Foucault on early education

Despite Michel Foucault not having study the processes of education it isn’t such a far cry to use some of his theories in relation with education. Deacon’s article “Michel Foucault on Education: a preliminary theoretical overview” exemplifies this. In the article he talks about several ways in which Foucault’s ideas can be accurately used to describe the development of the education system and its affects on society. It is through his concepts that many different techniques and aspects of schooling have been developed, one of which Deacon discusses which he calls “moral orthopedics”.

Paulo Freire’s The Pedagogy of the Oppressed and its Effect on Society

In Chapter two of Paulo Freire’s work, The Pedagogy of the Oppressed, he discusses and compares different methods of education, the banking method and the problem posing method and how they are either oppressive or beneficial to the student body and man kind as a whole. The banking method consists of teachers depositing the information into the student’s minds, allowing them to memorize it and then withdrawing it at will, leaving the student merely a shell that is to be filled and emptied on call. The method of problem posing education is far more beneficial to the student. It challenges their thinking and just as the name suggests, poses problems

George Dei’s Revision of the School System

In George Dei’s article on education, “Schooling as Community: Race, Schooling and the Education of African Youth”, he suggest a concept he calls community schooling. He argues extensively that this is the solution to the discrepancy between black and white students and their success rates. He defines it as an inclusion of all aspects of a student’s life, rather than just the educational processes. Dei says that one of the most important aspects to focus on to achieve a more diverse success rate in students is their culture, background and identity. He also stresses though, that as important as the community is to the process of education, one must remember that it is not actually the community’s responsibility to educate its youth. “While no one

Gender and Class Based Cultural Capital

Class and gender-based cultural capital is an impacting factor on many students. They not only influence the outcomes of classes, but they also influence the overall outcome of a student’s educational experience. In my experience, gander based cultural capital was not a negative thing but for the most part, very equal opportunities. Class based cultural capital on the other hand is a little more of a sensitive subject. The difference in class was very abrupt in some situations regarding our educational experiences.