An interesting book crossed my path a few weeks ago: Recovering a Catholic Philosophy of Elementary Education by Professor Curtis Hancock of Rockhurst University, USA. It is published by Newman House Press. (See here and here for online reviews.)
It is striking to see a title which places words like 'Catholic', 'philosophy' and 'education' in one sentence. This is a pleasing reminder that education - and not just Catholic education - is first and foremost a philosophical endeavour. So often contemporary education is understood solely as a preparation for work and/or a training in so-called transferable skills.
What is striking about this short book is its clear critique of what have become the guiding poles of much contemporary educational thought. Hancock maps out the intellectual territory of Catholic education and identifies the implicitly and explicitly hostile ideologies which have encamped on this territory, often by innocent invitation. Hancock is not a contrarian but his book allows the reader to see just where and how certain fashionable viewpoints sit uneasily with the Catholic worldview.
The final chapter of the book is entitled 'Confronting the Idols of the Educational Tribe', a deliciously provocative look at the tension between Catholic ideas and the following themes: 1) values-neutral education; 2) the naturalist worldview; 3) the educational though of Rousseau and Dewey; 4) the question of truth; 5) Kohlberg's 'stages of moral development'; 6) Gardner's 'multiple intelligences' and 7) social construct theory (constructivism). There is much food for thought here for all educators…
The weakness (if we can call it that) of this book, paradoxically, is the title. It would be a great shame if only teachers in Catholic elementary schools were to read this book as its scope reaches far beyond elementary education and, indeed, Catholic education. It is a radical rethinking of the very soul of what has come to be known as 'progressive education'.
One last thought: Professor Hancock's book is not an obituary for a failed system; it is a manifesto for the future.
