This investigation employs the deconstruction techniques of Jacques Derrida to critique the Plessy v. Ferguson 1896 Supreme Court decision which segregated the Public Schools. Overturned by Brown v. the Board of Education of Topeka 1954, Plessy's racist message reverberates today in the cultural divide, in right-wing media, in politics, and in…

In pursuit of an alternative perspective on the so-called 'statues controversy', this essay brings recent interpretations of the enduring 'power', 'gaze' and 'magic' of statues into alignment with critical histories of iconoclasm, sacred and secular, and New Materialist accounts of our multiple entanglements with the object histories of inherited…

Nations design their education systems to prepare youth for achieving national goals and objectives as perceived by that nation. The education system reflects nations' epistemological, ontological and axiological assumptions. Accordingly, the secular west has designed its educational intervention based on their assumptions and is diametrically…

Solidarity between the citizens of a country is both good and desirable, and public educational institutions are the clear site of education for such civil solidarity and its natural place is in Civics lessons. Nevertheless, this paper argues that it is impossible to educate for solidarity for all citizens in a liberal-democratic state when civic…

In this article, I use data from interviews with three social studies teachers to consider teachers' identity development. I point to how their narratives challenge traditional linear notions of professional attainment and apprenticeship by drawing on theories from Deleuze and Guattari as well as scholars in education who have utilised Deleuzian…

While human beings generally act prosocially towards one another -- contra a Hobbesian "war of all against all" -- this basic social courtesy tends not to be extended to our relations with the more-than-human world. Educational philosophy is largely grounded in a worldview that privileges human-centered conceptions of the self, valuing…

The central concept within this research work is Edu-tensegrity. It is the foundation of the Heasly Thinking Skills System and uses a geodesic dome as a refreshed visual depiction of the many varied elements in the whole world of education, given paradigm changes within lived experience of 21st century education. This system uses a disciplined use…

Dialogic teaching has been demonstrated to be conducive to the development of such important competencies and skills as creativity, communication skills, and critical thinking skills. However, the literature confirms that teacher-student interactions in the classroom are predominantly monologic rather than dialogic across subjects, grades, and…

On the one hand, according to Richard Rorty, Paulo Freire and others, "education" is the practice of freedom. On the other hand, according to Michael Foucault, Mary Midgley and others, "ethics" is the practice of freedom. How, then, are education and ethics related to one another and what do these authors mean by 'the practice…

This research study explored regular veteran and non-veteran regular teachers' evaluation of perceived competence to teach in an inclusive classroom setting in a rural South Carolina School District. This research study examined six factors related to elementary teachers: teachers' teaching backgrounds, planning for inclusive practices, support…

In this theoretical paper, we reflect on the optimistic neoliberal fantasies that are played out in today's education, even though that they rarely live up to their promises. Inspired by Lauren Berlant's concept of cruel optimism, and psychoanalytical thinkers as Slavoj Žižek and Ilan Kapoor, and their focus on concepts such as fantasy, desire,…

This duoethnography, informed by the new materialist turn, explores how educational work is materially reconfigured within university-community collaborations. Through our co-facilitation of two community-based Master of Education programs we, as White settlers, endeavoured to journey with Indigenous colleagues, community members, and students to…

A version of education conditioned by a focus on measurable outcomes contributes to the unhappiness of children. Using an approach that relates the current crisis in mental health to Simone Weil's concept of affliction, I argue that culture, suffering from its own instrumentalisation as cure, needs itself to be healed. Using a case study of…

The political theology of Rev. John Witherspoon (1723-1794) had a profound impact on the development of ideas on religion and government during the Founding Period as a prominent educator, clergyman, and signatory of the Declaration of Independence. This paper uncovers the far-reaching impact of Witherspoon's political theology during America's…

Pedagogy is a term used broadly to refer to both how and why an educator influences learning. Given the importance of quality transformative learning experiences noted in the sustainability education literature, the role of an educator's values, assumptions and philosophy underpinning their educational capability for the provision of learning…