Our educational system is in turmoil. Many would argue that it has been
assaulted and oversimplified by the right. There is growing concern that
we are becoming a liberal nation-state with an increasingly anti-liberal
population and an electorate that is disinterested in politics. In this
globalized world, the power of capital is so great that opposition to it
is often discouraged and disheartened, leaving many citizens few
political precepts by which to consider their institutions. This
contemporary failure of vision has opened the way for the unimpeded
return of the philosophy of the free market. As a result, social and
educational policies are debated almost solely in terms of how they fit
with the needs of the market. Social and ethical understandings are
replaced by a failed economic theory that requires a radical constraint
of our political and economic choices. Compassion for the poor, the
market lets us know, is wrong-headed because any interference with the
labor market will always result in unfortunate economic and social
consequences. Moral issues are eclipsed by market needs. In Critical
Pedagogy: Where Are We Now? the contributors discuss how the field of
critical pedagogy should respond to such dire conditions in a way that
is theoretically savvy and visionary, while concurrently contributing to
the struggle to improve the lives of those most hurt by them. Critical
Pedagogy is essential reading for every classroom teacher and
pre-service teacher. It is also a valuable tool for use in undergraduate
and graduate-level classrooms.
