Making Connections for Future Directions: Taking religion seriously in the sociology of education

This article argues that a problem for the contemporary sociology of education is that it has operated within a 'secularisation of consciousness paradigm'. This has limited both the depth and the scope of its intellectual enquiries. Sociological analysis which elides a religious dimension not only presents an over-simplified view of social relations in 'the Modern West', but it also fails to make an authentic engagement with many socio-cultural and educational situations internationally, where God is far from dead. The article suggests various ways forward for a reorientation of sociological writing and research.     

Ethical reconstruction of citizenship: A proposal between the intimate self and the public sphere

ABSTRACT

When, in societies today, civic commitment decreases, there is a call for the need to strengthen citizenship education, identified uniquely with its public dimension and, on the other hand, the requirement for character education has been advocated, which is a cultivator of the most strictly private dimension. Setting out from the recognition of the new social conditions, mediated by the phenomenon of globalisation and of the place that people have in these new contexts, we ask ourselves about the new profile which the construction of citizenship must adopt. We endeavor to show that the moral dimension is the core of reconsidering the link between the private and the public, so it would currently be meaningless to propose an education of citizenship exclusively focused on its public dimension.     

The Social Work Student: Towards an Ideal Type

Abstract

This article analyses the changes which have occurred in the assessment of Management Development programmes and courses for educationalists.

The changes in the approaches to the design, development and assessment of these programmes and courses are analysed within a framework of epis‐temological issues and underpinning ideology. The shift towards a ‘new model of education and training’, with its emphasis on more specific knowledge and skill, is reviewed critically.

There is a consideration of wider implications such as the notion of assessment as part of political control. This involves an exploration of the extent to which the changes in assessment have a political dimension.

The analysis is based not only on a consideration of the literature, but also on small‐scale research which involves detailed interviews with a wide range of Management Development providers in Kent.

It is concluded that the change in the approach to assessment, with the greater emphasis on more technical forms of knowledge, is a means of ensuring that the functions of education correspond to the needs of industry. These developments are seen as part of a subtle process designed to increase the influence of industrialists at the expense of educationalists.     

Higher expertise,pedagogic rights and the post-truth society

ABSTRACT

This paper discusses the nature of higher expertise in society and the role of higher education in constituting that expertise. It is argued that higher expertise relies on disciplined norms against which expert activity can be evaluated, and such norms are the basis not only for knowledge communities in higher education but also for other societal institutions. However, expertise in these communities and institutions is challenged by ‘post-truth’ developments that are fuelled by the marketisation and commodification of expertise, and by a collapse in deference and trust throughout society to which expert institutions and communities have not yet adequately responded. The consequences for higher education can be usefully explored via Durkheim’s discussion of the social organisation of religion and magic. Bernstein’s pedagogic rights of enhancement, inclusion and participation are subsequently examined to offer insight into how higher expertise may be sustained in such a context.     

Time to learn: Pacing and the external framing of teachers' work 1

The article reports research in two South African grade 3 classrooms, one located within a disadvantaged school and one in an affluent suburban school. The research examines the pacing rules of different transmission practices: weak pacing (a slower rate of transmission) is associated with pedagogy in the working-class school, and strong pacing (a faster rate of transmission) in the middle-class school. A further dimension to pacing, that of differentiating (between different student learning rates and different learning contexts), is identified. The discussion is developed through an analysis of how time use differs in different socio-economic contexts and points to possible relations between the internal control of the pace of learning in classrooms, and the external control of teachers' pedagogic practices. The article examines the social relations within which the different transmission practices are embedded and points to a possible relationship between teachers' transmission practices and the social relations that constitute teachers' work.     

Filmmaking education and enterprise culture: an ethnographic exploration of two filmmaking education contexts and their relation to bedroom culture and the creative workplace

ABSTRACT

Filmmaking education has never been firmly integrated into schooling and in past years has suffered from cuts to funding for formal and non-formal arts education and youth work. It continues to exist only by drawing on creative industry and cultural consumption practices as well as state funding. In this paper, we explore the filmmaking education contexts we encountered while doing our own pieces of year-long ethnographic research. These contexts import ‘enterprising’ ways of thinking, doing and being from the creative workplace and ‘bedroom culture’. Located across life’s domains, they address enterprising subjects who take pleasure in work, make use of leisure and are always learning. We argue that these filmmaking education contexts support young people to develop their private creative practice and introduce them to the possibility of work in the creative industries but, because of the enterprise culture in which they are entangled, uncritically address these young people as enterprising subjects.     

A critical analysis of the Syrian refugee education policies in Lebanon using a policy analysis framework

ABSTRACT

Lebanon, a country impacted by ongoing political and economic instability, has an estimated 1.5 million Syrian refugees competing for access to already fragile healthcare, education and labor sectors. Half of these refugees are children. This piece will discuss the efforts and policies Lebanon already has in place regarding the education of Syrian refugees. This will be done through the implementation of Lesley Vidovich’s (2007) a policy framework which proposes an analysis of the policy context and policies’ influence, an analysis of the policies as text as well as an analysis of the implementation of those policies. Such a framework has the opportunity to not only provide a holistic view of the Lebanese history and context leading to current policies surrounding the education of refugees, but it has the potential of serving as a systematic framework for other various contexts concerning education in conflict areas.     

The Professoriate and the Future of Higher Education Kinesiology

ABSTRACT

This article broadly addresses academic freedom and higher education in America, accentuating the viewpoint that change is not new. A historical overview of the state of the professoriate and social contexts are examined to situate the field of kinesiology into the context of the university. Ideas regarding the future of the field are addressed with an emphasis on the conduct of higher education scholars within this context. It is hoped that this article will not become an autopsy documenting the assault on the field, marginalization of the academy, and end of kinesiology in higher education, but will rather be a call to action for moving forward as a profession.     

An ideology critique of global citizenship education

ABSTRACT

In the last two decades, global citizenship education (GCE) has become a catchphrase used by international and national educational agencies, as well as researchers, to delineate the increasing internationalisation of education, framed as an answer to the growing globalisation and the high values of citizenship. These developments, however, have created issues, due to the presence of two conflicting discourses. While the discourse of critical democracy highlights the importance of ethical values, social responsibility and active citizenry, a neoliberal discourse privileges instead a market-rationale, focused on self-investment and enhanced profits. These two discourses are not separated; they rather appear side by side, causing a confusing effect. This article aims to analyse GCE as an ideology, unveiling not only its hidden (discursive) content but also the role played by non-discursive elements in guaranteeing the coexistence of antagonistic discourses. It will be argued that not only the critical democratic discourse does not offer any resistance or threat to the neoliberal structuring of higher education, but also this discourse can function as an apologetic narrative that exculpates all of us who still want to work in universities, notwithstanding our dissatisfaction with their current commodification.     

Capital,inequality and education in conflict-affected contexts

Abstract

Piketty’s Capital in the Twenty-first Century has brought the issue of inequality to the centre of political debate. This article explores contemporary research on the relationship between education and inequality in conflict-affected contexts with a view to seeing how Piketty’s work speaks to these issues as a field of research and practice. The article provides a critique of Piketty’s approach, arguing for a broader, interdisciplinary and holistic approach to exploring and addressing inequality in education in conflict-affected contexts in their multiple economic, cultural and political dimensions. In doing so the article also lays out an analytical framework inspired by cultural political economy for researching education systems in conflict contexts which seeks to go beyond narrow human capital framings of education and address the multiple potential of education to promote sustainable peace and development in and through education.     

Framing justice: challenges for research

This paper raises questions about the apparent research commonsense that has developed in much English and Australian policy sociology in relation to neo-liberal or ‘post-welfarist’, education reform. These questions arise out of an interrogation of two evaluations of social justice in neo-liberal education contexts: Gewirtz's social justice audit which is reported in The Managerial School and an analysis of social justice in the context of training reform in Victoria, Australia. By exploring the dissonances in these two evaluations, the paper problematizes social justice within post-welfarism, the way these developments are being theorized and what counts as decisive information which serves as evidence of justice.     

Education and nationalism in Scotland: governing a ‘learning nation’

Abstract

Nationalism is a key resource for the political work of governing Scotland, and education offers the Scottish National Party (SNP) government a policy space in which political nationalism (self determination) along with social and cultural forms of civic nationalism can be formed and propagated, through referencing ‘inwards’ to established myths and traditions that stress the ‘public’ nature of schooling/education/universities and their role in construction of ‘community’; and referencing ‘outwards’, especially to selected Nordic comparators, but also to major transnational actors such as OECD, to education’s role in economic recovery and progress. The SNP government has been very active in the education policy field, and a significant element of its activity lies in promoting a discourse of collective learning in which a ‘learning government’ is enabled to lead a ‘learning nation’ towards the goal of independence. This paper draws on recent research to explore recent and current developments in SNP government education policy, drawing on discourse analysis to highlight the political work that such policy developments seek to do, against the backdrop of continuing constitutional tensions across the UK.     

Collective Experimentation: Lessons from the Field

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to document smallholder experiences during a participatory experimental initiative and draw useful lessons for field practitioners. The main methods used to collect data were participant observation, in-depth interviews among 40 farmers, and analyses of notes taken during participatory monitoring and evaluation. These farmers were regular participants in four collective trials—designed by scientists, managed by smallholders—that were run for over five years in western Kenya. This paper shows that scientific trial designs enhanced ‘conviction’ among smallholders in new technologies that were being experimented. The study further reveals that (1) collective trials must last long enough for interactive learning to effectively occur, (2) farmers’ selected aspects of experiments and did not generally treat the whole trial as one concept, (3) field trials were forms of evidence of research or project activity, and (4) trials were seen as like ‘churches’ and multipurpose congregating sites, especially because these collective experiments had roots in local traditions.

The practical implication is that because interactive trials are social events, like other learning platforms, they must be appropriately situated within local contexts to enhance their relevance. This paper also shows that experiments are only a first step in learning, which needs to be supported by in-depth research and support for smallholder experiments. Collaborative experimentation is an effective tool for improving smallholder knowledge. Experimentation is a hands-on tool; it strengthens interactive learning, enhances understanding of a concept and improves ownership of the process or research among farmers. However, longer-term collective experiments develop a strong underlying human dimension. Understanding the social dynamics that influence the value of collective experimentation is critical for the process of scaling out.     

中国社会发展的“教育尺度”与教育基础

当代中国社会发展需要一把教育的尺度来衡量,并以此作为判断当前社会发展状态的基本标尺之一。教育尺度的引入将改变研究思路,带来新的思维方式;改变研究问题,拓展研究视野;改变研究立场,确立当代中国社会发展研究中的教育学立场。"教育尺度"视域中的"教育基础"涉及人口、教育机构、社会对教育的支持以及政府领导与管理教育事业的方式等。"在中国"研究"教育基础"更能凸显"中国自觉",为人类社会发展中教育尺度的形成与运用提供"中国参照系"下的"中国道路"和"中国模式"。     

Tests,measurements, and selection in the Belgian Congo during the 1950s: the end of racist clichés?

ABSTRACT

Research into the history of colonial education in Congo has shown that, for a long time, it was dominated by the idea of gradual development of the masses. Here, the problem of selecting an intellectual elite hardly arose. It was only in the 1950s that a growing number of voices began to clamour for the Congolese to be permitted to study in secondary schools and universities. However, psychological testing was not the first means of resort in the selection of an elite. Nevertheless, following the Second World War, the sentiment that psychological testing might be helpful began to take hold in Belgium. Drawing on various international developments, a handful of specialists took up the issue. The analysis of their work shows that much of what Linstrum contended concerning the history of psychological research in the British Empire, also applies to Congo. Despite their modest number, these studies cannot simply be viewed as pretext for the racism deeply ingrained in colonial circles. But this does not mean that pseudo-scientific clichés about the backwardness of the Africans did not make an appearance. Rather the contrary was true. In any event, these studies were not prepared to pierce through general sentiment and therefore, do not seem to have yielded much more than adherence to the new, prestigious scientific research methods.     

Conceptualizing social justice in education: mapping the territory

Within recent studies of education policy, social justice has been an under‐theorized concept. This paper is an attempt to begin to remedy this situation. It critically examines some of the most prominent ways in which social justice has been and is being thought about within various traditions of social theory and concludes by sketching out a framework for conceptualizing social justice in the context of education policy research. However, the main purpose of the paper is not to provide a definitive conceptualization of social justice but to open up a debate which might usefully inform the work of the education policy research community.     

A critique of neo-Hahnian outdoor education theory. Part one: Challenges to the concept of “character building”

Abstract

Within the diverse and sometimes amorphous outdoor education literature, “neo-Hahnian” (NH) approaches to adventure education are exceptional for their persistence, seeming coherence, and wide acceptance. NH approaches assume that adventure experiences “build character”, or, in modern terminology, “develop persons”, “actualise selves”, or have certain therapeutic effects associated with personal traits. In social psychological terms NH thought is “dispositional”, in that it favours explanations of behaviour in terms of consistent personal traits. In this paper I critically review NH OAE in an historical context, and draw on Ross' and Nisbett's (1991) seminal review of dispositional social psychology to argue that OAE programs do not build character, but may provide situations that elicit certain behaviours. For OAE research and theory, belief in the possibility of “character building” must be seen as a source of bias, not as a foundation. The conceptual analysis I develop provides not only a basis for critique, but also offers a way forward for OAE.     

The politics of education and the misrecognition of Wales

Abstract

This paper examines the positioning of the Welsh education system within contemporary policy debate and analysis. It begins by outlining some of the ways in which education policy and provision in Wales differs from that of its neighbour, England, and then goes on to critique how these differences have been represented in both the media and by members of the educational research community. Indeed, the paper argues that these representations constitute a form of misrecognition. It is tempting to counter this misrecognition with assertions of the superiority of the ‘Welsh way’—and certainly pronouncements of a ‘crisis’ in Welsh education appear to be as much politically-driven as evidence-based. However, such an approach would underplay the very real challenges that face Wales—challenges which are both like and unlike those facing England, Scotland and Northern Ireland. The paper concludes that we need a serious engagement with national divergences across the four nations of the UK—as well as elsewhere. The case of Wales highlights the need to undertake not only comparative analysis but also relational analysis if we are to enhance our understanding of the changing politics of education.     

Intellectual roots of distance education: a progressive knowledge domain analysis

ABSTRACT

Distance education (DE) is a constantly evolving and advancing field, and as such, its intellectual network and dynamics need to be investigated and explored. In this regard, this study reviewed a total of 1685 articles and 51,940 references through social network analysis for a bibliometric examination of the DE field. The findings indicate that DE is an interdisciplinary field and part of mainstream education. The progressive knowledge domain analysis revealed that the intellectual roots of DE stem from generic social learning theories, after which DE-related theories began to emerge following the foundation of open universities. The research concludes that there was a paradigm shift that resulted from developments in online networked technologies in the 2000s, at which time DE started to gradually evolve into sixth generation ubiquitous DE.