https://doi.org/10.1177/0192636517709368
NASSP Bulletin 2017, Vol. 101(2) 77 –89
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Article
Longitudinal Analysis Technique to Assist School Leaders in Making Critical Curriculum and Instruction Decisions for School Improvement
Gary D. Bigham1 and Mark R. Riney1
Abstract To meet the constantly changing needs of schools and diverse learners, educators must frequently monitor student learning, revise curricula, and improve instruction. Consequently, it is critical that careful analyses of student performance data are ongoing components of curriculum decision-making processes. The primary purpose of this study is to demonstrate the application of panel study longitudinal analysis techniques to inform curricula and instructional improvement efforts using actual data retrieved from state accountability reports of a Texas school district.
Keywords longitudinal panel analysis, school leadership, curriculum and instruction, summative student assessment, data-driven decision making
The 1983 publication of A Nation at Risk report by the National Commission on Excellence in Education became a catalyst for closer public scrutiny of American schools, standards-based testing, and increased accountabilities for education in gen- eral. Nineteen years later, the No Child Left Behind Act increased accountability mea- sures and federal control of K-12 education. For instance, the No Child Left Behind Act resulted in substantial changes nationally on school accountability systems by
1West Texas A&M University, Texas, USA.
Corresponding Author: Gary D. Bigham, P.O. Box 60208, Canyon, TX 79016-0001, USA. Email: [email protected]
709368 BULXXX10.1177/0192636517709368NASSP BulletinBigham and Riney research-article2017
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mandating student performance assessments and accountability measures at individ- ual school levels (Groen, 2012; Hunt, 2008).
Similarly, the recent Every Student Succeeds Act requires states to assess stu- dents annually to continue accountability measures. Consequently, school dis- tricts are under considerable pressure to increase student learning as measured on state-mandated standardized tests, and school administrators must assiduously analyze longitudinal and current student performance data to inform collabora- tive decision making processes about how to improve curricula and classroom instruction to foster student learning and to meet changing needs of diverse stu- dent populations (Darling-Hammond, Ramos-Beban, Altamirano, & Hyler, 2016; Fullan, 2016).
Background
To enhance the reality and applicability of the longitudinal analysis technique demon- strated, data were collected from publicly accessible state reports for a small, rural, early childhood through 12th-grade Texas public school district. The school district’s total student enrolment ranged from 370 to 431 with an average enrolment of 393.6 over the 10-year period from which data were collected. Although the data in Table 1 were restricted to state-assessed reading scores, they provide a sense of the high levels of success the school district had experienced with its student population over the decade covered by this study. However, the aggregate longitudinal performance of four graduating classes grouped as panels and tracked by class from Grades 3 through 9, resulted in an unfavorable trend line in overall reading performance as measured by the state-mandated standardized reading assessment.
Table 1. Percentage of Students Meeting Minimum State-Standardized Reading Performance Standard From Year 1 to Year 10.
Year
Elementary grades Middle school grades High school
3 4 5 6 7 8 9
1 93 100 90 100 100 100 96 2 91 97 96 88 100 100 100 3 94 92 100 100 93 100 100 4 100 97 88 100 100 100 100 5 96 100 100 96 100 100 100 6 100 82 95 94 86 100 95 7 100 95 89 100 96 100 100 8 90 81 95 100 100 96 95 9 100 76 78 86 100 91 93 10 80 96 84 89 81 96 83
Note. The brackets group the four graduating classes as each progressed from grade 3 to grade 9. Bold face and lighter bold face are used only to facilitate ease of comparison of the individual classes for the reader as they progressed from grade to grade.
Bigham and Riney 79
Problem
Public schools are data-rich institutions; yet thorough analysis of available data may be lacking in many cases. This is not to suggest that school leaders do not analyze student achievement data in making curricula and instruction decisions, but full sched- ules with endless task lists and limited time may prevent many school leaders from engaging in data analysis extending beyond previous- and current-year information that is listed on most state and federal accountability reports. In this era of high-stakes accountability, school effectiveness is mostly measured by the aggregate student per- formance on state-mandated standardized exams by class at the campus level and by both class and campus at the district level. In the school from which the data for this study were obtained, reading achievement measured via state-wide assessments increased slightly as students transitioned from elementary to middle school and then dropped noticeably as students transitioned from middle school to high school.
Purpose
The purpose of this study was to demonstrate a panel study longitudinal data analysis technique as applied to student test scores aggregated by class and campus as obtained from state accountability reports. Since the stated purpose was to demonstrate a data analysis technique, we opted to use data reported on accountability reports accessible by the public on the state education agency’s website with whom the school district was associated. To avoid potential violations of institutional review board policies and procedures, no attempt was made to contact the school district. A fictitious data set could have been used to fulfil this article’s purpose; however, because the focus was on the demonstration of a technique, the use of data from an actual school was employed to add practical reality to the method demonstrated. The technique reported is applicable to any school district with historical student achievement data and should facilitate campus- or district-level decision making with respect to curricula and instruction. The information yielded by this type of analysis is valuable to school lead- ers in making mission-critical decisions and the technique demonstrated can be con- ducted by most practitioners with minimal data analysis expertise.
Research Hypotheses
Through trend analyses of 10-year reading performance data obtained from the school district’s state accountability reports, mean student passing percentage scores were computed for four graduating classes by grade level and by campus. The calculated data were analyzed to answer the following question: Is the drop in aggregate test scores from middle school to high school significant enough to constitute examination of cur- ricula and methods of instruction employed in the high school and if so, what possible factors should be taken into consideration before implementing changes? Considering the case study parameters, (i.e., a single school district and the ex post facto nature of the data collected), the answer to the question was sought through hypothesis testing by comparing student reading achievement, aggregated by campus, among the three
80 NASSP Bulletin 101(2)
campuses within the same school district. While acknowledging obvious extraneous variables, the single distinguishing variable isolated among the three campuses was the transition of students from elementary to middle school and from middle school to high school. The research question was therefore addressed through the testing of the null hypotheses, from 10-year data compilations that read as follows:
Hypothesis 1: The transition of four graduating classes from elementary to middle school demonstrates no significant relationship to student performance on the state- mandated standardized reading assessment, tracked by class and aggregated by campus. Hypothesis 2: The transition of four graduating classes from middle school to high school demonstrates no significant relationship to student performance on the state- mandated standardized reading assessment, tracked by class and aggregated by campus.
Review of Literature
In many respects, reading is the foundation of school learning, and students’ levels of academic success are significantly determined by their reading abilities. Consequently, it is not surprising that most elementary schools devote substantial instructional time to reading in early elementary grades to address complexities of reading processes and key components of reading such as phonemic awareness, phonics, vocabulary, flu- ency, and comprehension (National Reading Panel, 2000). Also, many school districts allocate considerable resources for intervention programs to ensure that struggling readers are provided opportunities in the early elementary grades to improve their reading (Roskos & Neuman, 2014).
However, reading instruction is not only part of school curricula in early elemen- tary grades but also is a key component of language development for students through- out their years of schooling. For instance, in elementary, middle school, and secondary grades, teachers should instruct students on comprehension strategies, such as making inferences (Hansen & Hubbard, 1984; Pearson, Raphael, Benson & Madda, 2007), identifying salient information (Pressley, 2000), and summarizing and mapping (Graves, 2006; Graves, August, & Mancilla-Martinez, 2013), to develop students’ abilities to become strategic readers. Furthermore, it is important that content area teachers teach students content-specific reading strategies to improve their reading comprehension and to foster critical thinking and development of higher levels of lit- eracy (Hapgood & Palincsar, 2006; McKeown, Beck, & Blake, 2009; Ness, 2007; Shanahan & Shanahan, 2017). Equally important, instruction in academic vocabulary development and word-learning strategies improve students’ reading comprehension and increase literacy development at all grade levels (Graves et al., 2013; Neuman & Wright, 2013).
Another way to improve students’ reading abilities is through writing instruction. Reading and writing have reciprocal functions in that students’ understanding of texts increases when they write analytically about what they read (Gomez & Gomez,
Bigham and Riney 81
2007). Conversely, close analytical readings of essays provide students with exam- ples of types of compositions they are expected to produce in addition to critical reading and logical writing activities in content areas help students develop concep- tual knowledge of academic disciplines they study (Adams, 2011; McConachie et al., 2006).
Method
Research Design
The descriptive research design was employed in this study and is appropriate for school leaders to use in their data analysis procedures when the objective is limited to describing educational phenomena (Gall, Gall, & Borg, 2003, p. 290), such as tracking aggregate class performance on state-mandated standardized exams. Moreover, the descriptive research design is instrumental in providing answers to questions about relationships among variables (Best & Kahn, 2006, p. 133). Since this study endeavored to determine the relationship between student classes transi- tioning from campus to campus (the independent variable) and aggregated student class performance on the state-mandated standardized reading assessment (the dependent variable), longitudinal tracking was conducted by class and aggregated by campus.
Because the collected data consisted of historical student performance on state- mandated standardized reading assessments as reported on state accountability reports over a 10-year period of time, the longitudinal study methodology—a deri- vation of the descriptive research design—was designated as the most appropriate method for this study. Pursuant to the direction of Gall et al. (2003), aggregate class- level student achievement data were collected from publicly accessible annual accountability reports.
Longitudinal research designs from which to choose include trend, cohort, panel, and cross-sectional approaches. Considering the data collected, the panel methodol- ogy was most appropriate for this study. Whereas a panel study in its truest form is designed to focus on individuals within the preselected samples, due to the impor- tance placed on class- and campus-level performance by state and federal account- ability systems, the individual classes selected for analysis were operationally defined as the “individuals.” Thus, no effort was made to actually track individual students within the selected graduating classes. In taking this approach, it must be acknowl- edged that individual students within the tracked graduating classes change as each class gains or loses students across time. While a change of students within the classes will alter outcomes, in most cases, the “base” of each class remains constant. Consequently, this approach remedied concerns of loss of subjects and biased sam- ples addressed by Gall et al. (2003). Furthermore, since standardized examinations were administered annually to all students in designated grade levels as required by state law, the concern of unintended side effects from repeated measures (Gall et al., 2003) ceased to be problematic as well.
82 NASSP Bulletin 101(2)
Population and Sample
The population was defined as aggregate student classes in Grades 3 through 9 on three campuses in the selected school district over a 10-year period. The samples were defined as the four graduating classes of students tracked (diagonally in Table 1) as they progressed from the third to the ninth grade. Thus, with data collection occurring annually at the designated grade levels, the samples remained constant each year (moving down one row and one column to the right in Table 1).
Data Collection
Ten years of state-mandated standardized reading assessment data were extrapolated from the selected school district’s state accountability reports accessible from its state education agency’s Website. The data were reported as the percentage of students meeting the state standard, hereinafter referred to throughout this study as the passing rate. It should be noted that as with any state testing system, state-level changes to the exam over time are common. Although these changes are beyond the control of school leaders, those who wish to employ any longitudinal data analysis techniques do so acknowledging that a change in the exam will alter the results that would have been obtained in the absence of the change. However, all state-mandated reading assess- ments in Texas focused primarily on reading comprehension. Reading performance data, reported as the percentage of students in each class meeting the passing rate, were collected and organized on a spreadsheet in columns by grade level and in rows by year as displayed in Table 1.
Data Analysis
The data analyzed from Table 1 were restricted to the percentage of passing and failing test scores generated by students in the four graduating classes, contained within the brackets and displayed diagonally downward, from Grades 3 through 9. Since these data were obtained from a small school district with small classes ( X equals 31.7 in grade levels and years analyzed as reported in Table 2), the four graduating class data sets were aggregated by grade level and campus to enhance statistical power analysis. This aggregation process is not necessary in large school districts where student enrol- ments are sizable, but in small school settings, aggregation is recommended to enhance statistical findings (Gall et al., 2003). The data aggregated over the 10-year period for the four graduating classes resulted in 887 total state-mandated standardized reading exams completed by students in the classes selected for analysis in this school district as reported in Table 2.
Mean scores were calculated for each grade level reported in Table 1, reflective of percentages of students passing the reading assessments over the measured time periods. Then, campus-level mean scores for the elementary and middle school were calculated by averaging grade-level mean scores for Grades 3 through 5 and Grades 6 through 8, respectively. The high school mean score was computed by simply averaging ninth
Bigham and Riney 83
grade passing percentage scores. These grade- and campus-level mean scores were reported in graphical format in Figure 1 to facilitate the visual identification of evolving trends. The data were combined into a single graph whereby the grade-level scores were plotted linearly and campus-level data were plotted by histogram.
To methodically analyze the findings in a nonbiased fashion, the application of a quantitative data analysis technique was employed. Individual students’ state-man- dated standardized reading assessment results were not available to the researchers; thus, data collection was limited to the combined percentages of students passing the reading assessments as displayed on the school’s state accountability reports and reported in Table 1. This effectively reduced the analysis to two categories of stu- dents—those who passed and those who failed the state-mandated standardized read- ing assessment. Since only passing percentages were reported on the state accountability reports, the need for enrolment data came into play to calculate an estimated number of students tested. These data, also collected from the state accountability reports, are displayed in Table 2.
However, it should be noted that student enrolment per grade level, as indicated on the state accountability reports, did not necessarily represent the exact number of stu- dents who were actually tested in all cases. For example, an enrolled student could have been absent on the day of an assessment. Although this is problematic from a strict academic research perspective, the purpose of this study is to demonstrate these methods to school leaders and not to make generalizations. Therefore, it ceases to be a problem because school leaders have access to their exact enrolment and test partici- pation counts, which should be used in place of the more general and publicly acces- sible enrolment data reported on public documents as used by the authors of this study. Consequently, for demonstration in accordance with the stated purpose of this study,
Table 2. Aggregated Student Enrollment Counts by Year and Grade Level for the Graduating Classes Involved in the Study.
Year
Elementary grades Middle school grades High school
3 4 5 6 7 8 9
1 35 2 28 38 3 39 31 29 4 27 38 29 28 5 31 41 30 36 6 30 39 26 38 7 28 31 24 34 8 28 32 26 9 28 34 10 29 Total 129 138 129 125 121 122 123 Mean 32 35 32 31 30 31 31
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these calculations included all enrolled students in the frequency counts as test takers. Simple mathematical procedures were used to calculate passing and failing frequency counts by campus. Passing percentage rates were multiplied by the respective student enrolments in the tested grade levels on each campus to determine a total number of students passing the assessments. Then, by subtracting these products from the total enrolment counts, the total number of students failing the assessment per campus was derived.
Based on the categorical assessment results (i.e., passing or failing rates per cam- pus), the chi-square test was used to quantitatively analyze the data. The chi-square was the most appropriate statistical test, because the data being analyzed consisted of fre- quency counts (calculated from percentages) of students passing and failing (catego- ries) the state-mandated reading assessment. As noted by Gravetter and Wallnau (1996),
The chi-square test for goodness of fit uses sample data to test hypotheses about the shape or proportions of a population distribution. The test determines how well the obtained sample proportions fit the population proportions specified by the null hypothesis. (p. 548)
The null hypotheses stated that no relationship would exist between the indepen- dent and dependent variables for the population. For the purposes of these analyses, the independent variables were operationally defined as the classes of students transi- tioning from one campus to another and the dependent variable was student perfor- mance on the state-mandated standardized reading assessment, tracked by class and aggregated by campus.
Figure 1. Ten-year cumulative mean scores by grade level of all students tested in Grades 3 through 10 who met the passing standard established by the state of Texas for reading.
Bigham and Riney 85
Two methods of setting up the chi-square test for goodness of fit are (a) no prefer- ence, where nothing is known about the potential outcome, and all categories are weighted equally; and (b) no difference from a comparison population where informa- tion is known about the probable outcome based on prior knowledge (Gravetter & Wallnau, 1996). Since the null hypotheses stated that the transition of the four graduat- ing classes from one campus to another would demonstrate no significant relationship to student performance on the state-mandated standardized reading assessment, “No Difference From a Comparison Population” was deemed most appropriate for these analyses.
For this panel study, the chi-square calculation requires obtained and expected fre- quencies of students passing and failing from campus to campus. The obtained passing frequencies were calculated by multiplying the mean passing rates per campus (obtained from data displayed in Table 1) by the campus enrolments (obtained from data displayed in Table 2). Next, the products were subtracted from the total campus enrollments to determine failing frequencies. Expected frequencies were calculated by multiplying the passing/failing percentages of the previous campus by the enrollments in the current campus. On deriving obtained and expected frequencies, comparison groups for the “No Difference From a Comparison Population” chi-square tests were established. The elementary served as the comparison population against which the middle school was compared, and the middle school was used as the comparison pop- ulation against which the high school was compared. Hypothesis testing was con- ducted and results are displayed in Table 3.
The obtained passing/failing frequencies ( fo ) for the elementary, middle, and high schools were fo equals 378.50/17.50 for 396 exams; fo equals 355.41/12.59 for 368 exams; and fo equals 114.08/8.92 for 123 exams, respectively. The expected passing/ failing frequencies ( fe ) were fe equals 351.73/16.27 for the middle school and fe equals 118.79/4.21 for the high school. The .05 alpha was used for the level of signifi- cance, and with only two categories—passing and failing—the degrees of freedom (df) was 1. For df equals 1 and α equals .05, the critical chi-square χ2
crit is 3.84 (Gravetter & Wallnau, 1996).
Results
The findings were organized, as described in the methodology section, by presenting raw test score data presented graphically to facilitate the visual identification of evolv- ing trends. The data were combined into a single graph, whereby the grade-level scores were plotted linearly, and campus-level data were plotted by histogram.
A grade-level examination of the data, depicted in the linear graph in Figure 1, revealed a “seesaw” effect beginning in Grade 3 and ending in Grade 9. The linear graph peaked at the sixth grade and plummeted going into high school. The campus- level examination of the data, depicted by the histogram bars also in Figure 1, revealed a 1% student performance increase from elementary (95.58 for Grades 3 through 5), to middle school (96.58 for Grades 6 through 8). Later, student performance decreased 3.83 percentage points as students moved from middle school to high school (Grade 9).
86 NASSP Bulletin 101(2)
As described in the Method section, the chi-square test for goodness of fit was used to determine the significance of the differences observed in the campus mean scores. Setting up the chi-square test in accordance with the “No Difference From a Comparison Population” method, resulted in the testing of two hypotheses. The first null hypothesis indicated no significant difference from the elementary score to the middle school score where the elementary score served as the comparison population for determining the probable outcome of the middle school score. Similarly, the sec- ond null hypothesis indicated no significant difference from the middle school score to the high school score with the middle school score being employed as the comparison population for determining the probable outcome of the high school score. With only two categories of analysis—passing and failing—the df equaled 1 and with the alpha level set at .05, the critical chi-square was 3.84. The chi-square test results are reported in Table 3.
Where the calculated chi-square was 0.871, pursuant to standard hypothesis-testing practices, the decision was to fail to reject the first null hypothesis, indicating no sig- nificant difference from the elementary score to the middle school score. However, where the calculated chi-square was 5.455 in testing the second null hypothesis, the decision was to reject it, indicating a significant difference from the middle school score to the high school score.
Discussion
The primary purpose of longitudinal trend analysis is to provide school leaders with a viable tool of analysis of standardized test results over an extended period of time. The research question posed at the outset of this study read: Is the drop in aggregate test scores from middle school to high school significant enough to constitute examination of curricula and methods of instruction employed in the high school and if so, what possible factors should be taken into consideration before implementing changes? In
Table 3. Chi-Square Results in Testing the Goodness-of-Fit Using the “No Difference From a Comparison Population” Methodology Applied to 10 Years of Compiled Panel Data for Four Graduating Classes.
Campus No. of exams
fo fe
χ2Passing Failing Passing Failing
Elementary 396 .9558 (396) .0442 (396) N/A N/A N/A 378.50 17.50 378.50 17.50
Middle school 368 .9658 (368) .0342 (368) .9558 (368) .0442 (368) 0.871 355.41 12.59 351.73 16.27
High school 123 .9275 (123) .0725 (123) .9658 (123) .0342 (123) 5.455* 114.08 8.92 118.79 4.21
Total 887 847.99 39.01 849.02 37.98
*p < .05.
Bigham and Riney 87
lieu of the statistically significant drop in reading achievement found in the transition from middle school to high school, school leaders should target high school literacy– related curricula for reexamination as part of ongoing school improvement as advo- cated by Fullan (2016).
For instance, school leaders may want to determine whether teachers are taking time to teach students academic vocabulary/word-learning strategies, general read- ing strategies (e.g., prereading strategies), and content-specific reading strategies to increase students’ reading comprehension and conceptual understanding of con- tent-related themes (Graves, 2006; Hapgood & Palincsar, 2006; McKeown et al., 2009; Shanahan & Shanahan, 2008). Equally important, school leaders may decide to study how much and what types of writing are actually taught across school cur- ricula because focused writing instruction, such as teaching students how to sum- marize and to write analytically about key concepts, not only fosters literacy development but also increases students’ conceptual understanding of content area themes (Graves et al., 2013; Unrau, 2008). In addition, school leaders may need to determine if high school teachers require more staff development about efficacious content area–reading and writing- strategies and learning activities. Some high school content area teachers may be reluctant to emphasize reading and writing instruction in lessons if they do not believe they have adequate knowledge and skills to do so.
In brief, longitudinal panel analysis provides school leaders with a valuable and viable method of identifying key trends in student performance on state-mandated standardized exams, and in the case of this longitudinal panel analysis, school leaders may want to use data about the decline in state-mandated standardized test scores in reading comprehension in the transition from middle to high school initially to reex- amine emphases on literacy development at the high school level to determine possi- ble reasons for the decrease of student performance and to improve curricula and instruction to foster students’ language development. Because we live in an era of increased federal and state-mandated accountabilities as initiated by the No Child Left Behind Act and more recently continued by the Every Child Succeeds Act (Groen, 2012), school leaders are under substantial pressure to improve students’ levels of achievement on state-mandated tests, and the employment of longitudinal trend analy- sis is one way school leaders can monitor students’ academic progress to identify areas of strengths and weaknesses in school curricula and instruction for ongoing school renewal.
Declaration of Conflicting Interests
The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.
Funding
The author(s) received no financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.
88 NASSP Bulletin 101(2)
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Author Biographies
Gary D. Bigham is the program chair of educational leadership at West Texas A&M University. During his career in education, he has served in the positions of secondary teacher, principal, and superintendent in Texas public schools and adjunct, assistant, and associate professor in higher education.
Mark R. Riney is the program chair of curriculum and instruction at West Texas A&M University. He is a former English/language arts teacher, who currently teaches courses in cur- riculum theory and analysis, curriculum history, and multicultural education.
Westminster Studies in Education, Vol. 26, No. 2, October 2003
The ‘Right’ Decision? Towards an Understanding of Ethical Dilemmas for School Leaders
NEIL CRANSTON, LISA EHRICH & MEGAN KIMBER, Queensland University of Technology, Australia
ABSTRACT Over the last two decades or so, organisations everywhere have been subjected to considerable restructuring and reform. Schools have been no exception to this trend. Devolution has been prominent amongst the managerial reforms which have affected primarily the work practices of managers (James, 2003). In the context of schooling, devolution or school based management has increased the decision-making powers of schools and their communities. It has also brought with it the requirement that schools meet a wider range of accountability measures (Whitty et al., 1998). In such a climate, school leaders are likely to find themselves juggling a ‘multitude of competing obligations and interests’ (Cooper, 1998, p. 244). This complex operational milieu requires school leaders to confront and resolve conflicting interests as they endeavour to balance a variety of values and expectations in their decision-making. Not surpris- ingly, the result is often ethical dilemmas for leaders.
In this paper we argue that an understanding of ethics and ethical dilemmas is crucial for educational leaders due to the value-laden nature of their work. We put forward a tentative generic model that endeavours to assist our understanding of the forces impacting upon and processes characterising the decision-making dynamics emerging from an ethical dilemma. A scenario is posed and tested against the model.
Introduction
Over the last two decades public sector organisations including State and Common- wealth public service departments in Australia and other countries have undergone considerable restructuring (O’Faircheallaigh et al., 1999). Among these changes has been the predominance of managerialist thinking and practices in public sector organisa- tions which has seen the application of private sector management practices into the public sector (James, 2003). These and other reforms have had a direct impact also upon the management of schools and school systems throughout many western countries including Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the United States of America (Whitty et al., 1998).
Devolution or decentralisation has been prominent among these managerial practices and has impacted significantly on the work of public sector managers and educational leaders. While decentralisation of authority means that organisations have greater control
ISSN 0140-6728 print; 1470-1359 online/03/020135-13 2003 Taylor & Francis Ltd DOI: 10.1080/0140672032000147599
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over resources and budgets and greater autonomy to make operational decisions, it also means adherence to tighter accountability measures in terms of specific outputs and outcomes (Bradley & Parker, 2001). In the context of schooling, devolution or school based management has increased the decision-making powers of schools and their communities (Williams et al., 1997; Leithwood & Menzies, 1998; Cranston, 2002). It has also brought with it the requirement for schools to meet a wider range of accountability measures such as the implementation of mandated curricula, state-wide testing and more systematic forms of teacher appraisal (Whitty et al., 1998). In such a context, there are direct implications for school leaders regarding potentially competing accountabilities between the centre’s (or government’s) demands, the demands from the profession, and the demands from the community (Eraut, 1993). Because school leaders are caught at the interface between the system and the school and are accountable to both bodies (Nadebaum, 1991) they are likely to find themselves juggling a ‘multitude of competing obligations and interests’ (Cooper, 1998, p. 244). This complex and more autonomous operational milieu requires school leaders to confront and resolve conflicting interests as they endeavour to balance a variety of values and expectations in their decision-making. Not surprisingly, the result is often ethical dilemmas for the school leader, arising, for example, where conflict and tension may arise as the leader struggles to decide between alternative decisions, one reflecting the immediate oper- ational context of the school and the other, a more systemically oriented choice reflecting a political imperative.
In this article, we argue that an understanding of ethics and ethical dilemmas is crucial for educators due to the value-laden nature of their work. We begin by discussing the emergence of ethics in education, and then explore the meaning of ethics and ethical dilemmas before identifying four prominent theories of ethics. We put forward a tentative generic model that endeavours to assist our understanding of the forces impacting upon and processes characterising the decision-making dynamics emerging from an ethical dilemma. A scenario is posed and tested against the model. Some consideration is given to the implications and repercussions of ethical dilemmas for leaders and schools.
Ethics In and For Education
In recent literature, the moral and ethical dimensions of leadership have received emphasis and attention (e.g., Campbell, 1997; Cooper, 1998; Starratt, 1996). In part, this attention has been driven by the belief that ‘values, morals and ethics are the very stuff of leadership and administrative life’ (Hodgkinson, 1991, p. 11). Thus, there is an expectation that those who hold leadership positions will act justly, rightly and promote good rather than evil (Evers, 1992). This entails leaders demonstrating both moral and professional accountability to those they serve (Eraut, 1993). Moral accountability is concerned with wanting the best for learners (whether they are students or staff) while professional accountability is concerned with upholding the standards of ethics of one’s profession (Eraut, 1993). Both accountabilities reinforce the notion that education leadership fundamentally has a moral purpose (Fullan & Hargreaves, 1991).
Another reason for heightened interest in ethics within education in recent years is due to the more complex operational milieu (Grace, in Campbell, 1997, p. 223) in which leaders are now working. The advent of school-based management has generated new forms of, and competing, accountabilities (Burke, 1997; Ehrich, 2000). Several writers (Burke, 1997; Dempster, 2000; Dempster et al., 2001) argue that the values underpinning
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managerialism and school-based management are opposed to the traditional understand- ing of education as a public good. These writers maintain that the focus on management arising from economic rationalism is inconsistent with the professional and personal values of school leaders and can contradict important ethics of care and justice. When contractual accountability, that is accountability to the government or system, is a strong and competing force against other accountabilities (such as moral and professional accountabilities), there is much potential for ethical dilemmas. In this situation, a skilful administrator needs to optimise his or her most valued beliefs, responsibilities and obligations in ways that minimise adverse consequences.
It is important to note that for the purpose of clarity in this article, we focus our attention on issues, characteristics and theories of ethics, rather than undertake an extended discussion on the possible similarities and differences between ‘ethics’ and ‘morality’.
Ethics and Ethical Dilemmas
The meaning of ethics is subject to much contestation. In some instances it is defined in terms of what it is not, referring to matters such as misconduct, corruption, fraud and other types of illegal behaviour, while in others, notions of integrity, honesty, personal values and professional codes are raised. There appears to be general agreement that ethics is about relationships—whether relationships with people, relationships with animals and/or relationships with the environment (Freakley & Burgh, 2000). Further, it can encompass what people see as good and bad or right and wrong. Several writers (see for example, Singer, 1994, 1995; Preston & Samford, 2002) argue that ethics can be divorced from religion and to some extent from morality but most refer to its religious and philosophical bases (see for example, Burke, 1997; Preston, 1999a & 1999b; Ehrich, 2000). Freakley and Burgh (2000) put it simply when they say that ethics ‘is about what we ought to do’ (p. 97). Therefore, ethics requires a judgement be made about a given problem or situation.
If ethics is viewed in this light it indicates that people are faced with choices that require them to make decisions that enable them to lead an ethical life within the context of their relationships with others. This suggests that people can be placed in ethical dilemmas. An ethical dilemma, then, arises from a situation that necessitates a choice between competing sets of principles. For example, a principal may be faced with a decision to award an academic prize to a student who has just missed being placed first in her year, but whose parents have made large and regular donations to the school building fund. Does the principal award two prizes, alter the order of merit, or abide by the given situation with the student missing out on a prize? Thus, an ethical dilemma can be described as a circumstance that requires a choice between competing sets of principles in a given, usually undesirable or perplexing, situation. Conflicts of interest as in the above mentioned example are possibly the most obvious situations that could place school leaders in an ethical dilemma.
Theoretical Approaches to Understanding Ethics
Leaders resolve dilemmas everyday in the natural course of their work. In most cases, however, leaders make decisions with little or no knowledge of the theoretical ap- proaches to ethics. As Freakley and Burgh (2000, pp. 95–96) remind us, theoretical approaches cannot be applied entirely to solving problems or dilemmas due to the
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abstract nature of theory and the complexity of practice. Yet, the advantage that knowledge of theory holds is that it helps leaders organise their beliefs and perspectives in a more coherent and systematic way (Freakley & Burgh, 2000, p. 96). Understanding theoretical approaches ‘may assist in accuracy, clarity, and consistency in ethical practice and decision-making’ (Preston & Samford, 2002, p. 22). Thus, theory has the potential to enable leaders to reflect critically on their values and the values guiding theoretical approaches. In this section, we consider briefly four theoretical approaches to ethics that appeal as useful ways of endeavouring to understand the complexities of the ethical issues associated with decision-making in schools. What needs to be emphasised here is that, in practice, they are not independent of each other; rather, they are likely to be interdependent and may be in evidence to varying degrees depending on the circum- stances and nature surrounding the decision to be made. Importantly, given that there is no theorised framework available for describing and “mapping” ethical dilemmas in schools (Campbell, 1997), they provided a useful starting point and ways of conceptual- ising the development of the model discussed later in this article. The four theoretical approaches are consequentialism, non-consequentialism, virtue ethics and institutional ethics.
Consequentialism
Consequentialism can be defined as ‘any position in ethics which claims that the rightness or wrongness of actions depends on their consequences’ (Hinman, http://eth- ics.acusd.edu/Glossary.html, p. 1). Consequentialists adopt the perspective that actions can only be justified with reference to the end or outcomes they achieve (Freakley & Burgh, 2000, p. 120). A person who follows this perspective would make a decision after weighing up the foreseeable consequences and choosing the alternative that produces the better result (p. 121). Utilitarianism is an example of the consequentialist approach (Preston & Samford, 2002; Singer, 1995). Utilitarians are individualists who aim to promote the greatest good for the greatest number (Dinwindy, 1989), i.e., it is the outcomes in terms of benefits for the most people that is of concern.
Non-consequentialism
By contrast, those who adopt a non-consequentialist approach to ethics live ‘by an uncompromising, moral legalism which requires adherence to duty, principle or absolute truth, etc as more important than consequences … in determining what is good, just, right and fair’ (Burke, 1997, p. 15). Thus, non-consequentialists make judgements based on duty, rights, laws, motive, intuition, or reason. The golden rule of doing unto others what we would want them to do to us, illustrates non-consequentialism since it values that all humans are worthwhile and should be treated with equal respect. Other examples include ‘love thy neighbour as thyself’ (from Christianity) and Kant’s natural law based on reason (see Singer, 1993, p. 11)
Critics of consequentialism and non-consequentialism note that an ‘ethic of care’ is missing from both approaches. This ethic ‘emphasises the quality of [interpersonal] relationships and contextual factors in an ethical life’ (Preston & Samford, 2002, p. 24). An ethic of care emerged from the feminist writings of Noddings (1984) and Gilligan (1982). Gilligan, for example ‘emphasises relationships over principles of justice, and focuses on caring as the central ethical concept’ (Freakley & Burgh, 2000, p. 128). Values such as these illustrate the third approach to ethics—virtue ethics.
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Virtue Ethics
Virtue ethics is based on the assumption that morality is best understood in terms of peoples’ inner traits (Freakley & Burgh, 2000, p. 124). Virtue ethicists ‘argue in favour of a connection between character and reasoning for without good character I may reason about what is right but still choose not to do so’ (Freakley & Burgh, 2000, p. 125). The virtue approach is critical to professional ethics as ‘… a just society depends more upon the moral trustworthiness of its citizens and it[s] leaders than upon structures designed to transform ignoble actions in socially useful results’ (Hart, quoted in Preston & Samford, 2002, pp. 25–26). Virtue ethics is important not only to individuals but also to institutions since it is people who create and work within them.
Institutional Ethics
Institutional ethics, then, focuses on individuals within institutions and requires them to justify their institutions to the community (Preston & Samford, 2002). It is concerned with building ethics ‘into the operations and decision making of the institution’ (Preston & Samford, 2002, p. 50) making it part of rather than periphery to, decision making. For this reason, it requires that the values and functions of an institution be determined by ongoing discussion and debate because these values are multiple, complex, competing and changeable. Knowledge of the four theories can assist our understanding of ethical decision-making.
The next part of this article explores a tentative model of ethical dilemmas. While we are aware that no model is able to provide a full explanation of the decision-making process or is applicable to every context (Preston & Samford, 2002, p. 94), theoretical and empirical research suggests that models, like theories, can provide a basis for discussion between ‘engaged academics’ and ‘reflective practitioners’ (Preston & Sam- ford, 2002, pp. 163–164). These theoretical approaches offer a useful framework to better understand ethics and its complexities. However, it must be emphasised that in practice, ethical dilemmas faced by educational leaders, for example, are likely to be highly complex and not simply framed by one particular theoretical approach or the other. Rather, it is more likely that some or all of these approaches may be at play to some degree or other. Importantly, however, the framework they provide is useful in considering the model of ethical dilemmas discussed below. What also needs to be understood is that the model we propose is a dynamic one, and one in which the forces as we identify them are acting at various degrees of intensity (or perhaps not in evidence at all) not only directly on the individual as they make their decision, but potentially also on and with each other.
A Model of Ethical Dilemmas
The model in Figure I represents diagrammatically the context, forces, and decision- making process that individuals facing ethical dilemmas are like to experience. It extends Preston and Samford’s (2002, p. 14) model of ethical decision-making in the public sector by identifying and describing a range of competing forces that are likely to provide a perspective or perspectives on the problem or situation. Furthermore, unlike Preston and Samford’s model, our model acknowledges that decisions can have implica- tions and effects on the individual, the organisation and the community either directly or indirectly. An attempt to understand the relationship among individuals, institutions and
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the community influenced the development of the model. Clearly, this is a highly complex challenge and emphasises the essentially dynamic nature of the model and its components. Thus, while we describe the various components of the model separately, we are acutely aware of the interdependence of the components and often at times non-linear nature of the dilemma we are attempting to capture.
The model consists of five main parts. The first is the critical incident or problem that is the trigger for the ethical dilemma, i.e., what ‘sets off’ the dilemma. The second is a set of forces, each of which has the capacity to illuminate the critical incident from its own particular bias or basis. Clearly, there may be competing tensions across these. Illustrated here are nine competing forces—professional ethics; legal issues, policies; organisational culture; institutional context; public interest; society and community; global context; political framework; economic and financial contexts; and? The untitled force (?) was included to signify that a significant force not identified at this time could emerge in the future.
Each of these forces is now considered briefly. What needs to be again emphasised is the potentially dynamic interdependence of each of these, some surfacing more domi- nantly than others depending on the context and nature of the decision to be made. More practice-orientated illustrations of these are provided in the scenario commentary discussion later.
• The public interest is a key factor in ethical decision-making and refers to the ‘expectations’, needs and wants, and ultimately the well being of the community as a whole (Edwards, 2001, pp. 11–13). The public interest can be expressed through the ballot box, interest groups and on-going debate and discussion.
• Professional ethics refers to the standards, or norms, values and principles members of a person’s trade or profession hold. These standards may be formal or informal, written or unwritten. Highlighted here are the ethical obligations generated by being accepted into a profession or trade (Edwards, 2001, p. 15; Campbell, 1997, p. 221).
• Society and community refers to the influence that community members or stakehold- ers can exert on institutional decision-making. School leaders are often required to reconcile these competing interests as best they can in making decisions that further the community well being (Campbell, 1997).
• The political framework is detailed in the political science and public administration literature (see, for example, Singleton et al., 1996) and here refers to potential implications of a particular ideological view of the government of the day that may translate into a significant force at the institutional level.
• By legal issues, policies we mean legislation impacting on public institutions such as anti-discrimination legislation requirements (Ehrich, 2000) as well as rulings made by courts, especially when they set a precedent.
• The economic and financial contexts might emerge from say economic rationalist thrusts applied to the public sector whereby private sector practices are introduced into the public sector (James, 2003) such that concepts of the free market, for example, are brought to bear on schools.
• The global context relate to the wider global, social, political and economic context impacting on institutions.
• The institutional context may, for the principal, manifest as the need to seek to reconcile multiple and competing accountabilities to students, teachers and the wider school community (Campbell, 1997, p. 225).
• Finally, the customs or ‘ethos’ of an institution inform its organisational culture
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(Edwards, 2001). Organisational culture centres on relationships amongst people, and on building and maintaining trust in those relationships. An organisational culture can be strong or weak. ‘A strong culture … is characterised by the organisation’s core values being intensely held, clearly ordered and widely shared’ (Robbins & Barnwell, quoted in Preston & Samford, 2002, p. 57).
The third component of the model is at the core of the ethical dilemma. This is the individual who is faced with the challenge of resolving the ethical issue at hand. The individual is in no way neutral but brings to the dilemma his/her own values, beliefs, ethical orientations and personal attributes that have been shaped over time by a variety of sources such as religion, socialisation and conscience (Edwards, 2001; Singer, 1993).
The fourth component of the model is the choice which is made among the competing alternatives. It is in the consideration of the alternatives that the ethical dilemma emerges. The decision might lead to either ignoring the dilemma or acting in one or more ways in order to resolve it. Those actions can be formal or informal or external or internal. Finally, the action (or non-action) is most likely to create particular types of implications for the individual concerned, for the employing organisation and for the community as a whole. Also illustrated in the diagram is that the implications of the decision could continue beyond the individual, organisation and community and could generate new critical incidents, dilemmas and/or contribute to new ways of thinking about the forces involved. Each of the five components will be explained more fully in the next section that presents a scenario of an ethical dilemma and provides a commentary regarding each part of the model.
Scenario
Hilltop Senior School has a strict policy on drugs for students—immediate exclusion for any such offence. The teachers and parents are very supportive of the policy and two students have been excluded this year. Daniel, a seventeen year-old Y12 student, is caught at the school dance two weeks before his final examinations with a small amount of marijuana. Daniel has not always been an easy student for the school although in the past year he has worked hard, not been in trouble with teachers and seems likely to achieve his ambition of achieving well enough to attend a Polytechnic and become an electrician. Harriet, the School Head, knows that he works 15 hours part-time to support his ill mother and younger brother, who also attends the school. Exclusion means he might miss his final exams and his place at a Polytechnic and potentially lose his part-time job if his employer finds out.
Commentary
The following commentary makes three important assumptions. These are that:
• The School Head is ultimately the final decision-maker in such cases in this school—this is likely to be consistent with current practice in most schools where the Head is the accountable officer for decisions taken in the school. Of course, in practice, it may be that other members of the school administration team and potentially the school council or governing board might be involved to some degree through consultation, sharing of information, and so on; and
• The School Head, in this position of decision-maker, actually finds this particular situation problematic; that is, that there is the potential for an ethical dilemma to arise
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in such circumstances. The following commentary assumes that there will be an ethical dilemma of some order for the Head.
• There is a range of options in terms of the decisions that the Head might take.
The critical incident in this scenario centres around the student, Daniel, being caught with a small amount of marijuana at the Hilltop Senior School dance. Subsequent events are triggered when this is reported to the Head, Harriet.
The milieu of forces at play for the Head with respect to this critical incident is discussed below. It is important to note that the forces may be evident to varying degrees and intensity at different times. There are also obviously overlaps across the various forces. As such, the following comments are indicative only of the various impacts on the individual, Harriet, the Head, as she responds to the reporting of the drug incident with Daniel.
• Professional ethics: Educators (Heads, teachers) are expected to operate according to certain established codes of behaviour and/or within particular ethical frameworks (these are often formally documented); other, less formal, aspects here might include the desire to do the best for all students (i.e., moral accountability) and general expectations placed on teachers by the community to act in certain ways.
• Legal issues, policies: Given the particular misdemeanour of interest here, viz. possession of a prohibited substance, there may be certain legal obligations that the Head must respond to, eg., reporting such incidents to the police; duty of care, from a legal perspective, is also likely to impact here as the safety and welfare of students (both Daniel as an individual and the school student population more generally) now feature as key responsibilities of educators with failure to do so adequately likely to lead to potentially litigious situations.
• Organisational culture: The school culture (eg., is it supportive, inclusive or other- wise?) will play an important role in the Head’s and the school’s response; the actions by the school in similar incidents previously will also contribute to overall impact of the culture on the decision response.
• Public interest: There may be a broad public interest in this incident involving ‘tough on drugs’ community expectations related to a desire to reduce drug-taking among young people; alternatively, or possibly concurrently, there may be strong community support for the socio-economically disadvantaged; the notion of education as a public good and, hence, the implication that drugs should be strongly discouraged by punitive action may also be evident here.
• Society and community contexts: The school community, for example through the school council or parent and friends’ association, may play a key role in this incident (eg., parents may have collaboratively developed, with school staff, a school drug policy requiring a particular response in this case).
• Institutional context: Most schools will have established behaviour management policies and practices which, one might expect, would address issues of drugs in school, expectations on students regarding these and penalties for failing to conform to these expectations.
• Global context: Wider societal developments and influences (eg., postmodern changes that have seen a collapse in some measure of the influence of church and the state) may present challenges to schools’ expectations in such incidents (eg., as drug taking among some young people persists as a challenge for schools as well as the broader society, resulting in a clash of social norms and behaviours across the various individuals and groups involved, such as students, parents, teachers).
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• Political framework: The capacity for schools to exercise any discretion in such incidents may be seriously limited by external systemic constraints, such as binding responses imposed by education departments or systems in such incidents—these constraints may well reflect a particular (and potentially powerful) ideological stance of the government of the day.
• Economic and financial contexts: The financial situation of the student may have a key influence here, as might less tangible influences such as a negative impact on the school reputation as a result of a particular decision resulting in parental decisions about enrolments in the future; at a broader level, it might be argued that broader economic policies, such as economic rationalist trends, may have led to the situation whereby Daniel and his family are financially challenged, particularly in terms of Daniel’s longer term educational goals.
• The question mark (?) acknowledges the point that a critical force not identified at this time could be evident in a different dilemma.
All of these forces will interact to varying degrees on the individual as she responds to the incident. It is more than likely that Harriet’s personal attributes and her values and beliefs will play a major role in determining the type of decision she will make. As a result, a number of choices emerge. The decision taken creates, and is part of, the ethical dilemma for the Head as she struggles to rationalise a clear ‘acceptable’ response, to the student, school (staff), school community and parents, wider community and to herself.
The actions taken subsequently or as part of the decision itself by the Head may be either formal or informal, external or internal. Ignoring the situation, an action in itself, is most likely not an option in this case as there will be expectations of some response by the Head, for example, from those catching the student with the drugs. Hence, actions might include some or all of the following (note these are examples only and the possibilities are many, complex and interrelated).
Formal action might mean following the processes and procedures (i.e., school policy; legislative requirements) developed in the school, but possibly also required by the law, regarding the handling of students who are caught with drugs leading to suspension or exclusion from school. An informal action, which is probably unlikely in this case, may be to warn the student verbally with no formal recording of the incident in any way.
External action might incorporate actions taken outside the school such as if the Head contacts the police and the police then take action. An internal action might include some ‘internal school’ penalty of a lesser degree than say a suspension, such as a detention. There are many possibilities here.
As a result of the decision, there are certain implications for the:
• individual: the reputation of the school, both within and external to the school, may be affected impacting on perceptions on the Head’s reputation as leader of the school; the future career prospects of the Head may also be affected, as might the general health and well being of the Head if stressful consequences result; of course, there are also the effects on Daniel, the student—these could well be major as his future study prospects and financial position may well be altered as a result of particular decisions taken;
• organization: as above, the reputation of the school may be affected in the wider community; in addition, there may be considerable repercussions internally for the school among the teaching staff and parent body; finally, as a result of this ‘case’, there may be a review of the school’s current drug policy;
• community: as above; in addition, the broader community perception of school staff
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generally and their roles and responsibilities in the social development and care of young people may be affected.
Clearly the implications across the individual, the organisation and the community are not independent with considerable overlap and consequential effects occurring. The cyclical nature of the model re-enforces that this ethical dilemma, like others, does not take place in isolation and that the particular decision taken in this case will most likely have an impact on similar subsequent incidents.
Discussion
Using the knowledge gained from our excursion into ethical theory and from the exercise of testing the model against a scenario from practice, we would argue that the situation Harriet finds herself in could be viewed as one of conflicting values or accountabilities— between school policies and personal values, between the best interests of the student and school policies, between the values and beliefs of different sections of the school community and the law. In other words, she is caught in a highly complex dynamic milieu of forces. If the Head were a consequentialist then she would weigh up all the known factors and implications of the alternatives open to her. These would depend not only on the school policy (institutional context) but also on her personal and professional values, the legal ramifications (including past decisions) of adopting a particular decision, the needs of the student and those of the community. A non-consequentialist is likely to be guided by one or more strongly held principles or values. A conflict between these principles such as a religious belief and strict adherence to policy could exacerbate this dilemma as it would challenge her fundamental beliefs. Virtue ethicists may privilege values such as care and integrity in their decision-making. An institutional ethicist might look to the values of the community and the function(s) that it has ascribed to the institution in guiding their thinking. In this case, the Head could also draw on one or more of the other approaches to ethics in deciding how to handle the situation. As we noted earlier, characteristics of some or all of these theoretical approaches are likely to be evident in this scenario, whatever the decision Harriet takes. Moreover, it is likely that there will be compromises as some values will be embraced, while others will be silenced in pursuit of a resolution.
What is also clearly illustrated here is the important point made earlier about the dynamic interdependence of each of the forces, some surfacing more dominantly than others depending on the context and nature of the particular decision to be made. Also worth highlighting is the importance of Harriet’s values, beliefs and ethical orientation, and the potential tension developed when that orientation may well differ from that held by others in the Hilltop Senior School Community.
Conclusion
The essence of what we have explored in this paper was not only ambitious but highly challenging. However, we believe that we have made some contribution via the introduction of the ethical dilemma model to better understand the nature of ethical dilemmas particularly as they might be evidenced in practice. Our model conceptualises the particular forces impacting upon and the processes characterising the decision-mak- ing dynamics facing an individual with an ethical dilemma. By use of the scenario, it was shown that the model not only has practical application but also it has the potential to
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assist researchers (in education and other discipline fields) to analyse, better understand and categorise particular types of ethical dilemmas.
The exercise of developing a model has reinforced to us the complexity of the field of ethics and underscored the acute challenges of resolving ethical problems. From our review of the literature, however, it seems that arguments by proponents of institutional ethics (see Preston, 1999a, 1999b; Preston & Samford, 2002) are worthy of closer inspection since they maintain that ethics needs to be built ‘into the ethos, policies, and practices of an institution’ (Preston & Samford, 2002, p. 50). Some strategies that work towards ethics building include conducting an ethics audit; subjecting the values and functions of the institution to ongoing debate and discussion within the institution itself and within the community generally; developing and implementing a code of ethics; and ensuring that all members of the institution receive training and education (Preston & Samford, 2002). There is no doubt that if institutions are going to move in the direction of embedding ethical practices into their culture, processes and structure, there is a strong role for leadership in facilitating this process. Better understanding of the dynamic complexities of ethical dilemmas, as we have attempted to do in the model presented here, should contribute in some way to unravelling how leaders might respond.
Acknowledgements
This paper was funded in part by the Centre for Innovation in Education, QUT, and through the Institute of Public Administration Australia/University of Canberra Public Administration Research Trust Fund.
Correspondence: Dr. Neil Cranston, School of Learning and Professional Studies, Faculty of Education, Victoria Park Road, Kelvin Grove, QLD 4059, Australia; email: [email protected]
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York, McGraw Hill). WHITTY, G., POWER, S. & HALPIN, D. (1998) Devolution and Choice in Education: the school, the state and
the market (Camberwell, Vic, ACER). WILLIAMS, R., HAROLD, B., ROBERSTON, J. & SOUTHWORTH, G. (1997) Sweeping decentralisation of educational
decision-making authority, Phi Delta Kappan, 78, pp. 626–631.
EDUCATIONAL STUDIES, 48: 76–102, 2012 Copyright C© American Educational Studies Association ISSN: 0013-1946 print / 1532-6993 online DOI: 10.1080/00131946.2011.637257
Anarchist, Neoliberal, & Democratic Decision-Making: Deepening the Joy
in Learning and Teaching
Felecia M. Briscoe
UTSA
Using a critical postmodern framework, this article analyzes the relationship of the decision-making processes of anarchism and neoliberalism to that of deep democ- racy. Anarchist processes are found to share common core principals with deep democracy; but neoliberal processes are found to be antithetical to deep democracy. To increase the joy in learning and teaching, based upon this analysis, practical anarchist guidelines for school decision-making are suggested.
You ever been in a place, where everybody is real depressed, but they don’t really know it. It is where the tedious and mundane are worshipped. . . . The least bit of creativity and inspiration has been excised. People rule through fear and intimidation. The staff is treated like children. People wonder what is wrong with our kids. We aren’t doing them any favors, except making them sick of school. We have tested them to death. When we aren’t testing them, we are pre-testing them or teaching them test strategies. Richmond worships at the altar of standardized testing. There is no room for heretics or non-believers.1
In the opening quote, Arter Jackson (personal communication 2008) describes his experience teaching third grade in an urban school. Excited and passionate as a beginning teacher, with each passing year, he became increasingly discouraged. His experience is not an anomaly (Pesavento-Conway 2008). How has the joy that learning and teaching could offer students and teachers turned into intolerable tedium? Writers from a variety of eras and fields (e.g. Steven Shukaitis 2009 or Emma Goldman 1907 in anarchism; John Dewey 1916 or Walt Whitman 1959 in
Correspondence should be addressed to Felecia M. Briscoe, UTSA, ELPS, One UTSA Circle, San Antonio, TX 78249. E-mail: [email protected]
EDUCATIONAL STUDIES 77
democracy; and Paulo Freire 1970 or Alistair Pennycook 2001 in critical theory) all claim that such feelings emerge when people are denied the opportunity of acting in accordance with their own judgment, will, and interests—in other words, when people are denied autonomy and do not directly participate in the decisions that shape their lives. The power relations of a society affect its decision-making processes, the degree to which a person participates in that process, and thus the type of decisions made.
The power relations of a democracy are affected by its political and economic systems as well as its dominant ideology. To be a democracy, a political system must include all citizens by some means in the social decision-making, but the manner in which a particular individual participates depends upon the type of democracy. For example, the decision-making processes in direct democracy are different than those of a democratic republic. Likewise, the economic system of a democracy also affects the degree of participation that different individuals have in social decision-making. In a capitalist economy, like the United States, the degree to which someone participates in social decision-making is largely dependent upon one’s economic status. For example, running for state or national office generally requires an expensive advertising campaign to be successful; thus, only those with access to substantial money are likely to run for these offices. Finally, the dominant ideologies of a democracy also affect the processes and types of decisions made. Ideologies both make sense of the world and point to the type of actions needed. Thus, ideologies act positively and negatively, inducing some actions and subjectivities, but inhibiting others (Foucault 1980a, 1980b). In this article, I examine neoliberal and anarchist ideologies and their relationships to educational decision-making in a democracy. This examination indicates that the power relationships fostered by a neoliberal ideology fit with those of superficial, formal democracy, yet the power relationships fostered by an anarchist ideology fit with those of deep democracy. I then propose guidelines for educational decision- making based upon this examination.
A critical postmodernism frames the analysis. For the analysis of the power relations and their effects, I use Michel Foucault’s (1980a, 1980b) ideas on how power relations act to induce certain types of subjectivities, decisions, and thus ac- tions, while proscribing others. Alistair Pennycook’s (2001) description of critical postmodernism is problematizing: “insist[ing] on the notion of critical as engag- ing with the questions of power and inequality, but . . . [rejects] any possibility of critical distance or objectivity” (4). A postmodern critical perspective
raise[s] questions about the limits of its own knowing [but also operates] with some sort of vision of what is preferable. Perhaps the notion of preferred futures offers us a slightly more restrained and plural view of where we might want to head. Such preferred futures, however, need to be grounded in ethical arguments for why alternative possibilities may be better. (8)2
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In this article, the preferred future is one that fosters the development of deep democracy and is grounded in an ethical argument for ameliorating the current oppressive tedium experienced by students and teachers, allowing the inherent joy of learning and teaching to emerge. By inherent joy, I mean the inner deep satisfaction a person feels when they have learned something that they wished to learn and the similar satisfaction teachers feel when they have successfully taught something of worth to their students. However, my claim is offered with radical uncertainty. By radical uncertainty I mean that the preferred future described is not definitive, but rather a starting point, open to challenge, change, and refinement. Furthermore, Pennycook (2001) argues that postmodern critical theory should be, “an ethics of compassion and a model of hope and possibility” (9). Thus, although anarchist theory occupies a space between nihilism (e.g., Kahn 2009) and hope (e.g., Shukaitis 2009), I anchor my analysis in hope and possibility.
In this analysis, I first briefly describe neoliberalism and its growing influence. Second, I distinguish the differences between superficial and deep democracy, ending with a summary of the essential characteristics of deep democracy. Third, I outline important differences between anarchism and neoliberalism. Fourth, I delineate core principals shared by anarchism and deep democracy, linking the productive and proscriptive aspects of these core principles to human wellbeing. Fifth, I delineate neoliberalism’s antithetical relationship to deep democracy, as exemplified by “No Child Left Behind” (NCLB). Finally, based upon this exami- nation, I suggest guidelines for educational decision-making to deepen democracy and allow for greater joy in learning and teaching.
NEOLIBERALISM
Rife with phrases such as free choice, individualism, competition, and freedom, neoliberalism deemphasizes or rejects positive government intervention, focusing instead on achieving progress and even social justice by encouraging free-market methods. In other words, neoliberalism asserts that the divine hand of the mar- ket is best able to determine optimal economic and social policies on a national and global scale. Created as a framework for economic policy, neoliberalism has grown to influence most social decision-making, the types of choices and therefore actions taken; thus acting to create the reality it purports to describe (Clarke 2004). Neoliberalism describes and structures society as a web of social relations medi- ated by market exchange.3 Since the 1970s, according to Michael Apple (1999), neoliberalism has gained ascendancy and become hegemonic increasingly able to “win the battle over common sense” (5). The hegemonic sway of neoliberalism is felt deeply in schools. Hill and Boxley (2009) describe neoliberalism’s effects upon the US schooling system:
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The neoliberal project for education is part of the bigger picture of the neoliberal project of global capitalism. Markets in education worldwide, combined with so- called “parental choice” of a diverse range of schools, are only one small part of the education strategy of the capitalist class, with its Business Agenda for Education [what it requires education to do] and its Business Agenda in Education [how it plans to make money out of education]. (28–29; italics in original)
The privatization of schools (Hill and Boxley 2009) and the development of schools as a market for testing products4 are examples of markets in education. Although neoliberal ideology in theory eschews government intervention, it nevertheless coerces decision-making through surveillance techniques (e.g. the mandated test- ing in NCLB).5 Along with the growth of neoliberalism has been a corresponding global expansion of inequality. Since the 1970s, the inequality of wealth has in- tensified, both within and between nation states.6 During this same time-period, democracy became the dominant form of government throughout the world.
DEMOCRACY AND INEQUALITY?
Presumed by many to be the most egalitarian form of government, how is it possible that inequalities are increasing along with democracy? Some analysts (e.g., Giroux 2002) claim that the corresponding increases in democracy and inequality are unrelated. Rather, they claim it is the increasing global dominance of transnational capitalism producing the growing inequalities, not the increase in democracies. This argument is tenable because transnational capitalism has also intensified during this same period. Likewise, Hill and Boxley’s (2009) description of neoliberal influences over schooling suggests that neoliberalism is the offspring of global capitalism. However, de Oliver (2008) reveals that vanguard democracies, throughout history and by way of a variety of imperialist projects, have all created greater internal and external inequalities in the distribution of wealth; thus, he claims that democracy itself leads to greater inequalities. For example, in Ancient Greece and the United Kingdom during the 1800s, the advent of democracy signaled a decrease in the equal distribution of wealth within the nation states, but even more so between nation states, primarily due to the colonial relationships they established with the countries they annexed to their democratic empires. If de Oliver (2008) is correct, then democracy can no longer be regarded as a means to equitable power relations.
Judith Green’s (1999) trenchant analysis of the different types of democracy provides an alternative explanation. She describes an array of possible and exist- ing democracies, each providing different participatory opportunities and effects. Pertinent to the present topic are her descriptions of deep democracy and super- ficial democracy, which she calls formal democracy.7 Formal democracies limit
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most citizens’ participation to voting from a given list of options developed by an elite subset of the electorate. Green (1999) notes that, “the United States of America, a nation widely regarded as democracy’s world historic model, suggests that a purely formal democracy is ideologically hollow and operationally sub- vertible” (iv) and thus, is conducive to a number of social pathologies including poverty and a market motivated hyper consumerism fostered by a mass media. But, democracies need not remain purely formal.
Societies, including democracies, are dynamic and changing. There are points in time when change is dramatic. In the United States, roughly between 1880 and 1920, with the closing of the frontier, the United States and other countries underwent rapid processes of demographic transformation. During this period, many different futures became possible. As people struggled to develop relations and process appropriate to the new context, open conflict over emergent possibil- ities occurred. Conflict occurred around ideas such as: hierarchical versus direct participation as a way of organizing societal processes; the degree of inclusiveness in decision-making; and the distribution of wealth produced by industries. Anar- chism8 and deep democracy9 were two of the many viable ideological alternatives for guiding social decision-making. Both ideologies advocated full, direct, and more inclusive participation, as well as a more equitable distribution of wealth. However, hierarchies, smaller groups of expert decision-makers for the masses, and an unequal distribution of wealth continued and even intensified—all of which are symptomatic of a superficial democracy. The struggle has not ended10 but, al- though some aspects of anarchism and deep democracy have periodically emerged, democratic relations within the United States largely have remained formal and therefore superficial. Green’s (1999) analysis indicates that a formal democracy is subvertible and conducive to neoliberal market ideologies. Deep democracy, however, is less open to subversion due to its essential characteristics (as detailed later).
Garrison and Schneider (2008), drawing from Walt Whitman’s conception of a spiritual democracy, summarize the essential characteristics of deep democracy:
Everyone is equally moral and has the right to actualize whatever powers he or she has to make a contribution. Secondly . . . each individual is unique and should have the right to exercise his or her creative individuality. Finally, there is adhesion, by which he meant love, [care, and respect of others].” (11–12)
For Dewey (1916), these essential characteristics are fundamentally dependent upon a fairly equal spread of wealth and authentic communication11 (described later), based on an understanding that the individual and society are not bina- ries, but rather intimately related to one another. If deep democracy represents a preferred future, how do we progress in that direction? From Foucault’s (1980a, 1980b) perspective, the various aspects of deep democracy are mutually dependent
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upon each other and it is difficult for one aspect to emerge all by itself; however, at the same time, changing one aspect of current power relations will affect other aspects due to their connectedness.12 I argue that schools are a promising begin- ning point. Schools are charged with inculcating appropriate knowledge and social behavior in children (Dewey 1916). Thus, schools are key to the development of deep democracy.
DIFFERENCES IN ANARCHIST AND NEOLIBERAL IDEOLOGICAL FRAMEWORKS
Both neoliberalism and anarchism claim to be based upon concepts of freedom, free choice, and individualism. Thus, it may be difficult to imagine how anarchism could be conducive to deep democracy but neoliberalism opposes it. However, anarchism and neoliberalism interpret free choice, freedom, and individualism differently, due to their different ideological frameworks and the relative emphasis that neoliberalism and anarchism place on cooperation versus competition.13
There are four aspects of the ideological framework of anarchism that set the parameters for its interpretation of individualism, freedom, and free-choice. These four aspects are: the importance of joy and creativity, the relationship of the individual to society, the uniqueness of each individual, and the need for equal power relations. Anarchism seeks to create a greater possibility for joy in the world for each and every individual, and thus for society. Anarchism’s premise that the individual and society are inextricably linked promotes a pro-social perspective of individualism, in which individual and societal well-being cannot be separated. Therefore, anarchism opposes advancing one individual’s interest at the expense of another’s. Thus, anarchism fosters a cooperative approach to social decision- making. Furthermore, anarchists believe that people should creatively develop their unique individualism, rather than selecting from the set of mass-produced individualism produced by the market. This individualism is much like what Dewey (1916) advocates in the freedom to fully develop one’s unique potential. For anarchism, freedom and free choice are based on the premise of approximately equal power (e.g., resources, wealth, and status) for everyone. From this equal positioning of power, no one person or group is positioned to set out the options from which others must choose, and each person in the society has full opportunity to participate in decision-making that affects them.
On the other hand, a neoliberal framework bases the concepts of individualism, freedom, and free choice upon market mechanisms, which means that the degree of freedom and free choice are based upon what the market offers (e.g., who is running for office or which textbooks are selected by the state) and what one can afford (how much money or power one has). This conjunction, in effect, makes every individual responsible for the choices they make, despite the fact that many do not have the
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means to take advantage of their free choices. Thus, from a neoliberal perspective, those who find themselves in undesirable circumstances in our market-based world have only themselves to blame.14 The neoliberal version of individualism, thus, is antisocial. It is antisocial because there is an indifference to how the rest of society is affected by one’s efforts to compete successfully. At best, people feel free to pursue their own interest without care for others, based on the belief that somehow the individual’s selfish pursuit of one’s own interests will ultimately benefit society and that everything can be reduced to a price. Likewise, neoliberalism rarely takes into account long-term damages.15 This type of antisocial individualism perpetuates the idea that being purely self-interested and competing for individual success will magically take care of all social problems, in spite of considerable evidence to the contrary. Because of the aforementioned ideological differences (among others), the essential characteristics of deep democracy are shared with anarchism, but neoliberalism is antithetical to deep democracy.
ANARCHISM AND DEEP DEMOCRACY
Deep democracy emphasizes autonomy by recognizing the equal moral right of all to actualize their potentials and by recognizing that each individual is unique, having the right to exercise his or her creative individuality. Other core characteristics of deep democracy include love, care, and respect of others; a fairly equal spread of wealth; and authentic communication between people based on the understanding that what harms or benefits one person likewise harms or benefits the rest of society16 and, therefore, takes into consideration others’ interests, desires, and goals.17 Furthermore, these core characteristics are interdependent. I draw upon diverse social, political, and psychological research and theory to argue that these common core characteristics, shared in both anarchism and democracy, are beneficial to both the individual and society.18 Like deep democracy, anarchism advocates:
• a more equal distribution of resources; • each person directly participates in decisions affecting her or his life (auton-
omy); • authentic communication; • celebrating the joyful exercise of each person’s unique creative individuality;
and • love, respect, and caring of others.
Paralleling this order, each of these points is discussed in the following sections.
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A More Equal Distribution of Resources
Emma Goldman describes anarchism as “an order that will guarantee to every human being free access to the earth and full enjoyment of the necessities of life” (1907, 68). Rocker (1938) describes the effects of acute inequality in the distribution of resources:
Our present economic system, leading to a mighty accumulation of social wealth in the hands of a privileged minority and to a continuous impoverishment of the great masses of the people . . . sacrificed the general interests of human society to the private interests of individuals and thus systematically undermined the relationship between man and man [sic]. People forgot that industry is not an end in itself, but should be only a means to insure to man his material subsistence and to make accessible to him the blessings of a higher intellectual culture. Where industry is everything and man is nothing begins the realm of ruthless economic despotism whose workings are no less disastrous than political despotism. (2)19
Although Rocker wrote in 1938, the polarization of wealth20 and the elevation of industry (or business/corporate interests) over human interests remain true.21 An equal distribution of economic power or resources is fundamental to equalizing power relationships. One anarchist, Fotopoulos (2008), describes this necessary “economic democracy . . . as the authority of the people demos in the economic sphere, implying the existence of economic equality in the sense of an equal distribution of economic power” (442). Without equal power relations brought about by a fairly equal distribution of wealth, the individual autonomy advocated by deep democracy and anarchism cannot be operationalized.
Each Person Directly Participates in Decisions Affecting Her or His Life (Autonomy)
Anarchism’s and deep democracy’s call for a more equal distribution of resources helps to create the conditions necessary for autonomy. Perhaps the single most important foundation of anarchist thought is autonomy, as described by Anna Goldman (2010):
[Anarchism is] based in the understanding that we are best qualified to make decisions about our own lives. Anarchists believe that we must all control our own lives, making decisions collectively about matters, which affect us. Anarchists believe and engage in direct action. (para 7)
Several scholars have analyzed the importance of autonomy to human experience. Although Paulo Freire (1970) does not describe himself as an anarchist, his analysis of autonomy in regards to determining one’s own thoughts and actions is often
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quoted by anarchists such as Spring (2008). Freire (1970) discusses the death that occurs without autonomy:
Overwhelming control—is necrophilic; it is nourished by love of death, not life. Based on a mechanistic, static, naturalistic, spatialized view of consciousness; it transforms students into receiving objects. It attempts to control thinking and action, leads men to adjust to the world, and inhibits their creative power. (64)
Freire’s description of overwhelming control resonates with Mr. Jackson’s descrip- tion of his experience in an urban school, with students being “tested to death” under the current policies. A number of scholars22 note that without equal power relationships, there is little autonomy; without autonomy, authentic communica- tion becomes impossible.
Authentic Communication
Emma Goldman and Max Baginsky (1907) describe the importance of mutual understanding:
The problem that confronts us today, and which the nearest future is to solve, is how to be one’s self and yet in oneness with others, to feel deeply with all human beings and still retain one’s own characteristic qualities. This seems to me to be the basis upon which the mass and the individual, the true democrat and the true individuality, man and woman, can meet without antagonism and opposition. The motto should not be: Forgive one another; rather, Understand one another. (77)
Understanding one another requires authentic communication—taking into ac- count others’ well-being, desired ends, and eschewing purposeful deceit. It also means recognizing the relationship between the quality of one individual’s life and that of other individuals, as well as that what damages one individual or one group damages everyone in society. This anarchist principle is integrated into several social theories. For example, Kant ([1785]1879) incorporates this prin- cipal into his categorical imperative. Likewise, Dewey (1916) notes the intrinsic relationship of the individual and society and the falsity of privileging one over the other. Understanding that relationship reveals the importance of considering each individual’s desires, wants, and aims in decision-making that affects them. This understanding goes beyond the toleration or mere acceptance of another’s individuality into celebrating the joyful exercise of that unique individuality.
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Celebrating the Joyful Exercise of Each Person’s Creative Individuality
Shukaitis (2009), an anarchist, describes people whose autonomy has been excised as zombies and extols the importance of imagination and joyful exploration:
“The task is to explore the construction of imaginal machines, comprising the socially and historically embedded manifestations of the radical imagination. Imagination as a composite of our capacities to affect and be affected by the world” (15); and “One would not want to abandon the inquisitiveness and joy of ‘uncovering’ something precious” (10).
The dearth of joy and creativity that Mr. Jackson laments is at least in part due to the lack of control over their lives experienced by students and teachers in schools. For Emma Goldman (1907) shucking off this zombihood dramatically changes the nature of all aspects of life, including work: “Anarchism aims to strip labor of its deadening, dulling aspect, of its gloom and compulsion. It aims to make work an instrument of joy, of strength, of color, of real harmony, so that the poorest sort of a man should find in work both recreation and hope” (68). Anarchists, like Goldman, claim that autonomous people are creative and find joy in their work, including learning and teaching. Ignoring students’ and teachers’ unique abilities, interests, and will denies the creative expression of their unique individualism, which damages the individual and, therefore, the social. Coercing people to conform to anothers’ will kills their creativity. In squelching the creative individuality society loses the diversity that such unique contributions would bring to it. With a loss of diversity, society loses its ability to solve problems or adapt to new conditions. Likewise, Dewey (1916) noted that schools fail in their aim to educate for a democracy when “what is distinctively individual in a young person is brushed aside” (10). Instead, claimed Dewey (1916), students learn to ignore their own judgment and conform mindlessly to authority; under such conditions, the knowledge students learn is dead and inert, useless in making life decisions. Allowing students to learn, based upon their unique interests and abilities, permits the exercise of individual creativity, while demonstrating and modeling love, care, and respect for students.
Promoting Love, Care, and Respect of Others
The pro-social individualism of anarchism is concerned with the well-being of others. Both anarchism and deep democracy promote love, care, and respect of others or pro-social individualism in two ways. First both advocate that social processes and interactions take into account the goals, desires, and wants of all of those affected. Martin Buber (1937) referred to such social relationships as Ich–du (I–thou) relationships. Intrinsic to an I-thou relationship is respect and
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care. Buber (1937), Dewey (1916), and Freire (1970) all distinguish between the orientation appropriate to person–person (I–thou) relationships and that appropri- ate to human–object (I–it) relationships. When interacting in an I–it relationship, one merely uses or manipulates the object for one’s own purposes and has no concern for the interests, desires, or goals of the object. To treat someone as an object is dehumanizing and oppressive—the opposite of loving. When interacting in an I–thou relationship, one always takes into consideration the desires, interests, and goals of the other person. Buber (1937) points out that maintaining the I–thou relationship is especially important in the teacher-student relationship.
Second, treating others with love, respect, and care becomes both logical and common-sensical to anarchists, who clearly articulate the interdependent nature of the individual and society. Both Dewey (1916) and Goldman (1907) maintain that the individual and the society are not separate phenomenon (also in keeping with postmodern thought23), but rather aspects of the same phenomenon. According to Emma Goldman (1907), the individual and the social should be understood,
as closely related and truly harmonious, if only placed in proper environment: . . .
because each was blind to the value and importance of the other. The individual and social instincts, —the one a most potent factor for individual endeavor, for growth, aspiration, self-realization; the other an equally potent factor for mutual helpfulness and social wellbeing. . . . There is no conflict between the individual and the social instincts, any more than there is between the heart and the lungs: . . . The individual is the heart of society, conserving the essence of social life; society is the lungs, which are distributing the element to keep the life essence—that is, the individual—pure and strong. (4–5)
From an anarchist viewpoint then, society ought to be promoting the love, care, and respect of all; processes and relations ought to be largely cooperative rather than competitive.
In sum, both anarchism and deep democracy emphasize autonomy by recog- nizing the equal right of all to actualize their potential and abilities, celebrating the right of each individual to exercise his or her creative individuality. Furthermore, both anarchism and deep democracy espouse love, care, and respect of others; a more equal spread of wealth; and authentic communication. Very few of these ideological principles currently guide educational decision-making today. Instead, neoliberalism dominates as a global ideology.
NEOLIBERALISM IS ANTITHETICAL TO THE ESSENTIAL CHARACTERISTICS OF DEEP DEMOCRACY
An especially powerful example in the United States of neoliberal policy affecting educational decision-making is the recent NCLB legislation; therefore, I focus
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on NCLB as an exemplar of neoliberal educational policy. In theory, NCLB provides a process whereby good schools (like good businesses) gain more students (customers) and more money, and poor schools lose students and money. Parents, no longer fettered to a particular school by governmental regulations, ostensibly are free to move their child out of their failing old school and choose a more successful school for their child to attend.24 Over time, the loss of students and funds, and eventually state decrees, force bad schools to go out of business. Under such circumstances, the school’s management and personnel are replaced by more competitive people, or the whole school can be replaced by a private for-profit educational business. Of note, although NCLB mandates a marketplace type of decision-making within education, it does so only by inducing states to further reduce the autonomy of schools, teachers, and students. As explained in the following, NCLB opposes the development of deep democracy because it:
1. perpetuates double-speak and obfuscating communication; 2. refutes an equal distribution of resources for education; 3. reduces equal opportunity to equal treatment/outcome (standardization); 4. abrogates the autonomy of students, teachers, and parents; 5. opposes students’ unique exercise of creative individuality; and 6. inhibits the development of love, respect and caring of others.
Double-Speak and Obfuscating Communication
There are many examples of obfuscating language in NCLB. One glaring example of double-speak is the informal title of the law itself: “No Child Left Behind.” Such a title would seem to claim that every child should be given an equal op- portunity to achieve academically, especially because NCLB explicitly advocates that: “All children shall meet the challenging state student academic achievement standards.”25 A seemingly integral part of enabling all children to meet challenging academic achievement standards would be to provide more resources for those who have been historically disadvantaged, but at the minimum, to ensure equal resources for all ethnic and economic groups. Yet, NCLB explicitly eliminates this as an interpretation of the law: “Nothing in this title shall be construed to mandate equalized spending per pupil for a State, local educational agency, or school.”26 Yet, Kozol (2005) shows that schools primarily serving children who have been historically, and are currently, disadvantaged by society (e.g., minority and low-income students) are in general, provided with the fewest resources to teach their students. For example, in one of the largest cities in Texas, the three of the lowest-income school districts averaged 96% minority students, but the three highest-income school districts averaged 31% minority students (Briscoe and de Oliver forthcoming). Thus, both the moniker and advocacy claims of NCLB are examples of double-speak.
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Refutes an Equal Distribution of Educational Resources
As previously noted, NCLB explicitly eliminates equal allocation of educational resources as a possible interpretation of the law. Such an explicit denial implies that many people reading the law might reasonably interpret it to mean that equal funding would be necessary to provide all children an equal opportunity to achieve. Denying an equal spread of resources is antithetical to deep democracy.
Abrogates the Autonomy of Students, Parents, and Teachers
The federal government, through its dispensing or withholding of money, coerces states into adopting particular curricular emphases, standardized testing, and the timeline of both curriculum and tests. And under the current hierarchy of school- ing, starting with students and teachers . . . up to state boards of education are enmeshed in a hierarchy of linked master–servant relationships, with those at the bottom having the least amount of autonomy. NCLB’s coercive policies leave states with little choice (given the dire condition of state budgets) but to further usurp districts,’ schools,’ teachers,’ parents,’ and students’ autonomy in determining the relative emphases in their curriculum as well as their mode of testing and testing timelines. Schools, teachers, and students are required to proceed at a uniform standardized schedule and do not have the option of conforming the curriculum to students’ interests or strengths. Nel Noddings (1992) and John Dewey (1916) describe just two of the many possible different ways that schooling could con- form to students’ interests. Instead, they must proceed in a lockstep manner. This uniformity occurs, in part, because NCLB reduces equity or equal opportunity to a standardization of treatment and outcome.
Perhaps NCLB’s most invidious subversion of autonomy is that although it es- pouses individual autonomy, NCLB premises this autonomy or free choice upon market mechanisms, which privilege the choice-making of those with more money over those with less money. This subversion holds schools, teachers, students, and parents responsible for their choices, based upon this seemingly offering auton- omy. In reality, NCLB coerces choices for those with little access to resources, while at the same time inducing blame for those forced choices. Such subver- sion counters deep democracy’s and anarchism’s mandate for real autonomy for students, parents, teachers, and schools.
NCLB Opposes Students’ Unique Exercise of Creative Individuality
Related to NCLB’s abrogation of autonomy is its opposition to exercise creative individuality. Part of deep democracy is the recognition that each person is unique and should have the right to exercise her or his creative individuality. With NCLB strong-arming states to emphasize a particular part of the curriculum in a lockstep
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manner (based upon a mandated testing timeline for all students), the teacher is unable to create a learning environment in which students can apply their particular strengths or develop academic skills in the sequence that best fits that student’s interests and abilities. Finally, under NCLB, the disregard of a student’s unique exercise of creative individuality occurs with more intensity in schools that serve economically underprivileged and minority students, as art, music, and other creative arts are expunged from the school curriculum to improve standardized test scores (Briscoe 2008). The loss of these opportunities acts to create subjectivities of compliance, as Freire (1970) put it, the curtailment of their realities. Through this process, NCLB encourages the development of citizens who participate only as voters, choosing from a slate of pre-selected candidates.
NCLB Inhibits the Development of Love, Respect and Care of Others
Inhibition of love, respect, and care of others is seen in the treatment of students and faculty, as well as in the type of subjectivities and actions NCLB induces in school members. As previously stated, NCLB mandates a lockstep curriculum and testing timeline with no concern for the individual student’s interests, desires, or abilities. Freire (1970) claims that this regime deadens the soul and mind of a person, suiting that person for subjugation. Such dehumanization of students is the opposite of loving, caring, and respect and, furthermore, induces students to treat others as objects (Foucault 1980a). Not only do NCLB policies inhibit the development of love, care, and respect among students, they also inhibit such development in educators in three ways: (a) as described by Buber (1937), NCLB policies treat teachers as objects in its insistence that they follow a lockstep curriculum for every student regardless of teachers’ judgments; (b) by demanding that teachers treat their students as objects; and (c) by fostering an antisocial individualism among the school educators. As von Humboldt (1985) points out, treating another person as an object or slave damages the perpetrator as much as the victim, in part by developing an indifference or blindness to others’ suffering. Finally, through its antisocial competitive individualism, NCLB fosters a climate of mistrust and disregard of others among schools and faculty, rather than one of mutual care and respect. This analysis of NCLB illustrates the antithetical relationship neoliberal policies have to essential characteristics of deep democracy and to human well- being. Anarchist guidelines offer an attractive alternative to the current neoliberal policies guiding educational decision-making.
AN ANARCHIST GUIDE FOR EDUCATIONAL DECISION-MAKING
Most anarchists maintain that US schools, like the rest of the state and national political system, have become subverted into servicing the interests and desires
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of the corporate elite, as seen in Goldman and Baginsky’s (1907) characterization of schools: “The school, more than any other institution, is a veritable barrack, where the human mind is drilled and manipulated into submission to various social and moral spooks, and thus fitted to continue our system of exploitation and oppression” (7). Under the current ideological hegemony of neoliberalism, this characterization remains true. Thus, some anarchists, such as Illich (1971), suggest disestablishing schools completely and letting citizens educate themselves as they wish. Such efforts, they say, will eliminate public schools’ conditioning of students for the economic and social status quo. However, eliminating free access to an education would set us back historically to when the majority of citizens simply went uneducated, as they could not afford to pay for teachers and the accoutrements of learning, rendering them even more vulnerable to the problematic conditioning of an increasingly ubiquitous mass media. Thus, my view of the state’s role in education follows Noam Chomsky’s claim that “abolishing the state is not a realistic strategy at this time” (2010),27 and Buck’s (2009) suggestion that progress toward anarchism proceed piecemeal. My presentation of anarchist guidelines is composed of two parts: First, I sketch an anarchist model of educational decision-making, suggesting it be instituted through federal legislation that would offer funds only to those states that adopt these guidelines. These guidelines are not offered as the definitive, final, or only anarchistic way in which to make educational decisions. Others can improve upon them, either generally or based upon specific contextual conditions. However, they do provide a starting point by providing practical suggestions about how schools might serve students’ and parents’ interest, rather than the elite.28 Second, I address some concerns that might arise over the guidelines.
Anarchist Educational Decision-Making Guidelines
The guidelines are simple. The state will provide equal money (per student) for all nonprofit public schools within that state and all public school teacher salaries will be paid from the same state salary schedule. The school constituents (parents and students most geographically near a given school and the teachers of that school) together decide upon the way the school is run, which includes teaching methods, curriculum, hours, teacher hiring, adequacy of teaching, and the purchase of educational supplies and services. If school constituents find someone’s teaching to be inadequate, they also determine how to address this inadequacy. In any particular school, all children will have equitable access to teachers, supplies, and services provided by the school—teachers provide advice, but a student may attend any class offered by their school that they and their parents wish. School constituents also monitor to ensure that their school funding equals that of other schools, appealing to the federal government if they find a lack of equal funding of their school or equitable access within their school. Because the teachers, students,
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and parents will be making the decisions regarding the curriculum, budgeting, and method of schooling, there is no more formalized structural hierarchy and, therefore, no need for a leader to coerce teachers and students into particular actions. Noneducational duties left to be considered include bookkeeping and organizing the use and maintenance of resources. School constituents also decide how to handle this. Among the several possibilities are having teachers and/or parents rotate into this position on a semester basis, with parents being paid or teachers being relieved of their teaching duties. Students and teachers could be responsible for the cleaning and minor maintenance of the facilities that they use. For major repairs, if a student, parent, or teacher knows how to do the repair, they may do so for whatever recompense is decided as fair or a professional could be hired.
There are two final provisos. First, as discussed later, schools are limited to 300 students (small school concepts could be used for large school buildings as the constituents of each small school retained decision-making rights over their school). Second, although schooling is not compulsory, there is no age limit to attending public schools without cost. The primary reason schooling should not be compulsory is to retain the autonomy of students and parents; thus, the decision-making of whether or not to attend school should be theirs. If those who choose not to attend school but to experience the world should ultimately decide that an education is important, they would still have free access to the public school. However, some concerns might arise over such simple guidelines: Can we really trust teachers (possibly lazy or incompetent), parents (not experts), and children (possibly pleasure-oriented, short-sighted, and ignorant) to make the best educational decisions? Why limit the number of students to 300 or less? What about previous failed attempts at integrating parents into the decision-making processes of schools? If all of these small schools are doing their own thing, what will hold society together? Each of these possible concerns is discussed in the order presented previously.
Students, Parents, and Teachers, as Educational Decision-Makers
As previously indicated, autonomy is perhaps the single most important aspect of anarchism and deep democracy.29 Joyfully exercising creative individuality entails student and teacher autonomy in making decisions about what education would look like. Students would not dictate what the teacher should do, nor would teachers dictate what students should do; they would come to a consensus about the students’ curriculum. Although others (teachers, parents, or friends) can share their observations, ideas, and advice, the student should ultimately define his or her potential and abilities. Because children lack some of the knowledge that adults have, parents should also be advocates for their children in terms of their
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education. Their primary input would be in the hiring of teachers. From that point, parents would be advisory, leaving the day-to-day educational decisions to be made jointly by teachers and students.
Buber (1937) describes the I–thou relationship between student and teacher in which daily decisions about learning are made based upon both parties’ desired ends, with neither the student’s nor the teacher’s desire eclipsing the others. In fact, Buber emphasizes that teachers assume the role of students when they learn from the children with whom they work. Learning is fun. Joint discovery is fun (Shukaitis 2009). Both children and adults spend many hours learning things that they wish to learn (such as new video games) without the specter of a test to drive them. Respecting student and teacher autonomy in making the decisions about learning will help put the excitement and joy back into learning and teaching.30
Jointly developing their curriculum with teachers, rather than just learning what is mandated by the State, induces students to develop the habit of exercising their autonomy31 and thus to participate in the decision-making of anarchistic deep democracy. Students and teachers share a relationship much like counselors and those being counseled. Research32 indicates that counselor and counselee belief in what they are doing is the most important factor in whether counseling benefits the counselee. Therefore, it is likely that more and better learning will take place if teachers and students believe in what they are doing, rather than merely doing what they are told.
Can we trust teachers, parents, and children to make the best schooling de- cisions? During the 1920s there was an educational shift in the United States to having experts make decisions, rather than parents or teachers (Tyack and Cuban 1995). Teachers were, and still are, often perceived as being lazy or incompe- tent (Webb, Briscoe, and Mussman 2009). Parents, especially poor and minority parents, are often constructed as deficit (Briscoe and de Oliver forthcoming) and untrustworthy. Students seldom have been trusted to make good educational deci- sions. Why should we begin trusting them now? The answer is simple. Autonomy or the ability to make decisions concerning your own education is an essential ingredient for human dignity, well-being (Freire 1970), and motivation.33 Further- more, based upon the educational judgment of experts, too many poor and minority students are largely learning that they are failures and stupid (McKenzie 2009). With the current drilling, testing, and other school regimes in place, students are induced to regard learning as boring and humiliating. Minority men, especially those from the lower income brackets, are often channeled into prison by academic and disciplinary practices (Gregory, Skiba, and Noguera 2010). It is difficult to imagine how parents, teachers, and students could do a worse job in making these decisions than the experts. The individual and societal benefits warrant placing educational decision-making into the hands of those directly concerned.34
But what if students and teachers goof off instead of working? Goofing off may be one of the best ways of learning. Countless treatises from Rousseau
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([1762]1979) to Smith and Pelligrini (2008) have been written about how much learning occurs through play. Furthermore, making these decisions in conjunction with teachers may expose students to a whole new variety of play than what they might normally engage in. Additionally, in the early 1900s, there was a general consensus that the technology of mass production would provide more leisure time for the masses. However, increasingly sophisticated technology has not opened up more free time. Instead, there are more unemployed workers and those in the work- force generally work longer hours and are expected to produce more.35 Finally, if more people worked (but worked fewer hours) and played more, maybe society would no longer be gripped by a sense of meaninglessness (Havel 1994). If work became play, through worker autonomy, fewer antidepressants may be required.
Why Limit the School to 300 in the Geographic Area?
Although this latter guideline is not explicitly part of anarchism or deep democracy, I include it for a number of reasons that relate to love, care, and respect of others and direct participation in educational decision-making. Simmel’s ([1903] 1950) social theory described the kind of alienation and anomie that occurs when a group grows too large. In addition to social theory, psychological research has similar findings. Dunbar’s (1992) research suggests that our brains tend to limit us to knowing, understanding, and thus caring about no more than 150-300 individuals.36 Other psychological studies (Demasio 1994) show that the further away people are from our decisions or actions, that is, as people become more abstract to us, the more indifferent we are to the suffering we cause them by our decisions. Finally, the more people who take part in a decision (voting for local vs. national political positions), the less impact each person has on that decision. Therefore, smaller is better in terms of direct participation in group-decision making that takes into account the needs, interests, and wellbeing of all group members.37
Failed Attempts at Integrating Parents Into School Decision-Making
Finally, what about earlier failed attempts at integrating parents, teachers, and sometimes students into the decision-making processes of schools?38 First, not all attempts failed (e.g., Somech 2002). There is considerable research that suggests integrating parental perspectives into schools results in much higher academic achievement, especially for minority students (González, Moll, and Amanti 2005). Research investigating the differences between shared decision-making attempts that failed and those that were succeeding suggests that the anarchist guidelines presented here incorporate important aspects that were linked with success and avoid many of the aspects that lead to failure. Aspects that were related to success included “genuine authority over budget, personnel, and curriculum . . . adequate
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information to make informed decisions about student performance, parent and community satisfaction” and decision-making that incorporated all school con- stituents.39 The most consistently reported aspect that was linked to success of integrating teachers and parents into school decision-making was that they had autonomy—or the genuine authority to make decisions.40 Elements found to be linked to failure included overwork and frustration of teachers as they attempted to both teach and make school-wide decisions (this was the most commonly re- ported element linked to failure);41 too much conflict (Geraci 1995); inadequate knowledge or understanding of issues;42 and the difficulty faced by the principal in mediating demands of the school district with those from the teachers and parents (e.g., Geraci 1995).
However, the context in which integration of parents, teachers, and students, as suggested in this article, is quite different from earlier attempts in two important ways: the degree of autonomy granted to school constituents and the number of students in a school. The strongest element in these anarchist guidelines is that teachers, students, and parents do have true autonomy. They are freed from a hierarchy of control except for the one regulation, enforced by the federal gov- ernment, that they provide equitable access to all students in their schools. As this type of autonomy was the most often repeated element related to success or failure of shared decision-making, it bodes well that autonomy is an essential element of these anarchist guidelines. In addition, research was generally done on schools whose student population was much greater than 300.43 Parents and teachers are more likely to feel overwhelmed, overworked, and frustrated by issues that come with schools whose student population far exceeds 300, because with fewer students, there are likely to be fewer issues. Furthermore, in a school of 300, students’ decisions are easier to make and the effects of those decisions are easier to track. Finally, research was primarily conducted in a context where constituents were expected to help make decisions, while embedded in a hierarchy reaching from the federal government to state, to state boards, to district boards, to local schools. This hierarchy was replete with codes, regulations, and other limits upon decision-making (Wylie 1995). Eliminating the bureaucratic hierarchy of regula- tions, codes, etc., and issues emanating from a multitude of hierarchical levels means that teachers, parents, and students primarily need to have knowledge and understand local issues. Under the suggested anarchistic guidelines parents will not be embedded in a hierarchy nor fenced in by a number of hierarchical regulations.
Conflict will occur when people have different ideas, interests, and desires. In the past, this conflict has been avoided by simply leaving teachers and parents with their unique individualities out of decision-making. Undoubtedly, conflict will occur and it will take time to sort through and come to decisions. However, conflict with open and authentic communication is much healthier than the orderliness that occurs under conditions of extreme control (Freire 1970), as described earlier by Mr. Jackson.
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Schools are ‘Doing Their Own Thing’: How Will Society Hold Together?
Logically, society will hold together and survive, because it will be more adaptable to changes in technology and the environment and because of the diversity of knowledges and epistemologies inherent in a number of small schools and groups doing their own thing. Diversity strengthens the survivability and adaptability of a species and should aid in that of a society. In addition, rather than being passive spectators in societal and military actions of their nation, students will be socialized to be critical and then to directly participate in the decisions made by their country. Dewey (1916) maintains that for a democracy to improve itself, students must believe they have the ability to affect society and the will to do so. Small schools in which students, teachers, and parents make educational decisions produce diversity and socialize students to participate in the decision-making that affects their lives.
A further concern related to schools doing their own thing, might be that such autonomy grants the freedom that racists, sexists, and others will use to turn back the clock to racial- and gender-based apartheid, exclusion, and oppression in pre- viously practiced in schools. No doubt, racial apartheid or oppression may occur in some schools (as it does now).44 However, any constituent of the school has the right and opportunity to appeal to the federal government if anyone in the school is denied equal access. Currently, this is the only recourse that students have if they are excluded or experience oppression based upon race. Thus, the greater autonomy offered by these guidelines is unlikely to result in worse apartheid or oppression. In addition, if exclusion or oppression of a student were occurring, it would be much more evident in a small school of 300. Furthermore, even if (based upon the composition of the neighborhood) the 300 students in a school are primarily of a single ethnicity/race, such segregated schools exist today, some- times within the same school (Oakes 1985). This current de facto segregation in schools—“African American and Latino students presently attend schools that are three-fourths minority and 40 percent are in intensely segregated schools” (Zamudio, Russell, Rios, and Bridgeman 2011, 44)—is often accompanied by a dearth of money for low-income and minority students. Thus, allowing school constituents to do their own thing is unlikely to make racial or gender apartheid and oppression worse than the current situation. However, offering students and teachers greater autonomy in determining what and how they learn is likely to be far more motivational to both students and teachers than the current tedium of schools caused by lockstep learning, as described earlier by Mr. Jackson.
I have addressed some of the concerns, which may arise in regards to the im- plementation of anarchist guidelines for educational decision-making. Undoubt- edly, there are other concerns, but for pragmatic reasons, I leave those for future debate.
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CONCLUSION
In sum, this article has described the negative social and educational environ- ment that is generated by the increasing implementation of neoliberal policies, which perpetuate the practices of superficial democracy. However, the decision- making processes of neoliberal policies oppose the practice of deep democracy by: perpetuating double-speak; refuting an equal distribution of educational re- sources; abrogating the autonomy of school constituents; denying students and teachers the opportunity to exercise their creative individuality; and inhibiting the development of love, respect, and caring for others. These policies together treat humans as objects, creating a recipe for inhumane tedium and alienation. In contrast, anarchist policies promote decision-making processes that act to deepen democracy and the joy of teaching and learning. Anarchism promotes authentic communication; espouses a fairly equal distribution of power that allows for the exercise of real autonomy; advocates the joyful exercise of students’ and teachers’ creative individuality; and promotes the love, care, and respect of others. The suggested anarchist guidelines for educational decision-making are designed to make a preferred future more possible—a preferred future based upon improving the well-being of students and teachers, and eventually society. Consideration of this preferred future allows a more positive interpretation of The Second Coming:
Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold; Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world; . . . . The best lack all conviction, while the worst Are full of passionate intensity. (Yeats 1989, 187)
The center should not control the periphery, but rather should fall apart into a form of decision-making that is more equally distributed among all concerned. Mere anarchy loosens the chains that prevent people from acting autonomously. It is better to lack conviction so that one considers what others have to say than to be so full of passionate intensity that one ignores others’ interests, desires, and needs. Perhaps this type of ignorance is what turns the best into the worst. This is but a starting point, offering exciting challenges and opportunities for further research and flexible application based upon the context of schooling.
Notes
1. Arter Jackson, public school teacher, e-mailed the author on September 16, 2008. Mr. Jackson was a former student of mine who had remained in communication with me over the years, describing his teaching and educational experiences.
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2. This characterization of critical postmodernism fits with anarchism. See for example, a number of discussions of anarchism’s relationship with possible and preferred futures in Randall Amster et al. (2009). 3. For a fuller description of neoliberalism and its productive effects see Clarke (2004) or Dave Hill (2009). 4. For a description of the expansion of the testing market and its effects of further narrowing the types of knowledge taught in schools see Felecia Briscoe (2008). 5. See Taylor Webb, Felecia Briscoe, and Mark Mussman (2009), for a detailed discussion of the coercive surveillance techniques found in neoliberalism as exemplified in NCLB. 6. See for example, Firebaugh (2003) or Gailbraith and Hale (2005). 7. Other democratic typologies include shallow, weak, etc. 8. E.g., Emma Goldman (1907) or Peter Kropotkin (1899). 9. E.g., Walt Whitman (1959) and John Dewey (1916). 10. See Steven Shukaitis’s Imaginal Machines (2009) for more about how these types of decisions are constantly being remade with the possibility of a more anarchic decision occurring and that hope is a necessary ingredient for such transformative changes to occur. 11. From a postmodern perspective, reality is social construction and words like authentic can at best, be merely contingent. Recognizing this, I later provide a definition of authentic communication as described by political and sociological theorists. 12. Furthermore, many anarchists such as Buck (2009) advocate a piecemeal transformation. 13. Later in the sections analyzing the relationships of neoliberalism and anarchism to deep democracy, each of the assertions in this section are discussed in detail. 14. See Briscoe and de Oliver (forthcoming) for a detailed description of the imaginary “free choice” offered by neoliberalism. 15. And when neoliberalism does, its response is market-based, such as the Kyoto agreement in which wealthy industrialized countries buy the right to a large carbon footprint from countries who are not fully industrialized. Although not fully industrialized may sound deficit in comparison to fully industrialized, in reality it is not. Fully industrialized indicates a disproportionate use of global resources and a disproportionate amount of pollution. At this point in time, a fully industrialized country is one that uses far more than its share of resources and pollutes far more than its counterparts that are not fully industrialized. 16. By harm, I mean the kind of harm that results in the dehumanization or alienation of a person as described by Paulo Freire (1970) in Pedagogy of the Oppressed or the kinds of suffering described by Pennycook (2001) in Critical Applied Linguistics. By benefit, I refer to the sort of benefit that allows for the fuller expression of a person’s humanity as described by Freire in Pedagogy of the Oppressed or Dewey (1916) in Democracy and Education. 17. For a fuller discussion of authentic communication, see Green (1999) or Walt Whitman (1959). 18. From a postmodern perspective, research and theory are integrated into current power relations. However, there is always resistance and perhaps the theories and research findings cited in this article are points of resistance. See Foucault (1980a). 19. Because Anarcho-Syndicalism: Theory and Practice was written in 1938, it is important to note two things. Minorities in this context does not refer to those who have been historically oppressed, but rather to the small number of people who overwhelming benefit from the current economic system to the detriment of the masses. Also, the language used here is patriarchal in that the masculine pronoun is used to refer to all of humankind. I resist language that promotes sexism and therefore point to it, but at the same time recognize that this was considered correct essay style in the time period.
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20. See Wolff (2007). 21. In consideration of the education of minorities, Black authors such as Vanessa Siddle- Walker (1996) or bell hooks (1994), based upon their research, argue that the education prior to desegregation of African Americans was taught by African Americans who inculcated higher expectations in students than that inculcated in minorities by most of the teachers in desegregated urban schools of today; the problem wasn’t segregation per se, but access to resources. At least, minorities or low-income students were not being “schooled” into deficit identities, including low expectations of themselves. See, for example, Ivan Illich (1971); Paulo Freire (1970) or, more recently, Jean Anyon (1998) and Tara J. Yasso (2006). 22. For example, Gordon W. Allport ([1954] 1968), Habermas (1968) or von Humboldt (1985). 23. See for example, Foucault (1980a). 24. In reality, a large number of students do not have the option of going to a particular school in their school district, but are stuck in a school, which has now been labeled as failing. See Roslyn Arlin Mickelson and Stephanie Southwort (2005) for more on this. 25. NCLBa, Public Law 107-110, the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, Part I, sec. 1903 (a)(2). Retrieved from http://www.ed.gov/policy/elsec/leg/esea02/pg18.html. 26. NCLBb, Public Law 107-110, the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, Part I, sec 1906. Retrieved from http://www.ed.gov/policy/elsec/leg/esea02/pg2.html. 27. See Noam Chomsky (2010),. 28. As described in several analyses (e.g., Briscoe & de Oliver, forthcoming) neoliberalism has redefined the public good as that which services the interest of the corporate elite. 29. See, for example, Anna Goldman (2010). 30. See, for example, Friere (1970) or Emma Goldman (1907). 31. See Foucault (1980a) for a description of how power affects subjectivities. 32. See for example, Gary Greenburg (2010). 33. See Dewey (1916) for a theoretical grounding on why autonomy leads to motivation and an example of empirical working supporting the relationship of autonomy and motivation by Nichols (2006). 34. In addition, without the truancy apparatus, more money is available for education. 35. See for example, Braverman (1974) or, more recently, Schaal (2010). 36. Furthermore, the less autonomy (or control) a person has, the more debilitating the effects of group size; “Both environmental stress and crowding annoyance are significantly related to personal control” (Schmidt 1983 229). 37. Furthermore, smaller schools generally produce higher achievement rates. See, for example, McMillen et al. (2000). 38. Referred to variously as school-based management, e.g., Gleason, Donohue, and Leader (1995); participative management, e.g., Somech (2002); or site-based management, e.g., Wylie (1995). 39. Odden and Wohlstetter (1995). Likewise, Conway and Calzi (1995), as well as Geraci (1995), found that lack of genuine authority to make decisions was linked to the failure of shared decision-making. 40. Odden and Wohlstetter (1995); Conway and Calzi (1995); and Geraci (1995) all noted that lack of genuine authority to make decisions was linked to the failure of shared decision- making. 41. See, for example, Sanders (2001), Wylie (1995), or Geraci (1995). 42. 43. See, for example, Gleason et al. (1995), Geraci (1995), Conway and Calzi (1995), or Somech (2002).
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44. See, for example, Oakes (1985) for research showing how the ubiquitous practice of tracking acts to exclude minority and low-income students from the upper academic tracks in schools, creating a sort of apartheid.
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