Education Is Politics

Shor Education is politics  

Caitlin Rennell

Quotes:

"The participatory classroom is a "free speech" classroom in the best sense, because it invites all expressions from all the students. An empowering class thrives on a lively exchange of thoughts and feelings. The way students speak, feel, and think about any subject is the starting point for a critical study of themselves, their society, and their academic subjects."

This quote means that in classroom children have a freedom of speech to a point. Meaning they can voice their opinions, but not to the point where the class looses control. Also no one's ideas gets shot down. Great classes achieve this by having debates and active communication and exchange of ideas, thoughts, and feelings. Letting the kids like I said voice how they feel and whats on their minds. Their feelings on subjects is what helps them grow and learn. This connects to the reading because freedom of speech is a political term. In other words is part of the political side of things. This whole article is about the political aspect of education and how it is an a way education. 

"To many people, the very idea of regaining any real control over social institutions and personal development is abstract and "nonsensical." In general . . . many people do see society's economic, social, and educational institutions as basically self-directing, with little need for their participation and with little necessity for them to communicate and argue over the ends and means of these same institutions."

This quote means that people see us as a society to be independent in all aspects, with little help from the people themselves. This contributes to the reading because it talks about the political part of education and how people don't believe they need to contribute or fight  for the institutions. Also that us as a society are very independent when it comes to economics, social, and educational. This connects to the whole reading because of its political views. 

"As teachers see other teachers and student experimenting, more may be encouraged to test participatory empowerment in their own classrooms, and in the process promote the positive emotions that students need in order to embrace critical and democratic learning as the politics of their education."

This quote means that as teachers and students experimenting it will help in their own classroom for them to encourage positive emotions aka having the students be happy and having fun. This will help them embrace the critical and democratic learning as well as the politics in their education. It's in other words important to embrace everything as a teacher and student in your learning. This contributes to the reading  because it connects again to the politics in a classroom and how you have to embrace it.

Questions/Comments/Points to Share

I'm not sure what to make of this reading. It was a different view on education that is for sure. It showed how education has to do with politics. Theres a lot of things I didn't realize till I read this article. It was pretty easy to read, but a little hard to understand at some parts, but for the most part it was a good read. There is so much to take in. It relates to the other tests we have read because it talks about media  and how it affects education, as well as other things. How is it possible for politics to be apart of every part of our society today?