(article ) What is Education?

Graham Oliver

Philosopher of education and educational theorist. Trained at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and taught at the University of Waikato for thirty years. Specialisation in the purpose of education as equipping learners to develop worthwhile lives for themselves as justified by mutual and self-respect for their intrinsic value as human beings.

The concept of education in everyday language: R.S. Peters revisited

The concept of “education” in everyday language: R.S. Peters revisited

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The concept of “education” in everyday language: R.S. Peters revisited The word “education” is so generally trivialised today that we stand to lose sight of the connection between more central meanings and our chances of living well. In the 1960s, Richard Peters analysed the idea of “education” to be found in our everyday language. Despite […]

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The concept of “education” in everyday language: R.S. Peters revisited The word “education” is so generally trivialised today that we stand to lose sight of the connection between more central meanings and our chances of living well. In the 1960s, Richard Peters analysed the idea of “education” to be found in our everyday language. Despite

The Tyrant’s Choice: how narrow self-interest corrupts self-respect

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The Tyrant’s Choice: how narrow self-interest corrupts self-respect Being a tyrant isn’t just bad for those who get in the tyrant’s way. It is bad for the tyrant. It corrupts their access to knowledge, and this educational insight goes back over 2000 years. It is a clue to the social value of self-respect, and shows

The Tyrant’s Choice: how narrow self-interest corrupts self-respect Read More »

The Tyrant’s Choice: how narrow self-interest corrupts self-respect Being a tyrant isn’t just bad for those who get in the tyrant’s way. It is bad for the tyrant. It corrupts their access to knowledge, and this educational insight goes back over 2000 years. It is a clue to the social value of self-respect, and shows

Indoctrination and education

An introduction to indoctrination

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An introduction to the idea of “indoctrination” “Indoctrination” was developed by philosophers of education as an educational concept twice in the Twentieth Century, and its development continues. It stands as the opposite of education as injustice stands to justice. To understand education and its problems – particularly what is at stake – we need to

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An introduction to the idea of “indoctrination” “Indoctrination” was developed by philosophers of education as an educational concept twice in the Twentieth Century, and its development continues. It stands as the opposite of education as injustice stands to justice. To understand education and its problems – particularly what is at stake – we need to

Prologue

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 EDUCATION As if our lives depended on it R. Graham Oliver  © R. Graham Oliver, 2018 The prologue is a preliminary opening up of the educational problematic. The full scale of our issues aren’t visible in this small beginning. Because we are so unused to thinking very deeply about education and the ethical enormity of

Prologue Read More »

 EDUCATION As if our lives depended on it R. Graham Oliver  © R. Graham Oliver, 2018 The prologue is a preliminary opening up of the educational problematic. The full scale of our issues aren’t visible in this small beginning. Because we are so unused to thinking very deeply about education and the ethical enormity of

What is education? Chapter 1

Chapter 1: What is education?

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Part 1: What is Education? Chapter 1 . Introduction: What is education? This chapter explains the difference between education and schooling. It proposes that the purpose of education to to enable learners to develop their own good life, which inevitably has much to do with defining a good society. Anything less than giving priority to

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Part 1: What is Education? Chapter 1 . Introduction: What is education? This chapter explains the difference between education and schooling. It proposes that the purpose of education to to enable learners to develop their own good life, which inevitably has much to do with defining a good society. Anything less than giving priority to

Chapter 2: Our store of educational ideas

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    Vocational training has competed with education, right from the origins of education itself. Jobs should be subordinate to questions of living well. But vocational preparation so often wins out over what we need in order to achieve a good life. The only way that education can compete with vocational training is for us

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    Vocational training has competed with education, right from the origins of education itself. Jobs should be subordinate to questions of living well. But vocational preparation so often wins out over what we need in order to achieve a good life. The only way that education can compete with vocational training is for us

Chapter 3: The anatomy of respect

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Chapter 3:The anatomy of respect The justifications that are offered for education are invariably too vague to stand as decision-making principles – or to hold individuals and institutions accountable. Expanding on the idea that education needs to be justified by the worth of the person forces us to remarkable conclusions This chapter explains the structure

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Chapter 3:The anatomy of respect The justifications that are offered for education are invariably too vague to stand as decision-making principles – or to hold individuals and institutions accountable. Expanding on the idea that education needs to be justified by the worth of the person forces us to remarkable conclusions This chapter explains the structure

The practice of self-respect

Chapter 4: The practice of self-respect

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Chapter 4: The practice of self-respect Our respect for ourselves needs to be expressed in our action – towards developing and living good lives. This is a difficult undertaking, and to do it, there is much to learn. This chapter on respect is concerned with how to respect ourselves through learning and growing, including the

Chapter 4: The practice of self-respect Read More »

Chapter 4: The practice of self-respect Our respect for ourselves needs to be expressed in our action – towards developing and living good lives. This is a difficult undertaking, and to do it, there is much to learn. This chapter on respect is concerned with how to respect ourselves through learning and growing, including the

Chapter 5: The Love model

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Chapter 5: The “love” model Here is the “love” model; a way of thinking about ethical agreements. The model changes the usual assumptions of self-interest that lie behind negotiation and compromise, enabling an almost unlimited incorporation of interests. The “love model” is an alternative description of the “Golden Rule”, and we can use these to

Chapter 5: The Love model Read More »

Chapter 5: The “love” model Here is the “love” model; a way of thinking about ethical agreements. The model changes the usual assumptions of self-interest that lie behind negotiation and compromise, enabling an almost unlimited incorporation of interests. The “love model” is an alternative description of the “Golden Rule”, and we can use these to

Education needs a Copernican Revolution

Chapter 6: The need for a Copernican revolution in educational thinking

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Part 2: Taking Respect Seriously Chapter 6: The need for a Copernican Revolution in educational thinking   We need a Copernican Revolution in our educational thinking if “education” is ever to be worthy of the name. We are obsessed with schooling. Education and schooling are spoken of interchangeably, despite the fact that everyone knows that

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Part 2: Taking Respect Seriously Chapter 6: The need for a Copernican Revolution in educational thinking   We need a Copernican Revolution in our educational thinking if “education” is ever to be worthy of the name. We are obsessed with schooling. Education and schooling are spoken of interchangeably, despite the fact that everyone knows that