing educational teaching practices and policies—we
should revise or even reject personal autonomy as an aim of education. We should
be less interested in teaching for “self-determined lives” and more concerned with
teaching for life in a community shared with others. Is education for community
as idyllic as it sounds? To be clear, we aren’t suggesting that beginning teachers
completely reject or accept PBE. As with any educational theory, it should be
applied with thoughtful professional judgment. The difference lies, we think,
between taking on some of the worthwhile practices and values recommended by
the PBE tradition, on the one hand, and rejecting personal autonomy as an aim of
education as suggested by its communitarian philosophy, on the other. We agree
with the former but strongly reject the latter. Let us explain why.
To begin with, PBE defence of a “rural ethic” can sometimes set up a strong
opposition between rural and urban life that does not actually exist. To suggest
that restoring community can be achieved by rejecting urban or suburban ways
of life and embracing rural traditions is to make false generalizations about life
in either place. For example, rural settings are portrayed as the last outposts of
a pre-industrial era when people lived wholesome, rustic, uncomplicated lives
and where the natural and human worlds comfortably mingle. Meanwhile, urban
settings are framed as superficial, decadent, overcrowded, and alienating—places
of easy choices, fickle trends, and moral decline. This is, of course, unfair to both
settings and relies on ancient stereotypes about rural and urban life. People in rural
settings may be no more inclined to respect the environment than their urban
counterparts. In fact, the rural focus on keeping jobs in the community suggests

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 142 Part IV • Where Should Children Learn?

that economic and environmental values are in constant tension. Having a sense
of place may still be compatible with really unsound and risky environmental
decisions. Further, the idea that rural communities are more interconnected
may well be overstated, especially with the growth of information technologies
and opportunities for online learning. Urban settings, meanwhile, can host
strong forms of community membership, especially in terms of neighbourhood
associations, community activism, and the close associations formed within
different ethnic communities. Further, the idea that urban and suburban citizens
have little sense of place also seems to be something of an exaggeration. As the
citizen of any major city can tell you, city spaces are marked by their long histories
and unique layouts. An entire genre of literature—urban fiction—is committed
to capturing the character of inner-city urban life, including the nature of urban
space. A sense of place and community may be an important political value but we
should be careful not to idealize the so-called rural ethic as if urban and suburban
citizens are in some kind of moral deficit (Nespor, 2008; Ruitenberg, 2005). This
may mean that place-based education may have to work harder to emphasize the
way in which rural, urban, and suburban spaces all have potential to develop a
sense of place and community, albeit in different ways.
One of the authors of this book was given the following advice on his first
teaching assignment in a small community: “The good news is that they’ll treat
you like family; the bad news is that they’ll treat you like family.” We should be
careful not to overstate the positives of community membership. It can indeed be
a good thing. However, communities also have a dark side. Membership involves
sharing in the values and principles of the community. But what exactly does
“sharing values” mean? Do individuals have a say in what those values are, or
should they simply conform to them? What if an individual does not agree with
the values and principles of the community? What if the values of the community
lead to exclusion or mistreatment? Communities, and the close connections that
develop between members, can place strong social pressure on what we think is
true, good, or right. As the ongoing struggle over the rights and freedoms of sexual
minorities in Canada shows us, for example, the community may sometimes try to
impose the values of the majority on others. Communitarians may be right when
they say that we are a born into a community and that our individual identity is
largely formed through it. But if this is indeed the case, it means that challenging
the values of the community when we disagree, or leaving that community when
our own well-being counts on it, is no easy task. We must therefore be careful
that in educating children for a strong sense of place and community we do not
undermine their ability to say “no” to the larger values of the community when they
judge it necessary to do so. Perhaps the aim of educating children to have a strong
sense of personal autonomy—to develop the capacities and dispositions necessary
for making choices that may go against the community—is more important than
the communitarian perspective might suggest. There are difficult questions here
about the rights of the community and the rights of the individual that deserve
greater attention than the PBE perspective suggests. (We will take these questions
up in more detail in Chapter 9, which looks at Aboriginal education.)

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Furthermore, it is not entirely clear what it means to focus on an education

for “the community” over “the individual,” in part because it is not always clear
where communities begin and end. The question of community can itself be a
political issue. In multicultural societies such as Canada, many communities exist
alongside one another and to say that there is one kind of monolithic “Canadian
community” that we should be educating children for risks erasing important
differences that lie between them (see Chapter 2). Furthermore, we should think
carefully about the unintended boundaries that might arise with too strong a
focus on education for community. A good example of how this could prove to
be problematic is PBE’s own focus on place and identity. Defining community
in terms of the deepness of our connection to “place” may reinforce racist and
other xenophobic prejudices in existing communities. There are many examples
of communities that have used their members’ historical connection to “place” as
a reason for excluding or persecuting so-called “outsiders.” Is an immigrant less a
Canadian citizen simply because he or she has not lived in the country for as long
as others? Does one member of a community have a stronger claim than a new
arrival just because he or she has stronger “roots”? Is “place” always a healthy way
to think about community?

Conclusion
It is one thing to say that students could benefit from an education that puts less
focus on competition and self-interest; it is quite another to say that we should
move away from an education for personal autonomy. Is there a balance to be
struck? The solution may lie in the concept of personal autonomy itself. Recall that
one of the reasons education for personal autonomy is so important is because
we need to develop the capacity to act on our freedom. As discussed in Chapter
6, some philosophers have elaborated on this idea and argued that there are two
types of freedom. The first kind of freedom involves being able to do what one
likes without unreasonable restriction, the kind of freedom that Mill was inter-
ested in and what we might call negative freedom. The second type of freedom negative freedom
involves the power, or agency, to act on one’s freedom, what we might call posi- Freedom from restric-
tion, interference, or
tive freedom. Where negative freedom is about making sure that people do not coercion by others.
face unreasonable laws, rules, or policies in living the kind of life that they want,
positive freedom is about making sure that people have the capacities and resour- positive freedom The
power, capacity, or
ces necessary to actually carry out that life. The difference seems subtle but it is agency to act on one’s
important when thinking about the value of personal autonomy as an aim of edu- freedom.
cation. Education for personal autonomy is very much about promoting positive
liberty. You may live in a community that says that you are free to pursue whatever
kind of good life you want. Nobody in this liberal community is permitted to stop
you from making such choices unless those choices will harm other individuals.
But if you don’t have the proper abilities, training, and qualifications, or if you
don’t know how to decide what is good for you, your real options are quite limited.
How does community fit into this way of thinking about freedom? Community
is crucially important for positive freedom. It makes positive liberty possible. The

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 144 Part IV • Where Should Children Learn?

kinds of goods that promote positive liberty, such as health care and education,
do not magically appear by themselves. They require contributions from society
and they require people willing to deliver them. It’s one thing to ask people to
stay out of each other’s way (negative freedom) but it requires a different kind
of social vision to ask people to put in extra effort so that everyone can get what
they need in order to live self-determined lives (positive freedom). If we want to
have the kind of society where we have both kinds of freedom, people need to be
willing to cooperate and help one another out. Their idea of what it means to live
a good life must include not only what they want for themselves, but an interest in
the well-being of others. In other words, a fully free society must be supported by
some idea of community. What this means, then, is that our idea of education for
personal autonomy must include some understanding of what it means to live well
in a community with other personally autonomous people.
How we do this is a matter of some debate. According to some political
philosophers, one way is to ensure that children learn to be reasonable, meaning
that citizens are willing to cooperate with others in the creation of a society
where everyone is treated as free and equal (Rawls, 1993). People don’t have to
like each other, but they respect each other’s freedoms and have a sense of justice
and fairness that makes them willing to share some of what they have with those
who are less well off. Others have argued reasonableness is not a strong enough
approach, and educating children for a sense of liberal civic identity—as seeing
themselves as the kind of people who should be actively involved in democratic
life—is key (Gutmann, 1999; see Chapter 2). Still others have argued on top
of all this that children need a moral education that teaches them how to be
caring, or altruistic, in their dealings with their fellow citizens (Noddings, 2005;
White, 1991). Note that what we offer here is not intended to be a complete or
comprehensive solution to the concerns of PBE theorists; rather, we want to show
that there are philosophical approaches to educating for community that do not
involve undermining personal autonomy as an aim of education.
So, where goes the Canadian rural school? If community is a key element
in living a good life, and PBE theorists are correct in their claim that a sense of
place is important to one’s sense of community, we have compelling reasons for
keeping small, rural schools open. Further, it appears that rural settings can inspire
approaches to teaching and learning that balance against the modern obsession
with economic productivity, environmental exploitation, and the standardization
of the learning experience. But the protection of rural schools should not proceed
without losing sight of other democratic values. If it is true that rural settings have
a strong sense of locally defined community identity, then we also have reason to
place greater emphasis on personal autonomy in those settings. Social pressure
to stay in the community and fear of the unknown may serve as significant
internal barriers to personal autonomy. In an urban setting where there are many
and diverse influences on the learner’s view of the world, including different
ethnicities, cultural experiences, and social roles, opportunities to promote
personal autonomy may come by relatively easily. Rural educators may need to
put in an extra effort to provide similar opportunities. This may even be a reason

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 7 Place-Based Education and the Rural School Ethic 145

for allocating greater resources to rural schools. Just as urban schools may need
to work a little harder to instill a sense of the natural environment, rural schools
may need to work a little harder to promote positive freedom in their students. If
the rural school is to continue to have a vibrant place in the Canadian educational
landscape, and we think that there are good reasons why it should, it must do
so with a careful understanding of the complex balance between freedom and
community. These aren’t just policy issues. As with any set of educational values,
the extent to which and ways in which autonomy and community are emphasized
is a question of professional judgment that teachers will need to think through
with care and critical reflection.

CASE STUDY
The Value of Freedom and Community
Declining enrolments in rural schools not only raise questions about
the value of freedom and community, they also raise questions about
the proper role of the state in promoting those values. The debate over
Saskatchewan’s Theodore case brings these tensions out. Read about the
Theodore case (Donlevy et al., 2012; http://www.paherald.sk.ca/Living/
Education/2009-04-18/article-182372/Religion-placed-on-trial/1). Should the
state be allowed to use tax funds to preserve rural schools, especially when
those schools serve a specific religious group?

Review Questions
1. Education for personal autonomy focuses 3. Positive freedom is the agency or capacity
on the freedom and well-being of the to do as one wishes. Educational provision
individual. In what way do PBE theorists promotes positive freedom because it
think that this focus leads to poor helps to develop skills and capacities
educational policies and practices? that support a person’s agency. What
2. What is a “rural school ethic” and what do goods besides education support positive
place-based educators think that it could freedom?
or should look like?

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 146 Part IV • Where Should Children Learn?

Further Readings
Callan, E. (1997). Creating citizens: Political educa- Warner, W., & Lindle, J.C. (2009). Hard choices in
tion and liberal democracy. Oxford: Oxford school consolidation: Providing education in
University Press. the best interests of students or preserving com-
Daneraus, F. (Director). (2006). Hope Builders. munity identity. Journal of Cases in Educational
National Film Board of Canada. Leadership, 12(1), 1‒11.

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 8 Should School Choice
Be Fostered in Public
Education?

Introduction
School choice is a policy issue concerned with where individuals can send their school choice The
children to school. If you could choose the ideal school that you could attend, provision of alternative
educational programs
what kind of school would you pick? What judgments would you make about the both within and beyond
kind of school that you would want to attend? Would you learn better or be more public schools that
interested in school if you could make more choices about what you learned and officially and directly
give weight to parents’
how you learned it? Why? What benefits might be gained from attending a school preferences regarding
within your own neighbourhood? What disadvantages might you see with families the allocation of their
choosing a particular school? children to schools.

School choice provides different educational choices in the kinds of school

mandates that are offered, and that allows parents and children to decide about
the schools they may wish to attend. The ability to choose which school to attend
is not merely an administrative or financial question, but a question of educational
values. School choice is a contentious and controversial topic about which there
is little consensus. It raises questions about the role of government in educational
matters, the role of parental preferences regarding how their children are edu-
cated, and larger social questions about the value of students with different social,
economic, and cultural backgrounds coming into contact with each other.
In Canada, school choice is most commonly associated with (1) private or
independent schools outside the jurisdiction of public education institutions,
(2) alternative school programs created within the mandate of public education
systems, and (3) charter schools (which only exist in Alberta), which are govern-
ment funded but have greater autonomy in the kind of provision of education in
the school. At first glance, it might seem as if all Canadians have access to school
choice either through private/independent schools or within public education sys-
tems. Yet, advocates of school choice argue against this assumption. In particular,
they claim that when school choices are limited within the public education sys-
tem, such limitations tend to favour the socio-economic advantages of wealth-
ier families. For example, wealthier families may opt out of the public education
system and pay for their children to attend private or independent schools. Or
alternatively, they may move into a neighbourhood considered to have a better
public school. Does this mean school choice policies within our Canadian public

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 148 Part IV • Where Should Children Learn?

education system should mitigate such advantages? Is the Canadian public edu-
cation system obligated to provide equal educational opportunities for disadvan-
taged families to access schools of their own choice? Is the notion of school choice
integral to the Canadian public education system?
Concerns regarding school choice policies reflect both the advantages and dis-
advantages of school programs outside and within the public education system.
By allowing school choice policies through private/independent schools, there is
potential for erosion of the public system resulting from fewer committed fam-
ilies. This creates a two-tiered system where families who can afford the tuition to
independent schools will simply opt out of public schools (this argument is similar
to the private and public health care debate). By introducing school choice through
the provisions of public schools, there are apprehensions such programs will target
particularly desirable students in sought-after neighbourhoods, therein changing
the nature of public schools itself. Instead of accessing choice schools, students
may need to compete with one another in order to get the “place” they or their
parents want. Furthermore, providing a range of school programs that separates
families with different interests from each other may create a narrowing of the stu-
dent/parent demographic. The result is that “desirable” schools become exclusive
in nature—a move contrary to the overarching educational aims that parallel the
broader democratic values associated with learning together despite our differences.
In Canada, there is a spectrum of school choice provision offered both within
and beyond the public education system. Public schools are tuition-free schools,
alternative schools supported by taxes and controlled by a publically elected school board. These
Public schools that offer schools are open to all children in the provincially determined school jurisdic-
educational programs
characterized by tion. Typically, each neighbourhood has a designated catchment zone to which
specialized curricular students are assigned by the school board according to the geographical location
themes, philosophical of their residence.
predispositions, or
instructional methods Alternative schools are public schools that offer educational programs char-
that are not available in acterized by specialized curricular themes, philosophical predispositions, or
mainstream schools in a instructional methods that are commonly not available in mainstream schools in
particular school board
jurisdiction. a particular school board jurisdiction. They can operate as an alternative program
within a neighbourhood school or as a stand-alone school.
charter schools Charter schools exist only in the province of Alberta. Alberta Education
Autonomous non-profit
public schools designed (1996) has defined charter schools as
to provide innovative
or enhanced education autonomous non-profit public schools designed to provide innovative or
programs that improve
the acquisition of enhanced education programs that improve the acquisition of student
student skills, attitudes, skills, attitudes and knowledge in some measurable way. . . .
and knowledge in some [They] have characteristics that set them apart from other public
measurable way, and
meet the needs of a schools in meeting the needs of a particular group of students through a
particular group of stu- specific program or teaching/learning approach while following Alberta
dents through a specific Education’s Program of Studies. (para. 1–2)
program or teaching/
learning approach that
is not offered in other Charter schools are given considerable autonomy in governance and program
public schools. delivery so long as they can demonstrate improved student learning and broaden

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 8 Should School Choice Be Fostered in Public Education? 149

the existing range of educational opportunities not found in the public school
board. Unlike private schools, they are non-denominational and cannot charge
tuition fees or discriminate in student admission (Alberta Education, 2011a, p. 3).
Independent schools are schools that are not financed or run by a local independent school
authority or the government. They can charge tuition, can allow for selective stu- A school that is not
financed or run by a
dent admission policies, can be governed by an elected or appointed board, and local authority or the
can offer a variety of approaches in teaching, academic focus, and religious orienta- government.
tion (Clemens, Palacios, Loyer, & Fathers, 2014). Religiously affiliated independent
schools in Canada are typically Catholic or Christian, with some provinces and ter-
ritories having Islamic, Jewish, Mennonite, Amish, or Hutterite schools. Regulatory
frameworks for independent schools vary among provinces and territories, from
heavily regulated in Quebec to no regulations in Ontario. Ministries of Education
that provide some funding to support independent schools require that they adhere
to minimum requirements such as following the provincially approved curricu-
lum or program of studies. In some provinces and territories, meeting a set criteria
serves as a form of accreditation, and unaccredited schools receive no funding.
Home-schooling is an option for all parents in Canada. It is a form of instruc- home-schooling
tion and learning that involves some planned activity and takes place primarily Education of children
within the home
at home in a family setting with a parent acting as the teacher or supervisor; environment in contrast
instruction sometimes involves a tutor (Luke, 2003). All provinces and territories to the formal setting
in Canada allow provisions for parents to educate their children at home, requir- of public or private
schooling.
ing parents to notify a school board or an accredited private school of their intent
to educate their children at home. The school accepting the notification becomes
the school authority responsible for monitoring the home education program to
ensure the children are receiving a reasonable education and compulsory school
requirements. Parents maintain primary responsibility for managing, delivering,
and supervising their children’s course of study, and the schooling authority mon-
itors home education and student progress based on the program of study pro-
vided by the parents. online learning
Online learning programs are educational programs offered by a school programs Educational
programs offered by
authority and delivered electronically to a student at a school site or off-site, under
a school authority and
the instruction and supervision of a certificated teacher of a board or accredited pri- delivered electronic-
vate school. Some parents may choose to enrol their children in online programs ally to a student at a
school site or off-site,
to supplement home-based education or as an alternative to the parent-designed
under the instruction
program of study. Online learning is not considered home-schooling if it supple- and supervision of a
ments or supports compulsory education delivered in a school (Miron & Welner, certificated teacher of
a board or accredited
2012, p. 9).
private school.
Inter- and intra-district choice permit parents to “choose a public school
other than the one assigned for their child or children within the district or in a inter- and intra-district
choice Option of par-
surrounding district” (Miron & Welner, 2012, p. 10). Rules and restrictions usually
ents to choose a public
apply, such as the preferred school having the space and support services to meet school other than the
the needs of the child, particularly those with special learning needs, and parents one assigned for their
child or children within
covering the transportation costs. Intra-district choice is also referred to as open
the district or in a sur-
enrolment policy; however, in virtually all school districts students have a desig- rounding district.
nated neighbourhood or catchment area school.

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 150 Part IV • Where Should Children Learn?

Pause for Thought

Available Options
Reflect on your locality. Consider what school choice provisions are offered
in your area based on the following:

• Home-schooling
• Charter schools
• Francophone schools or French immersion
• Aboriginal schools
• Africentric schools
• Heritage language schools
• Special needs schools
• Faith-based schools
• Elite arts or sports schools
• Different learning styles (Montessori, Waldorf, Summerhill, Back to
Basics)
• Specialist schools (Business/IT, International Baccalaureate, voca-
tional, military)

Of the ones listed in your area, are the schools offered within public edu-
cation systems, or are they offered within the private education systems?

This chapter examines school choice—its conceptual underpinnings, merits,

and demerits. Within these overarching aims, we provide examples of school
choice policies in Canada that attend to issues of pluralism, equality of opportun-
ity, and liberty. We ask: What problems with schooling may be addressed through
school choice? How might school choice be addressed differently?

What Is “Choice”? How Do People Choose?

choice Concept Choice is often seen as an intrinsic good. For example, personal autonomy views
associated with the idea
the ability to make self-determined choices as fundamental to our well-being
of a free and rational
consumer who is best in democratic society. In contrast with the powerlessness of life in oppressive
able to determine his regimes like dictatorships, choice is associated with democracy and freedom. So
or her own interest,
why or when should we ever allow anyone to limit choice? Who has the right to
and can do so without
government restrictions take away our ability to choose? Daily life affords us a wide range of choices. We
or involvement. Often choose our political leaders, our relationships, and how we are going to behave in
seen as intrinsically
given circumstances. We also make a myriad of big and small consumer choices.
good.
Within our larger consumer culture, choice is often associated with the idea of

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 8 Should School Choice Be Fostered in Public Education? 151

homo economicus, an economic concept that suggests individuals are best able
homo economicus
to determine their own self-interests as rational humans. We may be inclined to Economic concept
think that when we make choices we do so freely, rationally, and according to our that suggests that
humans are best able
predetermined preferences. But this is not always the case. An informed choice
to determine their own
is ideally about minimizing biases, weighing options while relying on facts, and self-interest as rational
reducing outright errors in decision-making. But as anyone who has struggled to individuals.
make healthy food choices can tell you (and we suggest this is pretty much every-
one), we do not always choose what is most rational. We know for a fact that some
foods are bad for us, and yet we choose them anyway. choice architecture
Choice architecture is an area of psychology that studies the contextual fac- A term used to describe
tors that shape how people make choices in order to influence those decisions. the different ways in
which decisions may be
Unlike homo economicus, this approach does not assume that we always make influenced by how the
“rational” choices. We may believe we are free and informed in our decision-mak- choices are presented.
ing, when in fact the choices we make have been guided by unconscious impulses
and unseen influences. Barry Schwartz (2005) suggested our modern culture
adheres to “the official dogma” that maximizing choice will improve freedom for
everyone. Yet, in many cases, more choice may actually make us less satisfied with
the choices we make. A number of psychological studies have considered the lim-
itations and complexities in the choices that we make—for example, the choices
we make when we go to a restaurant. We may think people would be more happy
and satisfied when the selections on a restaurant menu attend to the different
tastes and preferences of diners. Yet, psychological studies indicate that provid-
ing individuals with more choices creates additional barriers in how they decide.
Under such circumstances, even the simplest of choices becomes a weighty and
overwhelming decision (Iyengar & Lepper, 2000). We might blame ourselves for
making wrong choices, being constantly preoccupied with whether we should
switch our choice or not. We might focus on choosing between options, instead of
considering what choices are not available and why.
In a similar way, rational choice theory assumes that individuals have the
ability to make informed judgments about the choices they make. Within this rational choice theory
framework, parents are viewed as rational participants who make decisions regard- The position that
assumes that individuals
ing school choice based on clear value preferences that involve calculating the cost, are completely rational
benefits, and probabilities of success amongst various options (Ben-Porath, 2009). and informed regarding
When individuals face an important decision, as rational actors they search for the choices that will
best benefit them, and
information before deciding. However, rational choice theory assumes that indi- have the ability to make
viduals are completely rational and informed regarding the choices that will best informed judgments
benefit them. Yet, this idea is contested. Nudge theory suggests that many of the about the choices that
they ought to make.
choices we make are defined by cognitive biases, and rejects the fully rational
assumption. On this view, parents who decide to send their children to a particular nudge theory A per-
school are part of a larger social process comprising social class, race, gender, and spective that rejects
the assumption that
networks of social relationships that strongly influences their choices. Drawing people are fully rational,
from rational choice theory, school choice proponents may start from the premise and suggests that the
that parents will choose well for their children based on rational deliberative pro- choices we make are
defined by cognitive
cesses. Parental values could be a central part of a rational choice process if par- biases.
ents want consistency between their preferred values and the school their children

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 152 Part IV • Where Should Children Learn?

attend. For example, if parents think academic performance is important, they will
choose a school that models such values. However, critics of school choice chal-
lenge this assumption. They argue that parents rely primarily on personal, biased,
and subjective values and experiences that may skew their decisions about the
school best-suited to their children’s interests (Ball, 2003; Bosetti, 2004; Davies
& Aurini, 2008). As a result, parents’ ability to make informed decisions may be
limited by their access to relevant and valuable information regarding the options
available, as well as their potentially limited understanding of their child’s learning
needs and interests. If you agree with rational choice theory, the weakness rests not
on individuals’ inability to make informed decisions, but on the necessity to ensure
that parents get access to the right information before making discernments.
So let us sum up the issue thus far. Part of the school choice debate rests on
your view of how individuals make choices. If you think that individuals make
rational informed decisions about where to send their children if they have access
to the information, and can make discernments, you may start from the premise
that rational choice theory has merit. On the other hand, if you think that social
and cognitive factors impact the decisions that are made by parents to choose par-
ticular schools over others, despite whether they have the information or not, then
you may be more skeptical about school choice provisions.

The Merits and Demerits of School Choice

School Choice within the Public System
Arguments in favour of school choice often claim that public schools are mono-
lithic and uniform, that public schools do not allow for the kind of variety that
parents and students would like to see. Partly in response to such critiques, many
public school boards now offer considerable variety. Similar to large school
boards in major Canadian cities, the Toronto District School Board (TDSB)
includes school choices with such distinct offerings as elite athletics (Birchmount
Collegiate Institute), the arts (Claude Watson School for the Arts), the liberal arts
(The Student School), vocational training (Central Technical School), math and
science (John Polanyi), media and cyber arts (Don Mills Collegiate Institute), and
aviation (George Vanier Secondary School). On a more controversial level, the
TDSB opened two Africentric schools (Winston Churchill and Downsview) that
view teaching and learning through an Africentric lens (see the Case Study on
page 156). The TDSB also offers an extensive alternative school network with 41
schools designated as “alternative.” These alternative schools typically enrol fewer
than 100 students and promote a democratic orientation, meaning that students
are actively involved in decisions regarding school governance. Students are
allowed to work at their own pace and teachers are positioned as references and
allies rather than authorities at the front of the classroom. As a consequence, at the
Shared Experience, Exploration and Discovery (SEED) school in east-end Toronto,
students decide what they want to learn, sometimes choosing to get together on
evenings or weekends (TDSB, 2014). In addition, the province of Ontario sup-
ports a publicly funded separate Catholic School Board consisting not only of

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 8 Should School Choice Be Fostered in Public Education? 153

English public and Catholic boards, but also French public boards and Catholic
school boards. Over 100,000 students attended French public and French Catholic
schools in 2013‒14 in Ontario (http://www.edu.gov.on.ca/eng/educationFacts.
html; see also the extensive discussion of Aboriginal education in Chapter 9).
To unpack the major stances regarding school choice, we consider the opposing
positions commonly presented by advocates and critics of school choice. We begin
with advocates’ perspectives on school choice, specifically looking at three arguments
in favour of school choice. First, school choice is a liberty that should be given to par-
ents regarding decisions about their children’s schooling. Second, given the diversity
of Canadian society, school choice fosters broader pluralism through various educa-
tional mandates. Third, school choice creates more equality of educational opportun-
ity for families that may otherwise not have the financial means to choose a school.
This means fair and equitable processes determine an individual’s economic future.
Critics of school choice are skeptical of such claims. They argue that while
a greater range of educational options may seem beneficial, these options may
be positioned in a way that only benefits wealthier families. School choice poli-
cies erode the greater public educational systems that may be perceived as “have
not” schools. Two key arguments commonly frame their discussions. First, school
choice creates advantages for middle- and upper-class families to the disadvantage
of families of lower socio-economic status. Secondly, school choice may erode the
broader democratic and civic values of society. Let us look carefully at the argu-
ments for and against school choice.

Liberty
As we will discuss in Chapter 10, the concept of liberty is one of the primary argu- liberty The premise
ments proposed in favour of school choice. Liberty starts with a premise that indi- that individuals should
be free in society from
viduals inherently have different ideas about how to lead their lives, particularly in restrictions from the
terms of political, religious, and ideological differences (Rawls, 1971). When there state on one’s way of
is limited consensus about how to lead our lives, it becomes virtually impossible life.
to come to an agreement about creating a common school for all (see Chapter common school The
10). Yet, the aim of a common school is to create the space whereby children come principle under which
together from different ability ranges and different backgrounds (Pring, 2008). By schools bring together
children from different
creating a common school, children will ideally gain an appreciation and under- perspectives in order to
standing of others that is reflective of the larger society. increase social connec-
Those who value liberty find the notion of a common school to be problem- tions, foster democratic
dispositions, and edu-
atic. They are concerned this unified vision of social cohesion has the potential to cate for civic virtues.
further marginalize individuals on the periphery, particularly those in the min-
ority. Considering the historical development of a Canadian identity presented
in Chapter 2, we see an example of how dominant British norms were to the dis-
advantage of the French, Indigenous peoples, and new immigrants.
With a distrust of what constitutes a common good, political philosopher common good A
William Galston (1999) argued for a deference towards parental rights with min- “good” that is shared
and beneficial for most
imal intervention from the state. From this stance, liberty makes a clear distinction individuals in society.
between the rights of the state and the rights of parents. Galston wrote:

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 154 Part IV • Where Should Children Learn?

The state has the right to establish certain minimum standards, such as
the duty of parents to educate their children, and to specify some min-
imum content of that education, wherever it may be conducted. Parents,
however, have a wide and protected range of choices as to how to dis-
charge that duty to educate (1999, p. 874).

Parental expression of their liberty assumes the ability to balance public and
private conceptions, with a value placed on parents’ ability to foster their differ-
ing beliefs and values as individuals and within their associative groups. Thus,
the principle of liberty ensures individuals have access to various distinctive
schools that allow for reasonable and varied educational mandates. Accordingly,
“Individual rights to choose particular approaches to education are juxtaposed
against a monolithic and mandatory system of education” (Wilson, 2012, p. 25).

CASE STUDY
Home-Schooling and Self-Governed Schools
Home-schooling and Aboriginal self-governing schools are two distinct
and contrasting examples of the principles of liberty being exercised to
protect parents’ decisions about how their children should be educated.
Briefly described, home-schooling involves the education of children
at home as opposed to the formal settings of a public or private school.
Canadian provinces incorporate different parameters for the provision of
home-schooling. Some families adopt a home-schooling approach to edu-
cation in order to ensure their children avoid contact with people of other
religions, political views, or sexual orientations. There may also be parents
who embrace an alternative lifestyle that rejects “structured materialism
and career orientations of the mainstream” (Davies & Aurini, 2011, p. 64).
Prior to the 1960s, Canadian parents educated their children at home
because of poor access to regular education facilities, geographic dis-
tance, physical or mental disability, or religious conviction. More recently,
new subgroups of home-schoolers have emerged with goals ranging from
“nurturing minority identities to meeting special educational needs, to sim-
ply seeking a superior form of education” (Aurini & Davies, 2005, p. 462).
Primarily, Canadian parents choose to home-school their children because
of dissatisfaction with the public education system. They have concerns
regarding a perceived lack of focus on academic performance and disci-
pline, as well as their desire for a physically and emotionally safe learning
environment for their children (Basham & Hepburn, 2001). Responsibility for
home-schooling often falls on women, thereby limiting their career options.

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 8 Should School Choice Be Fostered in Public Education? 155

Pluralism
Pluralism follows a similar line of reasoning to liberty, but the pluralist argu- pluralism A term used
to describe a diversity
ment has a slightly different emphasis. Given that a pluralist society inher-
of views, beliefs and
ently involves a diversity of religious, political, and ethical approaches to life, a practices among
normative approach recognizes that common schooling does not offer a morally individuals.
neutral stance. The problem with the common school is that historical records
indicate public schools have demonstrated little respect for diversity of think-
ing among different political, religious, and ethical stances. Rather, examples of
common schools have been found to “subjugate and coercively assimilate min-
ority populations” (Reich, 2007, p. 715). School choice has the potential to make
provisions for reasonable pluralism, particularly for students whose identity and
self-understanding depends on the vitality of their own cultural, religious, ethnic,
racial, or gender context:

Aboriginal self-governed schools are an attempt by First Nations self-governed schools

peoples to have autonomy over the education of their children, particularly in Schools intended to
give specific groups,
undoing the wrongs associated with Canadian Aboriginal residential schools such as Aboriginal
(see Chapter 9). In 2010, the Assembly of First Nations demanded that First peoples, autonomy
Nations peoples be given autonomy and control of education in order to over the education of
their children in order to
create a vision for education in alignment with their unique cultural identity. align with their unique
cultural identity.
We want education to provide the setting in which our children
can develop the fundamental attitudes and values which have
an honored place in Indian tradition and culture. . . . We believe
that if an Indian child is fully aware of the important Indian values
he will have reason to be proud of our race and of himself as an
Indian. (Assembly of First Nations, 2010, p. 1)

Their intention is to provide First Nations peoples with a reclaiming of

the liberty they lost through injustices inflicted by the federal government.
Consider how the two contrasting examples of school choice are con-
cerned with the principle of liberty.

• Are you sympathetic to both instances of school choice? Why or

why not?
• What distinctions do you make between home-schoolers and First
Nations peoples in their claims for liberty?
• Is this an unfair comparison between two vastly different groups? Why
or why not?

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 156 Part IV • Where Should Children Learn?

If we agree that one societal aim is to allow for pluralism, then it must
necessarily adhere to the liberty principle in favour of school choice.
Permitting parents to select a school for their children is crucial to
respecting the liberty interests of parents. To be more specific, liberal
societies must protect some version of school choice because the norma-
tive significance of pluralism requires the state to respect the liberty
interests of parents to rear their children in some rough accordance with
their deepest ethical or religious significance (Reich, 2007, pp. 21–22).

School choice provides a vehicle for promoting diversity within the broader
pluralist society. Critics suggest such views may create increased segregation and
weaker notions of citizenship. By allowing for development of different concep-
tions of identity and belonging within a pluralistic perspective, we may uninten-
tionally segregate individuals and create a ghettoization (Gereluk & Race, 2007).
For instance, Trevor Phillips, chair of the Commission for Equality and Human
Rights in England, cautioned against the promotion of multiculturalism as related
to exacerbated segregation and racial problems. He noted, “We have allowed tol-
erance of diversity to harden into the effective isolation of communities, in which
some people think special separate values ought to apply” (Phillips, 2005, p. 4).
These sentiments resonate with many policy-makers and educators in
Western Europe and North America, who might support pushing the pendulum
toward more common civic values and away from the notion of multiculturalism.
Advocates of pluralism suggest that school choice provides individuals the oppor-
tunity to have a school that shares a similar identity and belonging aligned with
their own values.

CASE STUDY
Africentric Schools in Toronto District School Board
Africentric schools in Toronto were established with the aim to integrate
“the histories, cultures, experiences and contributions of people of African
descent and other racialized groups into the curriculum, teaching meth-
odologies, and social environment of schools” (Thompson & Thompson,
2008, p. 45). Africentric schools aim to address underachievement and high
dropout rates: “Close to 40 per cent of black students weren’t graduating
from high school, and alarmingly little was being done about it” (Wallace,
2009, para. 8). The need for Africentric schooling has emerged in response
to the failure of mainstream educational systems and a perception that
African Canadians are running out of options (Wallace, 2009).

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 8 Should School Choice Be Fostered in Public Education? 157

Africentric schools are among the most controversial school choice

initiatives in recent years within the Toronto District School Board. In fact,
no other alternative school in the TDSB has been met with such opposition.
One TDSB trustee said, “This was one of the biggest debates in TDSB his-
tory, perhaps of . . . school history in the country” (Gulson & Taylor, 2013,
p. 173). Africentric schools teach the provincial curriculum through lessons
and activities that feature African-Canadian cultural experiences, history,
and knowledge. However, Africentric schools are not racially streamlined
schools. They are Africentric in curricular emphasis, guiding principles, and
cultural objectives rather than student body.
One of the aims of Africentric schools is to address the Eurocentric
dominance of mainstream schooling and point out that mainstream schools
are not neutral or one-cultural. Rather, mainstream schools emphasize the
accomplishments and values of one particular ethnic group—Europeans
and their descendants—at the expense of other cultures. The contributions
of African Canadians to Canada and the larger world have been historically
left out.
Downsview Secondary School, which emphasizes an Africentric focus
called “The Africentric Advantage,” describes its aims as follows:

Grade 9 and 10 compulsory courses have an Africentric focus

and approach to learning. The curriculum draws from African-
centered sources of knowledge and perspectives to create a rich
and diverse educational experience. The program will resonate
with students and seeks to strengthen positive self-concept and
promote academic excellence. Students in our Africentric pro-
gram have the luxury of enrolling in our “The Arts Advantage” as
well. As of Fall 2012, the school has an enrollment of 190 students
and a waiting list (TDSB, n.d., para. 2).

Africentric schooling emphasizes the importance of membership in a

larger community rather than an individualistic approach to schooling—
itself seen as a characteristic of Eurocentric schooling. We could classify
the Africentric school as taking a communitarian approach to education
while the Eurocentric model focuses more on a liberal model. Lessons in
Africentric schools include plays by South African writer Athol Fugard, short
stories in Fiery Spirits and Voices: Canadian Writers of African Descent,
geography lessons that look at Canadian settlements created by slaves
escaping from the United States, and history lessons that address the role
of blacks in the development of Canadian culture. These schools are por-
trayed as an opportunity for cultural self-determination, a sense of belong-
ing for students, empowerment, and a symbol of hope. There are many
stories of students who struggled and nearly dropped out of mainstream
continued

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 158 Part IV • Where Should Children Learn?

schools, but then successfully found a voice and a home in Africentric pro-
grams. Some students would stay in the homework club for several hours
after school. According to George Dei, professor of sociology of educa-
tion at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education, Africentric schools in
Toronto have been a success on many levels: “Black students at Africentric
schools perform better on tests, skip class less often, show greater respect
for authority and elders, report feeling a greater sense of belonging in their
schools, and have a greater commitment to social responsibility and com-
munity welfare” (Anderson, 2009, para. 6).
Critics raise two primary issues. Their first criticism claims that
Africentric schools limit opportunities for their graduates once they enter
the workforce, because such schools either have lower academic stan-
dards or teach students things less useful in terms of employability skills or
knowledge of mainstream culture. The second criticism concerns the know-
ledge of mainstream culture. Does the establishment of Africentric schools
indicate that efforts at integration have failed? Through the Charter of
Rights and Freedoms policies, including multiculturalism, one of Canada’s
greatest achievements is its ongoing project of creating a more inclusive,
diverse, and tolerant culture. Schools are considered key institutions in
gathering students of diverse backgrounds together in a shared experi-
ence. For some, Africentric schools symbolize the creation of separate
spaces and may evoke fears of re-segregation, ghettoization, and the loss
of a common Canadian identity. They also raise various “slippery slope”
concerns: Why should certain ethnic groups be permitted to establish their
own separate publicly funded alternative schools? (Some of them do; see
Chapter 9, which deals with Aboriginal education.) And why should the less
Eurocentric curriculum not be offered in all schools?

• How are schools of choice that focus on a particular heritage, religion,

or race more or less effective in helping students create their own
sense of identity?
• How sympathetic are you to the concern that schools of choice may
create further segregations and conflicts between groups?
• Are there particular programs that you would not wish to be offered as
schools of choice? What principles would you use to decide whether a
school of choice should be allowed?

equality of educational
opportunity A principle
Equality of Educational Opportunity
that an individual’s The final argument in favour of school choice draws upon the principle of equality
education should
be treated equitably of educational opportunity to claim that school choice policies increase equity
without discrimination among schools. The principle of fair equality of opportunity states that positions
or prejudice. and posts that confer superior advantages should be open to all applicants. When

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 8 Should School Choice Be Fostered in Public Education? 159

we apply this broader philosophical principle to the concept of school choice poli-
cies, the intent is that school choice opportunities are not limited to those families
who already have an advantage, either by their financial resources or the networks
they belong to. Fair equality of opportunity provides an interesting perspective
to the notion of school choice debates because it is trying to reduce the already
unfair advantages that exist for those families who can choose better schools by
either buying a home in a neighbourhood that has a good school, or opting out
of public education in favour of private schools. Formal school choice policies
within the public education system may further the notion of fair equality of
opportunity to ensure that the less well-off have the same opportunities as those
who are better off. In other words, when there are significant variations in the
quality of schools between neighbourhoods, the principle of fair equality of edu-
cational opportunity could support school choice policies for the reason that they
may provide families of lower socio-status with educational options they would
otherwise be unable to access.
To understand how educational equality plays out as a contested issue in
school choice debates, we must consider the fundamental liberal democratic value
that “social and political institutions should be designed or reformed to realize
equal respect for the value of all individual persons” (Brighouse, 2000, p. 116).
One implication of this principle for school choice is that on equality grounds,
school choice should not permit wealthier families who are able to move into
better neighbourhoods, or who can afford to pay for a higher quality of educa-
tion, to have access to a better quality of schools than other citizens. Accordingly,
one implication of equality might be to make sure that any choices we permit the
wealthy should not be to the detriment of poorer families. Moreover, on such a
view, school choice might only be permitted if it is to the advantage of those who
are disadvantaged. For instance, one might state that school choice policies might
only be permitted if they serve those children that are underserved in the public
system, who are more vulnerable, or who require more learning supports than
other children. For instance, the Boyle Street Education Center Charter School
targets those high-risk youth “[w]ho have previously experienced interruptions
in their formal learning” (Boyle Street Education Centre, 2015, para 1). Based in
downtown Edmonton, it serves a large number of Aboriginal youth who have been
expelled from schools, are homeless, or require support in their mental, physical,
emotional, and spiritual growth and development. While any student can opt to
attend the school, it targets those students who are already not succeeding or have
been removed from the public school system.
Some accounts of educational equality invoke a notion of strict equality, strict equality Situation
in which individuals
which would mean that everyone would receive the same level of educational
receive the same
resources and services (Brighouse & Swift, 2008). Strict equality demands stan- level of resources and
dardization of the curriculum followed by standardized tests with the idea that a services.
uniform curriculum will bring about a greater equality in schools. Yet, while the
emphasis on a strong or strict notion of equality is admirable, it is short-sighted. A
“strict” approach is potentially disadvantageous for the diverse needs of students,
given the cognitive, emotional, and social differences that may impede students’

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 160 Part IV • Where Should Children Learn?

abilities to do well in school. Making everything in a school system the same

for each student is not going to ensure equality because some students may be
better served by that sameness than others. Most individuals do not ascribe to
strict equality, given that it might create a levelling down of provisions provided
for many students who do not fit into a standardized model, which in turn may
impede students’ flourishing. Rather than conforming to a notion of strict equal-
ity that advocates for the provision of resources to be the same, we must nar-
row the differences among schools with the main purpose of education being to
increase educational opportunities for the economically disadvantaged by using
education to lessen the inequalities that afflict particular social groups. From the
equality of opportunity view, school choice policies do not justify choice simply
for the sake of choice, or to maximize the freedom of choosers, but as a means to
provide alternative educational options for children that can foster and build their
capacity for individual well-being. Furthermore, the parameters of school choice
must ensure that such policies do not exacerbate inequities between schools, par-
ticularly for those who are already disadvantaged or come from underprivileged
backgrounds.
Having examined three common arguments in favour of school choice, let us
now consider opposing arguments.

CASE STUDY
Edmonton Public School Board and the Victoria School
of the Arts
Located in a mature, inner-city neighbourhood in Edmonton, the Victoria
School of the Arts was an undersubscribed educational institution (Victoria
Composite High School) prior to its repurposing as an arts-based per-
formance school. Currently a magnet for arts-based education, the school
attracts students from numerous areas of the city who share a common
interest in the arts. Families move to the area because they want their
children to receive an arts-based education (Taylor, 2001). However, the
Edmonton Public School Board (EPSB) specifically ensures that neigh-
bourhood students are able to attend the school, recently striking down
a proposal that would have required all high school students to submit a
portfolio for admission. The EPSB struck down the proposal on the grounds
that because local students would not be automatically accepted into the
school, the proposal was unfair to families in some of Edmonton’s most

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 8 Should School Choice Be Fostered in Public Education? 161

Criticisms of School Choice Policies

Exacerbates Inequality
One of the primary debates regarding school choice is concerned with ways that
it may privilege middle-class families to the disadvantage of families of lower
socio-economic status. The charges that school choice exacerbates inequality
can be summarized as follows. First, middle-class families may have more social social capital The
collective and social
capital in their ability to negotiate the variety of school choice programs offered
benefits that individuals
both within and beyond public schools. Social capital refers to the particular bene- have through networks
fits or advantages that may be accrued amongst groups of individuals and across and relationships that
provide them with an
collective networks. For example, parents with many connections to the com-
advantage in society.
munity through their professional or personal networks may have an easier time
finding out about the variety of school options and other parents’ perceptions of a
particular school’s quality and status. Parents with low social capital may have lim-
ited individual and collective networks. Consequently, they may struggle to obtain
relevant information regarding schools on many levels.
This is a fair and important concern for immigrant families who may have few
contacts with the broader community, except potentially with their own immi-
grant community. They may have lower proficiency in English or French, if it is not

distressed communities for whom this was their designated school (Sands,
2013). Beyond arts-based schools such as the Victoria School of the Arts,
magnet schools can provide programs for students interested in trades
and technology, supportive environments for at-risk youth, and those that
accommodate the educational needs of high-performance athletes.

• How sympathetic are you to the idea that school choice policies
may create greater equality of opportunity for families of lower
socio-economic status?
• What factors might exacerbate differences in the quality of schooling
between wealthy and poor families?
• How can an alternative educational program help to foster greater
equality of schooling in undersubscribed schools? In high-needs areas?
• Identify an example of school choice that might be interpreted as an
unfair or fair advantage to poor families.
• What mechanisms might be in place to detract poor families from
attending schools of choice?

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 162 Part IV • Where Should Children Learn?

their first language, and may be unable to read or access the information that may
be available. Furthermore, they may feel reluctant to approach schools regarding
their programs. Sigal Ben-Porath (2009) noted that some parents are reluctant to
move their children from failing schools to schools of better quality. Referring to
recent studies in the United States, Ben-Porath reported “the vast majority (up
to 97 per cent) of parents with children in ‘failing’ schools choose to keep their
children in those schools, even when it is their legal right to do otherwise” (2009,
p. 534). She reasons that parents living in poorer neighbourhoods may self-limit
their own choices because of their familiarity with families in those neighbour-
hoods, because they know the school for all its failings, and they feel a level of
comfort in not sending their children to a school beyond their local vicinity.
A second problem related to choice schools is that hidden or implicit norms
may make it difficult for some families. In many of the public choice schools,
tuition fees are not administered. Yet, there may be additional costs for transpor-
tation, or there may be no provision for bussing to and from school. As a result,
schools may unintentionally limit their intake to only those families who have the
ability to drive their children to and from school. Schools may unfairly impose
implicit or explicit expectations for families. In a similar vein, choice schools may
feature extra costs that are not prevalent in mainstream public schools, such as a
mandated uniform. Specialized activities within the choice school may not require
tuition (like ballet, music, sports, debate clubs), although parents may incur addi-
tional costs associated with the travel, tournaments, or coaching activities beyond
school hours.
Finally, a concern exists specifically related to the specialized educational
mandate, wherein a particular selective process reduces admissions for high-risk
creaming effect The students with cognitive or behavioural difficulties. In this situation, a creaming
explicit and implicit pro- effect may occur, whereby the school selects only the most talented, gifted, or
cedures and practices
of student enrolment
easy-to-teach students, to the detriment of those students who may require addi-
that create exclusive tional support (Swift, 2004). Most commonly, this occurs in gifted, elite sports,
selective practices to or arts schools, where students are required to demonstrate proficiency or excel-
the advantage of those
desirable students.
lence in the specialized educational area. The results of a creaming effect are com-
pounded in many choice schools. Having devoted considerable finances and other
resources to a specialized area like a sports or fine arts program, schools may be
unable to provide other aspects of students’ learning. Such schools may be unable
to implement staffing or resources to support children with diverse learning needs.
In so doing, the schools create niche educational mandates that privilege certain
forms of knowledge and in particular, toward desirable demographics of families.
This is problematic in at least two ways. First, in developing alternative programs
that privilege certain disciplines over others (e.g., an international baccalaureate
program), a hierarchy may be perceived within an educational system wherein
certain values and credentials have greater status or worth than others. Second,
those students who do not conform to the particular educational mandate may
choose not to attend such a school, and may consequently feel of lesser worth
than those children who attend a specialized school. The perceived higher-valued

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 8 Should School Choice Be Fostered in Public Education? 163

credentials a child may receive by attending a specialized program may come at a

cost to those students who do not have a similar educational distinction.

Reduces the Democratic and Civic Role of Public Schooling

To a certain extent, liberal democratic societies like Canada depend on a shared
national identity and commitment to democratic institutions and processes. Schools
in Canada were founded in part as a result of the common school movement,
based on the idea that a democratic society and a civic identity rest on a shared
educational project (see Chapter 2). Regional differences, religious differences, and
other cultural characteristics that might lead to fragmentation could best be uni-
fied in a shared mission of developing a national identity through public schooling.
Benjamin Barber said, “Education not only speaks to the public, it is the means
by which a public is forged. It is how individuals are transformed into responsible
participants in the communities of the classroom, the neighborhood, the town,
the nation and (in schools that recognize the new interdependence of our times)
the world to which they belong” (Barber, 2004, p. 1). Denying choice may draw
people of widely varied backgrounds into a public project of forming a collective
sense of identity, shared values, a coherent unified community, or a national iden-
tity, whereas promoting choice may fragment and undermine those same ideals.
Choice may be perceived as essential to individual freedom. However, the outcomes
of choice may undermine the public good or even reduce our ability to believe such
a thing exists. Choice tends to focus on the individual whereas education is a project

Pause for Thought

Alternative Choice School
Choose an alternative choice public school in your locality and consider
the following:

• What is the specialized educational mandate?

• Who do you think the school is targeting?
• What are the admissions criteria?
• Are there any extra costs associated with the program or the school?
• Do you believe that there is a creaming effect occurring? Why or
why not?
• Can you think of a choice school that attracts those students who have
diverse learning needs, or that may be marginalized or disadvantaged
in other ways?

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 164 Part IV • Where Should Children Learn?

that serves the whole of society. Education has goals and aims that reach beyond the
individual. By making choices based solely on individual needs and preferences we
may lose sight of such broad aims as unity, equity, and civic engagement.
communitarianism This line of reasoning follows the communitarian perspective introduced in
A philosophy that Chapter 7. Communitarian philosophy emphasizes the close relationship between
places a value on the
relationship between individuals and society. As an inescapable and essential part of identity, the role of
an individual’s identity community is not voluntary or optional; rather, community plays a foundational
and belonging through role regarding what it means to be human. In this regard, Daleney (1994) noted,
shared beliefs and
values commonly found “Communitarianism sees public life as a constitutive feature of human identity,
in community. and thus a necessary part of a good life and valuable for its own sake, not simply
as an instrument for purely private ends” (p. 97). A communitarian perspective
values the “communal dispositions that might unite people around a conception
of what is good or worthwhile to pursue in life” (Arthur, 2000, p. 8). Key princi-
ples underpinning this compulsory public model of education reflect the ideal
that schools should provide the communal space for children of differing abil-
ity, different social, religious, and ethnic backgrounds. Through an educational
space that reflects the full diversity of society, children and adolescents may gain
an appreciation and understanding of others while being enriched by the var-
ied differences they encounter (Pring, 2008). However, in creating schools that
reflect the diversity of society, there is another purpose inherent to a common
public education system. Specifically, schools become spaces that foster com-
mon culture, language, and community, providing the necessary foundation to
ensure a diverse citizenry will have the ability to participate in the greater civic
and democratic political community to which they belong. In this way, schools
have a social and political purpose beyond learning. Schools are instrumental
in fostering a sense of social cohesion beyond the private domains of family and
individual. Informed by the principles of communitarianism, the common pub-
lic school upholds democratic ideals based on the principle that schools should
create a sense of social cohesion and stability, while simultaneously promoting
equality of opportunity and access for all.
Critics of school choice policies identify two main problems. In the first
instance, they worry that providing school choice changes the overarching aims
and purposes of public education. If the role of education is to provide a greater
sense of identity to the larger collective identity in society, placing students in
more homogeneous school settings may undermine this principle. Secondly, in
changing the nature of public schools’ provisions to be more sensitive to par-
ental interests and demands as consumers of choice, the nature of schools leans
market-based
more toward market-based mechanisms (see Chapter 4). Using a market-based
perspective Economic perspective, school choice advocates promote the idea that education will be
framework based on improved when consumer preferences are expressed and that competition
supply, demand, and
competition.
for consumers will generate enhanced school quality. Government (or public)
involvement in education is construed as promoting poor educational quality
and as intruding upon or interrupting the relationship between consumers and
providers of education. In fact, by using the expression “providers of education”

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 8 Should School Choice Be Fostered in Public Education? 165

to describe who teachers are and what they do, the role of teacher is repurposed
through the language of consumerism. In upcoming chapters, we continue to
explore many critiques associated with this issue, as it has sparked extensive
debate among educational scholars.
From this perspective, there is an assumption that educational issues may
parallel private sector mechanisms of supply and demand. Such assumptions are
problematic, as applying this type of metric may be inappropriate to the public
institution of schools. As Brighouse (2004) noted, simply relying on competi-
tion among parents to choose well as the means for ensuring a better quality of
schooling does not take into consideration schools located in more vulnerable
geographic areas (e.g., high-poverty areas, gang-occupied areas, ghettos). Neo- neo-liberalism A
liberal theorists in education rely on the assumption that market-based principles political framework that
prioritizes Free Market
can attend to improving education in those more diverse and challenging areas. principles to govern
Those who are skeptical suggest that the nature of public educational institutions policy and practice, and
a decentralized role of
is more complex, and market mechanisms will not necessarily attract parents to
the state.
those schools or areas that have more challenging circumstances. Relying on mar-
ket mechanisms to ensure quality education is inadequate in those schools where
the population is low, where crime is high, or where the needs of the students may
be disproportionately more costly (as in areas with recent immigrants or refugees).

Pause for Thought

Your Local School District
Consider a large school district in your locality.

• To what extent does it promote the broader democratic values in

society?
• How diverse are the schools across the district?
• Are there informal segregations of student diversity based on where
students live? For example, the east side of a city versus the west side
of the city?
• How sympathetic are you with this argument? Are you more com-
pelled by the idea that schools should have a clear identity and sense
of belonging that may attract like-minded students, or do you think
that schools should reflect the broader society by bringing students
with diverse backgrounds together?
• In what ways do choice schools bring students from diverse back-
grounds together? For example, do they bring students from different
parts of the city together based on geography, socio-economic class,
race, or culture?

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 166 Part IV • Where Should Children Learn?

Conclusion
Debates regarding school choice are central to the Canadian educational land-
scape. Beginning with Canada’s early constitutional negotiations, Canadian edu-
cational policies have been shaped by provisions for French-speaking citizens,
including control over education to preserve, protect, and promote their distinct
francophone linguistic and religious identity. During the 1960s and 1970s, alterna-
tive education programs emerged to promote the Canadian mandate of multi-
culturalism and pluralism. And more recently, the proliferation of market-based
choice reforms is particularly apparent in Alberta and Ontario. In this respect,
Canada has followed an interesting and winding path to school choice.
From a Canadian perspective, this chapter has explored many of the key
debates, positions, perspectives, and developments regarding the historical, social,
cultural, and legal foundations for the provision of school choice. This topic raises
questions about the aims and nature of education; about the role of government,
parents, and market forces in shaping educational debates and decisions; and
about the tension between building a common national identity and allowing for
individual liberty. It is important for Canadian teachers to be familiar with the
underlying complexities of this debate so they can be more resistant to simplistic
or ideological attempts to influence public perspectives.

Review Questions
1. Think back to the discussion of the aims 3. How might school choice lead to greater
of education. What do beliefs about choice social fragmentation?
in education say about a person’s beliefs 4. What principles would guide your decision
about the aims of education? to allow a choice school to be implemented
2. How much choice and what kind of choice in your area?
do you think should be present in educa-
tion? Why?

Further Readings
Ball, D., & Lund, D. (2010). School choice, school cul- Davies, S., & Aurini, J. (2011). Exploring school
ture, and social justice: A Canadian case study. choice in Canada: Who chooses what and why?
Journal of Contemporary Issues in Education, Canadian Public Policy, 37(4), 459‒77.
5(2), 36–52.

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 8 Should School Choice Be Fostered in Public Education? 167

Galabuzi, G. (2009). Making the case for Taylor, A., & MacKay, J. (2008). Three dec-
Africentric education in Toronto. ades of choice in Edmonton schools.
Toronto: Education Action. http:// Journal of Education Policy, 23(5),
educationactiontoronto.com/archive/ 549–66.
making-the-case-for-africentric- Wilson, T. (2015). Exploring the moral com-
education-in-toronto. plexity of school choice: Philosophical
Giddings, G.J. (2001). Infusion of Africentric frameworks and contributions. Studies
content into the school curriculum: in Philosophy of Education, 34, 181‒91.
Towards effective movement. Journal
of Black Studies, 31(4), 462‒82.

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901003_09_Ch09.indd 168 02/12/15 7:58 PM
 PART V
Who Should Control Education?

Part Overview
Understand the competing interests of those who have a stake in education.
Explain how different social groups are impacted by education, and how they in turn
impact education.
Describe what criteria can be used to determine the appropriate types of influence each
different group should have over education.

Overview by Chapter
9 Should Cultural Restoration Be an Aim of Education? Justice, Reconciliation, and
Aboriginal Education 170
• Question the proper role of the state in Aboriginal education.
• Explore whether and how educational institutions today can address past educational
injustices.
• Learn how citizenship education is different in an Aboriginal context.

10 Should Parents Decide How Children Are Educated? 191

• Investigate tension between the role of the state and parents’ right to decide what
their children learn.
• Explain what criteria can best be used to resolve conflicting interests.
• Describe the strengths and limitations parents and the state bring to making decisions
about how best to educate children.

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 9 Should Cultural Restoration Be
an Aim of Education? Justice,
Reconciliation, and Aboriginal
Education

Introduction
Do Canadian teachers have a responsibility to address injustices caused by school
systems of the past? If so, how can they? These are very serious questions to pose
to beginning teachers. But as readers will see, how we face the dark side of our
educational past and what we ought to do about it will be a defining issue for
the future of Canadian schooling. Canada’s Indian Residential School’s Truth and
Reconciliation Commission (which, as of this writing, has been extended to 2015)
has investigated the harms caused by Canada’s policy of forced cultural assimilation
and argued that education will play a pivotal role in moving forward (CBC, 2012).
In this chapter we will address a variety of issues relevant to justice and Aboriginal
education. First, we will make readers more familiar with the historical context
and ethical purpose of Canada’s Truth and Reconciliation process. Second, we
will revisit the idea of education for democratic citizenship (see Chapter 2) and
examine how this issue may play out differently in the Aboriginal education
context. Third, we will explore two important philosophical questions raised by
the commission’s recommendation that education play a central role in restoring
the cultural and traditional knowledge that was lost because of the residential
school system. The first question is about the fairness of cultural restoration as
an aim of education: is it fair for indigenous peoples to receive support for their
culture above and beyond what would normally be permitted for other cultural
groups? The second question asks who should control an educational process
aiming at cultural restoration—the state or First Nations? Finally, we will look at
the role democracy can play in improving the relationship between educational
institutions and Aboriginal peoples.

Residential Schooling and Transitional Justice

Canada’s residential school system involved an extensive network of boarding
schools established in order to forcibly assimilate indigenous populations
into European cultural and religious values. Children, for example, were often
punished for speaking their own language. The system is an integral part of

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 9 Should Cultural Restoration Be an Aim of Education? 171

Canada’s history, extending from at least the 1880s through the mid-1990s. In
recent years, victims of residential schools have increasingly spoken out about
their experiences, and the consequences of residential schooling have continued
to affect the social fabric of indigenous communities (Miller, 1996; Samson, 2003).
In response, a Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) was established in
2008, and in February 2012, the commission released its interim report (Truth
and Reconciliation, 2012). The report detailed findings and recommendations
based on extensive testimony by former students of the residential school system.
Former students experienced physical, emotional, and sexual abuse; the severing
of parental relationships; and the wholesale removal of Aboriginal influence on
their intellectual, cultural, and spiritual development (TRC, p.1). Among the most
disturbing accounts include nutrition experiments involving the withholding of
food (Mosby, 2013).
Teachers, educational leaders, policy-makers, and elected governments will
each have to come to terms with the Commission’s findings and its recommendations.
You yourself may have friends, family, or classmates that have had first-hand
experience with the system. Or, if you are of First Nations or indigenous heritage,
you may be affected by the cultural and social damage caused by residential
schooling.
But how does this affect you, the early career teacher? If you are interested
in becoming a teacher, you probably think that teachers should be trustworthy,
upstanding, and perhaps even a force for the just and the good. Further, we tend
to think of schools as places where students should be made better off from their
learning experience—recall R.S. Peters’s conceptual point, raised in Chapter 1, that
being educated should lead to a desirable state of mind. Yet, we know that teachers
and school administrators played an active role in harming indigenous peoples and
their cultures. As the report stated:

The Commission heard about the hopes that some teachers had had
when they started teaching in residential schools. It heard from teachers
who fought on behalf of students. Teachers spoke of how they came to
question their own work: to wonder about the lack of resources and the
wisdom of attempting to change a people’s culture (TRC, p. 6).

Canadian teachers need to be mindful of the residential school legacy and the
role that this legacy plays in the ambivalence that some segments of the population
understandably feel about state-run, compulsory schooling. Individuals and
families affected by residential schooling can be found in almost any part of the
country—north and south, east and west, rural and urban. Accordingly, every
beginning teacher needs to understand, and be appropriately sensitive to, the
issues that residential schooling and reconciliation raises for students, parents, and
the teaching profession in the contemporary Canadian school. Acknowledging
those issues and being reflective about how they ought to inform our professional
practice is essential to building a trusting relationship between our educational
institutions and Aboriginal people.

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 172 Part V • Who Should Control Education?

CASE STUDY
What Is Transitional Justice?
Canada’s Indian Residential School’s Truth Commission is working within
transitional justice the transitional justice framework. Priscilla Hayner, well known for her
An approach to justice work on truth commissions, frames this approach to justice issues in clear
aimed to redress ser-
ious harms sponsored historical terms:
by governments against
its own citizens in the The world has been overturned with political change in recent
hopes of rebuilding
trust and making soci- years—and especially reaching back to the end of the Cold War
ety more democratic in in 1989—as many repressive regimes have been replaced with
the long run. democratic or semi-democratic governments, and a number of
horrific wars have been brought to an end. At these transitional
moments, a state and its people stand at a crossroads. What
should be done with a recent history full of victims, perpetrators,
secretly buried bodies, pervasive fear, and official denial? Should
this past be exhumed, preserved, acknowledged, apologized for?
How can a nation of enemies be reunited, former opponents rec-
onciled, in the context of such a violent history and often bitter,
festering wounds? What should be done with the thousands of
perpetrators still walking free? And how can a new government
prevent such atrocities from being repeated in the future? While
individual survivors struggle to rebuild shattered lives, to ease
the burning memory of torture suffered or massacres witnessed,
society as a whole must find a way to move on, to recreate a liv-
able space of national peace, build some form of reconciliation
between former enemies, and secure these events in the past
(Hayner, 2010, p. 3-4).

Education for Canadian Identity Revisited

Before we discuss the work of the Commission in more detail, we will first place
it in context with several other philosophical themes that have arisen in earlier
chapters of this book. In Chapter 2 we discussed the extent to which, and ways in
which, the cultural diversity of Canadians makes the idea of “Canadian identity”
a problematic but nonetheless important educational task. We think that most
beginning teachers can and should recognize that a basic education should aim to
help students get a grip on what it means to be a democratic citizen. This includes
teaching students what democracy is and how it works, and perhaps even more

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 9 Should Cultural Restoration Be an Aim of Education? 173

Hayner suggests that these societies have an important choice to

make: they can bury the past and try to forget, or they can acknowledge
their history and make the truth of that history known. Transitional justice
aims for the latter. Transitional justice advocates argue that it is necessarily
different from legal justice, or justice of the courts. First, individuals who
committed atrocities may no longer be prosecutable by the law because
they are no longer alive. Second, the institutions (such as state schools or
the courts themselves) that allowed those crimes to be committed may not
be very different from when those crimes occurred and so more serious
reforms may need to be taken in terms of making institutions serve the
interests of all citizens equally and fairly (Hayner, 2011, p. 8). Transitional
justice aims to redress serious harms sponsored by governments against
its own citizens in the hopes of rebuilding trust and making society more
democratic in the long run.
Transitional justice has “truth” as a core value. Citizens need to know
what happened in the past in order to ensure that the same harms are
not repeated. Those affected by state-sponsored crimes need to have their
experiences acknowledged. But what about the alternative: why might
“burying the past” or trying to forget be unhelpful or harmful in the long
term? Why is it important that young citizens learn about what happened?
What arguments might there be against the idea of transitional justice?
How strong are these arguments? Who decides what really happened in
the past?
Students may find it surprising to see Canada involved in a justice
process of the same moral and political seriousness as countries that have
recently come out of civil wars. Why might the Canadian public be unaware
of these issues?

than this, motivating students to engage in the democratic process throughout

their adult lives. As individuals, students should see their place within the
democratic tradition and value it.
But we also think that part of what it means for students to truly understand
democracy is to understand that pluralism—the recognition that people should
be free to live different ideas of what a good life can look like and to form diverse
communities that reflect those differences—is a natural outcome of any democratic
society (Rawls, 2005, p. xvi). The fact that Canadians in different parts of the
country exercise their freedom in different ways is not an inherently bad thing.
In fact, plurality is one (though not the only) sign that democracy is working.

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 174 Part V • Who Should Control Education?
wrong af wth
When people are free, we should expect differences to arise. Students from diverse
backgrounds should see that democratic life is not a threat to their own traditions
and values.
We can understand, then, why even people who are very interested in liberal
ideas around education for freedom and personal autonomy might be concerned
about the possible loss of a sense of community within Canadian civic society. As
we discussed in Chapter 8, for example, some educational theorists and policy-
makers are concerned that the closure of small and remote schools may deprive
those communities of their ability to continue their way of life. As we have seen
in Chapter 4, these developments may reflect an unhealthy focus on wealth and
consumerism in our political culture. But we also noted throughout this book that
the idea of being a democratic citizen means having some degree of concern for
the welfare of other citizens. We have no choice but to act like consumers some
of the time—we cannot entirely avoid purchasing basic goods and services—
but we are citizens all of the time. Part of our task as citizens is to make a good
life for ourselves, but we think that what it means to make a “good life” involves
helping others in their pursuit of a good life. Citizens should help one another
out. But a culture that invites us to spend more time contemplating the latest
developments in smartphone technology than on social issues such as inequality
or the environment makes that task all the more difficult.
In fact, if we take the current rise of consumer culture, economic inequality,
and individualism as signs that our democratic way of life is not working as well
as it could then the idea of education for Canadian identity might be a good way
to go. We can help children to understand that “being Canadian” and “democratic
values” are logically connected to one another. By this we mean that to say that one
is a Canadian is to mean that one is a democratic citizen. We should make use of
our democratic freedom in order to make our lives and the lives of other Canadians
better. We should be concerned when society is less equal and do something about
it. We should work to ensure that our laws and public policies respect all citizens.
What’s especially “Canadian” about this? Nothing! In general, Canadian
citizens should be motivated by the same democratic values, for the same reasons,
as the citizens of any other democratic country—freedom, equality, and respect for
persons. These are all democratic ideals. But they are not singularly “Canadian.”
We don’t own the patent for them.
This doesn’t mean that our nationality is irrelevant. We are not democratic
citizens who just happen to be Canadian. Students need to become familiar with
the distinct ways in which a Canadian approach to democracy has developed. Our
unique history, for example, means that we have an obligation to ensure that the
democratic process works for three very distinct national traditions: English, French,
and indigenous. Canada, therefore, is arguably more comfortable, in principle if not
in practice, with the recognition of the distinctness of cultural communities, and
the protection of those communities, than some other democratic countries. Those
readers familiar with our language laws or our policy of “official” multiculturalism
will be well aware of this fact. Students need to understand the reasons why such
policies are important and should be respected, as well as the limits of those policies.

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 9 Should Cultural Restoration Be an Aim of Education? 175

The way in which Canadian democracy has taken shape reflects a series of
value judgments about the relative importance of individual freedom, equality,
and community membership in our lives. Accordingly, we can build Canadian
civic identity through an understanding of democratic values and knowledge of
how those democratic values have evolved over time. Is this an approach that
teachers should aim for across the board? We said earlier that Canadian identity
and democratic values are “logically connected.” But for many citizens Canadian
history is anything but a history of democratic progress. For these citizens,
democratic ideals may be important, but they have good reasons for being
hesitant about identifying themselves as “Canadian.” In their daily life and in their
long-term goals, they may experience little that suggests Canadian democracy is
working for them. More specifically, Aboriginal peoples, with their experiences
with residential schooling and in other spheres of life, may have good reasons for
being doubtful about any story that claims our national history has progressively
worked to protect their interests.

Residential Schooling and Canada’s Truth and

Reconciliation Commission
In light of these concerns, the Commission’s interim report makes two key
recommendations with which educators should be concerned. First, the
Commission argued for an increase in public awareness and understanding of
the history of residential schooling. It found that Canadians did not understand
how the harms caused by residential schooling continue to negatively affect the
lives of First Nations and indigenous peoples today. The Commission therefore
recommended that each provincial and territorial government develop a
curriculum dealing with residential schools in order to combat ignorance.
Second, the Commission recommended that the Canadian federal government
work to promote Aboriginal traditional knowledge. As the report put it, “[t]hey
want their languages and traditions . . . [t]hey want the institutions that invested so
much over many decades in undermining their cultures to invest now in restoring
them” (p. 7). In other words, Canadian institutions should aim to support the
restoration of Aboriginal cultures as a matter of justice.
In this section we will examine the arguments for and against each
recommendation, and examine the implications for educational policy and practice.

The Case for Increased Public Understanding of the History and

Consequences of Residential Schooling
It seems to us that requiring provinces and territories to teach children about
Canada’s history of residential schooling is non-controversial and would be a good
thing. There are several reasons we can give in defence of this claim. First, if we
want to prepare students for democratic citizenship then those citizens have to
learn the value of democracy. One way we can do this is to show children what can

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 176 Part V • Who Should Control Education?

happen when democratic principles such as equality and freedom are not respected
among all citizens, as happened in the case of residential schooling. Second, if
Canadian society is to remain a well-functioning political community, its different
member nations must learn to trust one another. If non-indigenous citizens do
not understand the history of residential schooling, they will not understand
the reasons why First Nations people have a more ambivalent relationship with
the state in comparison to citizens with a non-indigenous background. Non-
Aboriginals who do not understand these issues may be unsympathetic to the
unique challenges that First Nations and indigenous peoples face with respect to
their communities and cultures. This is not a good foundation for trust. Third, it
seems likely that in cases where non-Aboriginal Canadians have been subject to
injustice, they would want to have the history of that injustice represented in the
Canadian history curriculum. It would therefore only be a matter of consistency
to require state injustices directed at First Nations and indigenous peoples to be
equally represented in the curriculum.

The Case for Cultural Restoration of Aboriginal Traditional

Knowledge
We think that the second recommendation—education for cultural restoration—
is a more complex issue that deserves greater attention. Should schools develop
and implement curricula aimed at promoting Aboriginal cultural and traditional
knowledge? Transitional justice might call for such reform, but do we have good
educational reasons for doing this? What role can Canadian educators play in
such restoration? Who should control this restoration process, and where do
traditionally liberal aims of education such as personal autonomy play within
such a framework?

Pause for Thought

Understanding the Promise and Challenges of Reconciliation
Read the Truth and Reconciliation (interim) Report (http://www.trc.ca/websites/
trcinstitution/index.php?p=580) or the more recent Final Report Summary
Section, “The Challenge of Reconciliation” (pp. 285–96; http://www.trc.ca/
websites/trcinstitution/File/2015/Findings/Exec_Summary_2015_05_31_
web_o.pdf).
List some of the core recommendations in the report. What reasons
do the report authors give for their recommendations? Why does
education play an important role in the recommendations? Are there any
recommendations you disagree with? Are there any that you would add?

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 9 Should Cultural Restoration Be an Aim of Education? 177

Objections to Cultural Restoration

There may be some objections to cultural restoration. First, some might argue
that, while regrettable, we cannot rewind the historical clock. Many cultures have
risen and fallen through history, often through war. But we don’t go about trying
to restore ancient Greek culture because Greece was taken over by the Roman
republic. What makes the indigenous case special?
It is true that many cultures have disappeared throughout human history,
often through brutality, violence, and forced assimilation. But to move from the
historical fact that cultures developed in this way to the conclusion that we ought
to allow cultures to rise and fall though force and violence (i.e., to conclude that
this is “just the way the world works”) is bad reasoning, an example of what is
sometimes called the “is-ought” fallacy. This fallacy involves making conclusions “is-ought” fallacy
about what ought be the case from what is the case. For example, some people claim A logical fallacy that
involves making conclu-
that because evolution tells us that animals compete for survival, and humans are sions about what ought
animals, we therefore ought to see human relationships in terms of competition be the case from what
and the survival of the fittest. However, this argument provides us with no reasons is the case.

why we should see human relationships in this way. Why ought we always do as
other animals do? It would be much the same as reasoning that because bullying
often happens in schools it is therefore natural and good that there is bullying in
schools. But the pervasiveness of bullying in our schools in no way means that
we should condone such behaviour, or refrain from taking measures to prevent
it from occurring where we can, or help those who have been bullied in the past.
The second objection is more serious. Why should First Nations and
indigenous peoples receive special funding and institutional support to have
their traditional cultural and linguistic knowledge restored? If we let this happen,
so the argument might go, individuals in one kind of cultural community are
getting a better chance at preserving and promoting their cultural values to
the next generation than individuals in other cultural communities. After all,
continuing the cultural norms and values that immigrants bring with them can
also be a struggle. If the state supports one cultural minority, ought it not support
all of them? We say that democracy means treating citizens fairly and equally.
If education for cultural restoration is an aim of education, should it not apply
equally to all groups that want to maintain their culture for future generations? If
we want to help First Nations in a distinct and special way, it makes more sense
to financially compensate those affected by residential schooling. This involves no
risk of cultural bias or unfairness on the part of the state.
This objection seems to go along with one of the central assumptions of
liberal democracy, namely, that the state should not promote any one idea of
the good life above any other. The state should be “neutral” between different
cultural communities. Cultural restoration for one group, and not others, would
undermine this neutrality. The whole point of diverse peoples coming together to
form a democracy is the promise that they will be treated equally and fairly by the
state. When we break this promise, we undermine trust in democracy. Different
cultures should not get special treatment.

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The Case for Cultural Restoration: A Counter-argument

State neutrality between different cultural groups makes sense and is an important
objection to the idea of education for cultural restoration. But something about
the idea of state neutrality in the context of Aboriginal education doesn’t feel
right. We seem to have moved from recognizing the injustices perpetrated on
Aboriginal peoples and our collective responsibility to heal the damage caused
by those injustices, to the idea that nobody in this situation deserves any kind of
special treatment other than some financial compensation. And yet commission
testimony consistently emphasized that financial compensation is not enough.
We can’t, and perhaps shouldn’t, think that “buying off ” those who were treated
unjustly by the state is sufficient for justice. Money is not a substitute for moral
and political recognition. In this section, we will build on this intuition by making
counter-argument An a case for cultural restoration in the form of a counter-argument. Simply put, a
objection to an objec- counter-argument is an objection to an objection. Being able to make a counter-
tion. A counter-argument
requires assessing the argument is an important element of critical thinking. It is not enough to dismiss
reasons underlying an an objection. One must take it head-on and this involves the careful assessment
objection and showing of reasons and, in this case, the reasons why cultural restoration is unfair.
why those reasons are
not sound. Accordingly, in what follows we will look closely at some of these objections, assess
those objections, and use that assessment in order to offer an argument in favour
of cultural restoration.
It might be helpful to think about culture and justice from a different angle.
Yes, it might normally be the case that the state should be neutral between different
cultural groups. But we think that there is something exceptional about the case of
First Nations and indigenous cultures that requires the state to take the additional
step of putting extra educational support in place for their traditional knowledge
and cultures. How can we explain this exception?
Canadian philosopher Will Kymlicka (1989) has made one of the strongest
contributions to our understanding of the place and importance of culture in
diverse democratic societies such as Canada’s. Kymlicka makes two important
points that can help us in thinking through justice and cultural restoration.
First, cultural restoration does not have to be about seeking justice for a
“culture.” Consider that our sense of justice comes from the idea that we value
the human dignity of each individual person. We should treat individual people
with respect. However, we can respect individuals in different ways. For example,
we can respect individuals as citizens. All citizens are entitled to equal citizenship
in a democracy. We can respect their liberties and their political rights. When
people argue that education for cultural restoration is unfair when it promotes
one culture more than others, they are drawing from a sense of respect for people
as citizens. Their concern is that by getting involved in such promotion the state
may end up creating a situation where some citizens are better able to live a good
life or exercise political power than are others. But Kymlicka (1989) argues that
this concern rests on a mistake. The state should not only work to ensure that
individuals are respected as citizens of a country; rather, it also needs to respect
individuals as members of cultural communities. This can in turn affect how we
think about equality and fairness. In Canada, for example, legal interpretation of

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 9 Should Cultural Restoration Be an Aim of Education? 179

the Charter of Rights and Freedoms (Section 15) finds that we must acknowledge
the cultural norms and values of different groups and, where reasonable,
accommodate those differences in the workplace and in schools. The fact that a
person is a member of a culture that has different ideas about how to live than the
majority of Canadians should not unfairly restrict his or her freedom. This means
that it is sometimes appropriate to treat different cultural groups differently: for
example, in allowing people to wear ceremonial daggers to school where normally
such an item would not be allowed. While this involves treating a cultural group
“differently,” it is not unjustified or unfair. We have good reasons for treating
distinct cultural groups differently when it is necessary in order to respect that
individual’s culture or prevent undue hardship. Accordingly, when people argue
that education for cultural restoration is necessary as a matter of justice they
may be relying on respect for people as members of cultural communities, not as
citizens (Kymlicka, 1989). Part of what it means to respect people is to ensure that
they have access to the cultural resources they need in order to live the kind of
lives they think are worth living. While all citizens have the same legal protections
in principle, some citizens may still remain disrespected because they do not have
equal access to those resources. In such cases, the state may have an obligation to
rectify that inequality.
But why is respect for individuals as cultural members important? This leads
to Kymlicka’s (1989) second point about culture and justice. He argues that we
cannot assume that cultural membership is less important than our liberties and primary goods Goods
political rights. Membership in a cultural community is not simply optional or that any citizen must
have in order to live a
something nice to have. Rather, he claims that cultural membership is a primary good life. Examples
good, meaning that it is something that any individual must have if he or she of primary goods
wants to live a good life. It is therefore just as important as equal citizenship. We include health care and
education.
need to be respected both as citizens and as members of a cultural community.

Pause for Thought

Individual Rights vs. Group Rights—How Should We Decide?
Are there times when respect for individuals as citizens and respect for
individuals as members of a cultural community can conflict? If so, how do
we decide which of the two forms of respect is of greater priority? Consider
the example of indigenous communities. Read the story of the Kahnawake
reserve, near Montreal (see http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/
mohawks-seek-to-remove-non-natives-from-kahnawake-1.2736555). Their
policy is that Kahnawake residents (Kanien’kehá:ka) that marry non-natives
must leave the reserve. The band council argues that the policy is necessary
to maintain their culture. Others argue that this policy disrespects both
non-natives and the Kahnawake who wish to marry outside of the reserve.

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 180 Part V • Who Should Control Education?

What reasons does he give for cultural membership as a primary good? As

Kymlicka puts it, living well in a democracy means being free and able to choose
how we want to live. Our political rights include the freedom to make choices for
ourselves. However, as he further states:

[t]he range of options is determined by our cultural heritage. Different

ways of life are not simply different patterns of physical movements. The
physical movements only have meaning to us because they are identified
as having significance by our culture, because they fit into some pattern
of activities which is culturally recognized as a way of leading one’s
life. We learn about these patterns of activity through their presence
in stories we’ve heard about the lives, real or imaginary, of others. They
become potential models, and define potential roles, that we can adopt
as our own. From childhood on, we become aware both that we are
already participants in certain forms of life (familial, religious, sexual,
educational, etc.) and that there are other ways of life which offer
alternative models and roles that we may, in time, come to endorse.
We decide how to lead our lives by situating ourselves in these cultural
narratives, by adopting roles that have struck us as worthwhile ones, as
ones worth living (Kymlicka, 1989, p. 165).

This take on the value of culture may ring familiar to the individual‒
community debate covered in Chapter 8, but with an important addition. We spent
a lot of time in that chapter exploring the extent to which, and ways in which, our
well-being depends on either individual freedom to choose or membership in a
community, values that sometimes conflict. What Kymlicka is essentially saying
in the quotation is that cultural membership, or membership in a community, is
actually necessary for choice.
So we have two kinds of respect: for equal citizenship (individuality, rights,
liberties) and cultural membership (belonging to a community, meaningful
choices, ways of life that are valued by society). Kymlicka points out that when
we think about respect, we often assume that respect always means respect for
equal citizenship. From this point of view, we can see why people would think that
education for cultural restoration is unfair. We are treating individuals differently.
But when we realize that respect for cultural membership is also important, we
do not have to reason along these lines. There are occasions where respect for
cultural membership requires that we support those cultures if we want to support
individual freedom.
But how do we know when such support is warranted? After all, one could
make the argument that many cultural minorities could benefit from cultural
support. However, as we have already seen, the state should, ordinarily, remain
neutral between different cultural communities. So, what reasons do we have for
seeing First Nations and indigenous cultures having special status relative to other
cultural groups? What makes them an exception to the “neutrality” rule? In order
to make the case, let’s build from the idea of “patterns of activity” that Kymlicka

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 9 Should Cultural Restoration Be an Aim of Education? 181

draws on. Consider the cultural experiences of many English-speaking white

Canadians. For these citizens, their pursuit of a good life involves a relatively high
degree of freedom of movement. Such citizens do not have to spend much time
wondering if their choices will be valued or respected, or if the cultural forms they
want to engage in will continue into the future. They do not have to spend time
advocating for the legitimacy of their chosen way of life. They don’t have to worry
that their native language will cease to exist. Their major patterns of activity are
virtually unquestioned. This may be very different from the cultural experience of
many Aboriginal citizens. Again, citing Kymlicka (1989): “Unlike the dominant
French or English cultures, the very existence of aboriginal communities is vulner­
able to the decisions of the non-aboriginal majority around them. . . . As a result,
they have to spend their resources on securing the cultural membership which
makes sense of their lives, something which non-aboriginal people get for free”
(p. 187). Put simply, the majority of Canadians do not have to worry too much
about protecting their range of options—their culture defines what the range is—
but Aboriginal peoples have to invest time and effort to ensure that their cultural
traditions remain a viable choice within that larger culture.
Further, these circumstances did not come about because of changes in
Aboriginal cultures that evolved over time through the choices of Aboriginal
peoples. Rather, state policy and residential schools deliberately undermined that
process. As philosopher John Danely (1991) puts it:

[A]boriginals are not merely equal citizens. This assumption is insensitive

to morally relevant historical and legal facts. To assume that a member
of an aboriginal culture is merely a fellow citizen is to fail to respect the
aboriginal status of that culture and the special moral and legal claims that
members of that culture have. An important part of the morally important
historical reality is the ignoble story of violence, conquest, deceit, threat
and broken promises and treaties of which we are all familiar. (p. 182)

In the case of Canada, of course, the “relevant facts” include First Nations and
indigenous peoples having had their traditions and cultures forcibly taken away
from them—disrespected—through institutionalized schooling. Aboriginal groups
remain “outside” of the democratic framework, so to speak, in that they continue
to directly experience the consequences of forced relocation and schooling that
developed alongside the founding of the country. This greatly diminishes the
range of options they have within their own cultures in comparison to many non-
Aboriginal citizens. Therefore, it seems reasonable and not unfair for the state to
provide resources to promote and restore Aboriginal cultures, to undo some of the
cultural damage wrought by state-sponsored residential schooling.

Who Should Control Aboriginal Education?

In the last section we argued that Canada’s indigenous peoples ought to have
special status relative to other cultural minorities in Canada. More specifically,

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 182 Part V • Who Should Control Education?

Pause for Thought

Why Does Culture Matter?
Kymlicka (1989) argues that culture is important because having a sense
of cultural identity informs the range of choices that we have ahead of us.
Culture is useful for offering a range of choices. What do you think of this
account of the value of culture? Does it capture what cultural membership
means to you? Does it not?

unlike Canada’s cultural minorities, indigenous peoples were deliberately deprived,

by the state, of the cultural resources their individual members need in order to
have an equal chance at living out a good life within that cultural tradition. It is on
these grounds that cultural restoration is fair in the case of Aboriginal education.
However, what specific policies and practices should school systems adopt in
order to succeed in that aim? This question leads to another difficult philosophical
problem.
Here is why. Teachers in schools can, in general, work to make sure that
Aboriginal cultures are as well represented and presented in as positive a light
as any other cultural tradition in Canada. Given the negative light in which
indigenous peoples have often been portrayed in some segments of society, we
have reason to devote more time to a more accurate picture of Aboriginal culture
and history. This could involve ensuring that Aboriginal themes and curricular
“deficit” model An content are not presented to students in what is sometimes called a “deficit”
approach to edu- model. The deficit model approaches First Nations and other Aboriginal societies
cational policy and
practice that focuses on as “lacking” or behind in some way. However, we also think that teachers should
the individual student be wary of presenting a romantic or patronizing view of Aboriginal cultures in
or cultural background their attempts to compensate for negative messaging. No culture or society is
as the cause of low
educational attainment perfect and students should be aware of the challenges that Aboriginal and non-
or as lacking in some Aboriginal citizens alike face. As with many aspects of teacher practice, considered
way, shape, or form. and reflective judgment is essential.
However, from a transitional justice perspective this approach may not be
enough. On this view, cultural restoration requires policies and curriculum
stronger than an equal, fair, and accurate representation of cultures. There are two
reasons for this view (see Martin, 2014).
First, experience suggests that cultural representation policies are too thin
to really do full justice to cultural restoration as an aim of education. Coastal
Labrador serves as a good example. Here the school board established a policy
where absences for participation in annual traditional hunts are deemed cultural
or traditional leave, and students are no longer penalized for such absences
(Degnen, 2001). However, such policies do not recognize the Aboriginal values

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 9 Should Cultural Restoration Be an Aim of Education? 183

and practices that define the hunt as essential features of the educational process
but more as a matter of cultural tolerance or as a way of eliminating perceived
cultural bias. In other words, from the non-Aboriginal point of view, the hunt was
not seen as an educationally worthwhile activity. Similarly, Samson’s analysis of
Aboriginal “culture days” in Labrador reveals the kind of tokenism about native
cultures that can arise when such culture is grafted onto the daily workings of a
school system that has been designed according to the traditions and routines of
a Eurocentric model of education (Samson, 2003). What we mean by this is that
cultural restoration requires more than hanging indigenous art in school hallways
or holding a “First Nations Day.” For schools to celebrate Aboriginal cultures
but have no Aboriginal content on the curriculum seems like a contradiction.
Restoration has to involve the genuine recognition of the education values and
aims that are themselves part of First Nations and indigenous traditions. If we
simply try to “fit” Aboriginal cultures into schools where it is merely easy or
convenient to do so, cultural restoration may be misrepresented or not taken as
seriously as it ought to be.
Second, state schools face the problem of legitimacy. When we say that an legitimacy The accept-
institution is legitimate, we mean that citizens believe that the institution uses its ance of authority or
power. For example,
power in appropriate and ethical ways. In the democratic tradition, legitimacy an institution such
arises from the consent of the governed—they feel that their voice matters in as a public school
how institutions use their authority. For example, Canadian schools have the is legitimate when
citizens believe that
authority to make schooling compulsory. Parents are required by law to ensure such schools use their
that their children attend. However, Aboriginal groups that have been subjected power in appropriate
to oppression and abuse at the hands of the state are understandably wary of and ethical ways. In a
democracy, legitimacy
recognizing the legitimacy of our state-run compulsory schooling. Aboriginal arises from the consent
groups may, in some cases, consent to give up some of their political autonomy of the governed, mean-
in return for membership in the liberal state, but the historical record shows that ing that the acceptance
of authority must be
the state has not held up its end of the bargain (Avio, 1994; Degnen, 2001). So some form of popular
long as educational policies aimed at cultural restoration, even culturally inclusive acceptance.
ones, originate from institutions under the control of the state, such policies will
confront the problem of legitimacy. Who is deciding what cultural restoration
looks like, and why should Aboriginal citizens trust such decisions?
This point raises difficult questions about the extent to which the state should
cede control of education over to local Aboriginal communities, an issue that
promises to only become more prominent into the future. Accordingly, we think
that it is important that you recognize the moral and political complexities around
state control of education, especially in the First Nations context.
Defenders of state control argue that without authority over educational
standards society has no way of ensuring that children in all communities will
receive the kind of education that they need in order to live a personally autonomous
life. As Canadian philosopher of education Kevin McDonough (1998) has argued,
for example, schools should only promote cultural identity to the point at which
it facilitates the student’s range of options. He points out that placing too strong
an emphasis on a particular cultural identity might pressure students to conform
to the expectations of that culture. This would actually reduce students’ range of

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 184 Part V • Who Should Control Education?

CASE STUDY
“Culture Days,” Cultural Appropriation, and the School
Many of the schools that once played a role in the cultural assimilation of
Aboriginal peoples are the same schools that are supposed to play a role
in providing public education to those same citizens. On the one hand,
school leaders often attempt to incorporate Aboriginal cultural activities
in the school routine in order to make school attendance more appealing
for Aboriginal parents and students. In Labrador, for example, “culture
days” feature lessons in Innu cultural tradition, such as animal skinning and
traditional recipes. While many teachers and educational leaders believe
that such days represent a step forward and away from residential schooling,
cultural appropriation others have charged these days with involving cultural appropriation.
The adoption of cultural
Cultural appropriation is the adoption of cultural practices and traditions
practices and traditions
(such as art, language, (such as art, language, or cultural dress) of one group by another. As Colin
or cultural dress) of one Samson (2000) puts it in his study of “culture days”: “Tapping into what is
group by another.
now a popular and widespread New Age appropriation of Native American
and Asian images [educational leaders] envisioned dream-work, creation
stories and energy shakras [as] spiritual tools for the young Innu” (p. 100).
He goes on to describe how culture days are often confusing for both
teachers and students. For example, the teaching of hunting traditions,
which involve long treks into the Labrador wilderness over months, take
place entirely on school grounds within the space of a class or two.
Many teachers and educational leaders would defend culture days
on the grounds that it makes the school more “friendly” for Aboriginal
students. Innu leaders criticize culture days because they misrepresent
Innu culture and place responsibility for the teaching of such culture in the
hands of non-native educators.
What could educational leaders, teachers, and policy-makers do in order
to help make the inclusion of Innu culture educationally worthwhile for both
Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal students? Who should decide what would be
needed in order to ensure that such inclusion is educationally worthwhile?

options and harm the development of their personal autonomy. On this view, First
Nations and other schools pursuing cultural restoration as an aim of education
must proceed with caution and should account for how they are ensuring that this
aim is not being taken up at the expense of personal autonomy. For example, if
English or French is necessary for employment outside of First Nations reserves,
it follows that students must learn one of those languages. Otherwise, those
students will not be free to pursue their own economic well-being. They will then

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 9 Should Cultural Restoration Be an Aim of Education? 185

be dependent on the reserve for economic opportunities. Note that this argument
does not assume that Aboriginal groups do not value personal autonomy; rather,
it suggests that the aim of cultural restoration must be pursued carefully, with
autonomy and cultural membership as necessary parts of the larger picture.
Some defenders of First Nations control of education might argue that personal
autonomy is a European cultural ideal. Liberal political values were invented in
Europe and they have been imported and imposed on indigenous peoples. Being
asked to conform to this cultural ideal is simply another example of non-Aboriginal
society trying to impose its way of life on Aboriginal peoples. Unless Aboriginal
communities control their educational aims and content and resist non-Aboriginal
cultural influences, education for cultural restoration will not succeed.
We do not think that this is an especially good argument in favour of First
Nations control of education. First, it rests on a logical fallacy called the genetic genetic fallacy A
fallacy. The genetic fallacy involves judging the truth, goodness, or worthwhileness logical fallacy that
involves judging the
of something based on where it came from or who it came from. For example, value of a claim, belief,
criticizing someone for practising cross bowing because crossbows were originally or value based on
designed to kill other people in brutally violent wars is a genetic fallacy. There where it came from or
who states it.
are many reasons why people would use a crossbow today, but it would be wrong
to assume that those who use them do so because they intend to promote war
and brutality. Similarly, it may be true that our democratic ideas around freedom,
equality, and personal autonomy originated in Europe, and it may even be true that
colonizers misused those ideas in order to try and justify cultural assimilation and
other unjust colonial practices. It may even be the case that our culture overvalues
some forms of personal autonomy (see Chapters 4 and 8). However, it would be
illogical to assume that these facts mean that political values such as freedom and
equality can only benefit citizens of European ancestry or that those who promote
these values today have explicit or unexamined colonial motives for doing so.
Second, this argument assumes that First Nations and Aboriginal citizens
do not value personal autonomy to begin with. We suspect that this assumption
might have more to do with stereotypes of indigenous cultures as something to be
preserved in some kind of time capsule. In reality, Aboriginal cultures are vibrant
parts of the modern Canadian experience even if many non-Aboriginal people are
unaware of or fail to appreciate them.
However, there is a better argument to be made of in favour of First Nations
control of education. Moderate defenders of First Nations control of education
might argue that local communities are in a better position to know what their
children need to learn in order to live autonomous lives. While they agree with
personal autonomy as an aim of education, they may not agree with the Eurocentric
interpretation of what that aim should look like and how we should teach for
it (Martin, 2014). On this view, requiring Aboriginal children to conform to
provincial educational standards determined solely by a non-Aboriginal majority
may actually harm personal autonomy by alienating children from the cultural
experiences they need to have in order to feel confident in their “patterns of
movement,” as Kymlicka might put it. Take a particular example, which involved
a marking board for a standardized English test that was administered in a public

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 186 Part V • Who Should Control Education?

school located in a largely Innu community. Many Innu students scored very low
on their written responses to a poem that was part of the assessment. Some marking
board members expressed concern that the school was not focused enough
on ensuring that teachers and students were working toward the provincially
mandated curriculum standards. However, on closer examination, it turned out
that the marking rubric was grounded in an urban, middle-class assumption about
the proper meaning and significance of the poem. The poem was about a dog
that, because he was tied up outside his house during the winter, ran away when
he had a chance to escape. The dog did not return to help the owner when he
was in danger. Students were expected to recognize that the poem was a didactic
poem about respecting freedom. For some Innu families, however, dogs are not
always seen as pets but as working animals to help with hunting and other tasks.
They are often sheltered outside and away from the house. Accordingly, some Innu
students did not see the lesson in the poem and responded “incorrectly.” When

Pause for Thought

Policy Debate: Bill C-33, First Nations Control of Education
The debate about who should control education is not simply an abstract
philosophical discussion, but rather it intrudes on educational policy issues,
with relevance for all Canadians.
See, for example, the recently tabled First Nations Control of
Education Act: http://www.parl.gc.ca/HousePublications/Publication.aspx?
Language=E&Mode=1&DocId=6532106
As stated in the summary, the act aims to “[p]rovide for the control
by First Nations of their elementary and secondary education systems. It
establishes a framework to enable First Nations to exercise that control
by administering schools situated on their reserves.” Yet, the act was met
with major controversy among many indigenous stakeholders, including
the Assembly of First Nations (AFN). Eventually, the act was put on hold and
has to date not been made law.
Research both the content of the act and the controversy in stories such as
those filed by the CBC and other media sources (e.g., http://www.cbc.ca/news/
aboriginal/first-nations-education-bill-ottawa-won-t-move-forward-1.2659516).
What are the major issues regarding the bill from the point of view of
some indigenous groups? What counterarguments does the government
offer in favour of the bill? How much control of education does the bill
actually grant to First Nations, in your view? For an excellent overview of
the bill, see the Caledon Institute for Social Policy report by Mendelson
(2014, http://www.caledoninst.org/publications/pdf/1049eng.pdf).

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 9 Should Cultural Restoration Be an Aim of Education? 187

First Nations and indigenous communities have a greater say in the standards,
content, and assessment of basic schooling, such misunderstandings are less likely
to take place. Note that this argument does not entail the rejection of traditional
liberal aims of education, economic well-being, or even provincial standards. But
it does argue in favour of greater control regarding what those aims and standards
look like in practice.

Education and Deliberative Democracy

The controversy over Bill C-33 (see the Pause for Thought) shows that despite
the progress made in Canada’s Truth and Reconciliation process, significant work
needs to be done if we are to be successful in building the trust between Aboriginal
and non-Aboriginal peoples necessary for our democratic institutions to meet the
educational needs of all Canadian citizens. But how can we do this? Some members
of government supported Bill C-33, while others did not. Some members of the
Assembly of First Nations (AFN) supported the bill, while others did not. Many
different interests were in play.
One common criticism of the bill is that the government’s proposal failed to be
sufficiently consultative and democratic. We therefore suspect that any successful
long-term solution to the problem of First Nations governance of education will
require a greater focus on deliberative democracy. Deliberative democracy is
an approach to decision-making that focuses on public deliberation, reasoned deliberative democracy
An approach to deci-
argument, and agreement. It claims the good decisions must include the interests sion-making that focuses
and perspectives all affected by that decision. It also emphasizes the idea that each on public deliberation,
participant in the deliberation is to be treated as equal. reasoned argument, and
agreement. It claims the
One influential account of deliberative democracy is philosopher Jurgen good decisions must
Habermas’s discourse ethics. Habermas (1998) argues that important ethical include the interests and
decisions and social policies require input from the multiple perspectives of perspectives all affected
by that decision. It also
all those affected by those decisions or policies. Participants must engage in an emphasizes the idea
ethical dialogue where they seriously consider how the decision will affect others that each participant in
and themselves. The participants should try to arrive at an agreement on what to the deliberation is to be
treated as equal.
do based on good reasons instead of using power, intimidation, or bribery. This
requires each participant to seriously consider what it would be like to be each
one of the other parties in the discussion—that is, to put oneself in the shoes
of all the others. You know what it would be like if the rule or policy affects
reciprocal perspective
you, but how would it affect each other person? This kind of ethical thinking taking An approach
is called reciprocal perspective taking. Habermas argues that moral decisions to ethical thinking and
and social policies that are implemented without insufficient deliberation and moral deliberation
that involves serious
reciprocal perspective taking can lead to the unjust imposition of one group’s consideration of how
interests and values on the interests and values of others. Discourse ethics is important decisions
developed in part to ensure that those with little power can have equal say in the or policies would
affect other people.
decision-making process. Such thinking involves
But how do participants arrive at a decision and how do they know that their putting oneself “in the
dialogue is ethical? Habermas suggests that anyone participating in an ethical shoes” of other people
different from oneself.
dialogue should abide by the following deliberative rules:

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 188 Part V • Who Should Control Education?

1) that nobody who could make a relevant contribution to the

deliberation may be excluded.
2) that all participants are granted an equal opportunity to make
contributions.
3) that the participants must mean what they say (i.e., they do not
lie).
4) that deliberation must be freed from intimidation, threat or
other forms of force so that the position that participants take on
the decision or policy is based on good reasons. (1998, p. 44)
In the Aboriginal educational context we can see how a discourse ethical
approach may be appropriate. As we have pointed out in Chapter 1, deciding the
aims and values of education is a fundamental ethical issue. As ethical issues,
decisions we make about education aims and values require the input of all
affected—they are not only for educational specialists or administrators to decide
(Martin, 2012). Second, because there are likely significant cultural differences
within Aboriginal communities and between non-Aboriginal and Aboriginal
citizens, the greater mutual understanding and reciprocal perspective taking
that discourse ethics aims to promote may be especially helpful in arriving at
educational policies that address the interests of all. Third, this approach would
be very different from the current one, where government designs a complete
solution and proposes it to First Nations peoples. The traditional approach to
governance issues on areas such as education has been asymmetrical—the federal
government has greater power and Aboriginal peoples try to resist where they can.
Discourse ethics aims at a symmetrical dialogue where all parties are treated as
being equal in power. Aboriginal citizens may see greater legitimacy in a form of
educational governance that they have had real say in what is decided. Fourth, there
is a sense in which discourse ethics gives us an opportunity to “try again” in the
non-Aboriginal/Aboriginal relationship. What we mean here is that early contact
between non-Aboriginal and Aboriginal peoples led to political agreements that
were not decided through ethical dialogue but through control and power. An
ethical discourse about Aboriginal education between government and Aboriginal
peoples would have to begin with mutual respect between each party (Avio, 1996).
This may be a better place for a discussion about educational control and cultural
restoration. In sum, a successful long-term solution to educational issues between
the Canadian government and Aboriginal people will require some willingness to
give up some control, and some willingness to place trust in the process. We do not
think that such willingness is easy to come by, but it is necessary.

Conclusion
While debates about indigenous education involve broad questions about who
should control First Nations education, what that education should look like,
and what values should define it, the role of the teacher remains paramount. In

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 9 Should Cultural Restoration Be an Aim of Education? 189

this chapter, we have argued that teachers have a responsibility to ensure that
future Canadian citizens are better informed, both about residential school-
ing and indigenous cultures. An additional lesson that beginning teachers may
want to take from the residential schooling experience is that traditionally lib-
eral aims such as freedom and equality, and how we teach for them, do not have
to be defined and interpreted in terms of cultural activities that we are most
comfortable and familiar with. What we mean by this is that one of the challen-
ges of teaching for personal autonomy in a multicultural society such as Canada
is to remain open-minded and imaginative about the ways in which different
cultures and communities enable children to lead autonomous lives. We should
be careful to distinguish between the way in which many in the majority culture
imagine what an autonomous life should look like and what an autonomous
life can look like among different peoples. Teachers should therefore be very
careful not to dismiss as “useless” or “irrelevant” the development of autono-
mous cultural activities or traditions that are not part of the mainstream or
are not recognized in the “approved” curriculum. Reciprocal perspective taking
is important at the level of teacher practice, not just policy-making. As our
residential history shows, there is sometimes a difference between what ruling
governments decide is educationally worthwhile and what is in fact education-
ally worthwhile. It was a failure of open-mindedness and perspective taking,
we think, that contributed to the conditions leading to the establishment of
residential schooling in the first place. If beginning teachers wish to restore the
credibility of their profession in a post-Truth Commission world, they should
be mindful of this lesson.

CASE STUDY
Residential Schooling Video
Watch this 1950s propaganda film on Canadian residential schools: https://
www.youtube.com/watch?v=s_V4d7sXoqU
What assumptions about aims and values of education is this
documentary making?
Notice that the narrator says, “Instead of the isolation and neglect
of the past, a free and equal chance for children in urban centres.” How
might the narrator’s words about the nature of civic freedom and equality
differ from how we understand it today? How might ethical or reciprocal
perspective-taking change people’s views?

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 190 Part V • Who Should Control Education?

Review Questions
1. What is transitional justice and what are its 4. What justification is offered for First
core aims? Why is this form of justice relevant Nations and indigenous peoples as hav-
to Canada’s history of residential schooling? ing special status in terms of cultural res-
2. What is the “is-ought” fallacy? Give an toration in comparison to other cultural
example of such a fallacy. minorities?
3. What is the difference between respect for
equal membership and respect for cultural
membership?

Further Readings
Atleo, E.R. (2012). Principles of Tsawalk: An Indigen- Educational Theory, 64(1), 33‒53.
ous approach to global crisis. Vancouver: Uni- Samson, C. (2000). Teaching lies: The Innu experi-
versity of British Columbia Press. ence of schooling. London Journal of Canadian
Gereluk, D. (2007). What not to wear: Dress codes and Studies, 16, 83‒102.
uniform policies in the common school. Journal Shariff, S., & Shariff, S. (2006). Balancing compet-
of Philosophy of Education, 41(4), 643‒57. ing rights: A stakeholder model for democratic
Martin, C. (2014). Transitional justice and the task schools. Canadian Journal of Education/Revue
of inclusion: A Habermasian perspective on the canadienne de l’éducation, 476‒96.
justification of Aboriginal educational rights.

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 10 Should Parents Decide How
Children Are Educated?

Introduction
The notion of parents’ authority over their children’s schooling deserves attention.
At one end of the spectrum, parents may have little to no say in nationalized edu-
cation systems, while at the opposite end parents may have incredible discretion
in decisions regarding their children’s education. Some people believe raising chil-
dren in a particular way is a parental right, while others argue that raising children
is a parental privilege. Yet, parents make decisions and influence their children’s
upbringing in multiple ways. For example, they decide which school their chil-
dren attend; they influence what is taught and the learning style that is used; and
they may contribute to the ethos or community of the school, the type of gov-
ernance, and decision-making process of the school. The extent to which parents
have a “right” in these matters has significant bearing on the type of schooling
children experience.
Given that a spectrum of parental rights exists regarding the type of schooling
children receive, this chapter examines the topic from three distinct perspectives.
First, we take a look at the principle of parens patriae—a common-law doctrine
that ensures the state’s right in protecting the child’s welfare by regulating parental
authority. Next, we examine three arguments that give reasons for the support of
parental rights, namely:

• Parents are the best people to protect their own children’s interests,
• Parents have a right to raise their children with particular beliefs and values,
• The state should have minimal intervention in the private sphere of parent‒
child relationships.

In the latter portion of this chapter, we take into consideration arguments lob-
bied against parental rights that support the state’s obligations and responsibilities.
Here, three particular arguments are pertinent:

• Although parents are well intentioned, they may lack adequate skills for rais-
ing children,

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 192 Part V • Who Should Control Education?

• Children should be exposed to ways of life that are counter to their upbringing,
• The state has a particular responsibility in developing a political education
for children consistent with the rights and responsibilities within broader
democratic society.

Before we move on to these opposing arguments, we reconsider the notion of

parens patriae first introduced in Chapter 6.

Parens Patriae
Within the broad spectrum of parents’ rights regarding their children’s schooling,
parens patriae Latin for such parental rights are balanced by the common-law doctrine of parens patriae.
“parent of the nation.” The scope and parameters of parens patriae are extensive in regulating parents’
A doctrine that grants
the inherent power and educational authority, therein ensuring protection of the child’s welfare interests.
authority of the state Jason Blokhuis (2008) noted that “In exercising parens patriae authority, courts do
to protect persons who not consider parental wishes. Rather, they ask what the particular child would do
are legally unable to act
on their own behalf. if s/he were a competent adult, explicitly giving legal effect to her/his autonomy
interests” (p. 405). This robust interpretation suggests that state interventions may
reasonably contravene the interests of parents in protecting the well-being of chil-
dren. In particular, the state may intervene when compelling evidence indicates
the child is at risk. Parens patriae may be invoked when there are indications of
child abuse or neglect from an adult. As members of the state, educational institu-
tions have obligations to protect the child’s interests and notify appropriate social
service agencies.
From this common-law parens patriae perspective, two aspects are particu-
larly pertinent in regards to children’s schooling. First, in their early years, children
are especially dependent upon their agency rights. They do not have the cogni-
tive or developmental capacities to be fully autonomous individuals. They depend
upon and are vulnerable to the adults who make important decisions about
their lives. Second, given this dependency, a function of parens patriae custodial
authority is that adults must “facilitate the prospective autonomy of the persons
for whom they act as substitute decision makers” (Blokhuis, 2010, p. 200). Here,
the state may have the authority to contravene the interests of those adults who
impede children’s autonomy. In keeping with parens patriae, the state may super-
vene when individual custodians act unreasonably in terms of their unwilling-
ness or manifest inability (or unfitness) to prioritize the independent welfare and
developmental interests of the child (Blokhuis, 2010).
Few would suggest the education of children should rest solely either with
parents or with government authorities. Children obviously benefit from being
raised by their parents, while the influence of parents’ values and beliefs on chil-
dren raises several educational concerns. For instance, parents may have narrow
levels of expertise, and they may lack exposure to alternative ways of living and
the public values required for larger civil society. Conversely, an educational plat-
form that rests solely with governmental educational authorities is also problem-
atic. A centralized educational system that ignores parental views may lack the

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 10 Should Parents Decide How Children Are Educated? 193

flexibility to meet diverse children’s needs. Educational systems that disregard the
values and beliefs of families and communities may contradict the overarching
social aims of fostering diversity and tolerance. In this way, the education of chil-
dren as a solely parental or governmental endeavour seems both untenable and
undesirable to implement. The debate hinges on striking a balance between these
two competing positions.
To understand how these competing values play out in educational debates,
let us turn to recent legislation in Alberta under the Alberta Human Rights Act
that provides an opt-out clause for parents.

CASE STUDY
Parental Opt-Out Clause
In 2009, the Human Rights, Citizenship, and Multiculturalism Act (2009) was
amended to address issues regarding sexual orientation. Under section 11.1
of the newly named Alberta Human Rights Act, a parental opt-out clause
was adopted, stating in part:

A board as defined in the School Act shall provide notice to a

parent or guardian of a student where courses of study, educa-
tional programs or instructional materials, or instruction or exer-
cises, prescribed under that Act include subject-matter that deals
primarily and explicitly with religion, human sexuality or sexual
orientation (Alberta Human Rights Act, section 11.1).

Section 11.1 of the Alberta Human Rights Act (2009) requires teachers
to give prior written notice to parents when the subject matters of reli-
gion, human sexuality, and sexual orientation are primarily and explicitly
addressed in class. Arguments for the parental opt-out clause were predi-
cated on parents having the primary right to determine the education their
child receives. Education Minister David Hancock explained at that time:

There are topics of human sexuality, which have always been issues
of concern to parents about how their children are instructed in
those areas. Many parents want to know when that instruction
happens, and they want to be able to know either that their child
could be excluded from that or included. . . . We would encourage
parents to be involved in their children’s education, to understand
what’s in the curriculum, and to have the opportunity, where they

continued

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 194 Part V • Who Should Control Education?

object, to have their child opt out (The 27th Legislature, Second
Session, Alberta Hansard, May 4, 2009, p. 927).

The governing Conservative party’s rationale was that parents have

the right and discretion to educate their children in a particular manner.
Issues that commonly lack consensus in the public sphere—such as major
contested moral, religious, and socio-political matters—are to be left in the
hands of the family unit.
The central concern raised by opposition MLAs, Alberta teachers, and
the public was the potential “chill” this legislation would have on teachers’
practices in the classrooms. As opposition MLA Brian Mason pointed out:

[E]ven if the Human Rights Commission makes reasonable interpret-

ations of the act when charges are brought, it will have a profound
effect on the education of our children because teachers will never
know what it is that they can talk about if issues relating to sexuality,
sexual orientation, or religion come up spontaneously in a class-
room outside of their lesson plan. So they will adjust their behaviour
accordingly. You could call it self-censorship (The 27th Legislature
Second Session, Alberta Hansard, May 13, 2009, Issue 41e, 1163).

Discussion of the legislation brought forward several significant con-

cerns for classroom teachers: fear of reprisal and the legal ramifications of
being called before a human rights tribunal, the potential for increased
self-censorship, and the blurred parameters for reasonable discussion as
related to meaningful teacher-student interaction. These undue tensions
had major relevance given that the amendments were introduced in terms
of human rights legislation under the authority of the Alberta Human Rights
Commission rather than as an educational issue within the Education Act.
Despite public concern and opposition, the parental opt-out clause
under Bill 44 was passed on June 2, 2009, following 36 days of deliberation.
The Alberta Human Rights Act came into effect in fall of 2009, with a one-
year grace period for the implementation of section 11.1 to allow time for
Alberta Education and school districts to prepare policies and procedures
in compliance with the parental opt-out clause.

Questions:
• What is your initial reaction to this legislation?
• From the parents’ perspective, do you think parents have the final say
whether their children can opt out of certain classes?
• From the teacher’s perspective, do you think parents have the final say
whether their children opt out of certain classes?
• How might section 11.1 impact the notion of teachers’ self-censorship?

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 10 Should Parents Decide How Children Are Educated? 195

Having considered how philosophical issues regarding parental authority

may play out in real life, let us examine the broader theoretical debates. In the next
section, we consider arguments commonly presented in favour of parental rights.

Arguments in Favour of Parental Rights

Numerous interpretations of parents’ moral duties and obligations suggest that
parents are the final arbiters in how they raise their children. For instance, Article
26 of the Universal Declaration on Human Rights (1948) states, “Parents have a
prior right to choose the kind of education that shall be given to their children.”
Given this statement, one might argue that parental rights should be uncontested.
The issue is a closed and settled matter. Yet, one of the most vociferous debates in
education involves striking a balance between parents’ rights to raise their chil-
dren in a particular way and the obligations of the state to protect the welfare and
agency of children. Let us consider three of the commonly cited arguments in
favour of parental rights.

Parents Are the Best People to Protect Their Own Children’s

Interests
One of the most prominent arguments in favour of parental rights is based on parental rights The
the unique and special relationship between parents and their children. Judith extraordinary moral and
legal parental privileges
Suissa (2006) explained that for many people, the notion of parenthood—or associated with the
perhaps more specifically motherhood—has occupied a sacred space through- intimate and intensely
out history. Relationships between parents and children are distinguished by an bonding relationships
between parents and
intimate and intense bonding unlike any other form of relation. In Nicomachean their children.
Ethics, Aristotle anchors the unique characteristics of parent‒child relations in
the acknowledgment that “parents love their children as being a part of them-
selves.” Parents care for their children because the bond between parent and child
is in many ways an extension of the parent’s sense of self. The child is inseparable
from and inextricably tied to the parent’s identity. In keeping with this view of
the child as part of the parent’s sense of self, Aristotle argues there can be no
injustice by parents towards their children, as an individual would not be unjust
towards one’s self.
Writing in the seventeenth century, philosopher John Locke expresses a
sentiment similar to Aristotle: “God hath woven into the Principles of Human
Nature such a tenderness for their Off-spring, that there is little fear that Parents
should use their power with too much rigour; the excess is seldom on the severe
side, the strong byass of Nature drawing the other way” (Locke, 1960, p. 355).
Locke describes the parent‒child bond as an internal almost primordial biological
aspect that is not learned or nurtured, but exists as part of a broader evolutionary
condition. His description parallels what many individuals commonly refer to
as the “unconditional love” or “instinctual bond” that occurs given the nature of
the parent‒child relationship. This seems to be a sensible perspective that many
individuals would hold as a starting assumption.

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 196 Part V • Who Should Control Education?

Pause for Thought

Child Rearing
Dystopian novels such as Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World (1931) depict
an eternally peaceful, stable, and global society in which natural reproduc-
tion has been eliminated. Parenthood is no longer a fundamental social
underpinning. Children are created, decanted, and raised in “hatcheries
and conditioning centers.” Under the World State’s conditioning system,
relationships and individualism have been rendered obsolete and undesir-
able. Individual identity and the notion of a private sphere have no place in
conditioning citizens for an indefinite future.
Arguably, the situation portrayed in Brave New World is an extreme
example. However, Huxley’s depiction does reinforce that such institution-
alized child-rearing is a poor proxy for parents raising their children. Turning
to examples from our own society, one might argue that while orphanages
or foster homes offer care to children, such institutions may be limited in
achieving the equivalent level of care associated with the unconditional
bonding parents have for their children.
Consider the following:

• What are some examples of situations where parents’ interests may be

detrimental to their children?
• Can you think of any situations where the care given to children may
be better provided by the state than the parents?
• Which circumstances may warrant child protection by the state from
parents?
• What are your thoughts on the argument that “parents have the
best interests in their children” due to the unique parent-children
relationship?

If you agree with the premise that parents are the best people to protect their
own children’s interests, you might argue that parents have the right to raise their
children in a particular way. This perspective has several educational implications.
One might argue that while teachers may have instructional expertise, they lack
the unique relational bond that parents have with their children. Consequently,
teachers may not necessarily make the right decisions regarding children’s needs.
If we follow this line of reasoning, teachers lack the level of nuanced understand-
ings of a child that a parent would have. Thus, parents should have the final say
about how a child is educated. Another argument is that teachers must address
the needs of many different children—not simply the best interests of a particular

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 10 Should Parents Decide How Children Are Educated? 197

child. In this respect, parents are better situated to advocate for their child. Parents
have the advantage over teachers, institutions, or government agencies who may
have differing demands and needs based on numerous children.

Parents Have a Right to Raise Their Children with Particular Beliefs

and Values
Unlike the previous argument, which linked the unique parent‒child bond to par-
ents’ unconditional commitment to the child’s best interests, this argument sug-
gests that individuals who choose to have a child ought to have some rights to raise
them according to their own values. William Galston (2002) proposed “the ability
of parents to raise their children in a manner consistent with their deepest com-
mitments is an essential element of expressive liberty” (p. 102). From this point
of view, the notion of expressive liberty provides the philosophical underpinning
for parents’ rights to lead their lives and raise their children with minimal inter-
vention from the state. For an extensive understanding of the applications of this
perspective, we recommend that you refer to Chapter 9 regarding the debates on
cultural restoration for Aboriginal communities.
The complexities parents face in deciding to have a child is daunting given
the infinite demands associated with child-rearing. For example, the emotional
stress of conceiving and raising to term a healthy child, the physical demands
of pregnancy and birthing, the endless number of financial obligations, and the
magnitude of personal sacrifices that parenthood entails. In light of these ongoing
tribulations, it seems reasonable to suggest that parents would be ill advised to
have a child if there were no benefits of having a child. One major reason for having
children is to extend and share the beliefs, values, and norms that parents cherish
both as individuals and within their family. Most people decide to have children
because it is something they intrinsically want for themselves. Parents recognize
that having children contributes value to their own lives (Thomas, 2005).
Passing values from one generation to the next seems fundamental to the
notion of parents’ rights. Eamonn Callan (1997) suggested “the freedom to rear
our children according to the dictates of conscience is for most of us as important
as any other expression of conscience, and the freedom to organize and sustain
the life of the family in keeping with our own values is as significant as our liberty
to associate outside the family for any purpose whatsoever” (p. 143). Raising chil-
dren is not simply a random parental impulse or a momentary desire, but framed
within the parameters of parental rights.
One of the central claims of parenthood is that parents have a natural right to
share values with their own children, especially those values that are essential to
the parent’s identity. Bruce Ackerman writes:

While an infant may learn English or Urdu or both, there are limits to the
cultural diversity he can confront without losing a sense of the meaning
that the noise and motions might ultimately signify. Exposing the child
to an endless and changing Babel of talk and behavior will only prevent

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 198 Part V • Who Should Control Education?

the development of the abilities he requires if he is ever to take his place

among the citizenry (Ackerman, 1980, p. 141).

With few exceptions, children are necessarily dependent upon their parents.
To a certain extent, children’s growth and stability are embedded in the beliefs and
values within families and their immediate environment. This foundation pro-
vides for moral understanding and indoctrination aligned with the child’s parents.

The State Should Have Minimal Intervention in the Private Sphere of

Parent-Child Relationships
Another argument in support of parents’ authority over their children is rooted
libertarianism A in the principles of libertarianism. In its most generalized sense, libertarianism
political philosophy is a political theory that prioritizes the individual’s rights to liberty and to protec-
that promotes liberty
as its primary objective, tion of those individual rights from the state. Libertarianism places a high prior-
prioritizing individ- ity on negative freedom or “expressive liberty”—an aspect that acknowledges
ual autonomy and parents’ rights to lead their own lives and raise their children with minimal state
freedom of choice.
Libertarianism upholds intervention. William Galston (1999) explained how expressive liberty makes a
the individual’s rights to clear distinction between rights of the state and rights of parents. In terms of
liberty and to protec- parents’ duty to educate their children, Galston noted the state’s right to establish
tion of those individual
rights from the state. certain minimum standards and to specify a minimum of educational content
wherever it may be conducted; however, parents have a wide and protected range
of choices in discharging the duty to educate their children (p. 874). Seen from
this point of view, the aspect of expressive liberty incorporates a balance of pub-
lic and private concerns while acknowledging the individual’s right to their own
unique beliefs and values.

Pause for Thought

Norms and Values
Consider your own norms and values within your family:

• What explicit norms and values did you experience in your own child-
hood? How did such norms and values shape your identity?
• Which norms and values were aligned with your family? Which of your
family’s norms and values did you challenge?
• What right do parents have in passing on their values to their children?
What limitations might parents experience in passing on their values
to their children? What circumstances might suggest parents should
not pass on their values?

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 10 Should Parents Decide How Children Are Educated? 199

Throughout history, many people have been suspicious and distrustful of the
state’s role and authority. Again, we only need to look at residential schools in
Canada to understand the very tragic past of schooling for Aboriginal students.
Even today, people are concerned that because the modern democratic state wields
an excessive amount of power and authority, it is therefore morally conflicted. The
challenge: how can the state legitimately intervene in such private matters as par-
ents raising their children, when such interventions simultaneously encroach on
parents’ individual freedoms?
Judith Suissa (2010) drew attention to the historical distrust of the state in the
work of many eighteenth-century anarchist thinkers. William Godwin, an early
anarchist, challenged the notion of governmental power and authority in 1793,
arguing that national education “[o]ught uniformly to be discouraged on account
of its obvious alliance with national government. . . . Before we put so powerful a
machine under the direction of so ambiguous an agent, it behoves us to consider
well what it is that we do. Government will not fail to employ it, to strengthen its
hands, and perpetuate its institutions” (cited in Suissa, 2010, p. 109). Under the
guise of being guardians of the state, many early anarchist movements opposed
the monopolistic authority of the state. Instead, they favoured non-hierarchical
relationships based on individual freedom.
The distrust of state has been largely promoted by classical liberal thinkers John
Locke and J.S. Mill, and by later libertarian thinkers Milton Friedman and William
Galston. Interesting parallels to twentieth-century theorists from the de-schooling
movement and those sympathetic to Marxist traditions also demonstrated con-
cerns over the nature of the state and its influence on individuals and institutions.
Ivan Illich, one of the twentieth century’s most vocal social critics, consistently
challenged the way in which the state reproduced particular forms of domination,
privileging, and exclusion. One of the cautionary drawbacks of the state’s power is
its ability to put forth a dominant perspective to the exclusion of minority view-
points. When individuals talk about this in more general debates, you might hear
phrases that society is becoming increasingly “a nanny state” or that state intrusion
is a form of tyranny of control over the lives of children (Shklar, 1989).

CASE STUDY
Ontario Health and Physical Education Revisions
In April 2010, following a two-year consultation with 700 students, 70 organ-
izations, and more than 2,000 individuals, the Ontario government intro-
duced revisions to the Grade 1-8 health and physical education curriculum
(Carlson, 2011). In order to reflect the current realities of how students get
continued

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 200 Part V • Who Should Control Education?

information (Internet, social media) and to align with provincial and national
policies regarding equity and inclusion, the curriculum incorporated a num-
ber of key changes:

• For example, whereas key points from the 1998 Grade 6 curriculum
addressed the function of reproductive organs, key points in the 2010
Grade 6 curriculum included development of a person’s sense of self
(e.g., stereotypes, cultural and gender identity), discussion of homo-
phobia, gender stereotyping, and “having erections, wet dreams, and
masturbation” (Carlson, 2011).
• In another example, key points from the 1998 Grade 7 curriculum
dealt with transmission, symptoms, and treatment related to STDs,
and understanding the term “abstinence” as applied to “health sex-
uality.” Key points from the 2010 Grade 7 curriculum addressed the
importance of agreeing with a partner to delay sexual activity (e.g.,
choosing to abstain from having vaginal or anal intercourse, choosing
to abstain from having oral sex) and identification of common STDs
(Carlson, 2011).
• In both the 1998 and 2010 curricula, teachers were required to inform
parents about the content, and parents can still withdraw their children
from portions of the curriculum.

Introduction of the proposed revisions to the curriculum generated

a massive outcry from religious and conservative parent groups. In spite
of support from the Ontario Physical and Health Education Association
(OPHEA), the Ontario government’s attempt to provide students with a
comprehensive and up-to-date curriculum were cut short. Public pressure
forced the government to abandon the 2010 health and physical education
curriculum.
For the purposes of this philosophical exercise, one might contend the
Ontario government’s legislation is indicative of state intrusion in the way
parents wish to raise their children. Consider the following:

• The provincial legislation was designed to safeguard the health and

well-being of all Ontario children. To what extent does such legislation
challenge the nature of parental rights?
• What would be your initial reaction if you were asked to teach this
curriculum?
• Do you think it is fair to put the onus of negotiating the curriculum with
parents on the teacher in this instance?
• How do you feel about state-mandated curriculum policies regarding
physical health, sexuality, equity, and inclusion in all schools?

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 10 Should Parents Decide How Children Are Educated? 201

• Should the state mandate curriculum policies regarding discussion of

sexual orientation, even when such matters are not in accord with a
faith-based school’s beliefs or doctrines? What will be the outcome?
• Consider the competing claims between parental rights and the prin-
ciple of parens patriae in this legislation. What are the competing
claims to this legislation from these two perspectives?
• Where do you stand regarding this legislation?

Arguments against Parental Rights

The complexities surrounding debates on parental rights and state obligations live
out in very real and contested terms. To better understand the nuances of these
competing claims, let us now consider three arguments from the other end of the
spectrum—arguments against parental rights and in favour of the state’s obliga-
tions to children’s education.

Although Parents Are Well Intentioned, They May Lack Adequate

Skills for Raising Children
One of the arguments commonly made against parental rights is that parents may
not be equipped to foster critical dispositions of their children in an unbiased
way. There are several ways this might unfold. In one instance, despite the utmost
care and love of their children, parents may simply not understand how to parent
well. For example, overprotection or underprotection of children’s interests may
hinder development. Helicopter parenting is a term that describes extreme levels helicopter parenting
of parental control regarding their children’s experiences and problems. In edu- A pejorative expression
referring to the parent-
cational institutions, helicopter parenting may be particularly problematic in that ing style of obsessively
challenges to the child or signs of child discomfort signal the need for parental protective parents
intervention. We might suggest the overprotection of children may stymie chil- who pay extremely
close attention to their
dren’s agency rights in their inability to make judgments, decisions, and mistakes child’s experiences and
that help form their sense of autonomy. While complete parental control or mon- problems.
itoring of their child’s life may demonstrate good parental intentions regarding the
child’s best interests, such intentions may undermine the child’s development as
an autonomous individual.
In an instance from the other end of the spectrum, parents may have the best
interests of their children in mind, but may lack adequate parenting skills. For
instance, parents may provide their children with poor nutrition. They may give
inconsistent or inappropriate advice. They may be poor role models for their chil-
dren. Although these parents definitely have the best interests of their child in
mind, their skills may be inadequate to the implementation of practices that will
be in the best interests of the child.

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 202 Part V • Who Should Control Education?

Pause for Thought

Home-Schooling
One of the most contested educational issues regarding the limitations
home-schooling of parental rights is concerned with the notion of home-schooling. Critics
Education of children
of home-schooling suggest that despite parental intentions to raise their
within the home
environment in contrast children well, parents may lack the expertise or skills necessary to raise their
to the formal setting children educationally. In Chapter 6, we examined the court decision in
of public or private
R. v. Jones (S.C.R. 284, 1986) whereby the Supreme Court of Canada ruled
schooling.
against Thomas Larry Jones who taught his own and other children in the
basement of his church in Alberta. The following is another Ontario court
case regarding homeschooling.
In Heath v. Zdep (OJ NO. 4601), a mother named Sherry Zdep
decided not to work in order to home-school her eight-year-old daughter.
Zdep took specific measures to shelter her daughter from her estranged
ex-husband and to limit the child’s participation in community activities. In
this particular case,

their [the parent’s] unwillingness or inability to make reasonable

custodial arrangements prioritizing the interests of their chil-
dren above their own interests brought their dispute before the
courts. . . . Thus, as many of the Ontario cases illustrate, parents
who “homeschool” their children in order to isolate them from
others, including non-custodial parents and other members of
the wider community, have routinely been denied or deprived
of custodial authority on this basis (Blokhuis, 2010, pp. 210–11).

Here, the mother felt she needed to protect her child from her
ex-husband and the broader community. Arguably, she acted with the
best interests of her child in mind.
Consider the following:

• Please identify other examples whereby parents may have the best
interests of their children, but their actions may hinder a child’s
development.
• How sympathetic are you to the notion of home-schooling? What prin-
ciples support your argument on the issue of home-schooling?
• What principles guide your thinking about the regulation or limitations
of home-schooling?

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 10 Should Parents Decide How Children Are Educated? 203

Children Should Be Exposed to Ways of Life That Are Counter to

Their Upbringing
While parents may make primary decisions regarding their children’s upbringing,
they may be limited in their ability to expose their children to alternate values,
beliefs, and experiences. Meira Levinson (1999) argued that “even the most liberal
or autonomy-loving family cannot escape the conceptual and emotional bounds of
its own commitments; nor can it ensure the child’s honest exposure to that which
the family would find utterly foreign or repugnant” (p. 61). This argument does
not question parental motives or love; rather, it suggests that biases, assumptions,
and preconceptions limit parents’ ability to address alternate perspectives with
their own children.
Arguably, one of the primary aims of education is to provide a multitude of
opportunities that both support and challenge an individual’s assumptions. Harry
Brighouse (2006) argued that “Autonomy-facilitation requires a modicum of dis-
continuity between the child’s home experience and her school experience, so
that the opportunities provided by the home (and the public culture) are supple-
mented, rather than replicated, in the school” (p. 22).
According to this line of reasoning, the state must go beyond merely sup-
porting and extending the child’s familial experiences. As institutional members
of the state, schools are obligated to facilitate explicit student experiences that crit-
ically explore the dissonance associated with alternate perspectives and lifestyles.
Critical inquiry, reason, and purposeful reflection are not simply educational
themes for curriculum development, but aspects necessary in fostering and secur-
ing children’s capacity to lead autonomous lives as adults.
On this view, one might argue that an essential aspect of understanding the
broader civic responsibilities in a pluralistic society is that students need to be
exposed to issues beyond their private sphere, understand the multiple and varied
positions, and if need be, revise their own conceptions of their lives to understands
the rich and multiple perspectives inherent in a diverse pluralistic society. Not
only is it integral to the personal critical cognitive aspects of children’s develop-
ment, but it is arguably a requisite requirement of how to live cohesively in a plur-
alistic society.
While the preceding arguments highlight parental limitations in raising children
to lead fully autonomous lives, our final argument takes a slightly different stance.

The State Has a Particular Responsibility in Developing a

Political Education for Children Consistent with the Rights and
Responsibilities within a Broader Democratic Society
This final argument in support of the state’s authority over the child’s education is
based on the state’s duty to develop those civic virtues necessary for the stabil-
ity of a just and vibrant political society. This argument takes the parental-rights-
versus-state-obligations debate to the macro or big-picture perspective regarding the
needs of society rather than the micro perspective concerned with individual’s needs.

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 204 Part V • Who Should Control Education?

Pause for Thought

A Child’s Upbringing
Consider your own upbringing. Perhaps your own parents provided a var-
iety of experiences or activities to enrich your childhood such as discus-
sions at the dinner table, vacations to different places, and extracurricular
activities. However, unlike these commonplace experiences or activities, it
might be less common for parents to stimulate discussion regarding sub-
stantial issues that directly address or conflict with an individual’s beliefs,
values, or fundamental aspects of identity.
For the purpose of illustration, consider the following scenario: On an
innocent, almost subconscious level, parents take their children to activ-
ities they enjoy themselves. If parents are Irish, they may take their child
to Irish events. They may enroll their child in Irish dancing, attend ceilidh
music events, or belong to a traditional Irish church. And in this respect,
there is something comfortable, admirable, and desirable about passing
on Irish traditions. Yet, implicit in these innocent activities are the very val-
ues and beliefs that foster particular dispositions for children. Under such
circumstances, parents may not be inclined to introduce their child to other
religions or cultures, nor may they substantially address issues incongruent
with their belief system or lifestyle. It is possible their children might never
attend a synagogue or Mormon temple. In this way, parents have certain
limitations in exposing their children to alternate values, beliefs, and ways
of thinking.

• What kind of upbringing did you have in your family? To what extent
did your parents discuss issues that may have been incongruent to
their beliefs and values?
• To what extent did your parents expose you to alternative perspec-
tives? Going to a different church? A different ethnic organization?
A different community organization?
• To what extent were you allowed to voice differing opinions with your
parents? Were you encouraged to pursue this different perspective or
did you receive pushback from your parents?

Underpinning this argument is the notion that schools comprise the space to
foster the common culture, language, and community of a given society. Schools
ensure that every member of the society’s diverse citizenry will have the fundamen-
tal ability to participate in the greater civic and democratic political community to

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 10 Should Parents Decide How Children Are Educated? 205

which they belong. In this way, schools have a social and political purpose that goes
beyond learning. Schools are instrumental in fostering a sense of social cohesion
beyond the private domains of family and individual.
Most commonly, this educational perspective refers to the principles of com- common school The
mon school. Made explicit by the American philosopher John Dewey, common principle under which
schools bring together
school was seen to be crucial if “formal education of young people were to achieve children from different
its fundamental purpose of preparing the next generation to live harmoniously perspectives in order to
together, despite the important difference in culture that the students bring to that increase social connec-
tions, foster democratic
community” (Pring, 2008, p. 1). Thus, the model of common school and the foun- dispositions, and edu-
dations of public education uphold the democratic ideals many young nations were cate for civic virtues.
attempting to foster in the early twentieth century. These ideals were based on the
principle that schools should create a sense of social cohesion and stability, while
simultaneously promoting equality of opportunity and access for all.
The principles of common school have been taken up by contemporary pol-
itical philosophers who make a case for the necessity of developing civic virtues
through educational avenues. Political philosopher Amy Gutmann (1987) argued
the vitality of a democratic state depends on “an education adequate to participat-
ing in democratic politics, to choosing among (a limited range) of good lives, and
to sharing in the several subcommittees, such as families, that impart identity to
the lives of its citizens” (p. 42). Seen in this light, cultivating civic virtues through
common educational practices is not merely a matter of preference or idealism,
but a vital component in ensuring and fostering democratic sovereignty.
Furthering this argument for civic virtues, Eamonn Callan (1997) asserted
that preserving political culture requires a purposeful approach to cultivating
socially specific dispositions in children. It requires that children acquire certain
habits, skills, and dispositions as cultivated within the broader public sphere:

[It] is a shared way of public life constituted by a constellation of atti-

tudes, habits, and abilities that people acquire as they grow up. These
include a lively interest in the question of what life is truly and not just
seemingly good, as well as a willingness both to share one’s own answer
with others and to heed the many opposing answers they might give; and
active commitment to the good of the polity, as well as confidence and
competence in judgment regarding how that good should be advanced; a
respect for fellow citizens and a sense of common fate with them that
goes beyond the tribalisms of ethnicity and religion and is yet alive to
the significance these will have in many people’s lives (Callan, 1997, p. 3).

This requires an explicit form of education not left to whims and varying
decentralized parental interests, but built upon a coherent educational platform
regarding civic virtues. In this way, the notion of common school attends to some
of the concerns posed in Chapter 4 regarding the increased nature of consumer-
ism and the decreasing democratic ideals in education.

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 206 Part V • Who Should Control Education?

Pause for Thought

Broadening Civic Virtues
This final argument is based on the premise that the role of education is to
develop broader civic virtues.

• How do you feel about this premise? What other mechanisms may
potentially develop children’s civic virtues beyond schools?
• Should schools develop certain civic virtues as part of sustaining and
fostering society’s political culture?

Conclusion
As stated earlier in this chapter, few would argue the education of children should
rest solely with parents or the state. However, our purpose in this chapter is not
to create a divisive interpretation whereby teachers must choose between two
radical options. As demonstrated in our explorations, teachers may draw from a
broad spectrum of thought regarding the debate concerning parental rights and
state obligations.
The challenge for beginning teachers lies in negotiating the tension between
accommodating parental requests and ensuring state obligations. This tension is
one of the most problematic and common concerns teachers encounter through-
out their careers. Teachers must always consider parental requests within the
approved curricular objectives, the broader aims, and the objectives associated
with provincial educational mandates. The challenge facing all educators is in
acknowledging parents’ rights, listening to and anticipating their concerns, and
communicating effectively with parents and students—all within the protective
boundaries of government educational policies and procedures.

Review Questions
1. How might you respond to a parent who is what philosophical position helped to
reluctant about a particular topic that he or inform your stance?
she felt might be controversial? 3. What extenuating factors might affect or
2. Drawing upon some of the broader philo- alter your response?
sophical arguments made in this chapter, 4. How has your position changed after read-
ing this chapter?

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 10 Should Parents Decide How Children Are Educated? 207

Further Readings
Blokhuis, J. (2010). Whose custody is it, Journal of Philosophy of Education, 18,
anyway?!: “Homeschooling” from a 75‒83.
parens patriae perspective. Theory and Suissa, J., & Ramaekers, S. (2011). The claims
Research in Education, 8(2), 199‒222. of parenting: Reasons, responsibility
Bridges, D. (1984). Non-paternalistic argu- and society. Dordrecht, Heidelberg,
ments in support of parents’ rights. London, New York: Springer.
Journal of Philosophy of Education, Warnick, B. (2014). Parental authority
18(1), 55‒61. over education and the right to invite.
McLaughlin, T. (1984). Parental rights and Harvard Educational Review, 84(1),
the religious upbringing of children. 53‒71.

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901003_11_Ch11.indd 208 02/12/15 3:53 PM
 PART VI
What Is the Role of Teachers’
Professional Identity?

Part Overview
Explore who and what a teacher is.
Think about how a teacher’s identity relates to the professional context in which
teachers work, and what goes into forming that identity.
Examine any unique features of being a teacher in Canada.

Overview by Chapter
11 To What Extent Do Teachers Have Professional Autonomy? 210
• Learn what professional autonomy is and the extent to which teachers should or do
have it.
• Understand how teachers’ professional autonomy interacts with legal and regulative
contexts.
• Question the role of teacher autonomy in relation to the well-being of students.

12 Conclusion: Teaching in the Canadian Ethical Environment 230

• Explore whether there is such a thing as a unique Canadian ethic of teaching.
• Explain how we think about ethics in educational contexts.
• Ask why pre-service teachers should consider a Canadian conception of education.

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 11 To What Extent Do Teachers Have
Professional Autonomy?

Introduction
As mentioned in Chapter 6, Richard Morin, a Grade 9 social studies teacher work-
ing at a school in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, was removed from his
position because he wished to show a BBC documentary critical of Christian fun-
damentalism and have his students reflect on the documentary in an assignment.
The principal of the school, having received complaints from parents who didn’t
want their children to see the documentary, called Morin to his office and directed
him to cancel the screening and the connected assignment. Morin refused to com-
ply, was fired, and a 20-year court battle ensued that cost Morin his career, his
marriage, and untold personal anguish (Waddington, 2011). If Morin was a pro-
fessional, why could the principal dictate what material Morin used to teach his
class? Who should have the final say about what is taught in classrooms? Teachers?
School principals or school boards? The Ministry of Education? In the Morin case,
which outcome—to show the documentary or not—was in the best interest of
Morin’s students’ education?
This chapter examines the key issue raised by the Morin case: the professional
autonomy of teachers. It begins by introducing the idea of professional autonomy.
The sociological criteria of professionalism are used to explain why societies accord
a significant degree of autonomy to professionals and how these criteria help make
sense of the rights and ethical obligations associated with professional autonomy.
Next, the question of whether and to what extent teaching constitutes a profession
is addressed and we will review the various ways that “teacher professionalism” has
been used to promote the cause of teacher autonomy. The chapter then turns its
attention to legal issues. To illustrate the scope and limits of teacher autonomy in
Canada, the provisions of Quebec’s Education Act around teacher autonomy are
discussed. The details are unique to Quebec but the basic regulatory patterns can
be found elsewhere in the country: teacher autonomy is highly circumscribed by a
complex and sometimes contradictory regulatory system that delegates the rights
and responsibilities of educating children through various institutions and actors,
from ministries of education to school boards to individual teachers. The chap-
ter concludes by distinguishing between the legal question of teacher autonomy

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 11 To What Extent Do Teachers Have Professional Autonomy? 211

(i.e., “How much professional autonomy do teachers have according to the law?”) and
the ethical question (i.e., “How much professional autonomy is in students’ best edu-
cational interest?”). The chapter concludes by pointing out how the ethical perspective
on teacher autonomy can be an important tool for identifying the limitations of a
regulatory system, which in fact grants teachers very little professional autonomy.

Why Is Autonomy Important for the Work That

Professionals Do?
In the 1930s, sociologists began in earnest to try to better understand why some
categories of workers, in particular “professionals” like doctors and lawyers, are
organized into self-governing groups that set their own standards of excellence,
discipline, and training. The question they sought to answer was: “What makes a
professional a professional, and different from other workers?”
The most influential answer to this question that emerged from sociological
research on the professions from the 1930s to the 1960s was the structural- structural-functionalist
model of profession-
functionalist model of professionalism. Structural-functionalism is a broad theor- alism A conception
etical perspective in sociology that conceives of the workings of society as an analogy of professionalism
of the complex interactive workings of a biological organism. Seen from this view- according to which the
autonomy enjoyed by
point, social arrangements are intricate systems that have evolved in human societies professionals serves
as solutions to basic universal social problems like how to prevent conflict or create a the social purpose of
sense of solidarity between members of society (Macionis & Gerber, 2010). A simple protecting the public
from harms caused
example to illustrate is that of health-care systems. Health-care systems can be seen by incompetent and
as having emerged in society to solve the problem of managing large numbers of negligent practice.
sick people. According to the structural-functionalist model of professionalism, the
social function performed by the institutions, norms, and practices shared by dif-
ferent professional groups is to reassure the public that those offering help in areas
crucial to social and individual well-being—like healing, protection at the hands of
the law, management of finances, and the provision of psychological counselling,
and, indeed, education—are qualified and trustworthy to do so. Professionalism,
then, is like a quality control system whose purpose is to make sure that we can trust
the people who offer services that are important to our lives and well being.

What Is a Profession?
Many examples of the structural-functionalist models of professionalism can be
found in the scholarly literature, but George Legault (2006) provides a service-
able version, which defines professionalism in relation to four interlocking aspects
of the client‒professional relationship (e.g., patient–doctor or teacher–student):
needs-centredness, help-and-trust based, asymmetric, and consensual.
According to Legault’s model, professional intervention is needs-centred in
that the specific social role that professionals occupy is to help people resolve
problems or achieve goals related to different aspects of their fundamental
well-being. Whether it is because their mental or physical health, their personal

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 212 Part VI • What Is the Role of Teachers’ Professional Identity?

financial situation, or their legal rights and freedoms are in jeopardy, clients rec-
ognize they need help. Since they do not possess the knowledge or experience that
would enable them to resolve the problem alone, they turn to someone who does:
the professional. This specialized knowledge and experience in a particular sphere
of life both gives professionals the power to intervene effectively and creates a
demand for their services.
However, the client’s lack of knowledge and experience, the level of complex-
ity of the kinds of problems professionals characteristically address, and the high
stakes involved for the client leave clients highly vulnerable. In this multifaceted
state of vulnerability, clients cannot be reasonably expected to have the ability to
evaluate adequately the appropriateness of interventions proposed to help them.
It is for this reason that the principle of caveat emptor, or buyer beware, does not
apply to professional intervention. Although there may be elements of exchange in
the client‒professional relationship—directly or indirectly professionals normally
receive payment for services rendered—the relationship is first and foremost one
of help and trust, and cannot be assimilated to a business relationship in which
each party seeks to maximize its interests. This is why, for example, it is deemed
unprofessional for a doctor to sell to a patient a treatment the patient does not need.
abuse of power The client‒professional relation is thus asymmetrical in the sense that there
Exercising authority for
purposes other than the
is considerable disparity in knowledge about what to do to help and this leaves
purpose for which the clients exposed to abuse of power by professionals. The fact that parents know
authority is intended less about the workings of the school system than principals do is an example of
(e.g., manipulating hir-
ing rules to secure a job
asymmetry in teaching. Despite this asymmetry, however, the client‒professional
for a family member) or relationship remains one between equals. Professional intervention is consensual
in ways that serve one’s in that professionals do not, generally speaking, have the right to impose an inter-
personal interests at the
expense of the interests
vention against the will of a client even if, in the professional’s best judgment,
of those the authority doing so would be in the client’s best interest. In recognition of clients’ rights to
is meant to serve (e.g., make their own decisions about the choices that matter to them most, profession-
a civil servant taking
bribes).
als must take measures to obtain the client’s consent. Making decisions on behalf
of clients without due consideration for their wishes or a serious attempts to obtain
paternalism In the their consent is known as paternalism.
context of professional
ethics, providing
Clearly, structural-functionalist models like Legault’s present a highly ideal-
professional services ized conception of professionalism that, today, not even the archetypal profes-
without taking into sions—medicine and law—match perfectly. In fact, sociologists have long since
due consideration
abandoned as unrealistic the model’s basic idea that professional status can be
the client’s wishes or
recognizing their right neatly explained by an occupational group’s monopolistic possession of a body
to be informed about of specialized knowledge (Taylor & Runté, 1995). Due to social and technological
proposed interventions
changes, any monopoly on specialized knowledge that professionals might once
and consent to them.
have held has been steadily eroded. Many tasks that required refined professional
professional judgment judgment in the past have been routinized by machines (e.g., computerized tom-
The decision-mak-
ography or “CT” scans, which can identify the exact location and extent of a brain
ing skills that allow
professionals to provide lesion). Erstwhile low-skill areas of work (e.g., automobile repair, computer pro-
clients with knowledge- gramming, and logistics) have been transformed into work requiring a high degree
able and competent
of specialized knowledge. Finally, the greater availability of specialized knowledge
help and care.
through information technologies, combined with the increased ability of the

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 11 To What Extent Do Teachers Have Professional Autonomy? 213

public to understand and use that information through the expansion of higher
education, has occasioned a major paradigm shift from thinking of professionals
as “experts” to professionals as “partners” (Deber, 1994).
Notwithstanding these limitations of the structural-functionalist approach
to defining professionalism (a more detailed critique can be found in Taylor and
Runté, 1995), the structural-functionalist model of professionalism remains a
useful way of thinking about professionalism. It provides a compelling account
of how the most widely recognized ethical obligations of professionals and the
key features of professionals’ collective organization are grounded in inherent fea-
tures of the client‒professional relationship. For example, why is it important for
professionals to possess effective communication skills? Because the consensual
character of the client‒professional relationship implies that professionals have
an obligation to explain the proposed choice of intervention, to ensure that the
explanation was understood by the client and, if requested, to justify the proposed
intervention to interested parties. Why are professionals expected to be actively
committed to continuing education? This obligation is entailed by the asymmetry
of professional intervention. Professionals whose knowledge base is out of date, or
who are not constantly on the lookout for scientific or practice-based innovations
that could help them improve the quality of service offered, are in breach of the
contract of trust that exists between a professional body and the public to pro-
vide knowledgeable and competent help. Similarly, the professional’s duty to put
clients’ needs first, to exercise professional judgment in clients’ interests, and to
demonstrate trustworthiness and empathy are implied by the assumption that the
professional‒client relationship is a relationship of help and trust.

Pause for Thought

Teachers Abusing Power
Teachers have power. With power comes freedom as well as responsibility.
Having power means being in a position to make choices that affect other
people’s interests in important ways. Using power responsibly implies
using that power for ends that are consistent with the trust in which power
is held and taking into consideration the impact of the exercise of one’s
power on those affected by it. When people abuse power, they exercise it
in ways that are inconsistent with the ends their power is meant to serve or
that serves their own personal benefit with no regard for others.
In professional circles, conflicts of interest create conditions of choice
that are very favourable to the abuse of power, which is generally why con-
flicts of interest are to be avoided. Allowing a pharmaceutical company
to pay kickbacks to doctors based on the number of times they prescribe
continued

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 214 Part VI • What Is the Role of Teachers’ Professional Identity?

a drug places doctors in a conflict of interest. The promise of money in

exchange for prescriptions does not reduce doctors’ professional auton-
omy to choose what drugs to prescribe. However, it does create a strong
incentive for doctors to improve their personal financial situation by over-
prescribing a drug or prescribing it to patients who may benefit more from
using another drug. Intentional overprescription or misprescription to
increase one’s income are clear examples of abuse of power because they
undermine the trust that patients ought to be able to have in doctors. Such
practices are inconsistent in the medical professional’s socially mandated
role to use professional judgment and exercise professional autonomy in
the best interest of the client’s health. Research in social psychology con-
firms that a conflict-of-interest situation can exercise a very subtle influence
on people’s choices, so much so that it may lead them to abuse power
without being consciously aware that they are doing so (Ariely, 2012). This
is why we should be as concerned about avoiding conflict-of-interest situ-
ations as we are about actual abuses of power that occur as a result of
a conflict of interest. The overwhelming majority of ethical lapses in pro-
fessional life are not committed by “bad apples” but by otherwise good,
honest, and well-intentioned people acting in unfavourable circumstances
(Bazerman & Tenbrunsel, 2011).
Consider the following list of examples of behaviour on the part of a
teacher that most people would consider unethical. For each example, use
the definition provided in this text box to argue that they can also be seen
as examples of abuse of power in teaching. Do you agree that all these
scenarios represent examples of abuse of power? Why or why not?

1. A teacher sells chocolates to her students to raise money for her

daughter’s swim club.
2. In front of the class, a teacher makes fun of a pupil who is having
trouble grasping a new concept the teacher has introduced.
3. A teacher enters into a consensual intimate relationship with a current
student (the student is of the legal age of consent to sexual activity).
4. During an open discussion of a controversial social issue, a teacher
belittles the view of students who put forward opinions that are not
consistent with the teacher’s personal point of view on the issue.
5. On the request of a parent, a teacher provides private tutoring outside
class time to a pupil for extra pay.

The structural-functionalist model of professionalism also offers compelling

reasons for why we should value and promote professional autonomy. Western
societies, including Canada, have a long tradition of legally recognizing the right
of individual professionals to non-interference in regard to the choice of inter-
vention strategies. States cannot create regulations that, say, require counselling

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 11 To What Extent Do Teachers Have Professional Autonomy? 215

psychologists to use a particular therapy to treat claustrophobia or dictate to

accountants which payroll software to use. Also, typically enshrined in law is the
right of professional associations to certain forms of self-regulation, like deciding
what knowledge, skills, training, and qualifications are necessary to enter the pro-
fession, setting collective standards of professional practice, and sanctioning mem-
bers of the profession in cases of incompetent or negligent practice and violations
of the profession’s code of ethics. Why does society explicitly recognize that pro-
fessionals have these forms of autonomy, and why is professional autonomy often
protected by law? The structural-functionalist answer to this question turns on
the basic characteristic of professionalism: having a mastery over a body of highly
specialized theoretical and practical knowledge. If the members of a profession
are alone in possessing the skills and knowledge necessary to help people resolve
problems or achieve goals in a particular domain of life (e.g., health, education,
finances, psychological well-being, the built environment), it follows that only the
members of a profession—and not clients, the government, the public, or anyone
else—are qualified to judge what constitutes competent practice and to determine
which kinds of skills, knowledge, and training are necessary to practise the pro-
fession competently. By the same token, only other professionals are in a position
to judge whether a peer is guilty of professional misconduct. Generally speaking,
then, the structural-functionalist model of professionalism says that professional
autonomy is in the best public interest. Allowing professionals these forms of
autonomy is the most effective means of maximizing the quality and trustworthi-
ness of the services offered by professionals. So, even though sociological research
on the professions has long since moved on from structural-functionalism, the
approach remains relevant to practising professionals since it continues to inform
the laws and regulations governing the professions in Canada, as elsewhere.

Is Teaching a Profession?
In addition to informing the legal and regulatory framework around profes-
sional autonomy, sociological theory and research on the professions has played
an enormously influential role in the international movement to professionalize
teaching. For teachers, as for other occupational groups including nurses, rehabili-
tation therapists, social workers, and even human resources managers that have
struggled, with varying degrees of success, to achieve public recognition as pro-
fessionals, the allures of professional status are great. Professional status is asso-
ciated with increased social status; better pay; higher quality of service provided;
greater standing in the workplace hierarchy; less interference from management,
the courts, and other regulatory bodies in disciplinary matters; and more control
over the education and training of future practitioners. To advance the cause of
teacher professionalization in general, and that of greater autonomy for teach-
ers in particular, trustee institutions (e.g., teacher federations and associations),
individual teachers, and academics supportive of teacher professionalization
commonly appeal to the criteria of professionalism. They are used in three distin-
guishable but overlapping ways. First, the structural-functionalist model is used

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 216 Part VI • What Is the Role of Teachers’ Professional Identity?

as a normative standard for arguing that teachers do not have enough autonomy,
normative standard A
measure against which
that the working conditions of teachers are inadequate, and that teaching’s regu-
to judge whether some- latory framework is in need of reform. Second, the characteristics of professional-
thing is acceptable, ism are applied to teaching to show that teaching actually is, in fact, a profession.
proper, or appropriate.
Finally, the criteria are used prescriptively to establish goals that teaching would
have to meet to achieve professional status. In other words, the criteria are used
to signpost the ways in which teaching needs to evolve if it is to become a fully
fledged profession in the future.
This section of the chapter describes each of these approaches and then draws
attention to the main limitation of each approach as an argumentative strategy for
promoting teacher autonomy or maintaining existing levels of professional auton-
omy for teachers in cases where, for one reason or another, teacher autonomy is
under threat.

Professionalism as a Critical Standpoint

The critical use of the standard criteria of professionalism is so pervasive in the
day-to-day language of education that even those who have never heard of the
sociology of the professions can be found spontaneously appealing to it in claims
and arguments about the state of the teaching profession and the working condi-
tions of teachers. Consider the following statements, which will likely be familiar
to anyone who has spent time around teachers or educationalists:

• “Educational policy needs to respect teachers’ professional autonomy!”

• “Teaching has yet to achieve the level of standardization in professional for-
mation we find in medicine.”
• “Like other professionals, teachers should be handed over full responsibility
for sanctioning members accused of breaching professional duties.”
• “The principal has displayed a flagrant disregard for her colleagues’ profes-
sional judgment!”

When these statements are taken in their argumentative context, one can see
that they all tacitly appeal to the characteristics of professionalism just described.
To illustrate, imagine the first statement being made in a situation where a gov-
ernment proposes to require teachers by law to adopt a specific teaching method.
Incidentally, one example of just such an initiative arose in the United Kingdom
during the first decade of the twenty-first century, when the Department of
Education and Skills attempted to make the phonic method of teaching mandatory
in primary education (Wyse & Styles, 2007; Davis, 2013). The speaker objects to the
policy proposal on the grounds that it breaches teachers’ rights, as professionals, to
make their own decisions about how to teach without non-teachers interfering—
in this case, government officials through official policy. In the second statement,
the speaker deplores the fact that, unlike in basic medical training, the knowledge
base and practical skills taught in initial teacher education can be quite variable
from program to program. The statement’s argumentative force relies on the tacit

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 11 To What Extent Do Teachers Have Professional Autonomy? 217

assumption that the practice of teaching, like the practice of medicine, is based on
an extensive body of highly specialized theoretical and practical knowledge that is
the object of a basic profession-wide consensus.
The most significant limitation of adopting the characteristics of a profession,
in and of themselves, as a critical standard for evaluating policies and practices in
education, is that it begs the question of teaching’s status as a bona fide profession.
The problem, in other words, is that arguments that teaching should be like a normal
profession only work if we make the assumption that teaching is a normal profes- professionalization
sion. But if you don’t agree with that assumption, then such arguments are not very of teaching move-
ment A broad-based
convincing. Indeed, as we will see in the next section, the structural-functionalist
international initiative
model of professionalism and teaching are not in all respects a perfect fit. to improve standards of
schooling, increase the
status of teaching, and
Are Teachers Professionals by Definition? improve the working
conditions of teachers
Spanning the 1960s and 1970s, a long period of scholarly reflection on the question by making the work
of teachers and the
of whether teaching is a profession, or could aspire to be one, on par with medicine, regulatory framework
law, and dentistry, culminated in the mid-1980s, with the publication of two influ- around teaching similar
ential documents widely recognized as having given rise to the professionalization to that of regular pro-
fessions like medicine
of teaching movement (Drury & Baer, 2011). These documents were the report of and law.
the Carnegie Task Force on Teaching as a Profession (1986) and that of the Holmes

Pause for Thought

Using the Characteristics of Professionalism in Arguments for
Teaching Reforms
Of the four statements introduced at the beginning of this section to illus-
trate the critical use of the characteristics of professionalism in education,
only the first two were discussed explicitly. Given the context provided in
parentheses, determine which aspects of the structural-functionalist model
of professionalism are being appealed to in the two pieces of linguistic
evidence not explicitly discussed, namely:

• “Like other professionals, teachers should be handed over full

responsibility for sanctioning members accused of breaching profes-
sional duties” (Context: to criticize the intervention of the law courts in
disciplinary actions against teachers.)
• “The principal has displayed a flagrant disregard for her colleagues’
professional judgment!” (Context: to criticize a statement made by
the principal that certain controversial topics should not be discussed
in Grade 9 social studies classes in the school.)

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 218 Part VI • What Is the Role of Teachers’ Professional Identity?

Group (1986), a US consortium of deans of education and other leaders in teacher

education. Both reports relied heavily on the criteria of professionalism in their
analysis of whether teaching constitutes a profession, and both reports came to
semi-profession basically the same conclusion: that teaching is a semi-profession inasmuch as it
An occupation that fits the standard structural-functionalist account of the profession in some respects
appears to meet some
but not all of the but fails to meet it in others.
standard criteria of A comprehensive analysis of teaching in relation to all four aspects of the client‒
professionalism (e.g., professional relationship discussed earlier would take us beyond the scope of this
teaching, nursing, and
social work). chapter (detailed treatments of this issue can be found in Carr, 2000; Taylor & Runté,
1995; Carnegie Task Force, 1986; and Holmes Group, 1986). Our brief remarks on
whether teaching should be considered, from a sociological standpoint, a profession
will focus on the characteristic of professionalism, which, as mentioned earlier, is
the most important one from the point of view of justifying the claim to professional
esoteric knowledge autonomy—namely, the professional’s monopoly on esoteric knowledge.
The set of compe- In teaching, the assumption of epistemological asymmetry as per Legault’s
tencies, skills, and
know-how specific to a (2006) model of professional intervention is problematic. If we extend his analysis
particular profession, to teaching, we would want to argue that teachers know things about education
and not possessed by that others do not, much like a doctor knows things about health that patients do
anyone who is not a
member of that particu- not know. However, both the key knowledge areas in which teachers could poten-
lar profession. tially lay claim to exclusive expertise are highly contestable as areas of specialized
knowledge.
To illustrate, and following Shulman (1994), let us distinguish between two
knowledge base kinds of knowledge that seem to correspond with the professional knowledge base
of teacher profes- of teacher professionalism: taught-subject knowledge (i.e., knowledge of a particular
sionalism A body of
specialized theor-
curricular area like math, geography, or literature) and general pedagogical or instruc-
etical and practical tional knowledge (i.e., knowledge about how to teach the taught-subject knowledge,
knowledge that only including allied abilities in class management, evaluation, communication, etc.).
teachers possess and
that enables them to
The exclusivity of teachers’ taught-subject knowledge is undermined by the
provide students with fact that almost all adults were once taught in the course of their own basic school-
effective instruction and ing much of what is taught to children in schools now. Even when curricula are
educational support.
reformed and updated, teachers teach virtually by definition what is generally
regarded as important knowledge for any basically educated individual (cf. Peters,
1967). On this view, anyone who has been educated would have to be considered
an “expert” in education. So, very much unlike doctors or lawyers who possess
esoteric knowledge that only other professionals in that class master, teachers deal
preponderantly in common knowledge.
As a form of specialized knowledge, teachers’ instructional knowledge (the
“how-to” of teaching) fares little better than their subject knowledge does. Despite
decades spent attempting to develop specialized science-based instructional
knowledge and transfer it to teaching practice (Cooper, Levin, & Campbell, 2009),
there is a persistent belief not just among the general public but among teachers
too that good teaching is more of a knack than a highly trained skill. Some people
are naturally better suited to teaching than others are, but a widespread belief is
that decent teaching requires no specialized training and is basically within the
grasp of anyone of basic intelligence and social ability.

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 11 To What Extent Do Teachers Have Professional Autonomy? 219

Pause for Thought

Who Needs Teacher Education Anyway? The Case of Teach First
and Teach for America
One need not take sides on the contested issue of whether there could
ever be a genuine “science of teaching” (Marzano, 2007) to appreciate
that, at least at present, there is a dominant strand of thinking about
teachers’ instructional knowledge that is sharply opposed to the notion
that teachers possess a “professional knowledge base” in the sense of the
structural-functionalist model of professionalism.
This point is lucidly illustrated by two parallel policy initiatives in
England and the United States that reflect and confirm this perception:
Teach First (http://www.teachfirst.org.uk/) and Teach for America (https://www.
teachforamerica.org/). Ostensibly aiming to address educational inequality,
both programs provide well-educated and dynamic young people with two-
year teaching placements in underprivileged schools. When considered in
light of the structural-functionalist model of professionalism and the prevail-
ing rhetoric around “teacher professionalism,” what is so remarkable about
these programs is that student-recruits are not required to have any univer-
sity-based education in teaching whatsoever. Yet, these programs claim to
improve the quality of teaching in low-income schools. Needless to say, a sim-
ilar professional training initiative in engineering, dentistry, or medicine would
be met with public outrage and considered a threat to public safety. When it
happens in teaching, the organizers are generally praised for their humanitar-
ianism and credited with providing a great public service.
Do programs like Teach First and Teach for America undermine teach-
ing’s aspirations to professional status or do they amount to a healthy
acknowledgement that anyone with a basic university education in a taught
subject, combined with the right social skills and a passion to teach can be
a very good teacher? What is your standpoint on this question? Justify your
point of view with two different arguments.

Far from pretending to be a decisive statement on the complex issue of the

knowledge base of teacher professionalism, these remarks were intended merely
to raise reasonable doubts about whether teaching relies on a body of theoretical
and practical knowledge exclusive to trained and experienced teachers. If teaching
does not, then arguments to the effect that teaching necessitates a high degree of
professional autonomy would lose a significant amount of their weight. Remember,
professional autonomy is not supposed to be an arbitrary entitlement. Autonomy

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 220 Part VI • What Is the Role of Teachers’ Professional Identity?

is granted by societies to certain categories of knowledge workers as a means of

maximizing the quality of the services offered. That said, even if one accepts that
teaching does not presently meet the knowledge criterion of professionalism, this
does not rule out the possibility that teaching could, with appropriate changes,
become a more typical profession in the future. This, of course, is precisely what
the prescriptive perspective on teacher professionalism is betting on.

The Professionalization of Teaching Movement

Looking back on several decades of concerted efforts on the part of multiple stake-
holders in the education system to raise the professional status of teaching, two
broad strategies are apparent. The first is to modify the institutional framework of
teaching and teacher education so that they come to resemble more closely those
of a standard profession. The second, more radical approach, involves trying to
modify the very nature of teachers’ work so that it becomes more analogous to the
kind of “knowledge work” described by the structural-functionalist model.
A classic example of the first strategy sometimes presented is the transfer
normal school of teacher education from normal schools to universities and the subsequent
Institution that trained
and educated teachers
lengthening of teacher education programs (Taylor & Runté, 1995). Extensive
prior to the transfer university-based education has long been recognized as one of the hallmarks of
of teacher education professionalism (Carr, 2000). Getting a semi-profession like teaching to meet this
to universities. The
name “normal schools”
characteristic can essentially be accomplished with the flick of a pen. Of course, it
derives from the fact would be an oversimplification to reduce the replacement of normal schools—a
that the normal school long and intricate process, which, in Canada, began in the 1940s and was all but
system was created to
introduce a measure
completed by the 1970s—to a crass exercise in credential inflation. There is little
of standardization or doubt, however, that one of the key incentives to increasing the number of years
common “norms” in of education needed to become a teacher and bringing teacher education pro-
teaching and teacher
education.
grams under the auspices of universities was that it would make teaching more
profession-like. However, the more one relies on such administrative means to
promote teacher professionalism, the more one runs the risk of putting the insti-
tutional cart before the professionalism horse. Professional training should not
be empty theatrics. The reason why future professionals need to spend long years
in university education (often at a significant personal cost) is because they really
do need to acquire a large body of research-based knowledge before they are able
to practise competently. The decision to model teacher education after, say, med-
ical education only makes sense if the nature of teaching is such that becoming
a competent teacher necessitates the sort of extensive practical and theoretical
training needed to become a competent doctor. This is just one of the several
internal links between the inherent aspect of the kind of work that professionals
do and the structures of professional training and governance. A similar charge
of bootstrapping could be laid on any initiative to promote the professionaliza-
tion of teaching—from creating a code of ethics, to giving teachers exclusive con-
trol over the establishment of curriculum, to the establishment of a professional
order of teachers—intended first and foremost as a way to endow on teaching
the institutional structures characteristic of a profession without first seriously

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 11 To What Extent Do Teachers Have Professional Autonomy? 221

examining the question of whether such structures are appropriate considering

the real nature of teachers’ work.
A more legitimate approach to the professionalization of teaching, then, aims
to transform the nature of teaching so that the work of teachers itself—and not
just its institutional apparatus—comes to resemble more closely the kind of work
that “real” professionals do. This approach is epitomized in the evidence-based evidence-based
teaching movement. A central recommendation of reports of both the Holmes teaching Instructional
decisions informed and
Group (1986) and the Carnegie Task Force on Teaching as a Profession (1986) justified by the results
was for trustee institutions responsible for overseeing teacher education to work of research rather than
towards a field-wide consensus around a coherent body of professional know- personal opinion, hear-
say, or tradition.
ledge to form the basis for “teacher professionalism” (Wiggins, 1986). To achieve
this goal, two things are required: first, a substantial body of scientifically sound,
research-generated knowledge about how to teach effectively (i.e., “what works?”)
and, second, a set of mechanisms to ensure the transfer and integration of this
new and constantly evolving body of knowledge into the day-to-day practice of
classroom teachers (Slavin, 2008). As is well known, this challenge has been taken
up in earnest by the educational research community. In spite of the patchy prog-
ress that has been made towards achieving the ideal of evidence-based teaching
(Cooper, Levin, & Campbell, 2009), its allure remains as strong as ever, as wit-
nessed by the fact that advocates of the professionalization of teaching routinely
tout achieving it as a necessary condition of teaching achieving full professional
status (Drury & Baer, 2011).
Since the issue of whether evidence-based practice is a realistic and desirable
goal in teaching is too large to be dealt with here (for a skeptical appraisal, see
Biesta, 2007), suffice it to point out one limitation of this approach to the pro-
fessionalization of teaching. Namely, operating like a conceptual metaphor in
the sense discussed in Chapter 3, thinking of teachers as professionals obscures
and minimizes certain essential aspects of teaching while highlighting others.
As described earlier, structural-functional models of professionalism conceive of
the work that professionals do primarily in terms of intervention. Professional
intervention, we saw, consists in putting a body of theoretical and practical know-
ledge to work to respond to a client’s request for help. Instruction fits this model
well, which helps explain why the search for a “knowledge base of teacher profes-
sionalism” has concentrated on discovering effective strategies for delivering the
primary service that clients and society depend on teachers to provide: learning
in the sense of gaining disciplinary knowledge and acquiring intellectual skills
relative to different scholarly activities like doing mathematics, reading, or sci-
ence. The problem, however, is that society expects teachers to do more than just
“teach.” Teachers are expected to promote community values, model democratic
citizenship, exemplify correct language use, provide students advice and guidance
in personal matters such as career choice, ensure safety at all times, form meaning-
ful relationships with young people, and—in elementary schools—do things like
blow noses, tie shoes, give hugs, and clean scraped knees. Furthermore, teachers
work at the centre of a web of accountability relations. Teachers do not just provide
educational services to individual learners. They are also accountable to parents,

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 222 Part VI • What Is the Role of Teachers’ Professional Identity?

the immediate community in which they work, society as a whole, and the teach-
ing profession itself. As a means of promoting the professionalization of teaching,
then, the evidence-based teaching movement tends to reduce the work of teachers
to “instruction” and, by doing so, threatens to obscure aspects of teaching that are
arguably as essential to the social mission of education as classroom instruction is
(Maxwell 2014).

Legal Issues
Many Canadian provinces legally recognize teacher autonomy in one form or
another yet legal frameworks around teacher autonomy vary considerably from
province to province. To make generalization even more difficult, teachers are
subject to multiple levels of legislation and regulation which are not always
mutually consistent. This means that what the law says about teacher autonomy,
and the rights and obligations of teachers more generally, can be contradictory
even within a particular province. Let us look at one example from Quebec that
illustrates this dynamic.
Article 19 of Quebec’s Education Act (Loi sur l’instruction publique) makes a
set of clear provisions for teacher autonomy. It states:

In accordance with the educational project of the school and subject to

the provisions of this Act, the teacher has the right to govern the conduct
of each group of students entrusted to his care.
The teacher is entitled, in particular,

(1) to select methods of instruction corresponding to the require-

ments and objectives fixed for each group or for each student
entrusted to his care;
(2) to select the means of evaluating the progress of students so as to
examine and assess continually and periodically the needs and
achievement of objectives of every student entrusted to his care.

On the face of it, then, Quebec teachers enjoy a high degree of professional
autonomy, at least with respect to the choice of instructional methods and evalu-
ation strategies. The topics teachers teach—the curriculum—remains in the hands
of the provincial government through the Ministry of Education and its various
curricular councils. (Quebec is quite unusual by North American standards in its
requirement that even private schools respect the curriculum in its entirety.) But
teachers in Quebec have the right to teach the curriculum as they see fit and evaluate
pupils’ progress to meeting provincial curricular requirements—at least in principle.
However, the very same Education Act contains other articles that in effect strip
teachers of the very professional autonomy the act recognizes in Article 19. Most
notably, Article 260 states that teachers have a legal obligation to follow the direc-
tions of their school’s principal on all matters pertaining to their work role, includ-
ing instructional matters. Basically, the principal is the teacher’s boss. Furthermore,

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 11 To What Extent Do Teachers Have Professional Autonomy? 223

on the list of “teacher’s obligations” elaborated in Article 22 is the obligation to com-

ply with the school’s “educational project,” an official plan, elaborated by the school
community, for how to meet curricular requirements, among other things.
Does this mean that the right of Quebec teachers to professional auton-
omy around instruction and evaluation is merely symbolic? A strong case could
be made that it is. Teachers’ right to professional autonomy, as outlined in the
Education Act, has been tested in a number of cases heard by Quebec courts and
the jurisprudence is clear. Court rulings have consistently prioritized teachers’
obligation to respect the directions of superiors over individual teachers’ right to
professional autonomy (for a summary, see Daviault, 2002). An interesting justi-
fication for this position recurs in this jurisprudence. Certain judges have argued
that limiting teachers’ professional autonomy in this way is consistent with the
broader legal provisions that exist to ensure that children’s right to education is
respected. Specifically, the view of many judges has been that the obligation to
educate society’s children, which is held in trust by the government, delegates
the responsibility to educate down through an administrative hierarchy running
from the Ministry of Education through the school boards and its principals and
finally to classroom teachers. According to this interpretation, teachers work at the
point where the education system interfaces with the public but the responsibil-
ity to educate, including the responsibility to make decisions about instructional
and evaluation methods, is one that teachers share with other stakeholders in the
education system. What this means is that a teacher’s professional judgment with
respect to the best interests of their students never automatically trumps what the
state or its agents decide is in the best interests of those same students.

CASE STUDY
No-Zero Policies, Teacher Autonomy, and Insubordination
In Alberta, the public controversy over “no-zero policies” came to a head no-zero policy A
rule that states that
in 2012 with the highly publicized firing of Edmonton teacher Lynden
a teacher may not
Dorval. A move that some decried as a gross violation of the professional assign a mark of zero
autonomy of teachers, the Edmonton Public School Board dismissed for unsubmitted or
Dorval from his position as a secondary math teacher because he refused incorrect work on the
grounds that, once
to implement school-board guidelines that forbade teachers from giving a student receives a
the mark of zero in cases of poor student performance on an assignment zero, it can be very dif-
or for failing to submit work (http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/edmonton/ ficult for the student to
obtain a passing grade
edmonton-teacher-suspended-for-giving-0s-1.1131453). in the class.
The School Board’s position was that Dorval was guilty of insubordina-
tion. As an employee of the School Board, Dorval was under a contractual
obligation to follow the direction of the principal of the school where he

continued

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 224 Part VI • What Is the Role of Teachers’ Professional Identity?

worked. By insisting on the no-zero rule, the principal was merely imple-
menting school board policy.
Dorval’s case was subsequently investigated by a disciplinary com-
mittee within the Alberta Teacher’s Association (ATA), which came to
the conclusion that the teacher had acted contrary to the ATA’s Code
of Professional Conduct (http://www.teachers.ab.ca/About%20the%20
ATA/UpholdingProfessionalStandards/ProfessionalConduct/Pages/
CodeofProfessionalConduct.aspx). The details of the tribunal’s deliberation
process are not publicly available, but one can assume that the members of
the committee decided that Dorval’s actions fell afoul of Article 9 of the Code.
It states that “The teacher fulfills contractual obligation to the employer until
released by mutual consent or according to the law.” Alberta’s basic edu-
cation legislation, the School Act (http://www.qp.alberta.ca/documents/
Acts/s03.pdf), does not make specific provisions for teacher autonomy with
regard to evaluation. In Dorval’s defence, however, one could cite Article 8
of the ATA’s Code of Professional Conduct, which requires teachers to “pro-
test [. . .] conditions which make it difficult to render professional service,”
but the question would remain of whether refusal to comply is a legitimate
form of protest. Apparently, the ATA disciplinary committee that investigated
Dorval’s case believed that it is not.
For the sake of better understanding the scope and limits of teacher
autonomy in your province, use the resources available online to find the
answers to the following questions (if you are in Quebec or Alberta, choose
another province for this exercise):

• What is the main piece of legislation governing the education system?

• Does this legislation specifically grant teachers autonomy in the area
of evaluation?
• What is the main document outlining the ethical obligations of teach-
ers? For example, is there a Code of Ethics, a Code of Professional
Conduct, a Code of Teacher Ethics, or a Code of Professional Practice?
• Does the provincial education law make specific provisions for teacher
autonomy with respect to evaluation or any other aspect of teachers’
work?
• Does the code state that teachers have an ethical obligation to pro-
test against policies or practices that, in the teacher’s best professional
judgment, are detrimental to the best interests of pupils?
• Does the code suggest that teachers have an ethical obligation to
respect superiors’ directions?
• Based on what you find, argue whether a teacher in your province
would be running a similar risk of dismissal if, like Lynden Dorval, he or
she protested an obligatory no-zero policy by refusing to implement
it. In your answer, make reference to the relevant sections of code of
ethics and/or basic education law, as the case may be.

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 11 To What Extent Do Teachers Have Professional Autonomy? 225

In constitutional democracies like Canada, provincial law is not the final

word on complex legal issues like teacher autonomy. Since the introduction of the
Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms in 1982, the Supreme Court of Canada
has set legal precedents through three cases that are directly relevant to teacher legal precedent A
autonomy. The Supreme Court judges’ rulings in the Chamberlain case, the Morin decision that judges
made about how to
case, and the Keegstra case converge towards a legal principle that provides con- apply the law to a
ditional protection of teachers’ rights to introduce controversial topics, and even particular case in a pre-
topics that students, their parents, and other members of the school community vious court ruling, which
future judges must take
find offensive. As mentioned in Chapter 6, the precedent is that teachers’ individ- as authoritative when
ual rights to freedom of expression extend to the activities associated with carry- deciding how to apply
ing out their work. Hence, infringements of that right by a teacher’s employer or the law to similar cases
in the future.
any other party are not legally permissible, unless limiting this right is reasonable
and justifiable in a free and democratic society. Of the three cases, Keegstra is by
far the best known owing in large part to its sensational nature. For nearly 15 years,
Keegstra was left to abuse his position as a social studies teacher in a small-town in
Alberta to promote anti-Semitic views. He was eventually stripped of his licence
to teach and charged with promoting hatred under the Criminal Code of Canada.
Interestingly, in the Keegstra ruling, the judges maintained Keegstra’s right to free-
dom of speech recognized by the Charter of Rights and Freedoms but upheld the
hate-speech law under which Keegstra was charged, and the law’s application in
Keegstra’s case, on so-called Section 1 grounds. That is to say, the judges’ view Section 1 grounds In
was that the restriction imposed on Keegstra’s right to free speech was reasonable Canadian constitutional
law, a provision in the
and justifiable given the hateful character of Keegstra’s expression. Details on the Charter of Rights and
Morin and Chamberlain cases, and a discussion of their implications for teachers’ Freedoms that allows
rights to teach about controversial topics, can be found in Chapter 6. for limited infringe-
ments of basic rights
and freedoms on the

Conclusion condition that they can

be shown to be reason-
able and justifiable in
Now that you have read this chapter, two essential points about professional “a free and democratic
autonomy should be clear: (1) that professional autonomy has a legal dimension society.”
and an ethical dimension, and (2) that the ethical dimension takes precedence
over the legal dimension insofar as the laws that recognize and enable professional
autonomy are meant to serve the more basic ethical concern of making sure that
those who offer professional services are genuinely knowledgeable and compe-
tent. Another way of articulating the relationship between the legal and ethical
dimensions of professional autonomy is to say that society grants professionals
autonomy, in the form of a legally recognized right, because autonomy is favour-
able to maximizing the quality of the services provided by professionals. This
legal right is in place primarily to serve the public, not professionals—a point that
sometimes seems to get lost in debates about whether teachers can and should be
recognized as professionals and the advantages and disadvantages for teachers
of professional status. Remember, due to the highly specialized nature of profes-
sionals’ work, only other professionals in the same field possess the knowledge
and experience necessary to determine what counts as competent professional
intervention. That is why the work of professionals suffers when outsiders attempt
to dictate how they should work.

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 226 Part VI • What Is the Role of Teachers’ Professional Identity?

Bearing these points in mind, we are in a good position to answer directly the
chapter’s central question: To what extent do teachers have professional auton-
omy? Considering the distinct legal and ethical dimensions of the notion of profes-
sional autonomy generally, then, we can see that the question calls for two distinct
answers, corresponding to the two distinct aspects of professional autonomy. The
legal question is “What is the extent of teacher autonomy by law?” By contrast,
the ethical question is “How much professional autonomy should teachers have?”
With respect to the legal question, as discussed previously, given how variable
the legal frameworks governing teaching and education systems are in Canada,
the answer to this question will differ to some extent from province to province.
However, if the situation of teachers in Quebec can be taken as representative, the
fact is that, despite all the talk of the professionalization of teaching and success-
ful initiatives to create professional orders of teachers in British Columbia and
Ontario, the law denies teachers autonomous professional judgment by subjecting
their basic professional choices to the dictates of their employers. In reality, that is,
Canadian teachers have very little professional autonomy. On a more positive note,
the Supreme Court of Canada has made it clear to teachers that, in Waddington’s
words, “their right to free expression does not disappear when they enter the class-
room” (Waddington 2011, 76). The authority that the law grants to employers over
teachers is limited by the basic right to freedom of expression entitled to them as
Canadian citizens.
As for the ethical question, we argued that the wrong approach to answering
it is to start with the assumption that teachers are professionals and then, based
on this assumption, infer that teachers should have the usual forms of profes-
sional autonomy enjoyed by doctors, lawyers, and dentists. The problem with this
approach is that it presupposes that teachers’ work does in fact possess the main
attributes that would justify their having professional autonomy—especially, that
providing the services teachers provide requires mastery over a body of highly spe-
cialized practical and theoretical knowledge that is exclusive to teachers. Several
considerations were reviewed to suggest that teaching does not fit well with the
standard criteria of professionalism.
A more promising approach to answering the question of how much profes-
sional autonomy teachers should have is to begin with a close examination of the
kind of work teachers currently do and then to reflect on how much and what forms
of professional autonomy would be in the best interest of the public they serve and,
in particular, of the young people entrusted to them. The question, in other words,
is “How much and what forms of professional autonomy would best serve the edu-
cational interests of students?” This may seem abstract. It is crucial to appreciate,
however, that it is the ethical point of view that allows one to get a critical handle
on the legitimacy of existing laws. No law can be considered a good law simply by
virtue of being a law. As countless examples of bad laws, past and present, illus-
trate (e.g., the law that required all Aboriginal parents to send their children to
residential schools, as discussed in Chapter 9), good laws have a sound moral and
ethical basis (Habermas, 1996; Kohlberg, Levine, & Hewer, 1981). In the present
case, viewing the current legal and regulatory limits on teacher autonomy from the

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 11 To What Extent Do Teachers Have Professional Autonomy? 227

ethical point of view allows us to consider whether granting greater professional

autonomy to teachers would benefit their students in important ways. Clearly, the
issue of how well current regulatory regimes around teacher autonomy in Canada
serve the public interest is a vast one, but the Morin case, discussed in Chapter 6
and reintroduced at the beginning of this chapter, is one that illustrates clearly how
the ethical standpoint can be used to call into question a legal and regulatory frame-
work that imposes tight restrictions on teacher autonomy.
The Morin case shows how the authority granted to principals to restrict the
professional autonomy of teachers can undermine the quality of education teach-
ers are able to provide. Of course, the principal and the school board’s opposition
to Morin showing a video that some of his students and their parents found objec-
tionable is entirely understandable. In the trial documentation, the principal is
quoted as saying that he felt that it was his responsibility to make sure that activ-
ities conducted in the school did not upset or offend students or their parents
(Morin v. Board of Trustees of Reg. Admin. Unit #3, 1999). For the principal and
the school board, a concern at a deeper level was likely public trust in the school
and the public school system generally. It is easy to sympathize with parents who
might feel uncomfortable about sending their children to a school where their
most deeply held personal beliefs are put on trial.
Was this decision in the best educational interest of the teenagers in Morin’s
class? As Waddington (2011) suggests in his analysis of the Morin case, Morin may
have been right to insist on showing the offending documentary because doing so
was consistent with his mandate as a public school teacher to prepare his students
to become democratic citizens. To be able to participate effectively in democratic
society, one needs to learn to deliberate with others in an intelligent and product-
ive way about controversial social issues (see the discussions of the issue of delib-
erative democracy in Chapter 2 and Chapter 10). This means respecting the rights
and sensitivities of others, thinking critically about arguments and viewpoints
expressed, and articulating one’s point of view clearly. It also means listening to
views that one might not necessarily agree with, opening up one’s own ideas to
critical scrutiny, and engaging in dialogue with others whose views one might even
consider offensive. These things take practice and, in the beginning, everyone finds
them hard. They have to be learned (Callan, 2011). This is presumably why educa-
tionalists have long placed them at the centre of civic education (cf. Dewey, 1916;
Callan, 1997; Newman, 2009). Undoubtedly, most principals and school board
members are entirely supportive of the idea that schools should play a key role in
promoting the skills and dispositions of democratic citizenship. In Morin’s case, if
there had been clear guidelines in place outlining the scope (and limits) of Morin’s
right, as an educational professional, to choose the methods and material to teach
his subject, it would have been much easier for the school and the board to support
Morin’s difficult choice. In the absence of such guidelines, the decision to avoid
controversy took priority over the students’ civic education. This decision led to a
missed educational opportunity to enrich not only Morin’s students’ conception of
the demands of educating for democratic citizenship, but that of their parents and
the administrators that opposed Morin’s standpoint as well.

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 228 Part VI • What Is the Role of Teachers’ Professional Identity?

Review Questions
1. Taking inspiration from the Hippocratic Francis immediately. He knows full well
oath in medicine, draft a “Socratic oath” that Francis had only the best of inten-
that lists the four ethical obligations of tions but, because some parents find the
teachers that you consider to be the most images offensive, he must take them out of
important. Justify your choices by linking his presentation and never use them again.
each of the obligations you identify to the Seeing the principal’s request as an affront
characteristics of the professional‒client to his professional autonomy, Francis
relationship described in this chapter. refuses. To Francis’s complete surprise, the
2. Consider the following vignette from a principal informs him with regret that he is
legal and then an ethical point of view. suspended for insubordination and sends
Based on what you have learned in this him home.
chapter about the regulatory frame-
3. Although the Morin case can be seen as a
work around the autonomy of teachers
gain for teacher autonomy in Canada, it
in Quebec, what are the teacher’s chan-
is important to recognize that it does not
ces of being reinstated if he contests the
mean that teachers have the right to say
principal’s decision? Why do you think
anything they want in their classrooms in
the teacher refused to obey the principal’s
the name of freedom of expression. Morin’s
request? Is there an ethical argument to be
vindication by the Prince Edward Island’s
made in favour of the teachers’ position?
Court of Appeal was based on a nuanced
Having recently graduated from university application of the so-called Irwin Toy Test
with qualifications in secondary biology, to Morin’s case. The Irwin Toy test is a two-
Francis has been hired to teach Grade 12 in step procedure used by judges in Canada
a Montreal high school. Enthusiastic about to determine whether a person’s right to
his new career, Francis works hard to use free speech has been violated. Step 1 is to
diverse teaching strategies and find creative ask: “Was the activity in question expres-
ways to interest his students in biology. The sion?” Step 2 is to ask: “Was the purpose or
time has come to teach the unit on human effect of the restriction to hamper freedom
reproduction, a curricular requirement. of expression?” If the answer to both these
Francis prepares and presents to his class a questions is “yes,” then it can be concluded
set of slides, which, in addition to showing that the right to freedom of expression
anatomical drawings of the components of has been infringed upon. After taking the
the male and female reproductive organs time to read carefully about the concept
and diagrams illustrating the biological of free speech as discussed in the Web
mechanisms involved in human repro- resource The Charter in the Classroom
duction, contains one slide featuring two (http://www.thecharterrules.ca/index.
separate close-up colour photographs of a php?main=concepts&concept=5), try to
human penis and vagina. Within hours of reconstruct the PEI Court of Appeal judge’s
the presentation, the principal has received argument that the Morin case passes the
several calls from parents concerned about Irwin Toy Test. Then, apply the Irwin
“pornography” being shown in their chil- Toy Test to the vignette from Question 2
dren’s biology class and demanding that to consider whether Francis’s right to free
it be put to a stop. The principal contacts expression is at stake in that case as well.

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 11 To What Extent Do Teachers Have Professional Autonomy? 229

Further Readings
Carr, D. (2000). Professionalism and ethics in Taylor, G., & Runté, R. (1995). Thinking about
teaching. London: Routledge. teaching. Toronto, ON: Harcourt Brace.
Darling-Hammond, L. (1990). “Teacher profes­ Waddington, D.I. (2011). A right to speak
sionalism: Why and how.” In Ann Lieberman out: The Morin case and its implications
(Ed.), Schools as collaborative cultures for teachers’ free expression. Interchange,
(pp. 25‒50). New York, NY: The Falmer Press. 42(1), 59‒80.
Drury, D., & Baer, J. (2011). The American pub- Wiggins, S.P. (1986). Revolution in the teaching
lic school teacher: Past, present, and future. profession: A comparative review of two
Cambridge, MA: Harvard Education Press. reform reports. Educational Leadership,
Strike, K.A. (1990). Is teaching a profession? How 44(2), 56‒9.
would we know? Journal of Personnel
Evaluation in Education, 4, 91‒117.

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 12 Conclusion: Teaching
for the Canadian Ethical
Environment

Philosophical Perspective in the Practice

of Teaching
This book adopted a philosophical lens in order to explore a wide variety of moral,
political, and legal issues in Canadian education. By “philosophical,” we mean that
these issues relate back to two fundamental questions: What is education for? And
why is it worthwhile? These two fundamental questions have not been posed in
a vacuum. Rather, we’ve grounded them in a number of important educational
questions, debates, and issues that are prominent in Canadian education: What
should be taught on the curriculum? Who should control educational policy?
How much say should parents have in their children’s education? Do teachers have
“expertise,” and if so, how similar is this expertise to the kind of expertise of other
professionals? Should education aim at the well-being of the individual or the
community? How does a Canadian context play in how these questions are taken
up? Further, we also introduced a number of concepts for thinking carefully and
critically through these educational problems: personal autonomy, professional
autonomy, well-being, parental rights, freedom (positive and negative), liberalism,
community, civic identity, cultural identity, and justice.
To be sure, adopting a philosophical perspective on education is valuable
in its own right. Recognizing that education cannot really stand apart from fun-
damental questions, and having some familiarity with the concepts, ideas and
arguments have developed over time as people have tried to parse through these
questions, which further adds to their understanding of what education is all
about. Yet, compartmentalizing the philosophical discussions from the realities
of teaching in a classroom seems to be a lost opportunity for seeing how phil-
osophy informs our daily practices (Martin, 2013). A philosophical perspective
on education runs deeper than intellectual debates to be mastered in a university
undergraduate course or as concepts to be “applied” to the “real world.” This
is why we have emphasized how philosophy is anchored in a world of policy
and practice. What should go on the curriculum, how far a parent’s judgment
goes, how free a teacher can and should be to speak his or her mind in the

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 12 Conclusion: Teaching for the Canadian Ethical Environment 231

classroom—more than academic inquiry, these are problems every teacher will
encounter because they define the educational field. It is in this sense that, as
Chinnery et al. (2007) argue, a philosophical perspective is what makes the prac-
tice of teaching possible.
So, a philosophical perspective cannot but be part of the “real world” of
teacher practice. Now, how you develop this perspective as you encounter
various problems in the field is in many respects up to you. Yes, different pro-
fessional norms, school policies, and classroom procedures will nudge your
thinking in certain directions. But ultimately it is you who will decide. Nobody
can do it for you.
However, we want to conclude by offering one way in which you can under-
stand the place of a philosophical perspective in your teaching practice. Why are
we doing this? Each chapter provides you with different ways of thinking about
some of the challenges that define the teaching practice. And each chapter sup-
plies you with some critical tools and concepts for thinking about how one can
go about deciding in the face of such issues. This is one way of understanding the
philosophical content of this book. It is useful for allowing you to make better-rea-
soned decisions. But we also think that the chapters, taken together as whole,
should have a positive influence on your self-cultivation and self-understanding
as a teacher. By this we mean that they kick-start a long-term development of one’s
sense of what it means to be a teacher—of what one should care about, feel a sense
of responsibility for, and make decisions about just because one sees oneself as a
teacher (for more on this idea, see Hansen, 2001).
Now, the idea that philosophical thinking should contribute to one’s sense
of self refers back to a much different way of thinking about education, called
Bildung, a German term that means “formation” or “cultivation” (Reichenbach,
2003). According to this conception, education should not aim at preset goals or
objectives. Education is instead a lifelong project of personal development and
understanding. So it wouldn’t make sense to say something like “I graduated with
a B.Ed. and so I’m finished learning how to be a teacher.” On the contrary, we
believe that the concepts and ideas presented in these chapters should start you
along a lifelong path of professional self-cultivation (see Higgins, 2011). In other
words, we hope that it will start you on a path to a progressively deeper under-
scaffolding An educa-
standing of teaching as an important public service and an ethical calling. tional strategy design
But how does one start on such a path? We propose a way of scaffolding a to move students from
philosophical perspective on education into one’s long-term project of professional a state of dependent
learning and toward
self-cultivation. This scaffold will take the form of a guiding aim or concept that greater independence
beginning teachers can appeal to when thinking about their professional self-cul- and autonomy.
tivation that we term teaching for the Canadian ethical environment. In brief, just
ethical environment
as everyone has a role in maintaining a healthy physical environment, teachers A social space defined
have a role in ensuring that our classrooms and schools serve as healthy ethical by various ideas about
environments (Haydon, 2004). Haydon describes an ethical environment as one how to live a good life
or about what is worth-
populated with many different ideas about how to live a good life and, further, while in life.
many different ideas about how we should prepare children to lead such good lives.

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 232 Part VI • What Is the Role of Teachers’ Professional Identity?

In this chapter we will make the case for this guiding concept in four steps:

1. We will show why a scaffold for professional self-cultivation has value for teachers.
2. We will explain what professional self-cultivation looks like and why it
requires a philosophical perspective.
3. We will argue that this kind of self-cultivation is a valuable and distinctive
part of a teacher’s ongoing professional education.
4. Finally, we will explain the concept of the Canadian ethical environment,
what it means to teach “for it,” and how it can help you develop your sense of
the practice of teaching.

Why Professional Self-Cultivation?

One of the core educational ideas we have emphasized throughout the book is
that education has an inseparable connection to learning. Part of what it means to
learn something is to know the reason “why” of that thing. In other words, to say
that someone has learned something it is not enough for that person to be able to
repeat what he or she has read; rather, that person should be able to explain why
something is the case, why he or she believes something is true or why an activity
is worthwhile. For example, we have often claimed that education is shaped and
defined by democratic values. But it would not be enough, on this view, for students
to simply state that education should be defined by democratic values. Rather, they
should be able to specify what democratic values are, offer reasons why education
should serve these democratic values, and understand the place and importance of
such values in teachers’ own professional conduct. Only in the latter case can we
say that they have learned. (This, of course, should also include a familiarity with
prevailing arguments against democratic values in the school. To really understand
the reasons for a belief or value is to also understand the possible objections against
that belief or value.)
But practising teachers need to take this learning process a step further. They
need to link such reasons to the larger conception of teaching that they are devel-
oping alongside their other teacher education experiences. It is one thing to know
lots about the teaching of controversial issues in Canadian schools and be able to
rehearse the reasons for and against the teaching of such issues (for a discussion
of this issue see Oxfam, 2006). It is quite another to be motivated to develop one’s
own reasoned and informed perspective on the teaching of controversial issues
as they work in the field—to care how the debate plays, one way or the other. One
way to bring this motivation out is to help beginning teachers understand that
taking on a philosophical perspective is part of what it means to be a teacher—
that being convinced one way or the other (i.e., having good reasons) matters.
Accordingly, providing a model for thinking about the philosophical content of
the book in practice, to help incorporate this content into a larger picture of what
it means to be a teacher, can help beginning teachers make these various reasons
their own—where such reasons have actual weight in their decision-making.

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 12 Conclusion: Teaching for the Canadian Ethical Environment 233

Pause for Thought

Perspectives on Teaching and Learning
We have argued that beginning teachers should link their knowledge
and understanding to their developing sense of what it means to be a
teacher.
What we mean to say is that the concepts of teaching and learning
are “there,” and they have a real impact on how teachers carry out their
work, but this impact is not always obvious. Think about the difference
between a teacher who thinks his or her job consists exclusively of helping
learners acquire a systematic body of knowledge about the world, on the
one hand, and a teacher who thinks acquiring knowledge in school is just
part of a broader experience of schooling that aims at holistic personal
development.
How might these different outlooks determine the teachers’ choices
when faced with pressure from a school principal to pass a failing student?
How might these different perspectives influence their beliefs about how
best to develop the existing curriculum?

Professional Self-Cultivation and Reasoning

about Values
Scaffolding between one’s understanding of philosophical issues in education and
professional self-cultivation may have value in principle, but how exactly do the
two relate? We see a promising connection in reasoning about values.
As we pointed out in the Introduction to this book, each chapter takes on
a series of practical problems facing Canadian educators—issues that impact the
everyday lives of practising teachers. There is a sense in which these practical prob-
lems have more than a simple “everyday” character to them. They make strong
demands on our ability to think and reason about our work as teachers. They
raise challenging questions about how we should go about our own professional
decision-making, as in Chapter 11, which deals with professional autonomy. They
may prompt us to reconsider our assumptions and beliefs about the nature and
purpose of education (Chapters 1 and 4). They may invite us to reconsider our
assumptions about what a just and fair school system should look like (Chapters 2
and 8). They may ask us to consider more deeply what it means to live a good life
and what teachers should be doing to create opportunities for children to lead
such good lives (Chapter 1 and 2). These problems place demands on us that differ
from other practical challenges teachers might encounter in the field.

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 234 Part VI • What Is the Role of Teachers’ Professional Identity?

For example, the fact that a school replaces its student attendance software or
decides to close 10 minutes earlier in the day may be a kind of practical problem—
teachers will need to quickly adapt to the new attendance system and they will need
to find an efficient means to communicate the time change to parents or guardians.
These problems, while certainly impacting teachers’ everyday lives, are not the kind
of problems we have focused on in this book. In such situations, what teachers need
to do is more or less straightforward, placing comparatively little demand on our
decision-making abilities. They are also not likely to trigger too much in the way
of professional self-examination or reflection. To be sure, these situations may be
demanding in the sense that solving them involves hard work. They may be quite
stressful. Calling parents to inform them that they have to pick up their children
early from school on short notice is not an enviable task. But such matters don’t
ordinarily require us to think, say, about the values education should serve or the
role that teachers should play in those values.
In contrast, each chapter bears in some fashion on how we reason about
values—how we value classroom time, what we believe education is worth aiming at,
the place of various political values and legal issues in the school, the importance of
professional autonomy in teaching, the value of teaching students to be critical (or
accepting) of the larger society, and so on.
A lot of these issues hit at different levels—some are problems of pub-
lic policy, such as the legitimacy of school choice (Chapter 8). Other issues are
much more “street-level,” such as if—and how—we should teach controversial
issues in the classroom (Chapter 6). Some issues, such as the rise of consumer
culture, involve social forces over which teachers themselves have little control
(Chapter 4). But they all matter for teaching practice. Teachers cannot stop corpor-
ations from advertising, but they can take an informed stance on how to manage
exposure to advertising in schools and prepare young people to live intelligently in
consumer culture. Should children learn to be savvy consumers, or should they be
taught to resist consumerist values? Should they be taught both? Can they? Other
issues, such as the nature, scope, and value of teacher professional autonomy, have
a more direct impact on how teachers carry out their work. There may be instan-
ces where teachers will be asked to defend the little professional autonomy they
have, or take a risk by fighting for more autonomy in the name of their students’
education. Is it right for teachers to accept curricular changes that they believe
will undermine students’ best interests? Is this belief a sufficient reason for going
against provincial policy? Are teachers really in the best position to know what
the child’s best interests are? They may also have to vote on issues that will directly
impact the scope of their professional autonomy. For example, should teachers
vote for merit pay versus more union protection?
All of these cases—from public policy to classroom routines—will in some
way require teachers to make important decisions that reflect on their own devel-
oping sense of the nature of being a teacher and their place in the context of a
democratic society. They all involve reasoning about values that should be of fun-
damental concern for educators. And reasoning about such values—what makes
them worth promoting and protecting, how we balance between them when they

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 12 Conclusion: Teaching for the Canadian Ethical Environment 235

conflict, how we explain them to ourselves and to others—is not a conclusive pro-
ject, a project that one can look back and say, “I’m finished!” It requires continu-
ously revisiting such values and cultivating one’s understanding of what it means
to be a teacher. This is because making intelligent decisions about such values is in
a sense an act of self-cultivation. When a teacher decides, after years of instilling
strong rules about classroom behaviour, that a democratic approach to classroom
management is more valuable than a purely authoritarian one, that it cuts closer to
what educating a person is supposed to be about, something about that teacher’s
understanding has evolved in important ways.

Self-Cultivation and Teacher Education

Learning to reason about values is logically connected to how one comes to see
oneself as a teacher. And certainly we want that self-cultivation to go well—we
want to make decisions for the right reasons and we want to be able to recognize
the good in what we do. But teachers also have to look outwards—to teach and
learn alongside students and colleagues that depend on them. One can be really
self-conscious about this fact in the early stages of a teaching career when one is
eager, and often anxious, about the work that one may be called on to carry out in
the field. In such a situation, being more concerned with how to keep a classroom
in order as opposed to, say, grasping various justifications of rational autonomy as
an aim of education, is understandable. What, then, is the place of philosophy and
professional self-cultivation in learning to be able to teach?
To ask such a question is to ask about the value of a philosophical perspective.
But the way we ask the question is going to have important implications for the
kind of answer we expect to get. For example, teacher candidates sometimes ask
how a specific course is going to be useful in the classroom. Will it make their
teaching more “effective”? Will it help them to better “manage” student behav-
iour? The implication here is that what is learned in an education class should
always centre on how to successfully carry out tasks in the classroom. Learning
how to carry out important classroom tasks is certainly an educationally worth-
while activity in a teacher education program. Novice teachers, for example, need
to know how to organize the learning experience for students. Lesson planning
is an important skill that supports teacher success. Teachers need to know how
to assess learning and how to make sure that the classroom is safe for all stu-
dents. There are debates about how best to impart this knowledge to teachers and
how separate such learning should be from other aspects of the teacher education
experience. Regardless, at least some aspects of the teacher education experience
should involve a certain kind of practical know-how. In fact, it is quite understand-
able that beginning teachers want to learn such things—part of the feeling of being
competent involves the ability to carry out basic tasks. To use an extreme example,
it would be hard for someone to see himself or herself as a competent teacher with-
out knowing how to get to the assigned school. While the example may seem odd,
it is meant to demonstrate the notion that having some basic skills is certainly a
part of being a teacher. And because new teachers are often in transition to a new

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 236 Part VI • What Is the Role of Teachers’ Professional Identity?

and complex environment—the classroom—they will want to master as many of

these basic skills as possible.
However, we think it would be wrong to reduce all worthwhile teacher edu-
cation to cases of “knowing how.” There is second sense in which an activity in a
teacher education program could be considered valuable. Consider the example
of a teacher who is having trouble motivating a student. No matter how excit-
ing the lesson or how much the teacher pleads, the student refuses to partici-
pate. The teacher wants to understand why his or her attempts have failed. The
teacher is looking for an explanation of the student’s behaviour. If the teacher
can explain why the student is not interested in learning, the teacher can change
his or her approach on the basis of that explanation. Psychological theories of
motivation—theories that account for what causes people to act as they do (to
satisfy a need or earn a reward of some kind, for example)—would be the kind
of knowledge that would play an important role in helping the teacher construct
such an explanation in the case of that particular student. It is easy to see how
knowing why students are motivated by certain kinds of tasks, or why certain
kinds of discipline build resistance in older students, or why learning organiz-
ations function in certain ways and not others, can help teachers make better
decisions about their practice throughout their careers. In order to motivate stu-
dents, for example, teachers would be better off if they understood the concept of
motivation and its various psychological theories. In order to run a large school,
a school principal would be better off having grasped the concept of an institu-
tion and various theories of institutional change. Of course, there are debates
about what concepts are most important, how they should be presented, and
the merits of some theories over others. Is the concept of motivation best seen
as a psychological concept, for example, or are there sociological or even artistic
perspectives on motivation?
Nevertheless, we think that it is fairly uncontroversial that teachers should
have the opportunity to understand a variety of facts and explanations that can
help guide their actions in the school setting. There is a significant amount of
teacher education that involves knowing why. Even knowledge and understanding
that we often see as simply intrinsic, such as history, can take on a special role
in teacher education. Historical explanations of how and why schooling evolved
from a private institution that catered to a relativity small number of elites to a
public system available to all, for example, may help teachers to better understand
how demographic, economic, and political changes may alter the kind of work
they are called on to do.
So we have here two kinds of activities that are worthwhile in teacher edu-
cation programs. First, some activities make teachers better off by widening their
knowledge and understanding of how and why educational institutions work and
how and why people behave both with and outside of schools. It provides them with
what we might call general truths about education such as how brains work or how
theoretical reasoning students decode words or how school budgets work—about the way things are.
Reasoning directed at
uncovering truths.
Philosophers sometimes describe this way of thinking as theoretical reasoning.
Being able to reason theoretically, to be able to pose questions about how teaching

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 12 Conclusion: Teaching for the Canadian Ethical Environment 237

and learning “work,” and to possess the knowledge necessary to offer good explan-
ations, is a worthwhile capacity to cultivate before entering the field.
But we also saw that some activities make teachers better off by helping them
learn what they should do and how to act. Knowing how to plan a lesson, for
example, helps teachers meet their educational goals more quickly and efficiently,
and in a manner arguably more effective for the student, than if they did not know
how. Philosophers sometimes call the application of theoretical knowledge and
understanding in deciding how to act practical reasoning. When teachers reflect practical reasoning
on how best to act, they are using their practical reason. Having the knowledge Reasoning about one’s
actions or about what
necessary in order to best meet their chosen goals, to use their practical reason in one should do.
order to think ahead and plan their educational and other professional activities,
is a good capacity to cultivate.
Teacher education programs devote significant time to the cultivation of
teachers’ theoretical and practical reasoning, often in the same course. Courses
in child development, for example, acquaint you with theories that help teachers
understand and explain why young children have trouble learning abstract ideas
but work well with concrete examples (theory, theoretical reasoning). But they
may also require you to think about how these theories should impact your class-
room decision-making and lesson planning (practice, practical reasoning).
Where does learning to reason about values fit into this story? Is such reason-
ing mostly theoretical, or is it practical? In what way is such reasoning “useful”?
Answering this question requires that we take up an important, but often neglected,
third sense of whether such reasoning is worthwhile. This third sense requires that
we revisit practical reasoning—reasoning about our actions. The examples we gave
of practical reasoning were focused on reasoning about the means necessary for
achieving a chosen goal. If your goal is to ensure that students will sit still and

Pause for Thought

Learning to Reason as an Educator
Consider some of the courses that you have already enrolled in as part of
your teacher education.

• Which courses did you love? Which courses did you loathe?
• What features of these courses involved theoretical reasoning? What
features involved practical reasoning? Both? Is there any correlation
between the courses that you loved with those that you loathed to that
of theoretical and practical reasoning?
• How might the content of these different courses inform your own
developing sense of what education is about and what it means to be
a teacher?

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 238 Part VI • What Is the Role of Teachers’ Professional Identity?

listen as you lecture at them, practical reasoning will involve carefully selecting
the means necessary for achieving this goal. Drawing from the theoretical know-
ledge you may have acquired in your teaching education program, for example,
you recall that students respond quickly to short-term, immediate rewards. You
therefore judge that the best way to get students to do what you want is to promise
them a (peanut-free) chocolate brownie for every class they remain perfectly still.
On one measure of practical reasoning this is a highly rational way to go about
meeting one’s goals. But is manipulating students into sitting still all day a good
educational goal? The very asking of the question engages us in a different kind of
practical reasoning. To be sure, reasoning about the means necessary for an end or
instrumental reasoning goal is one kind of practical reasoning, sometimes called instrumental reasoning.
A type of practical But how do we know what ends are worth pursuing? Are there any ends that are
reasoning directed at
making decisions that simply off-limits? Are there ends that we should never ignore, ends that we have an
are the most effective obligation to pursue? Are there certain means that we should not adopt in pursing
or efficient; reasoning educational goals? This kind of practical reasoning—reasoning about the value of
about means.
our actions—is what some philosophers refer to as ethical reasoning.
ethical reasoning Here is an example of where ethical reasoning, or reasoning about the value
A type of practical of our actions, is “useful” for teachers. Consider the example we just gave of the
reasoning directed at
making decisions about excellent instrumental reasoner: he has carefully arranged his classroom using a
what is worth doing or well-thought-out system of extrinsic rewards (chocolate brownies, toys, movies
what one ought to do; between exams) that virtually guarantees his students will remain at their desks
reasoning about ends.
through most of the day as he lectures. Good ethical reasoners, however, may
assess the situation differently. They know that they can arrange their classroom
practice in such a way and it will be very effective at keeping students still. But they
reason, practically, about such a possibility in a different way. Is this a worthwhile
educational goal? Is the lecture format always an educationally worthwhile activ-
ity? Is manipulating student behaviour through extrinsic rewards or bribes with
candy and desserts appropriate?
We might have an aim set in before us, says the ethical reasoner, and we might
know how to bring it about. But is this really something worth aiming for? Learning
how to reason about the value of our educational goals, aims, or policies—to be
able to answer the question, why do this rather than that?—is crucially important
for the beginning teacher. In fact, one might go so far as to say that helping teach-
ers to reason from an ethical perspective is the most “useful” or worthwhile part
of a teacher’s preparation. Consider that a teacher can be extremely effective at
achieving a goal, but if this goal is not worthwhile for students, this achievement is
at best a waste of effort and at worst harmful. Ethical reasoning, or reasoning about
what is worthwhile, is necessary for teachers to be successful in doing anything
useful because in order for something to be useful, it must first be worthwhile.
Finally, ethical reasoning is where we see Bildung, or self-cultivation, take on
an important role as part of a larger project of professional education. We bridge
from a philosophical perspective on education to the field of teacher practice by
recognizing how such a perspective helps us to practically reason about educa-
tional values. Such reasoning is indispensible because teaching involves mak-
ing important decisions about what is worthwhile for students. But this, as we

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 12 Conclusion: Teaching for the Canadian Ethical Environment 239

Pause for Thought

A Personal Dimension
One of the ideas we’ve been developing in this chapter is that a philosoph-
ical perspective on education has a personal dimension—that is, because it
involves thinking about values it cannot but involve changing how a person
understands education and what he or she values in it.
Can you think of some examples of how learning about a philosoph-
ical perspective on education has changed some of your assumptions or
beliefs about education and teaching? In what ways have these changes
impacted on your idea of what it means to be a teacher? Refer to specific
concepts, ideas, and arguments from the book.

have already said, is a project that teachers will revisit continuously throughout
their careers, for it not only involves learning how to make well-reasoned deci-
sions, but rather, it also requires revising our developing beliefs about the goods
that teaching serves and the responsibilities that we have toward those goods.
Decisions about what is valuable are also decisions about who we are and what
kind of teacher we aspire to be.

Teaching for the Canadian Ethical Environment

The Ethical Environment
So far we have argued that a philosophical perspective on education is a start-
ing point for professional self-cultivation. Further, such self-cultivation should be
focused on learning to reason about values as they play out in different educational
contexts. More specifically, it should focus on ethical reasoning—a necessary part
of teachers’ professional education. In this last section we will offer a guiding con-
cept that may be helpful for early-career teachers in understanding this process:
teaching for the Canadian ethical environment.
We think that Canadian teachers should understand their work in the context
of protecting and enhancing the ethical environment of the classroom and school.
What do we mean by “ethical environment”? Consider the use of the term environ-
ment. When we say we are “in our natural environment” we are talking about a
physical space that surrounds us. We may have differing views on how best to go
about moving within, and perhaps shaping and changing, that physical environ-
ment. But we have no choice but to deal with it in some fashion.
Graham Haydon, recall, suggests that much the same can be said for the val-
ues that give meaning and purpose to our lives. We cannot but involve ourselves

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 240 Part VI • What Is the Role of Teachers’ Professional Identity?

in questions of value when we teach. When we say the classroom and school is
an “ethical environment,” we are talking about the social space that surrounds us.
Teachers, Haydon argues, have a role to play in “the protection and enhancement of
the ethical environment” (2004, p. 116). We can use Haydon’s notion of the ethical
environment to link a philosophical perspective on education to teaching practice.
Such a perspective can help you in “protecting and enhancing” the ethical environ-
ment of the Canadian school, for such a task requires knowledge and understand-
ing of the relationship between education and democracy, our legal responsibilities
to the children under our care and protection, our moral obligations to students
and colleagues, our responsibilities as professionals, and so on. It also means
understanding the extent to which, and ways in which, these questions may play
out differently in a Canadian context. Just as a person cannot protect the natural
environment without an adequate knowledge and understanding of that natural
world, so too, we argue, a teacher cannot protect and enhance the ethical environ-
mental of the school without adequate knowledge and understanding of the values
that make up that ethical environment (including an ability to be aware of when a
school might be moving away from, or losing focus on, that ethical environment).
Two examples will help bring this idea out. First, seeing schools and class-
rooms as ethical environments requires teachers to cultivate an ongoing under-
standing of what values there are. Consider the issue of parental rights and the
common school (Chapter 8). The common school is more than an academic
idea—it represents a considered view of how best to cultivate the capacities of
vulnerable children for democratic living. To believe in the common school is to
see activities that promote civic engagement and participation in such society as
being of supreme worth. Other conceptions of the values and aims of schooling
may advance different ideals, leading to different perspectives on what is worth-
while. For example, those who believe the state should have little control over the
education of children may see a variety of activities, ranging from discussing sex-
ual health to political education, as something that should be greatly restricted. It
is clear that there are at least two educational values in tension here: the obliga-
tion of society to promote the best interests of children, on the one hand, and our
freedom to raise our children as we wish, on the other. This is a complex issue.
We think that every teacher should be aware of and be cognizant of these values.
Further, they should be prepared to navigate the ethical environment defined by
such values as the situation arises and, where appropriate, make intelligent deci-
sions about them. This doesn’t mean always letting parents trump school policy
(or vice versa) but it does mean that any such decision must be mindful that both
have a place within a larger picture of education and what is in fact in the best
interests of a specific child in a specific situation.
But the ethical environment also requires that teachers need to be reflective,
egalitarianism A moral
curious even, about how their own values and commitments impact that environ-
or political outlook
that views people as ment. As a second example, one political value that arises often through the book
fundamentally equal is egalitarianism. Egalitarianism is the idea that people should be treated as equal.
and deserving of equal
Recall the idea of civic equality. But there are other ways to think about egalitar-
treatment.
ianism as a political value. Some, for example, reason that private schooling is

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 12 Conclusion: Teaching for the Canadian Ethical Environment 241

unfair because private schools allow some children to receive a better education
than other children simply because they were born into a family with more money
or because their family was willing to spend money on their education. This is
deemed unfair because people should not have unequal opportunities to flourish
and succeed in life. Equality of chances is an important political value. But we
should also think critically and carefully about how this value links up with other
important values. Some philosophers, for example, have argued that parental par- parental partiality
tiality, the idea that being able to do good things for one’s own child, is valuable Parents’ tendency
to offer more care,
in its own right (Bou-Habib, 2014; Brighouse and Swift, 2009). When people act attention, financial or
on their sense of parental partiality—by enrolling their children in music lessons, other resources to one’s
by hiring a tutor when they have trouble in a particular subject, by taking them own children than other
children.
on trips to foreign counties—they arguably contribute to inequality by providing
opportunities for their children that other parents are either unable or unwilling
to offer. Surely, we should not think that parents should not be partial toward
their children simply for the reason that it will lead to some forms of inequality.
But it equally seems true that we should not ignore our commitments to egalitar-
ianism simply because parental partiality is a good. Should a teacher discourage
private school, or refuse to take a job at one, out of his or her sense of justice and
equality? Should he or she share such views with parents who are thinking about
withdrawing their children from the public system? Are there situations where
private schooling is not only justified, but necessary? What if the parents are high
achievers who want their child to have the best possible chance at academic suc-
cess? What if the child simply does not feel safe and secure in a public school
environment? Are these individual cases relevantly different? If so, why?

The Canadian Ethical Environment

Teaching for an ethical environment may make sense. But why model this as teach-
ing for a Canadian ethical environment? Many issues we have selected in this book
represent prominent Canadian issues. By this we mean that among the many issues
about which any teacher can be expected to make decisions, of the many instances
in which they will have to reason about values, there are some issues that are more
likely to arise simply by virtue of teaching in a Canadian school. Rural and remote
schooling is but one example.
But there is also a sense in which what makes a Canadian issue “Canadian”
involves more than the frequency with which it likely to arise in a Canadian
school. Rather, by Canadian issues we also mean that they are issues that reflect
the particular kinds of problems that might arise due to Canada’s particular
approach to democracy. They are issues that, while likely a factor for any teacher
in a liberal democracy, will require Canadian teachers to reason differently from
their counterparts in other democratic countries.
So, for example, the idea that education involves a commitment to a certain
set of aims, and that these aims should in some way be compatible with broader
democratic values and principles, is an important practical problem for any
teacher working in a modern liberal democracy. How do teachers maintain their

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 242 Part VI • What Is the Role of Teachers’ Professional Identity?

authority in the classroom while being consistent in modelling democratic values

to students who will one day be full-fledged citizens? This is a practical issue for
any teacher, placing significant demands on their reasoning as they seek to find the
right balance between classroom authority, student safety, their own well-being,
student freedom, and preparation of democratic living. However, the relation-
ship between democratic values and principles and the classroom environment
will be different for American, British, and Canadian teachers. Consider the idea
of education for civic identity as covered in Chapter 2 and Chapter 8. In some
democratic societies, such as the United States, it is quite normal and appropriate
to see one of the goals of civic education to direct students to some singular ideal
of what it means to be an American citizen. The relationship between personal
identity and civic identity in the US context is well established, evinced in the
oft-heard notion that the United States is a “melting pot.” But as Will Kymlicka’s
(1989) distinction between civic and cultural respect suggests (Chapter 9), the
Canadian multinational tradition sees cultural identity as more important to our
well-being within a larger society. Drawing a straight line from personal identity
to civic identity just isn’t plausible. For any Canadian teacher, education for civic
identity will involve important considerations about the role of the student’s own
cultural background and that culture’s idea of what it means to be “Canadian.”
We saw in Chapter 9, for example, that First Nations and Aboriginal peoples have
a much more complex relationship with Canadian federalism than many other
Canadians. For historical reasons, Aboriginal cultural identity and civic identity
are often not seen as one and the same.
Of course, it is important to point out that thinking of these issues as
“Canadian” does not mean that we should view them in isolation from global
issues in education. Professional self-cultivation needs to reach beyond what it
means to be a Canadian teacher. It is clear that many issues affecting public edu-
cation in democratic countries are not singularly Canadian. The rise in wealth
inequality, environmental change, the place of religion in a diverse society—all
are global issues that education cannot avoid being caught up in. In some cases,
such as environmental change, the issue may appear to be especially relevant to
Canadians. For example, Canadian teachers may have a special responsibility
to advocate for curricula that make it clear to future Canadian citizens the extent
to which Canadian-based oil and gas industries may have a negative impact on the
environmental well-being of the rest of the world. In other cases, such as wealth
inequality, there may be nothing distinctly Canadian about the problem, although
the way in which that inequality might manifest itself in schools could involve
changes to the Canadian education context, such as growth in the popularity of
private schooling among wealthy parents. Regardless, it would be a mistake to
think that issues in Canadian education are ever completely divorced from the
global context.
Nonetheless, we think that the idea of teaching for the Canadian ethical
environment is a helpful starting point for cultivating one’s own professional
self-understanding. On this view, a philosophical perspective on education will
provide you with the key concepts, arguments, and ideas that you will need in

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 12 Conclusion: Teaching for the Canadian Ethical Environment 243

order to start navigating the values and associated tensions that come with the
classroom as an ethical space. In fact, it may be more accurate to say that the very
nature of teaching practice requires that one be philosophically aware (Chinnery
et al., 2007). To be sure, these introductory concepts are by no means sufficient for
such a task, but they should instill the notion that the practice of teaching is, funda-
mentally, a philosophical project that continues throughout one’s professional life.

Review Questions
1. What are the three types of reasoning cov- ferent from protecting the natural environ-
ered in this chapter? How are they differ- ment? Protecting the natural environment
ent? How does each contribute to teaching often means preserving or conserving that
practice? environment (i.e., preventing change). Is
2. We suggested some ways in which teach- this always the right way to go in an ethical
ing in the Canadian ethical environment environment? Why or why not?
involves reflection on how democratic val- 4. An important part of teacher education
ues may apply differently to the Canadian is learning the curriculum—for example,
context, given its distinctive historical, cul- knowing all the learning outcomes for
tural, and political makeup. Drawing from one’s area of teaching responsibility. How
earlier chapters, can you suggest some might this approach differ from the notion
examples of your own? of Bildung or self-cultivation? Can the two
3. Haydon contrasts the physical environ- approaches be combined in the classroom?
ment with the natural environment. How If so, how?
is protecting the ethical environment dif-

Further Readings
Brighouse, H., & Swift, A. (2014). Family values. The Haydon, G. (2006). Education, philosophy and the
ethics of parent‒child relationships (p. 240). ethical environment. London and New York:
Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press. Routledge.
Hansen, D.T. (2001). Exploring the moral heart of Higgins, C. (2011). The good life of teaching: An ethics
teaching: Toward a teacher’s creed. New York, of professional practice (Vol. 22). New York, NY:
NY: Teachers College Press. John Wiley & Sons.

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 Glossary
abuse of power Exercising authority for purposes other programs that improve the acquisition of student skills,
than the purpose for which the authority is intended (e.g., attitudes, and knowledge in some measurable way, and
manipulating hiring rules to secure a job for a family meet the needs of a particular group of students through
member) or in ways that serve one’s personal interests a specific program or teaching/learning approach that
at the expense of the interests of those the authority is is not offered in other public schools.
meant to serve (e.g., a civil servant taking bribes).
choice architecture A term used to describe the
adaptive A term derived from evolutionary theory, different ways in which decisions may be influenced by
“adaptive” in the context of learning theory refers to how the choices are presented.
knowledge that helps individuals effectively negotiate
and solve problems in a given social, technological, or choice Concept associated with the idea of a free and
natural environment. rational consumer who is best able to determine his or
her own interest, and can do so without government
agency rights Those rights that foster an individual’s restrictions or involvement. Often seen as intrinsically
ability to make informed reasoned decisions about how good.
to lead one’s life.
civic identity Typically associated with a geographical
alternative schools Public schools that offer educational area (e.g., country, province, region, or city), civic
programs characterized by specialized curricular identity refers to one’s sense of membership in a
themes, philosophical predispositions, or instructional political community defined by shared institutions,
methods that are not available in mainstream schools laws, customs, norms, practices, history, and so on.
in a particular school board jurisdiction.
collective representations The ideas, values, and beliefs
analytic philosophy An approach to philosophical about collective life shared by people who have a civic
problems that emphasizes language, the meaning of identity in common.
words, and the logical relation between concepts.
common good A “good” that is shared and beneficial
back-to-basics A term that is used to describe a return for most individuals in society.
to an adherence to the fundamental principles through
traditional forms of instruction. common school The principle under which schools
bring together children from different perspectives in
banking education A model of the teacher‒student order to increase social connections, foster democratic
relationship articulated by Paulo Freire in which dispositions, and educate for civic virtues.
students are portrayed as empty vessels into which
teachers “pour” knowledge, and learning is about communitarianism A philosophy that believes that a
accumulating knowledge as if it can be stored in a bank. person’s identity is defined by the community.

behavioural criterion To develop criteria or principles constructivism A conception of learning that views
based on dispositions to human behaviour. learning as process in which learners actively modify
and correct their current beliefs in light of experiences
canonical approach to philosophy An established and ideas that pose a challenge to those beliefs.
approach to philosophy that prioritizes key theorists or
thinkers in a particular tradition of thought. consumerism A way of life and a set of values that
emphasizes the acquisition of goods and services based on
charter schools Autonomous non-profit public schools endless wants and acquisitiveness. In a consumer society
designed to provide innovative or enhanced education one’s sense of identity and value as a person is derived

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 Glossary 245

from shopping and possessions, human relationships are Enlightenment Spanning the sixteenth to the
mediated by commodities, and everything in the world early-nineteenth century, the period of European
is seen as a commodity that is available for human use. history in which science emerged as the dominant
way of understanding the world and acquiring new
counter-argument An objection to an objection. A counter­­ knowledge.
argument requires assessing the reasons underlying an
objection and showing why those reasons are not sound. episteme A type of knowledge centred on facts about
the world and the laws and causal relations that explain
creaming effect The explicit and implicit procedures how it operates.
and practices of student enrolment that create exclusive
selective practices to the advantage of those desirable epistemic criterion Criterion related to factors based
students. on reason or knowledge.

cultural appropriation The adoption of cultural equality of educational opportunity A principle that
practices and traditions (such as art, language, or an individual’s education should be treated equitably
cultural dress) of one group by another. without discrimination or prejudice.

deductive reasoning In contrast with inductive esoteric knowledge The set of competencies, skills,
reasoning, or reasoning from observations to general and know-how specific to a particular profession, and
claims (e.g., “Since all the ducks I have seen are brown, not possessed by anyone who is not a member of that
all ducks must be brown.”), deductive reasoning consists particular profession.
in arriving at a conclusion based only on accepting that
other related statements are true (e.g., “If Toronto is larger essentially contested concept A complex, multifaceted,
than Montreal and Montreal is larger than Vancouver, value-laden concept or issue that reasonable, informed,
then Toronto must be larger than Vancouver.”). and well-intentioned people disagree about (e.g.,
equality, education, Canadian civic identity).
“deficit” model An approach to educational policy
and practice that focuses on the individual student or ethical environment A social space defined by various
cultural background as the cause of low educational ideas about how to live a good life or about what is
attainment or as lacking in some way, shape, or form. worthwhile in life.

deliberative democracy An approach to decision- ethical reasoning A type of practical reasoning

making that focuses on public deliberation, reasoned directed at making decisions about what is worth doing
argument, and agreement. It claims the good decisions or what one ought to do; reasoning about ends.
must include the interests and perspectives all affected
by that decision. It also emphasizes the idea that each eudaimonic conception of well-being Theories of
participant in the deliberation is to be treated as equal. well-being that understand well-being as a matter of
leading a good life. The activities and pursuits that make
democratic aims of education Value judgments for a good life are thought to be objective, meaning that
about how best to prepare young people for a life in a some activities are more worth pursuing than others,
democratic society. regardless of what the individual believes.

educationalization The tendency to look to educational evidence-based teaching Instructional decisions

institutions to resolve pressing social problems. informed and justified by the results of research rather
than personal opinion, hearsay, or tradition.
egalitarianism A moral or political outlook that views
people as fundamentally equal and deserving of equal extra-curriculum Activities that do not earn credits,
treatment. and are considered above the required curriculum.

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 246 Glossary

extrinsic value When something is valued for the sake homo economicus Economic concept that suggests that
of something else, or its usefulness in getting something humans are best able to determine his or her own self-
else. interest as rational individuals.

false correlation A presumption that two variables are human capital The total amount of skills, knowledge,
correlated when in reality they are not. Sometimes this and values that are required in order to perform tasks
is called spurious correlation. tied to economic value. Schools are considered to be
key sites in the creation of human capital.
forms of knowledge Intellectual traditions or activities,
such as science, math, art, and philosophy, that humanity humanistic psychology A school of thought in
has developed as a way of better understanding the world. psychology and psychotherapy that regards the
realization of one’s innate talents, true personality
founding nations In the Canadian political context, traits, and personal potential as one of people’s most
the three independent “peoples”—the First Nations, fundamental needs.
the French, and the British—that voluntarily agreed,
through the signing of the Constitutional Act of 1867, independent school A school that is not financed or
to unite to form the confederation of Canada. run by a local authority or the government.

genetic fallacy A logical fallacy that involves judging individualization Process whereby education becomes
the value of a claim, belief, or value based on where it an individual issue and an individual responsibility for
came from or who states it. individual benefit. It is evident in the representation of
learning as a private undertaking for private gain.
gnosis A type of knowledge centred on the meaning of
the world and humanity’s place in the cosmos. instrumental reasoning A type of practical reasoning
directed at making decisions that are the most effective
harm principle The belief that a person’s free action or efficient; reasoning about means.
should only be restricted when that action will cause
harm to others. integrated curriculum Part of curriculum that combines
concepts and skills from different subject areas.
hedonic conception of well-being Theories of well-
being that understand well-being as a matter of intellectual autonomy The ability and motivation to
subjective happiness. think and reason for oneself, without undue influence
by external pressure or authority.
helicopter parenting A pejorative expression referring
to the parenting style of obsessively protective parents inter- and intra-district choice Option of parents to
who pay extremely close attention to their child’s choose a public school other than the one assigned
experiences and problems. for their child or children within the district or in a
surrounding district.
hidden curriculum The implicit norms and behaviours
learned by students within a broader ethos or school intrinsic value When something is valuable for its own
culture. Hidden curriculum is the learning that happens sake.
without students intending to, consenting to, or even
knowing about. It includes the transmission of norms, “is-ought” fallacy A logical fallacy that involves
values, and beliefs, and is nevertheless a significant making conclusions about what ought be the case from
component of what is taught and learned in schools. what is the case.

home-schooling Education of children within the knowledge base of teacher professionalism A body of
home environment in contrast to the formal setting of highly specialized theoretical and practical knowledge
public or private schooling. that only teachers possess and that enables them

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 Glossary 247

to provide students with effective instruction and monitorial schools Schools in which more advanced
educational support. students teach large numbers of younger students
through a process of repetition and recitation.
labour mobility The ability of workers to change their
occupation or place of occupation. moral autonomy The ability and motivation to make
rational ethical decisions for oneself, without undue
learned curriculum How students learn from this influence by external pressure or authority.
particular positioning of key topics and areas of study.
multiculturalism (1) In contemporary politics, a
legal precedent A decision that judges made about how to school of thought favourable to the promotion and
apply the law to a particular case in a previous court ruling, protection of cultural and religious diversity. (2) In
which future judges must take as authoritative when Canada specifically, a 1970s federal policy on the
deciding how to apply the law to similar cases in the future. funding for cultural organizations that replaced the
long-standing practice of prioritizing French-Canadian
legitimacy The acceptance of authority or power. cultural organizations with a funding scheme for all
For example, an institution such as a public school cultural communities present in Canada.
is legitimate when citizens believe that such schools
use their power in appropriate and ethical ways. In a nation-state In contrast with confederations,
democracy, legitimacy arises from the consent of the multinational states, and city states, a nation-state is
governed, meaning that the acceptance of authority a form of political organization that is the homeland
must be some form of popular acceptance. of one relatively homogeneous people defined by a
common language, history, religion, and culture.
liberalism A political philosophy that believes that
societies should be organized on the assumption that negative freedom The absence of external constraints,
every person is free and equal. Philosophical liberals see barriers, or interference on an individual. Freedom
a close connection between freedom and well-being. from restriction, interference, or coercion by others.
Also known as a negative liberty.
libertarianism A political philosophy that promotes
liberty as its primary objective, prioritizing individual neo-liberalism A political framework that emphasizes
autonomy and freedom of choice. Libertarianism and prioritizes economic principles to govern policy
upholds the individual’s rights to liberty and to and practice, and a decentralized role and control of
protection of those individual rights from the state. the state.

liberty The premise that individuals should be free in normalize The process through which ideas, values,
society from restrictions from the state on one’s way of life. and actions are presented in a manner that appears
unbiased, neutral, and culturally “normal”—yet any
linear curriculum Curriculum that requires teachers reasons to oppose it have been omitted.
to narrow their focus, using a one-concept-at-a-time
approach to instruction before moving on to the next normal school Institution that trained and educated
concept. teachers prior to the transfer of teacher education to
universities. The name “normal schools” derives from
market-based perspective Economic framework the fact that the normal school system was created to
based on supply, demand, and competition. introduce a measure of standardization or common
“norms” in teaching and teacher education.
monitorial instruction The method of instruction
whereby older students assist the teacher in teaching normative philosophy (normative theories) A theoretical
concepts to younger students through drill and approach that investigates a set of questions, and proposes
repetition exercises. principles to guide how one ought to proceed.

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 248 Glossary

normative standard A measure against which to judge consideration the client’s wishes or recognizing their
whether something is acceptable, proper, or appropriate. right to be informed about proposed interventions and
consent to them.
no-zero policy A rule that states that a teacher may
not assign a mark of zero for unsubmitted or incorrect pedagogy of discomfort Students may feel
work on the grounds that, once a student receives a uncomfortable when critical inquiry into cherished
zero, it can be very difficult for the student to obtain a and deeply held values and beliefs occurs in educational
passing grade in the class. contexts. May provoke resistance or a “refusal” of new
information or evidence that disrupts their comfortable
nudge theory A perspective that rejects the assumption and familiar beliefs.
that people are fully rational, and suggests that the
choices we make are defined by cognitive biases. personal autonomy The ability and motivation to live
a self-determined life. Personally autonomous people
null curriculum Curriculum that is not taught. determine their ends and goals for themselves. They are
also able to critically reflect on, and choose among, the
objective Something whose truth, goodness, or shared values of the community or society they live in.
rightness is not influenced by personal tastes or
preferences. The results of a science experiment, for placed-based education (PBE) Education that is
example, should not be affected by the preferences of focused on developing the learner’s sense of place or
the scientist conducing the experiment. community and can include a focus on the natural
environment.
official curriculum What the state and district officials
set forth in curricular frameworks and courses of pluralism A term used to describe a diversity of views,
study. Contained in formal documents that teachers beliefs, and practices among individuals.
are provided with and the general public has access to
through government websites. positive freedom The freedom to do something; the
power, capacity, or agency to act on one’s freedom.
online learning programs Educational programs It is the ability to take advantage of the opportunity
offered by a school authority and delivered or possibility by being able to control one’s life. Also
electronically to a student at a school site or off-site, known as a positive liberty.
under the instruction and supervision of a certificated
teacher of a board or accredited private school. post-industrial economy An economic system focused
on the service and the production of knowledge (as
parens patriae Latin for “parent of the nation.” A opposed to manufacturing).
doctrine that grants the inherent power and authority
of the state to protect persons who are legally unable to practical reasoning Reasoning about one’s actions or
act on their own behalf. about what one should do.

parental partiality Parents’ tendency to offer more pre-service teachers Students enrolled in an education
care, attention, financial, or other resources to one’s program in preparation for teaching certification.
own children than other children.
primary goods Goods that any citizen must have in
parental rights The extraordinary moral and legal order to live a good life. Examples of primary goods
parental privileges associated with the intimate and include health care and education.
intensely bonding relationships between parents and
their children. problem-based learning An instructional and learner-
based approach that integrates theory and practice, and
paternalism In the context of professional ethics, applies knowledge and skills to develop viable solutions
providing professional services without taking into due to a defined problem.

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 Glossary 249

professional judgment The decision-making skills officially and directly give weight to parents’ preferences
that allow professionals to provide clients with regarding the allocation of their children to schools.
knowledgeable and competent help and care.
school commercialism The development of
professionalization of teaching movement A broad- relationships between schools and commercial interests
based international initiative to improve school-based who seek to gain access to students and their parents
education, increase the status of teaching, and improve to promote certain products and services, build brand
the working conditions of teachers by making the loyalty, or shape values and beliefs.
work of teachers and the regulatory framework around
teaching similar to that of regular professions like Section 1 grounds In Canadian constitutional law, a
medicine and law. provision in the Charter of Rights and Freedoms that
allows for limited infringements of basic rights and
public good Something that can be enjoyed by one freedoms on the condition that they can be shown to
person without taking away the opportunity for be reasonable and justifiable in “a free and democratic
another person to enjoy the same good, which can society.”
often be enjoyed again and again. Some examples
include fresh air, sunlight, knowledge, street lighting, self-governed schools Schools intended to give specific
rainwater, parks, radio, lighthouses, and so forth. groups, such as Aboriginal peoples, autonomy over the
education of their children in order to align with their
rational autonomy The ability and motivation to make unique cultural identity.
decisions about one’s own self-interest, without undue
influence by external pressure or authority. semi-profession An occupation that appears to meet
some but not all of the standard criteria of professionalism
rational choice theory The position that assumes (e.g., teaching, nursing, and social work).
that individuals are completely rational and informed
regarding the choices that will best benefit them, and social capital The collective and social benefits that
have the ability to make informed judgments about the individuals have through networks and relationships
choices that they ought to make. that provide them with an advantage in society.

reciprocal perspective taking An approach to ethical social identity One’s sense of belonging to a particular
thinking and moral deliberation that involves serious group of people who have certain personal traits or
consideration of how important decisions or policies would interests in common, like gender or ethnicity, or even
affect other people. Such thinking involves putting oneself work role and pastime activities.
“in the shoes” of other people different from oneself.
social norms The formal and informal rules and
rhetorical device A manipulative language technique customs that govern behaviour in groups and societies
that individuals repeatedly use to compel listeners to and operate as a standard for judging whether social
agree with the particular perspective. behaviour is acceptable (“normal”) or not.

scaffolding An educational strategy design to move socio-constructivism Associated with Vygotsky, a

students from a state of dependent learning and toward version of constructivism that considers that working
greater independence and autonomy. with others on problems in groups is favourable to the
active construction of new knowledge.
schema In cognitive psychology, an internally coherent
set of beliefs about how some aspect of how the world spiral curriculum Revisiting certain terms or
works, which may or may not be accurate. concepts once again, based on the notion that when
students revisit certain material they do so with a
school choice The provision of alternative educational deeper understanding of the context and meaning of
programs both within and beyond public schools that that particular concept.

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 250 Glossary

strict equality Situation in which individuals receive tested curriculum Types of formal assessment that
the same level of resources and services measure the official or taught curriculum

structural-functionalist model of professionalism A theoretical reasoning Reasoning directed at

conception of professionalism according to which the uncovering truths or facts about the world.
autonomy enjoyed by professionals serves the social
purpose of protecting the public from harms caused by transitional justice An approach to justice aimed
incompetent and negligent practice. to redress serious harms sponsored by governments
against their own citizens in the hopes of rebuilding trust
subjective Something whose truth, goodness, or and making society more democratic in the long run.
rightness is a matter of personal taste or preference.
Judgments about art, for example, are often thought to values and aims of education The goods promoted by
differ depending on the tastes of the individual person and through education and the specific goals set out for
viewing that art. students by virtue of those values.

taught curriculum How teachers actually use or welfare rights Those rights that protect the well-being
implement the official curriculum documents. of individuals.

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 Index
Aboriginal education, 34; Aboriginal control of, 185–87; con- British, as founding nation, 28; see also United Kingdom
trol of, 181–87; discourse ethical approach to, 187–88; British Columbia, “Jobs Plan” policy, 133
legitimacy and, 183; state control of, 183–85; tokenism British North America Act, 30
and, 182–83 Bruner, Jerome, 91
Aboriginal peoples, 111, 181–82, 242; assimilation and, 30;
cultural restoration and, 175, 176–81; residential schools Callan, E. and J. White, 139
and, 23, 30, 170–73, 199; self-governed schools and, 154, Callan, Eamonn, 197, 205
155; special status of, 180–81 Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers (capp), 74–75
abortion, 109, 111, 113 Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, 114, 119, 158, 179,
abuse of power, 212, 213, 244 225
Accepting Schools Act, 122 Canadian Geographic, oil and gas industry and, 74–76
accountability, 116, 221–22 Canadian Geographic Education, 74–75
Ackerman, Bruce, 197–98 Canadian identity. See identity, Canadian
adaptive, 49, 244 canonical approach to philosophy, xvi–xviii, 244
adults, children different from, 48–49, 50 capital: human, 63, 69, 70–71, 72, 132–33, 136, 246; social,
advertising, 64, 65, 66, 77; restrictions on, 82 161, 249
Africentric schools, 152, 156–58 Carnegie Task Force on Teaching as a Profession, 217–18, 221
agency rights, 118, 120, 192, 244 Catholic Church: in Quebec, 30; school board in Ontario,
Alberta, 193–94; charter schools in, 148, 148–49; no-zero 152–53
policies in, 223–24 caveat emptor, 212
Alberta Education, 99, 148 C.D. Howe Institute, 71
Alberta Human Rights Act, parental opt-out clause, 193–94 Chamberlain v. Surrey School District No. 36, 117, 225
Alberta Teacher’s Association (ata), 224 charter schools, 147, 148–49, 244
alternative schools, 147, 148, 152, 162–63, 166, 244 child-centred teaching, 57–59
analytic philosophy, xvii, 244 child-rearing, 196
apathy, political, 26 children: adults different from, 48–49, 50; advertising and, 65;
argument, 8; as war, 43, 44 exposure to other ways of life and, 203
Aristotle, 17, 45; Nicomachean Ethics, 195 Chinnery, A. et al., 231
Assembly of First Nations, 155 choice, 150–51, 244; advertising and, 77; consumerism and,
assimilationist approach, to civic identity education, 29–30 63; cultural membership and, 179; individual freedom
athletics, 20–21 and, 163–64; inter-district, 149, 246; intra-district, 149,
autonomy, 18–19, 88; intellectual, 18, 246; moral, 18, 247; per- 246; see also school choice
sonal, 18–20, 21; rational, 18, 249; well-being and, 19; see choice architecture, 77, 151, 244
also personal autonomy; professional autonomy Christian ethos, in curriculum, 94
axioms, 46–47 citizenship, 87, 88, 94; see also civic identity
civic education, 22, 24, 227, 242; multiculturalism and, 35
back-to-basics, 96, 44 civic identity, 23, 25, 144, 244; citizens obligations and, 26;
Bailey, Charles, 109 consumer identity versus, 67–68, 69; defining, 24; as
banking education, 73, 244 essentially contested concept, 27; group membership and,
behavioural criterion, 109–10, 244 26; historical aspect of, 27; as ideal, 27; at multiple levels of
biases, controversial subjects and, 120–22 society, 34; political challenges to, 28; school choice and,
Biesta, Gert, 70, 79 163–64; social and personal goods and, 25–26, 67
Bildung, 231, 238 civic identity education, 24, 67, 94, 204–5; assimilationist per-
Bill C-33, First Nations Control of Education, 186, 187 iod, 29–30; challenges to, 27–29, 35; goals of, 35; history
Black students, Africentric schools and, 156–58 of, 29–33; inventory approach to, 27, 33; multiculturalist
Blokhuis, Jason, 192 period, 32–33; sensitivity to various perspectives, 33–34
Boyle Street Education Center Charter School (Edmonton), civic virtues, education for, 205–6
159 client-centred therapy, 58
Brave New World (Huxley), 196 client-professional relationship, 212, 213
breakfast programs, 7 climate change, 111
Brighouse, Harry, 165, 203 cognitive development, 51–52; Piaget’s tests of, 50

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 260 Index

collective representations, 25, 244 of what is taught, 94–100; debate over, 87; decisions
commodification, of knowledge, 72–73 about, 86; defining, 86; educational past and, 91–94; as
common good, 153, 244 entrenched and unchanged, 95–96; fundamental disci-
common school, 153, 163, 205, 240, 244 plines and, 102; hidden, 89–90, 246; integrated, 89, 246;
communication skills, 213 learned, 247; linear, 90, 247; not reflecting overarching
communitarianism, 137, 139–40, 141, 142, 164, 244 aims or objectives, 95, 97–98; null, 89, 248; official, 89,
community/communities: cultural, 178–80; freedom and, 248; privileged knowledge in, 96; in Quebec, 222; resour-
143–44; place-based education and, 136, 142–43; posi- ces for delivering, 102–3; spiral, 90–91, 249; taught, 89,
tives and negatives of, 142; rural schools and, 131–32, 135 250; tested, 89, 250; too prescriptive and instrumental, too
competency-based learning, 48 ambiguous and undefined, 95, 100
conflicts of interest, 213–14 customer lifetime value, 65
conservation of number test, 50
conservation of volume test, 50 Daleney, C.F., 164
construction, as term, 51 Danely, John, 181
construction conception of teaching, 44–45, 45–48, 59 Darling-Hammond, Linda, 100
constructivism, 51–52, 244 Davis, B., 45, 48, 51
consumer identity, 26 Davis, Brent, Dennis Sumara, and Rebecca Luce-Kapler, 90
consumerism, 62–63, 74, 80, 139, 174, 244–45; addressing Dearden, Robert, 109–10
impact of, 82; choice and, 63; civic identity and, 69; critical deductive reasoning, 46–47, 245
thinking and, 77–78; curriculum resources and, 82; diversity “deficit” model, 182, 245
of narratives and, 80–81; identity and, 67–68; importance of Dei, George, 158
learning about, 64; influence on education, 64; other institu- democracy, 69, 131, 205; Canadian, 174–75; Canadian iden-
tions and, 66–67; school choice and, 165; teacher autonomy tity and, 172–73; choice and, 150; controversial subjects
and, 74; values and, 81; see also school commercialism and, 125–26; deliberative, 187–88, 245; freedom and, 138;
consumerist learners, xxi pluralism and, 173–74
continuing education, 213 democratic aims of education, 21, 22, 245
controversial subjects, 107–9, 227; civic component of, 123; Desroches, Armand, 114
debate over, 124–26; democracy and, 125–26; difficulties developmental conception of learning, 48–52, 59, 49–51
teachers face with, 113–22; educationalization and, 115; Dewey, John, xvi–xvii, 50, 205
little consensus on how to teach, 115–17; navigating with Dhar, T. and K. Bayliss, 82
dignity and worth, 122–23; parental rights and, 117–20; discipline, 81
recognition of perspectives and, 107–8; sensitive subjects discomfort, 79–81; pedagogy of, 80, 248
versus, 112–13; teachers’ biases and, 120–22 discourse ethics, 187–88
controversy: behavioural criterion, 109–10; defining, 109–12; diversity, 32; in commercial narratives, 80–81; school choice
epistemic criterion, 109, 110–11 and, 156; see also multiculturalism
Cook-Sather, A., 60 doctors, pharmaceutical companies and, 213–14
corporal punishment, 81 Dorval, Lynden, 223–24
corporations: public image and, 64–65; sponsorship and, 66, Downsview Secondary School (Toronto), 157
74–76, 78 Durham Report, 23
counter-argument, 178, 245
creaming effect, 162, 245 ease/discomfort debate, 79–81
critical thinking, 5, 76–78 “Easy” button, 81
cross-domain mapping, 43 economic prosperity: as aim of education, 7, 68, 71, 73, 87, 88,
Cuban, Larry, 89 133–34, 136; humanities and, 73–74
cultural appropriation, 184, 245 economistic approaches, 70–72
cultural restoration, 176–81; counter-argument, 178–81; legit- Edmonton Public School Board (epsb), 223–24; Victoria
imacy and, 183; objections to, 177; policies not strong School of the Arts, 160–61
enough, 182–83 educated mind, desirability of, 12–13
culture: ease/discomfort debate and, 80; importance of, 182 education: banking, 73, 244; classical, 52, 95, 96; as cognitive
“culture days,” 183, 184 achievement, 13; continuing, 213; democratic aims of, 21,
curriculum, xxi; aims of education and, 87; changing nature 22; for economic prosperity and well-being, 7, 68, 71, 73,
of, 101–5; Christian ethos in, 94; circular, 91; concep- 87, 88, 133–34, 136; economistic approaches to, 70–72;
tualizations of, 87–89; construction metaphors and, 47; etymology of term, 56; moral, 144; personal and public
as contested term, 87; consumerism and, 82; criticisms benefits of, 68–69, 69–70, 143; for personal autonomy,

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143–44; as personal good, 70; physical, 20–21; public, 92, French, as founding nation, 28
95; as public good, 68–69; purpose of, 6; schooling versus, French-Canadians, civic identity and, 25, 30
6–9; values and aims of, 5, 6, 20, 88, 250; work and, 135 French school boards, in Ontario, 153
Education Act (Quebec), 210, 222–23 Friedmann, Milton, 199
educationalization, 115, 245 Fröbel, Friedrich, 50
educational rationalism, 47, 49, 51; criticisms of, 53–55 funding, 82; independent schools and, 149
Education and the Good Life (White), 16 fundraising, 66
egalitarianism, 240–41, 245
Elementary Schools Act, 92 Galileo Galilei, 46
Émile (Rousseau), 48 Galston, William, 153–54, 197, 198, 199
emotional development, 13 Gay-Straight Alliances, 122
“Energy IQ” program, 74–75 genetic fallacy, 185, 246
Enlightenment, 45, 46, 47, 245; construction metaphors and, “global citizen,” 25
47–48 gnosis, 52–53, 246
Ennis, Robert, 77 Godwin, William, 199
environment: ethical, 231, 239–43, 245; place-based education group membership, 26; see also community/communities
and, 135–36 Gruenewald, 2003, 135
episteme, 52, 245 guidance conception of education, 44, 45, 52–57, 59; language
epistemic criterion, 109, 110–11, 245; application of, 110–12 and, 56
equality: of educational opportunity, 158–60, 245; strict, Gutmann, Amy, 205
159–60, 250
equity studies, 104–5 Habermas, Jurgen, 187–88
esoteric knowledge, 218, 245 Hall-Denis report, 58
essentially contested concept, 27, 245 Hancock, David, 193–94
ethical environment, 231, 239–43, 245; Canadian, 241–43 Handbook on the National Curriculum, 97
ethical reasoning, 238–39, 245 happiness, 55; as aim of education, 20; eudaimonic conception
Ethics and Religious Culture curriculum (Quebec), 124–25 of, 73, 245; hedonic conception of, 73, 246; humanities
eudaimonic conception of well-being, 73, 245 and, 73; as subjective, 15–16; see also well-being
Eurocentricism, 157 “Happy and Suffering Student, The” (Mintz), 79
evidence-based teaching, 221–22, 245 harm principle, 138, 246
expression, freedom of, 114, 225, 226 Haydon, Graham, 231, 239–40
expressive liberty, 197 Hayner, Priscilla, 172–73
extra-curricular, 89, 245 health, intrinsic value of, 10
extrinsic value, 10, 246 Heath v. Zdep, 202
hedonic conception of well-being, 73, 246
facilitative integration strategy, 29 helicopter parenting, 201, 246
false correlation, 111, 246 Hess, D., 125
feminist theories, xvii Hess, D. et al., 120–21
Finland, curriculum in, 100 Hirst, Paul, xvii, 87
First Nations: as founding nation, 28; self-governed schools historical narratives, of Canada, 30–32
and, 155; see also Aboriginal peoples Holmes Group, 217–18, 221
First Nations Control of Education (Bill C-33), 186, 187 home-schooling, 149, 154, 202, 246
fixed legal and civic framework, 29 homo economicus, 151, 246
Forest, L.A., 119 human capital, 63, 69, 70–71, 72, 132–33, 136, 246
forms of knowledge, 11–12, 20, 246 humanistic psychology, 57, 246
fossil fuel consumption, 74–76 humanities: economic growth and, 73–74; intrinsic value and,
founding nations, 28, 246 73–74
Fraser Institute, 71 Human Rights, Citizenship, and Multiculturalism Act (Alberta),
freedom, 174; choice and, 150; communitarianism and, 139; 193
community and, 143–44; of expression, 114, 225, 226; Human Rights: Respecting Our Differences, 33
negative, 118, 119, 143, 247; personal autonomy and, 137– Huxley, Aldous, Brave New World, 196
38; positive, 118, 119, 143, 248; rural schools and, 131–32;
shortcomings of individual, 138; see also autonomy identity, Canadian, xxi, 23, 94; democratic values and, 174,
Freedom to Learn (Rogers), 57 175; education for, 172–75; range of conceptions of, 33;
Freire, Paulo, xvii, 73; Pedagogy of the Oppressed, 73 textbooks and, 30–32

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 262 Index

Illich, Ivan, 199 Lévesque, Stéphane, 30

immigration, 23, 32; civic identity education and, 29–30 Levinson, Meira, 203
incentive programs, 66 liberalism, 137–38, 139, 247; personal autonomy and, 141
An Inconvenient Truth, 75 libertarianism, 198, 247
independent schools, 147, 148, 149, 246 liberty, 153, 247; expressive, 197; school choice and, 153–54
Indian Act, 30 lived experience, 49
individualism, 41, 135, 138, 174 Locke, John, 195, 199
individualization, 70, 246 love, metaphors of, 44
inequality, school choice and, 161–62; see also equality lying, 16
injustices: addressing past, 170; ease/discomfort debate and, 80
Inspiring Education (Alberta Education), 99 McDonough, Kevin, 183
instrumental reasoning, 238, 246 McLaughlin, T., 120, 121–22
integrationism, 29 McLeod, K.A., 24
intellectual autonomy, 18, 246 market-based perspective, 164, 165, 247
inter-district choice, 149, 246 market economy, 133, 134
International Monetary Fund (imf), 71 marketing: electronic, 66; schools and, 64–65; see also
international organizations, 71 advertising
intra-district choice, 149, 246 marriage, 140
intrinsic value, 10, 246; humanities and, 73–74 Martin, Roland, 13
Irwin Toy Test, 228 Mason, Brian, 194
“is-ought” fallacy, 177, 246 mathematics, 4–5, 46; curriculum and, 101–2; “new,” 101, 102
“Me, Inc.,” 70
Jessop, John, 93 Meno (Plato), 52–55
Jones, Thomas Larry, 202 metaphors: of argument as war, 43, 44; building and construc-
jurisdiction, 28; curriculum and, 86–87 tion, 44–45, 45–48, 59; carceral, 40; cross-domain map-
justice: social, 32; transitional, 172–73, 250 ping, 43; developmental and organic, 44, 45, 48–52, 59;
environmental, 40; exercise, 40; guidance, 44, 45, 52–57, 59;
Kahnawake, 179 influence of, 44; lack of accuracy of, 43–44, 60; liberation,
Keegstra case, 225 40; of love, 44; music, 42; as pervasive, 42–44; pluralistic
Kelley, Paul, 101 conception of teaching, 41; as short-cut for thinking, 43;
Kenway, J. and E. Bullen, 65 source domain, 43; target domain, 43; for teachers, 56–57;
knowledge: cultural restoration of Aboriginal, 175, 176–81; in teachers’ professional vocabulary, 40, 60; for teaching
commodification of, 72–73; Enlightenment and, 46–47; and learning, 40–42, 45, 60, 72; of time as money, 43
episteme, 52, 245; esoteric, 218, 245; forms of, 11–12, 20, Metaphors We Live By (Lakoff and Johnson), 42–43, 44
246; gnosis, 52–53, 246; practical, 13; privileged, 96; pro- Mill, J.S., 199; On Liberty, 138
fessional, 212; as public good, 72; specialized, 211–12 mindfulness, 20–21
knowledge base of teaching professionalism, 218–19, 221, minority groups, 32
246–47 Mintz, Ari, “The Happy and Suffering Student,” 79
knowledge model, 9–12, 14, 20, 21, 22 models of education, 9–20; knowledge model, 9–12, 14, 20,
Kunzmann, Robert, 122–23 21, 22; reaction and criticism model, 9, 12–14; well-being
Kymlicka, Will, 178, 179–80, 180–81, 185, 242 model, 9, 15–20
Molnar, Alex, 77, 78
Labaree, David, 69–70 monitorial instruction, 95, 96, 247
labour mobility, 135, 247 monitorial schools, 247
Labrador, cultural restoration policies in, 182–83 Montessori, Maria, 50
Lakoff, George and Mark Johnson, Metaphors We Live By, moral autonomy, 18, 247
42–43, 44 moral education, 144
language, 25 Morin, Richard, 114, 210
Larsen, Marianne, 92 Morin v. Board of Trustees of Reg. Admin. Unit #3, 114, 225,
Laval, François de Montmorency (Bishop), 92 227, 228
law, teacher autonomy and, 222–25 motivation, 236
learning: as private undertaking, 70; as remembering, 52–53 multiculturalism, 28, 32, 156, 158, 174, 247; civic education
legal precedents, 225, 247 and, 35; ethno-cultural concerns, 32–33; federal policy of,
Legault, George, 211 28, 29
legitimacy, 183, 247 multiculturalist approach, 32–33

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 Index 263

“A Nation at Risk” (US educational strategy), 71 philosophy, curricular disputes and, 103–4
nation-states, 28, 247; Canada as not, 28, 33–34 philosophy of education, xiv, xvi; analytic approach, xvii,
natural environment, 141; place-based education and, 135–36 244; canonical approach, xvi–xviii, 244; defining, xv–xvi;
negative freedom, 118, 119, 143, 247 problem-based approach, xviii–xix, 248
neo-liberalism, 165, 247 philosophy papers, xxii
Newton, Isaac, 46 physical education, 20–21
Nicomachean Ethics (Aristotle), 195 Piaget, Jean, 49, 50, 51–52
normalize, 74, 247 place, connection to, 143
normal schools, 220, 247 place-based education (pbe), 130–31, 132–36, 248; communi-
normative philosophy (normative theories), xvi, 247 tarianism and, 139–40; community and, 136; human cap-
normative standard, 216, 248 ital and, 132–33; liberalism and, 137–38; limits of, 141–43;
no-zero policies, 223–24, 248 nature and environment and, 135–36; rural settings and,
Nudge (Thayler and Sunstein), 77 131, 141; self-interest vs common interest, 134–35; stu-
nudge theory, 151, 248 dents as risk-takers, 134
Plato, 56; Meno, 52–55
objective, 17, 248 Plowden report, 58
oil and gas industry, Canadian Geographic and, 74–75 pluralism, 155–56, 248; democracy and, 173–74
On Liberty (Mill), 138 poetry, 12
online learning programs, 149, 248 policy/policies: cultural restoration and, 182–83; education
Ontario: Catholic school board in, 152–53; equity studies for economic progress and, 73; goals and, 6–7; multicul-
courses in, 104–5; health and physical education revisions turalism and, 28, 29; no-zero, 223–24, 248; open enrol-
in, 199–201; philosophy courses in, 103–4 ment, 149; school choice and, 147–48, 159, 161–65
Ontario Physical and Health Education Association (ophea), political apathy, 26
200 positive freedom, 118, 119, 143, 248
open enrolment policy, 149 post-industrial economy, 133, 248
organic metaphors, 45, 51, 59; see also developmental concep- power, abuse of, 212, 213, 244
tion of learning practical reasoning, 237–38, 248
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development predictability, 79
(oecd), 71 primary goods, 179, 248
Osborne, K., 35 private good, 68
private schools, 147, 148, 240–41
parens patriae, 119, 120, 191, 192–93, 248 privatization, 66
parental partiality, 241, 248 problem-based learning (pbl), xviii–xix, 248
parental rights, 191, 248; arguments against, 201–5; argu- professional autonomy, 74, 210, 211, 219–20, 225–27, 233,
ments in favour of, 195–99; controversial subjects and, 234; ethical dimension of, 226–27; legal dimension of,
117–20; defining, 195; state intervention versus, 198–99 215, 222–25, 226
parent-child relationship, 195, 198–99 professionalism, 210; in arguments for teaching reform, 216,
parents: beliefs and values, 197–98; children’s schooling and, 217; as critical standpoint, 216–17; defining, 211–15;
191, 192–93; home-schooling and, 154; marketing and, intervention, 211, 212, 221; knowledge base of teach-
65; protecting children’s interests, 195–97; school choice ing, 218–19, 221, 246–47; as needs-centred, 211–12;
and, 151–52, 154 non-interference and, 214–15; self-cultivation and, 231,
paternalism, 212, 248 232, 235–39; self-regulation and, 215; specialized know-
pedagogy of discomfort, 80, 248 ledge and, 211–12; structural-functionalist model of,
Pedagogy of the Oppressed (Freire), 73 211–13, 215, 216, 221, 250
personal autonomy, 18–20, 21, 131–32, 141, 143, 248; professionalization of teaching movement, 217–18, 220–22, 249
Aboriginal education and, 185; choice and, 150; com- professional judgment, 212, 249
munitarianism and, 140; education for, 174, 189; liberal- provincial authorities, curriculum and, 86–87
ism and, 137–38 public good, 68, 69, 249; knowledge as, 72
Pestalozzi, J.H., 50 public schools, 148; school choice and, 152–53
Peters, R.S., xvii, 9–10, 12–13, 18, 20, 171 public sphere/private sphere, 123
Phillips, Trevor, 156
philosophical perspective, 230–31, 235; personal dimension Quebec: civic identity and, 25, 30; Education Act, 210, 222–23;
of, 239 Ethics and Religious Culture curriculum in, 124–25

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 264 Index

race, 34–35 schooling: as compulsory, 116; critiques of, 53–55; education

racism, 35 versus, 6–9
rational autonomy, 18, 249 schools: Africentric, 152, 156–58; alternative , 147, 148, 152,
rational choice theory, 151, 152, 249 162–63, 166, 244; charter, 147, 148–49, 244; common,
reaction and criticism model, 9, 12–14 153, 163, 205, 240, 244; constituencies served by, 116; con-
reason, 46, 47 sumerism in, 63; corporations and, 64–65; educational
reasonableness, 144 aims and, 7; human capital and, 71; monitorial, 95–96,
reasoning: deductive, 46–47, 245; ethical, 238–39, 245; instru- 247; normal, 220, 247; policy goals and, 6–7; private or
mental, 238, 246; practical, 237–38, 248; theoretical, independent, 147, 148, 240–41; public, 148, 152–53;
236–37, 250 responsibilities of, 116; roles of, 6–7; rural, 130, 131–2,
reciprocal perspective taking, 187, 189, 249 135, 136, 144–45, 174; social cohesion and, 164; society’s
reflective practice, xiv–xv troubles and, 115; special environment of, 115–16
Regulations for Secondary Schools (UK), 97 Schwartz, Barry, 151
Reich, R., 156 science, 12, 20, 74; knowledge and, 46, 47
Reid, Andrew, 21 sciences, technology, engineering, and mathematics (stem),
religious education, in Quebec, 124–25 89, 103
remembering, learning as, 52–53 sciences, technology, engineering, arts, and math (steam), 103
residential schools, 23, 30, 170–73, 181, 189, 199; call for Scott, Duncan Campbell, 30
increased public understanding of, 175–76 Sears, A.M. and A.S. Hughes, 33
respect: for cultural membership, 178–80; for equal citizen- Section 1 grounds, 225, 249
ship, 178, 179 self-cultivation, 231, 232, 233–35, 239
return on investment (roi), 68, 71 self-determination, 140, 141
rhetorical devices, xv–xvi, 249 self-discovery, 53
rights: agency, 118, 120, 192, 244; individual versus group, 179; self-esteem, 55
parental rights, 191, 195–99, 248; welfare, 118, 120, 250 self-governance, 18–19; see also autonomy
risk, 79; students and, 134 self-governed schools, 154, 155, 249
Robeyns, I., 72 self-interest, 69–70, 134; choice and, 151; place-based educa-
Rogers, Carl, 56–57, 57–58, 59; Freedom to Learn, 57 tion and, 134–35
Ross, 1896, 92–93 self-realization, 53, 55, 56
Rousseau, Jean-Jacques, 48, 50, 57, 79; Émile, 48 semi-profession, 218, 220, 249
rural ethic, 141, 142; human capital theory and, 132–33; ideal- sensitive subjects, 112–13; see also controversial subjects
ization of, 141–42; risk and, 134; versus urban and sub- Shaker, Erica, 65
urban settings, 142 Shared experience, Exploration and Discovery (seed) school,
rural schools, 130, 131–32, 136, 144–45; closures and, 130, 152
131, 174; place-based education and, 135 Shulman, L.S., 218
R. v. Jones, 119–20, 202 Siegel, Harvey, “Why Should Educators Care about
Ryan, R.M. and E.L. Deci, 17 Argumentation?,” 8
Ryerson, Egerton, 92–93 skill development, 4–5
S.L. vs. La commission scolaire des Chenes (accent), 125
safety concerns, in schools, 116 Smith, Adam, Wealth of Nations, 132
same-sex relationships, 117 Sobel, D., 136
Samson, Colin, 183, 184 social capital, 161, 249
Savery, J., xviii social identity, 24–25, 249
scaffolding, 231, 233, 249 social justice, 32
schemas, 49, 51, 249 social norms, 25, 249
school choice, 147, 150, 166, 249; costs and, 162; criticisms of, socio-constructivism, 51, 249
153, 161–65; democratic and civic role of schooling and, socio-economic status, school choice and, 161–62
163–65; equality of educational opportunity, 158–60; hid- Socrates, Meno’s paradox and, 53–55
den or implicit norms and, 162; inequality and, 161–62; Socratic method of teaching, 56
liberty and, 153–54; merits and demerits of, 152–60; plur- source domain, of metaphors, 43
alism and, 155–56; policies and, 147–48, 159, 161–65; in sports, 20–21
public system, 152–53; selective admissions and, 162–63; state: intervention in parent-child relationship, 198–99; neu-
strict equality and, 159–60; support for, 153 trality, 178, 180–81; obligations and responsibilities of,
school commercialism, 63, 249; critical thinking and, 77–78; 191–92, 201, 203–5; parens patriae and, 192
examples of, 66; reasons for, 64–65; types of, 64–67 “Status Indians,” 30

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steam. See sciences, technology, engineering, arts, and math Toronto District School Board (tdsb): Africentric schools,
(steam) 152, 156–58
stem. See sciences, technology, engineering, and mathematics transitional justice, 172–73, 250
(stem) “true self,” 17, 19
strict equality, 159–60, 250 Truth and Reconciliation Commission (trc), 170, 175–81;
structural-functionalist model of professionalism, 211–13, case for cultural restoration, 176–81; case for increased
215, 216, 221, 250 public understanding, 175–76
structure, as term, 51
student-centred teaching, 57–59 ufos, epistemic criterion and, 110–11
students: age of, 116; as captive audience, 65; school-assisted unethical behaviour, 214
action and, 116; see also children United Kingdom: influence on curriculum, 94; monitorial
subject ghettos, 101 instruction in, 95; National Curriculum, 14, 97–98
subjective, 15, 250 Universal Declaration of Human Rights, 117, 118, 195
Suissa, Judith, 195, 199 upbringing, 204
Supreme Court of Canada, 117, 120, 125, 202, 225, 226 urban settings, 142
Surrey School Board, Charter case and, 117
sustainability, 21 values: consumerism and, 65; democratic, 241–42; educa-
tional versus consumer, 81; ethical environment and, 240;
target domain, of metaphors, 43 extrinsic, 10, 246; intrinsic, 10, 73–74, 246; intrinsic edu-
Taylor, C., 107–8 cational, 10–11; parents and passing of, 197–98; reasoning
teacher autonomy. See professional autonomy about, 233–35; school commercialism and, 78
teachers: biases and, 120–22; consumerism and, 74; develop- values and aims of education of, 5, 6, 20, 88, 98, 250; curricu-
mental conception of learning and, 49; as facilitators of lum and, 97–98
learning, 58, 59; as guides, 56; as midwives, 56; neutrality Victoria School of the Arts (Edmonton), 160–61
and, 121; pre-service, xiv, 248; professional self-cultiva- Vygotsky, Lev, 51
tion and, 235–39; as professionals by definition, 217–20;
as providers of education, 164–65; residential school leg- Waddington, D.I., 226, 227
acy and, 171; as therapists, 56–57 Warnick, Bryan, 115–16
Teach First, 219 Wealth of Nations (Smith), 132
Teach for America, 219 We Are Canadian Citizens, 30
teaching: for the Canadian ethical environment, 231, 239–43; Webber, Justice, 114
evidence-based, 221–22, 245; as profession, 140, 215–22; welfare rights, 118, 120, 250
as semi-profession, 218, 220 well-being, 88; as aim of education, 22; autonomy and, 19;
Teaching the Commons (Theobald), 132 eudaimonic conception of, 16–18; happiness versus, 16;
textbooks: civic identity education and, 30; historical narra- hedonic conception of, 15; model, 9, 15–20
tives of Canada, 30–32; multiculturalism and, 33 White, John, 14, 18, 19–20, 97, 98, 138, 140; Education and the
Thayler, R. and C. Sunstein, Nudge, 77 Good Life, 16
Theobald, Paul, 132, 134; Teaching the Commons, 132 Wilson, John, 87–88
Theodore case, 145 work, 7, 135
theoretical reasoning, 236–37, 250 World Bank, 71
“Three E’s,” 99 worthwhileness, of education, 11
three-mountain test, 50
three Rs, 93–94, 96 Youthography, 65
time, as money, 43
Tim Hortons, 67 Zdep, Sherry, 202

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