Social Class, Social Action, and Education The Failure of Progressive Democracy

by Schutz, Aaron

• ISBN13: 9780230105911
• ISBN10: 0230105912
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2010-09-15
• Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan

Summary

Middle-class progressives in the early twentieth century wanted to transform a corrupt and chaotic industrial America into an "authentic" democracy, but they were arguably led astray by their privilege. Focused on enhancing the voices of individuals, generations of progressives remained blind to the rich culture of "democratic solidarity" infusing labor unions and organizing in poor communities. This book traces the problematic evolution of progressive democracy in America, focusing on schools as a key site of progressive practice. At the same time, it examines alternative strategies for developing more empowering approaches to democratic education and collective action.

Author Biography

Aaron Schutz is Associate Professor and Chair of the Department of Educational Policy and Community Studies at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. His work has appeared in a wide range of leading journals including American Journal of Educational Research, Teachers College Record, Educational Researcher, and Review of Educational Research. In 2001 he won the Millman award for the most promising early-career scholar in the field of education. His series, “Core Dilemmas of Community Organizing,” can be found at the OpenLeft.com, and his website is at EducationAction.org. Forthcoming from Palgrave Macmillan is another book co-authored with Marie Sandy: Collective Action for Social Change: An Introduction to Community Organizing.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments	p. ix
Introduction	p. 1
Overview
Social Class and Social Action	p. 9
Collaborative Progressivism
John Dewey's Conundrum: Can Democratic Schools Empower?	p. 51
John Dewey and a "Paradox of Size": Faith at the Limits of Experience	p. 71
Personalist Progressivism
The Lost Vision of 1920s Personalists	p. 91
The Free Schools Movement	p. 127
Democratic Solidarity
Community Organizing: A Working-Class Approach to Democratic Empowerment	p. 161
Case Study
Social Class and Social Action in the Civil Rights Movement	p. 189
Conclusion
Building Bridges?	p. 221
Notes	p. 229
Index	p. 263
Table of Contents provided by Ingram. All Rights Reserved.