The Intractable Dominant Educational Paradigm

1. The Intractable Dominant Educational Paradigm John Hawkins, Professor Emeritus, UCLA Co-Director APHERP APHERP Leadership Institute August 8-17, 2016

2. A Global Grammar of Schooling? • Ethiopian paradox • Emergence of a global paradigm, a meta narrative? • Early forms: Confucian academy (4th Century BCE); Nalanda, India (10,000 students, 2,000 faculty) • Adam Smith 18th Century; Late 19th early 20th century notions of progress. APHERP Leadership Institute NCCU

3. Competing Theories of Social Change • Evolutionary Theories • Cyclical Theories (Rise and Fall) • Equilibrium Theories • Conflict Theories APHERP Leadership Institute NCCU

4. Evolutionary Theories • Darwin: Competitive & Adaptive Change dovetails with “free market” notion • Levy: Modernization-- “universal social solvent” modernized societies “always penetrate and dominate” non- modernized societies • Functionalism, systems theory, neo-evolutionary theories, belief in “forward progress” begin to dominate APHERP Leadership Institute NCCU

5. Cyclical Theories/Rise & Fall • Spengler; Decline of the West 1918; organic theory of culture • China (East Asia), Dynastic Cycles, Mandate of Heaven; C.Y. Chun, R.D. Lee • India (South and Southeast Asia), Buddhism, Hinduism, Karma APHERP Leadership Institute NCCU

6. Equilibrium Theory • Combined with evolutionary theory; Influenced functionalism, systems, cultural lag, human ecology theory • Notion of homeostasis, uniform state • No sooner is a reform introduced than the educational system finds a way to modulate it • “nothing new ever happens in the world of equilibrium theory” (Applebaum) APHERP Leadership Institute NCCU

7. Conflict Theory • Marx: stability is not an option; systems are inherently unstable and seeking to transform themselves • Trotsky-Mao: permanent revolution • Darhendorf, Collins, Kerr, Coser and others pursued this in modern sociology; saw education as component of dialectical change • Freire, education as liberation • Education as knowledge generating and change oriented--student movements in 60’s; in anti-colonial struggles, etc. APHERP Leadership Institute NCCU

8. Post WWII Development Lit • Rostow: five stages of growth (1960s) • Modernization theory begins to dominate (McClelland, “need to achieve”; Inkles, “modernity scale”; current belief about democracy; debate about “values”, are they relative, not absolute?) • Education and curriculum are tools to promote the values to achieve modernity APHERP Leadership Institute NCCU

9. Causal Links to Development • Modernizing institutions: schools • Modern values: curriculum promotes these • Modern behaviors: school grads exhibit these • All contribute to building a modern society and development • Theories above identify “formal (generally ‘public’) schools” as the principal agent of social change • Formal curriculum = education as a deliverable; curriculum inhibits alternatives APHERP Leadership Institute NCCU

10. Education as Panacea • End of WWII: Education the most critical factor for development (UNESCO; OECD; etc.) • “one of the most romantic tales of the century” Don Adams, 1977 • Reaffirmed by UN 1948 “Declaration of Basic Rights of Man” • Truman “Point 4” APHERP Leadership Institute NCCU

11. Development Decades: 60’s & 70s • Architecture of dominant paradigm becomes clearer • Essentially a Western model: investment in education = development • Positive belief in potency of aid (Japan & Germany as exemplars): it would lead to development and “prosperity for all” Tuqan 1975 • Secondary goal: make people development minded APHERP Leadership Institute NCCU

12. Features of Paradigm • “investment in education = economic growth” • Much to recommend it but criticism in the 1970’s (too simplistic, inaccurate, applied uncritically, blindly followed • “formal schooling = more learning = greater income”; critics say; this ignores the value of NFE; more appropriate targeted education (Schumacher—Small is Beautiful) • Finally, expansion of schooling = development; critics say: “diploma disease” Ron Dore 1976 APHERP Leadership Institute NCCU

13. The Paradigm Spreads • 1960’s: Four Regional Conferences: • 1961: Addis Ababa: Conference of African States and Development of Education • 1962: Karachi Plan, • Tokyo follow-up; 5% of GNP solution • 1962: Santiago; Latin American Education Development • All focused on investment in ed. for national development; faith in FE APHERP Leadership Institute NCCU

14. The NFE Challenge: 1970’s • Ivan Illich: Deschooling Society • “the student is schooled to confuse teaching with learning, grade advancement with education, a diploma with competence, and fluency with the ability to say something new. Medical treatment is mistaken for health care, social work for the improvement of community life, police protection for safety, military poise for national security, the rat race for productive work…..” • Replace schools with “learning webs” APHERP Leadership Institute NCCU

15. Educational Alternatives • Freire • Radio schools • Min Ban schools in China • Worker peasant colleges in other parts of Asia • Women’s cooperatives in India • By 1980’s these efforts had been marginalized but still exist: Farrell Archive at OISE APHERP Leadership Institute NCCU

16. 1980’s: Paradigm Entrenched • Authoritarian relationship at core of teacher-learner relationship • Lack of teacher training; poor salaries • Teaching methods not aligned with learning theory (Farrell) • Textbook and rote methods • Examination driven • Preoccupation with certificates rather than what is taught (Dore ‘78; Oaks ’85; Hawkins 2014) APHERP Leadership Institute NCCU

17. Formal Education Rules • Socialization function • Reproduce social elites; bureaucrats • Elites have a stake in the system and resist change • Education for national integration • Concern about “learning” mission of education; reform movements begin APHERP Leadership Institute NCCU

18. Dominant HE Paradigm Selective Features • More is better: faculty, students, disciplines, departments, imitative research model, ORUs, research funds etc. • Face to face instruction • Faculty self-governance • Long summer recess • Graduate schools atop the college of L&S APHERP Leadership Institute NCCU

19. More • Curricular distribution (GE), and concentration (majors) • Up or out tenure system, rank and salary distinctions • Selective admissions • All of which results in Carnegie Creep; mission creep; everyone wants to be a RU; presages what will become the rankings competition APHERP Leadership Institute NCCU

20. Where Are We Today • Scholars Challenge the Education as Panacea Paradigm: Weiler, Bowles, Gintis, Carnoy, Smith, Christensen, Eyring,etc. • Competing Theories: Dependency, Conflict, Neo Marxism, Post Modernism, Neoliberalism, etc. • NGO’s Offer Varieties of NFE (Farrell Project at OISE) APHERP Leadership Institute NCCU

21. Stand Off • Illich: 1970’s: “Schools are fundamentally alike in all countries” • Tyack & Cuban: 1995; “schools have remained basically similar in their core operation”; Christensen 2012: dom DNA • Formal Education + Expansion Remains Dominant; and now privatization • What About Globalization? Neoliberalism? Resurgent nationalism? Rankings bind it together? • Is there an emerging new paradigm; can we envision a preferred future for education? APHERP Leadership Institute NCCU

22. Are We Ripe for Disruptive Innovation?What Will It Be? • Keep this question in mind as we go through this week together! APHERP Leadership Institute NCCU