Teacher Education and the Social Conditions of Schooling

It is widely acknowledged in Britain and the US that teacher education has a profound role to play in the move towards a more just and humane society. The authors set out a social reconstructionist agenda for American teacher education which will be of interest to educators world-wide. Teacher Education and the Social Conditions of Schooling begins with an analysis of four traditions of reform, academic, social efficiency, developmentalist, and social reconstructivist. The authors formulate their aims within the latter tradition and present a series of proposals to help prospective teachers examine their educational beliefs, practices and the social context of schooling. The arguments are backed by examples from various teacher education programmes in the United States, Australia, and the United Kingdom.