Social Justice in Education An Introduction

by Bull, Barry L.

• ISBN13: 9780230606500
• ISBN10: 0230606504
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2008-10-15
• Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan

Summary

Are American schools socially just institutions? Using the methods of political philosopher John Rawls, this book answers this question by arguing for four principles that express the basic purposes that Americans hold for their schools-principles of Personal Liberty. Democracy, Equal Opportunity, and Economic Growth. These principles are then used to analyze current controversies in American education policy and practice about curriculum content, instructional methods, education standards, civic education, control of schools, and school finance. It concludes that in each arena prevailing practice falls to attain Americans' political ideals for their schools and suggests strategies for remedying that failure. Book jacket.

Author Biography

Barry L. Bull is Professor of Philosophy of Education at Indiana University in Bloomington, Indiana. His research focuses on the moral and political justification of public policies in education. He has published on standards-based school reform, government control of schools, school finance, civic education, the professionalization of teaching, education for the gifted and talented, and other policies. Bull is the co-author of The Ethics of Multicultural and Bilingual Education and of Learning Together: Professional Development for Better Schools.

Table of Contents

Preface	p. ix
The Nature and Importance of Social Justice in Education	p. 1
A Political Theory of Social Justice for Education: Liberty and Democracy	p. 15
A Political Theory of Social Justice for Education: Equal Opportunity and Economic Growth	p. 37
Personal Liberty and Education: Families, Cultures, and Standards	p. 65
Democracy and Education: Multicultural and Civic Education	p. 91
Equal Opportunity and Education: Control of Schools	p. 117
Economic Growth and Education: The Financing of Education	p. 145
Socially Just Education in a Representative American Community	p. 169
Notes	p. 187
References	p. 193
Index	p. 197
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