The politics of the public school curriculum :an analysis of consumer education in British Columbia
Date
1987
Authors
Stamps, Judith
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Abstract
This thesis explores the tensions between capitalism and democracy as reflected in the theory and practice of compulsory, state-run schooling in North America. Since its inception in the nineteenth century, schooling has played a major role in the socialization of youth on this continent. Within this context, the school curriculum represents the most conscious general effort in the United States and Canada to impart the knowledge and values deemed necessary for responsible citizenship. Despite this, it has received little attention from political analysts. The purpose of this work is to explore the way in which curriculum seeks to socialize students politically-in particular, how it attempts to resolve the tensions between capitalism and democracy.
The core of the thesis is a critical analysis of a High School course on consumer education, recently added to British Columbia's prescribed curriculum. It is a course whose development and implementation have been overtly political and whose aims are at the margins of 'academic' education. Perhaps because of these things, it reveals with special clarity some of the motivating assumtions of the curriculum as a whole.
Chapter one frames the analysis in terms of the tensions within liberal democratic theory itself. It contrasts participatory and passive concepts of democracy, arguing that the latter constitute a hollow form of democracy. The chapter also brings together three literatures which relate to the subject of democratic education. These concern the development of public schooling in North America, the political socialization of school children , and the social contents of textbooks, or curriculum. Two basic themes emerge: the continuous tensions between capitalism and democracy, and the faith in science and technology as solutions. In relation to the latter theme, I look expecially at the dualism of reason and emotion implicit in the view of science adopted by mainstream educational reformers and political analysts. I argue that this dualism is a key element in assymetrical power relations, and is thus crucial to the tensions between liberal democracy and capitalism.
Chapter two explores the decision-making process which led to the creation of the course, and looks both at the assumptions about democracy reflected in that process, and at rhetoric about the course's democratic purposes. Chapters three and four constitute a critical analysis of the two textbooks developed by the Ministry of Education for use in the course. The analysis seeks to disclose the economic, social and political world-view presented in the texts, and to reveal the concept of democracy implicit in that view. I again contrast this with the official rhetoric. What emerges is a clear correspondence between the concept of democracy contained in the process which created the course and the concept advanced by the texts themselves. The method of text analysis is, in general, informed by the European school of discourse analysis. The texts' resolution of the tensions between democracy and capitalism is explored through an analysis of their basic views on history, epistemology, human nature, society, the economy and the state. The analysis stresses the dualism of reason and emotion expressed in the texts. The analysis is done in two stages. Stage one explores the basic views listed above through exhaustive compilations of passages from the texts which are expressive of them. Stage two looks at smaller portions of the texts and examines the development of political bias through an analysis of semantics and syntax.
The evidence examined suggests that in its attempt to resolve the tensions between capitalism and democracy, curriculum sacrifices any meaningful concept of democracy. I argue, thus, that the new course in consumer education works against the creation of an active, informed citizenry. As such, it raises serious questions about the curriculum as a whole, and in particular, about the future direction of curriculum.