Teachers and the struggle for democracy : educators as political actors

Abstract

If, as has been argued so far, education is intimately linked to issues that have to do with power and the struggle over agendas linked to different conceptions of democratic life - in schools and outside of them - then it follows, as surely as night follows day, that teachers are necessarily political actors. When educators claim that 'politics must be left out of schools', what they usually mean is that partisan politics should not be allowed to intrude in the process of learning, that students should not become victims of the political views of teachers, or of governments for that matter. And of course, that kind of claim is, in theory, correct, for as has been argued in Chapter 1 and in several other chapters in this volume, the kind of education that we are after is one that helps students develop a critical social intelligence which helps them decode and interpret what is happening around them, and which reduces the possibilities of young people being subject to manipulation of any sort. The problem is . that, if we had to dig a little deeper, and if we had to draw on the insights developed in several of the preceding chapters, we would have to conclude that education cannot but be political, and that teachers are, willingly or not, involved in socialising students into world views that have political implications (Ginsburg et al., 1992). A few examples will suffice. Imagine a teacher who asks students to stand up when she enters the classroom. Nothing very political about that, one might say. But let us consider the messages that are implicitly being given to students: for instance, that teachers are authority figures, worthy of respect; that one has to show such respect publicly and regularly, and that one has to submit openly to such authority. I am not making a case that teachers should not ask students to stand up. I am just claiming that this expectation is rich with political significance, and helps to promote a world view in which authority and hierarchical relations are 'normal' and acceptable features of life. Another example: a primary school teacher needs to move a desk from its place. He calls Peter to help him, despite the fact that Grace has volunteered to help. Nothing earth-shattering about that, but again, the political implications are important, for girls are constructed as being physically weak. They are being told either that they are not capable of handling heavy objects, or that it is inappropriate and not quite feminine for them to do so. That too is political, as is the obverse, i.e. if a teacher expects girls and boys to move beyond the traditional gender stereotypes that govern the social setting they inhabit, or if a teacher decides to treat students in a manner that is not hierarchical. Even doing 'nothing' is a political act: when a teacher, for instance, does not contest the validity of examinations, even if s/he does not believe in their utility, s/he is helping to uphold their very existence. It seems that teachers, therefore, like other human beings, are 'political animals', they cannot be neutral, and their actions and non-actions will work in the interests - or against the interests - of the young people they are responsible for. Of course, the examples I have given, taken on their own and out of context, seem trite. But school life is made up of several such examples, all of which add up to the development of specific life-forms, and what is sometimes referred to as the character or 'ethos' ofthe school. As they go abouttheir work, teachers are obliged to choose from a range of possible alternatives that have to do with what to teach, how to teach, how to assess, which social relations and structures they wish to promote, and so on. The fact that we are often not aware of these alternatives does not mean that they do not exist, or that we do not have 'the option to act otherwise' (Giddens, 1984). It could mean that we are so encapsulated in a common-sense world that we do not even imagine that the situation could be constructed differently. Or perhaps it could be that we do see the possibilities of alternative action, but we are too afraid to challenge tradition, beliefs, the status quo. Why should we do that after all? And do we have the right to 'confuse' children's and young people's minds, problematising what often is a difficult existence anyway (Young, 1990), by questioning gender roles, for instance, or by giving them messages that create conflict with what they learn at home, at Church, in other classes? These are very serious issues, and are not easily resolved. But if we want to take our role as intellectuals seriously, that is if we want to develop the ability and the courage to engage with the world as it is, and to challenge it rather than acquiescently accept it - then we cannot be happy with an unexamined life, with a view of teaching that aspires only to pass on a pre-determined curriculum, or with a 'professional' life that is content with diplomatic friendliness with colleagues, where controversial issues and conflict are avoided, and where fulfilment is sought in a retreat in the classroom, where the institutional and national politics that define the context are ignored. A teacher who has intensified his or her awareness of the problematic nature of schools, who recognises the significance and importance of real issues such as those identified by the group of researchers in this book, cannot but wish to make a positive difference to children's lives, and cannot but wish to do so by furthering the growth of social contexts, inside and outside of schools, that are characterised by such values as democracy, caring, solidarity, equity, fairness and so on. In other words, teachers not only cannot but be political, they need to be political in the most self-conscious manner in classrooms and schools, as a professional body and as citizens in the wider community, contributing, as transformative intellectuals, to the building of democratic practices in as many social sites as possible (Giroux, 1988a, b). In the next sections, I will develop this theme, looking at the political work of teachers both in the micro-context of the school, and in the larger, institutional and community contexts.