Social theory and education research : understanding Foucault, Habermas, Bourdieu and Derrida

Although education researchers have drawn on the work of a wide diversity of theorists, a number of these have been of particular significance to education. While the likes of Karl Marx, Antonio Gramsci, John Dewey and Paulo Freire influenced previous generations of educational theorists, much of the more contemporary theory building has revolved around a quartet of well-known and much-debated thinkers – Michel Foucault, Jürgen Habermas, Pierre Bourdieu and Jacques Derrida. However, while the influence of these thinkers has grown considerably over the last number of years, both their original work and its application to education can prove challenging to the educational practitioner. The challenges they pose to educators are exacerbated by a lack of suitable reading material that can appeal to the advanced practitioner market, while also providing a sufficiently in-depth overview of the various theories and their applications in educational research. This edited book expertly rectifies this omission in the educational literature, and delivers a text that is both advanced and accessible, offering the education practitioner/researcher a suitable guide to assist their acquisition and application of social theory. The chapters included in this collection are designed to illustrate the diverse ways in which continental theory of whatever stripe can be applied to educational issues. From school surveillance to curriculum, social theory is used to shed light on ‘practical’ issues facing the sector, helping to widen and deepen discussion around these areas when they are in danger of being over-simplified. This book will be incredibly useful to post-graduate student teachers who wish to develop their capacity to engage with these debates at an advanced level. It will also prove of great interest to anyone involved in education policy and theory. Although education researchers have drawn on the work of a wide diversity of theorists, a number of these have been of particular significance to education. While the likes of Karl Marx, Antonio Gramsci, John Dewey and Paulo Freire influenced previous generations of educational theorists, much of the more contemporary theory building has revolved around a quartet of well-known and much-debated thinkers - Michel Foucault, Jürgen Habermas, Pierre Bourdieu and Jacques Derrida. However, while the influence of these thinkers has grown considerably over the last number of years, both their original work and its application to education can prove challenging to the educational practitioner. The challenges they pose to educators are exacerbated by a lack of suitable reading material that can appeal to the advanced practitioner, while also providing a sufficiently in-depth overview of the various theories and their applications in educational research. This edited book expertly rectifies this omission in the educational literature, and delivers a text that is both advanced and accessible, offering the education practitioner/researcher a suitable guide to assist their acquisition and application of social theory. The chapters included in this collection are designed to illustrate the diverse ways in which continental theory of whatever stripe can be applied to educational issues. From school surveillance to curriculum, social theory is used to shed light on 'practical' issues facing the sector, helping to widen and deepen discussion around these areas when they are in danger of being over-simplified. This book will be very useful to post-graduate student-teachers who wish to develop their capacity to engage with these debates at an advanced level. It will also prove of great interest to anyone involved in education policy and theory. Book jacket Although education researchers have drawn on the work of a wide diversity of theorists, a number of these have been of particular significance to education. While the likes of Karl Marx, Antonio Gramsci, John Dewey and Paulo Freire influenced previous generations of educational theorists, much of the more contemporary theory building has revolved around a quartet of well-known and much-debated thinkers - Michel Foucault, Jürgen Habermas, Pierre Bourdieu and Jacques Derrida. However, while the influence of these thinkers has grown considerably over the last number of years, both their original work and its application to education can prove challenging to the educational practitioner. The challenges they pose to educators are exacerbated by a lack of suitable reading material that can appeal to the advanced practitioner market, while also providing a sufficiently in-depth overview of the various theories and their applications in educational research. This edited book expertly rectifies this omission in the educational literature, and delivers a text that is both advanced and accessible, offering the education practitioner/researcher a suitable guide to assist their acquisition and application of social theory. The chapters included in this collection are designed to illustrate the diverse ways in which continental theory of whatever stripe can be applied to educational issues. From school surveillance to curriculum, social theory is used to shed light on 'practical' issues facing the sector, helping to widen and deepen discussion around these areas when they are in danger of being over-simplified.-- Provided by publisher Cover 1 Title Information 2 Title Page 4 Copyright Page 5 Table of Contents 6 List of Contributors 8 Acknowledgements 12 Part I: Introduction 14 1 Social theory and education research: an introduction 16 Part II: Foucault 32 2 Foucault and his acolytes: discourse, power and ethics 34 3 Foucault, panopticism and school surveillance research 48 4 Foucault, confession and reflective practices 65 Part III: Habermas 80 5 Jürgen Habermas: education’s reluctant hero 82 6 The politics of school regulation: using Habermas to research educational accountability 97 7 Applying Habermas’ theory of communicative action in an analysis of recognition of prior learning 111 Part IV: Bourdieu 128 8 Bourdieu and educational research: thinking tools, relational thinking, beyond epistemological innocence 130 9 Research in the new Christian Academies: perspectives from Bourdieu 151 10 Bourdieu applied: exploring perceived parental influence on adolescent students’ educational choices for studies in higher education 166 Part V: Derrida 182 11 Derrida and educational research: an introduction 184 12 ‘Derrida applied’: Derrida meets Dracula in the geography classroom 197 13 Engaging with student-teachers on reflective writing: reclaiming writing 213 Index 225 This book is both advanced and accessible, offering the education practitioner/researcher a guide to assist their acquisition and application of social theory. Importantly, it contextualizes various theories within the broader context of social philosophy and the historical development of different forms of thought.