Education: A Contested

Enterprise

Alpha Plus Next Gen Taskforce

15 January 2009

Nick HitchenFalcons School for Girls

The Alpha Gold Standard

The Common Sense Discourse

(The Times; 6/12/08, reader comment)

My son is 4 years old & it is my intention for him to go to private school when he is 11. This will involve living in a

smaller house, but I am happy to do this for the benefits he will get. Smaller classes, access to a variety of sports,

languages & good old fashioned non-PC teaching!

Typology of Ideologies in Education

Individual (progressive)

Knowledge (traditional)

Society (egalitarianism & elitism)

Teacher X & Teacher Y

X

externally motivates

pupils through

controlling actions

Y

encourage intrinsic

motivation through self-development

(McGreagor)

I.Q.

Innate, immutable ability

Cognitive Developmental Theory

Intellectual & moral development as sequential

(Piaget)

Constructivism

(Vygotsky)

People make their own sense

of things in a unique way

Need to give learners responsibility for their own learning

Metacognition

Learning Styles

Learning Approaches

Learning Style

Learning Strategy

Learning Preferences

Learning Styles

Howard Gardener

V.A.K

Sternberg: analytical, creative & practical

Emotional Intelligence

Buzan MindMaps

Left / Right Brain

Personalised Learning

The purpose of education for all children is the same; the goals are the

same. But the help that individual children need in progressing towards

them will be different.’

(Warnock)

Sociological perspective

Development of basic skills

Socialisation

Social control / social order

Preparing for work

The Fear!

Pupil-centered, discursive pedagogy sees

degree of control pass to the pupils...

Political context (with a small ‘p’)

Neo-liberalismChoice and competition

Neo-conservatismUphold traditional values

Experiments

Continual Conflict

No correct answer

Interaction between competing ideologies

Tension between neo-liberal and neo-conservatism

Gold Standard – permission to experiment

Questions

?

?

?

? Is education a process?

Is education a product to be consumed?

What does education involve?

Where does education take place?