Standards for all

Katharine Birbalsingh's blog post of October 24 makes for disturbing reading principally because it has the ring of truth about it. Without delving into the specifics of the case she mentions, the broad issue of low expectations in schools remains relevant. Experienced teachers will know what I mean by this.

The root of this malaise seems to lie in the profoundly mistaken belief that education is not principally about growing in wisdom and learning from the shared patrimony of our civilisation. Rather, we hear that education is a teaching of skills - basic and advanced - in preparation for the job market. (How often do we hear reports in the press of 'employers' lamenting the low levels of literacy which they find in school leavers. Universities have succumbed to this utilitarianism too. Here it is called the drive for employability.) Of course all educators should feel the call to promote high standards both in behaviour and in teaching and learning. This might seem self-evident but it merits repeating. Education is nothing if not the promotion of the best and most enriching aspects of our cultural inheritance. All young people of all backgrounds deserve to be included in this patrimony, not just those who parents can afford a private education.

Serious Reading

This blog claims that educators benefit from intellectual stimulation and reasoned debate. Sadly many in educational management would eschew the sentiments of the first sentence and favour on-going teacher formation based on the development of practical skills and what is sometimes called ‘professional knowledge’.

Such a division between so-called ‘professional knowledge’ and broader learning is bridged in the study of the history and philosophy of education. A recently published book, ‘Understanding Teaching and Learning: Classic Texts on Education by Augustine, Aquinas, Newman and Mill’ edited by Brian Mooney and Mark Nowacki, is an example of the type of book which should be available in schools and used in university courses in education. This book offers samples of the writing on education of each of the four thinkers mentioned in the title and accompanied by dedicated commentaries. The Introduction offers a helpful and stimulating exploration of some key issues in teaching and learning.

This type of book reminds us that the study of ‘education’ cannot be reduced to social-science inspired measurements of data and exploration of professional practice. While the analysis and interpretation of these issues remain part of the fabric of the study of education, the core issues in education are philosophical. Two of these issues are: what is the purpose of education and in what way are the processes of education rooted in particular worldviews. Until we get to grips with these crucial matters, modern education will continue to spin many plates and call it curricular reform.