Fighting for social democracy: R.H. Tawney and educational reconstruction in the Second World War

R.H. Tawney (1880–1962), a leading English economic historian and prominent socialist, was vigorously involved in educational reconstruction during the Second World War. For Tawney, the war was a war for social democracy. His ideals of social democracy formed a basis for his case for Public (independent) School reform and free secondary education for all. Despite this, the connection between Tawney’s ideals and his perspectives on educational issues has not been addressed fully by historians and thus there has been a lack of a proper explanation for his often criticised sympathy for the public schools and his indifference towards the multilateral school. Hence, this paper aims to re-examine the link between them in greater depth. It concludes that, according to Tawney’s ideals of social democracy, the abolition of the public schools was not necessary for the establishment of a democratic educational system. Moreover, Tawney did not launch an attack on the tripartite system proposed by the Norwood Report of 1943 since it was not against his ideal of equality as long as different secondary schools were equal in quality and status. Equality, he believed, must be advanced through the raising of the school leaving age to 16 and the abolition of fees in all secondary schools. Thus, he laid more emphasis on the school leaving age and tuition fees than on the multilateral school. In brief, on various issues pertaining to secondary education, Tawney’s opinions and actions were deeply grounded in his distinctive ideals of social democracy.     

Fred Clarke’s Ideals of Liberal Democracy: State and Community in Education

ABSTRACT

This paper examines the continuity and changes in Clarke’s ideas about the State and community in education, especially in relation to a rapidly changing political situation in England in the 1930s and 1940s. His ideas evolved in the intellectual context of British idealism. Moreover, in response to the threat to democracy arising from Fascism or Totalitarianism, the distinction between the State and community was a key theme in Clarke’s ideals of liberal democracy. Additionally, this paper also proposes the implications of Clarke’s ideas for future educational development.     

The universities,the social sciences,and liberal democracy

This paper shows how a number of the social sciences — sociology, economics, and anthropology in particular — came to have their modern form in the universities of the West. It argues that although their beginnings were salutary, their present state leaves much to be desired. In particular, far from supporting a democratic order, they are just as likely to undermine it. Sociology, for example, has abandoned its claim to truth and is given over to an insidious relativism. It undermines democratic values and gives the young little reason to believe that it is a discipline that can contribute anything to the betterment of society. There is, perhaps, some hope that the university, with its commitment to truth and to freedom of thought, will ultimately transform such wayward disciplines into something worth having.     

解放教育视野下的课堂教学观

随着多元文化的到来,传统教学模式所培养的人才已越来越不适应时代发展的需要,人们迫切需要新的教育理论来指导教学实践。解放教育注重培养人的理性、批判性思维以及崇尚自由、平等的教学理念,因而解放教育思想日益受到人们的重视。从解放教育的视角探讨课堂教学,无疑会赋予课堂教学一种全新的意义。     

Fred Clarke and the internationalisation of studies and research in education

Fred Clarke (1880–1952) was a key figure in the internationalisation of educational studies and research in the first half of the twentieth century. Clarke aimed to heighten the ideals and develop the practices of educational studies and research through promoting mutual influences in different countries around the world. He envisaged the Institute of Education at the University of London, England, as having a leading role, and was the director of the Institute from 1936 until 1945. His notion of internationalisation was reciprocal and transnational in nature, with aspirations for partnership within a common tradition. This built on the ideal of a “Commonwealth” that was current in the interwar years, and emphasised the affinities between the dominion nations and in particular Canada, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand. It also drew on the financial support and cultural influence of the Carnegie Corporation in New York. Two specific projects taken forward by Clarke to put these ideas into practice were his “world tour” of 1935 and his role as the “Adviser to Oversea Students” at the Institute of Education. These initiatives helped to convert strategic visions and policies into social practices, and to shape the subject of Education in higher education as a multi-disciplinary field in the generation after the Second World War.     

Visions unite through the concept of democracy: The school and the Popular Adult Education

With a point of departure in the concept of democracy, this article aims to show how Swedish Popular Adult Education influenced the content of the established school system in Sweden. The Popular Adult Education and established school systems are studied through their relation to democracy, based on curricula, as well as on visionary and political steering documents. In accordance with conceptual history, the study shows how Popular Adult Education and the established school, with their different spaces of experience and references to separate traditions, gradually became accommodated through a common horizon of expectations about the importance of democracy. When this coalescence appeared, an administrative shift could be identified and the Popular Adult Education Movement was partially disarmed.     

《国防教育法》对美国高等教育发展的影响与启示

1958年8月美国国会通过的《国防教育法》,被认为是美国教育史上具有极重要地位的、维系美国国家安全的高等教育法案。对于该法案的立法原因及结果进行分析研究,对进一步完善我国的高等教育立法,推动、深化高等教育改革具有重要的启示意义。     

加快推进《学前教育法》立法进程

学前教育是人生发展的奠基性教育,是基础教育的基础,对义务教育质量、国民素质提高和社会发展具有重要的奠基性作用。随着我国社会发展,特别是发展观的转变,学前教育的公益性及其重要的基础性作用日益为人们所认识。加快推进《学前教育法》立法进程,不仅是解决我国当前学前教育事业发展中诸多根本性问题的现实选择,而且是保障其健康、有序、可持续发展的迫切需要。建议突破思路,抓住核心问题,明确学前教育性质和政府职责,创新体制机制,争取在近年内制定出台《学前教育法》。     

The rights to educational self-determination under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act

ABSTRACT

The United States Senate's unwillingness to ratify the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) notwithstanding, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) contains significant safeguards protecting the rights of students with disabilities, acknowledging their participation rights in decisions about their futures. In the first of just two examples, as students ‘age out’ of special education, they participate in developing individualised transition plans guiding their movements to post-school activities. Second, the IDEA transfers parental access rights to students, granting them sole control over their educational records on turning 18 unless they are adjudicated incompetent under state law.

Against this background, this paper opens by considering the U.S. Senate's reluctance to ratify the CRC. The paper next reviews the history of rights in the U.S. before examining how the IDEA affords students with disabilities considerable opportunities to participate in planning their futures both through transition planning and taking control over their educational records. The article ends by reflecting on how the IDEA comports with the CRC in protecting the rights of students with disabilities to self-determination.     

自由教育：高等学校教育的历史必然

作为一种重要的教育思想,自由教育对世界范围内的教育理论与实践影响十分深远。"自由"、"理性"、"民主"是自由教育的灵魂,它既符合人的本性和教育本质,又反映了人与社会的要求。本文通过对自由教育的历史沿革及其本质内涵的研究与探讨,阐述了当今高等学校实施自由教育的历史必然性。     

美国全国教育协会与《国防教育法》

美国全国教育协会是美国最具影响力的教育社团之一,中外学界曾对其给予一定的关注。就已有的研究成果来看,国内学者尚未深究全国教育协会与重大联邦教育立法《国防教育法》之间的关系。通过梳理《国防教育法》的出台过程以及全国教育协会争取联邦资助教育的历程,可以发现,全国教育协会将《国防教育法》的通过视为实现自身诉求的"垫脚石"。对于协会而言,1958年《国防教育法》的通过是一次"复杂的胜利"。法案背后承载的是全国教育协会与政策制定者的对弈。     

国家安全之外的《国防教育法》——20世纪中期美国教育改革起源的再审视

1958年颁布的《国防教育法》对认识二战后美国的教育变革有重要意义。但长期以来研究者都视其为对"苏联卫星事件"的回应,是冷战时期国防政策的重要内容。笔者通过对文献的重新发掘与分析,指出两者之间不存在必然联系,这场教育改革不是"刺激-反应"模式的产物;此外,该法案立法过程中的焦点问题是对联邦政府干预教育权限的再讨论;法案通过后,在宣誓政治忠诚和学术自由问题上也受到广泛批评。国家安全不能概括法案的全部,至于联邦政府如何干预教育,以法案为代表的每一次讨论本身就是答案。     

英国《2017年技术与继续教育法》介绍及其启示

英国是世界上继续教育成绩显著的国家之一,这与政府实施的一系列计划和措施是分不开的。《2017年技术与继续教育法》提出了诸多技术与继续教育改革的措施,对改善21世纪的英国技能短缺问题具有极大的推进作用。通过对此法案的介绍与分析,研究与借鉴英国继续教育的先进经验,在加强我国继续教育规范化和制度化建设等方面能提供有益的参考和启示。     

The university and democracy: Interlocking learning and governing

This paper examines the relationship between learning and governing. It does so by positing that systems of social organization become reflective of theories of mind. It argues that, as systems of higher education are institutions most reflective of mind, the organization of higher education becomes a critical factor in determining and securing the strength of democratic systems of governance. The paper presents this theory in terms of philosophical argument, historical analyses, and present political practices. It sets out specific recommendations for designing systems of higher education that might reflect the comprehensive mental operations and thereby enhance democratic rule. And it builds upon such discoveries to suggest new forms of governance that might enfranchise rather than alienate diverse population groups.     

《民办教育促进法》的立法缺失及完善思考

现行《民办教育促进法》在立法上存在财产关系不明晰、机构设置不合理、政府扶持与资助制度不健全、法律责任设计不科学等缺失。为了提高该法的效益,促进民办教育的健康发展,必须在正确认识教育公益性与营利性关系的基础上,完善民办学校扶持与资助制度、教师及学生权益保障制度、国家监管制度、法律责任制度及民办学校的组织机构。     

论《莫里尔法案》对美国高等教育的积极影响

《莫里尔法案》是美国高等教育史上一个极其重要的里程碑。它不仅标志着美国高等教育开始从旧式学院成功地过渡到具有现代意义的大学,也丰富了美国高等教育的形式,满足了美国社会经济的发展及工业革命的需要,为美国从一个农业国迅速发展成为一个工业大国注入了活力。     

理念的变革与实践的接力——对现代远程教育与传统教育关系的再认识

现代远程教育和传统教育不是简单替代或否定的关系,两者在人才培养目标、理论基础、教学模式、师生关系、教学组织形式等方面虽然有诸多不同,但历史地看,两者是继承和创新、借鉴和互补的关系,正确认识两者关系是深化教育改革、发展教育事业的关键。     

Democratic Development and Prospects for Citizenship Education: Theoretical Perspectives on Sub-Saharan Africa

The case of Africa, in terms of development and democratic prospects, is encountering a number of hurdles that are stubborn, and are even getting increasingly more difficult to overcome. This paper, while agreeing with a number of leading Africanists who are calling for the efficient repair of Africa's political systems without which, I concur, other components of the national and continental enterprises may not function effectively, calls for the establishment of citizenship education programs that must strengthen Africa's partially fledgling but, in many cases, faltering new democracies. The paper cautions about accepting liberal democracy at face value and sees the possibility of selectively Africanizing democracy so it fits the needs as well as the expectations of the African public. The paper also recognizes that even if democracy may not always effectively respond to the needs of the people, its critical appreciation, via viable programs of citizenship, will, in the long run, produce better results for Africa's marginalized hundreds of millions.     

Education as if people matter: John Macmurray,community and the struggle for democracy

The educational writings of John Macmurray, one of the finest philosophers of his generation, have a special relevance for us today. In similar circumstances of international crisis he argues for the central importance of education addressing fundamental issues of human purpose—how we lead good lives together, the emphasis on wisdom rather than knowledge alone, the advancement of a truly democratic culture, and the overriding importance of community in human flourishing. A pioneering advocate of education of the emotions, he champions the development of imagination, spontaneity and authenticity as key to educating ‘the capacity for change itself’. For Macmurray, educators must place relationships and care at the heart of all they do. Overemphasis on technique and its typical separation from wider human purposes is emblematic of much of our contemporary malaise. An inclusive, caring community is the precondition of our human being and becoming. The paper concludes by taking some of Macmurray’s key philosophical insights and developing a framework which enables us to make judgments about whether or not contemporary approaches to education support or diminish our lives as creative, caring human beings within a context of social justice and democratic human fellowship.