Chapter 31

Education and Society

Yoshi Budd

Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT)

Abstract The relationship between education and society is complex and

fraught with contesting beliefs about what should be taught and how. In
this chapter, I will explore this complex relationship from the perspective
of my own and my pre-service teachers’ personal and professional experi-
ences: experiences that have shaped personal values and relationships, as
well as professional beliefs and teaching priorities. In this way, I hope to
make visible not only the ways in which education shapes society but also
the ways in which society shapes teachers’ understandings of the means
and ends of education. I begin by sharing my own memories as a learner,
reflecting on how my personal and educational experiences haves shaped
my values and beliefs as a teacher educator. Next, I discuss the ways in
which the following chapters in this section also offer unique perspectives
on the relationship between educational and society.

Introduction

When I hear the word “education”, I don’t think about any specific educa-
tional institution or even my own educational experiences. Instead, I won-
der about the many contexts in which education takes place. I wonder,
“Whose knowledge and for what purpose?” I believe that knowledge is
produced through social and institutional relationships: an outcome of gen-
erations of cultural traditions and practices that frame and order human re-
lationships with each other and with the natural world. Knowledge is also
personal; uniquely shaped and interpreted through individual experiences
and one’s social position.. Consequently, all forms of knowledge are inher-
ently political as they reflect the social, personal and material conditions in
which they are produced.

The more closely one’s lived experiences align with the forms of know-
ledge and behaviours valued by the society in which they live, the stronger
one’s sense of identity and belonging. However, as the material conditions
and background experiences of individual members of a society can vary
greatly, for example, in terms of (dis)ability, religious beliefs, socio-eco-
nomic conditions, or ethnicity, the forms of knowledge promoted by edu-
cation systems may not resonate with all educational stakeholders. Educa-
tion can serve to ameliorate these differences to some degree through the
promotion of a common curriculum. However, at times, both learners and
teachers may find themselves questioning the relevance or appropriateness
of educational content and practices.

Who Was I?

My first memory of Australia is of me hiding in a bush. My mother said

she had dropped me off at the pre-school, but when she returned to collect
me she was told that no one had seen me arrive. I must have been found,
however, because my mother described me as being wet and covered in
mosquito bites when returned to her care. Perhaps this experience coloured
my expectations of adults’ ability to communicate effectively with each
other. Indeed, I have retained many memories of unsettling incidents re-
lated to miscommunication: usually involving my mother. To be fair, my
mother is Japanese so English is not her first language and, even after fifty
years in Australia, English phonemes continue to be a challenge. I recall
finding containers in the kitchen labelled “Prums” and “Plunes”, and then
there were her misadventures with mnemonic strategies, such as the time
she called her golfing partner Chestnut instead of Hazel, or the time she
complained that a loud noise hurt her “drumsticks”. As the only Asian girl
in the primary school, I wanted desperately to fit in. I also tried make my
 3

mother fit in by constantly pointing out her inadequacies: “Mum! It’s

‘W’!, ‘wool’, not ‘ool’. Look at my lips. ‘W’!”

Perhaps those petty agonies of my youth were instrumental in promoting

my interest in languages and my obsession with correct language use. I
found the study of high school French to be particularly satisfying as the
end goal of learning another language seemed to be relatively transparent:
learn new vocabulary and apply recently taught grammatical principles in
writing to demonstrate effective communication skills. This confirmed my
belief that the goal of education is to “get it right”, with a “ten out of ten”
being its own reward. With this end in mind, I learned how to learn by
memorising new vocabulary and sentence structures; reconfiguring sen-
tences to communicate in various, commonplace social scenarios; and con-
firming progress to myself and others through test results. This technique
worked well for me during my primary and secondary years of schooling.
During my years at university, however, I began to question my assump-
tions about the value of “ten out of ten”.

As a young child, I wanted to be understood. Being understood meant that

I was “normal” and that I belonged in the small country community in
which I lived, even though I was constantly reminded of the ways in which
I was different: for example, when I saw my Asian features in a reflection;
when teachers constantly mispronounced my name; when people voiced
their surprise at my “good English”; when asked, “Where do you come
from?”. Over time, I learned that that we don’t communicate to others who
we are and where we belong through language alone, but also through our
physical appearances and behaviours.

Who Am I Now?

If I look back to my past, I can see how my early experiences have shaped
my interest in language education. Nevertheless, my beliefs, behaviours
and priorities have changed over time and, as a result, I no longer ask my-
self who I am. Instead, I ask, “What do I need to achieve and who do I
need to be in order to achieve it?” My identity is, therefore, inseparable
4

from my priorities which are, in turn, shaped by my social and material

conditions. Haraway (1998) makes the point that, “The only way to find a
larger vision is to be somewhere in particular.” (p. 590), and this is cer-
tainly true in my case. The way I view the world depends on who I am at a
given point in time and space. Who I am is not an immutable condition,
but an ever-changing state depending on who I’m with, where I am, and
what I’m doing. This is the paradox Haraway refers to when she notes the
interdependency of a personal standpoint and larger, social vision.

As a teacher educator, I believe that education represents the larger vision

of a society and is, therefore, like the concept of social justice (Gale and
Densmore 2000, p. 74) in that it is not a “given”, but an abstract concept
shaped by prevailing material and political conditions. I endorse the educa-
tional goals of social equity and cultural diversity, but I have also experi-
enced the ways in which institutional practices can be predominantly dir-
ective (Giroux 2003), through its emphasis on a common curriculum that
privileges some forms of knowledge over others.

As a teacher of English and Languages Other Than English (LOTE), I

have experienced the inequitable delivery of these two, mandatory learning
areas: through the length of study time allocated and through timetabling,
when LOTE often clashed with maths or science or was taught on a Friday
afternoon. I have also experienced the marginalisation of LOTE through
testing regimes, when LOTE time was sacrificed in preparation for na-
tional literacy and numeracy testing, and through behaviour management
practices, when a LOTE student in detention was released by a sports
teacher who needed the student to play in a match. Schooling, therefore, as
the instrument of education, tacitly communicates social and cultural
norms including values and behaviours, and hierarchies of key learning
areas (KLAs).

Education and schooling are different sides of the same coin and represent
the paradox of education in Australia, where efforts to create a more equit-
able society and “close the gap” between high and low achievers have
simply reproduced patterns of inequality. Physical and cognitive (dis)abil-
ities, gender, race, age, culture, ethnicity, and socio-economic background
all impact on teachers’ and students’ experiences of and engagement with
 5

schooling. Even as education aspires to moral and intellectual transforma-

tions, the practices of schooling reinforce traditional forms of knowledge,
reward ethical and intellectual compliance, and rationalize social stratifica-
tion. Apple (2008) explains that schools are “... part of the cultural appar-
atus of society … They are key mechanisms in determining what is so-
cially valued as ‘legitimate knowledge’ …”. (p. 254).

As a teacher educator, I promote a critical pedagogy: a stance that em-

powers pre-service teachers by developing their understanding of author-
ised forms of curriculum and pedagogy while at the same time developing
their capacity to question the broader, social values and practices that over-
look or silence alternative ways of knowing or being in the world. This is
not to say that anything goes. Instead, a critical pedagogy explores the
standpoint of both teachers and learners to question the neutrality of what
is taught and how it is received by learners. Mackenzie (2011) makes the
point that, “Teachers don’t just deliver a curriculum, rather they develop,
refine, transform, interpret and prioritise …” (p. 324).

In the following paragraphs, I share pre-service teachers’ standpoints as

they reflect on pedagogical issues they experienced during their time in
schools. These issues are diverse and include teacher pedagogy in the early
years; the effect of NAPLAN testing on teachers, parents and students; the
importance of empathy; the relationship between culture, gender and stu-
dent engagement in learning; and ethical dilemmas faced by parents and
teachers of students with a disability.

Education and Society

In Chapter 32, Demi Cubillo reflects on recent changes to the Australian

early years curriculum that now authorises play as an authentic and holistic
approach to teaching and learning. As a teacher, I have used play to engage
students in learning at all year levels but there have been times when the
classroom layout or school policy has not been conducive to play. Demi
investigates the factors that influence teachers’ decision to use play-based
learning or Direct Instruction and explains why pedagogical decisions are
6

not black or white, but influenced by the age of students, administrative

and curriculum requirements, and physical environments.

In Chapter 33, Rebecca Wood reflects on the factors that influence stu-
dents’ and teachers’ experience of standardised testing and questions its
social ramification. Rebecca notes the moral dilemma of standardised test-
ing, which stigmatises those students who are not required to sit the test. I
have also experienced the ways in which aggressive accountability meas-
ures can pressure teachers to engage in teaching and assessment practices
that work against the educational goals of inclusion and diversity and un-
derstand Rebecca’s concerns about high stakes testing processes. I see the
disconnection between education for inclusion and education for sifting
and sorting students into “those who can’ and those who cannot”.

In Chapter 34, Elizabeth McGuire explores the relationship between na-

tional literacy testing and cross-curriculum priorities such as creativity,
problem-solving and personal and social capability. Like Elizabeth, I see
the irony inherent in the testing of discrete skill sets that reduces learning
to a narrow range of prescribed responses. Elizabeth demonstrates her
agency as classroom teacher by re-envisaging external testing regimes as
opportunities for creating a collaborative and empathetic classroom cul-
ture. It is evident that, like Rebecca, Elizabeth considers education to be
first and foremost, an ethical and moral social enterprise.

In Chapter 35 Blake Watherston explores ways to integrate Indigenous

knowledge into his teaching of curriculum content. The African proverb,
“when lost, go back to departure point” (Cherinda 2015, p.1), seems relev-
ant here, because Blake retraces the steps of his own journey that has led to
a growing understanding of the complex relationship between culture,
community, and knowledge. As a teacher, Blake endorses an alternative
curriculum: one that draws from the knowledge of Aboriginal Community
and Liaison Officers to recognise cultural diversity.

In Chapter 36 Casey Ellis also questions the relevance of mainstream

schooling for students who do not identify with the behavioural norms and
knowledge practices promoted by Western cultures. Casey’s early memor-
ies of primary school bring into sharp focus the ways that competing defin-
itions and meanings of culture and social life also represent the struggle of
 7

competing world views. Australian culture is not monolithic (Smith and

Sachs 1988). It is rich because it is diverse and, like Casey, I hope all
teachers strive to create safe teaching and learning environments in which
children can share their concerns, their interests and experiences without
judgement, and listen to the voices of others in turn.

In Chapter 37, Jack Burton investigates ways to engage girls in physical

education. Jack’s use of tropes, such as “combat”, and “tackle” signals the
aggressive nature of engagement in physical education: a perspective that
does not align with socio-cultural constructions of femininity (Cockburn
and Clarke 2002). Furthermore, a number of studies (Porter 2002; Coakley
and White 1992; Orme 1991) confirm girls’ concerns over body image and
support Jack’s observation of girls’ general “lack of confidence”. Although
the gendered norms of western society are not addressed, Jack’s willing-
ness to change from mixed gender teams to all-girl teams allows girls to
engage with a greater sense of freedom..

In Chapter 38, Jing Weng investigates the difference between teacher-par-

ent relationships in Australian and Chinese schools. What may be con-
strued as excessive parental interference from an Australian teacher’s per-
spective, can be explained from a Chinese perspective as a parent’s right to
be actively involved in, and supportive of, their child’s education. My own
experiences of misunderstandings between teachers and parents reinforce
my belief in the importance of establishing and maintaining open lines of
communications with all parents and avoid assumptions based on cultural
stereotypes or social norms. This is exactly what Jing has done, engaging
in open dialogue with parents and adjusting her classroom practice in re-
sponse to their expectations.

Finally, in Chapter 39, Kathryn Hamilton reflects on the nature of inclu-

sion by asking what kind of school is best for a child with a mild intellec-
tual or physical disability. Kathryn’s discussion with parents reveals how
what is best for the individual student becomes entangled with social and
institutional infrastructures: educational policy, the cost and availability of
transport systems, staff support, the availability of professional services,
and the concerns of family members regarding the child’s need to feel safe
and supported by the school community.
8

Conclusion

Education means different things to different people (Biesta 2016). Al-

though “… current views of education and society have stressed the cent-
rality of diversity and tolerance” (Burbules 1997), references to equity and
social justice are undermined by the ways in which schools operate as mer-
itocracies, where students, competing for unequal outcomes, are sifted and
sorted. In addition, curriculum design, assessment practices, and behavi-
oural expectations are all part of institutional structures that reinforce hier-
archies of “difference”.

The following chapters in this section raise questions about the relation-
ship between education and society and explore the ways in which markers
of difference, such as gender, (dis)ability, and cultural background, can
shape students’ experiences of, and engagement with, education. Institu-
tional systems and environments strongly influence pedagogy and this is
why I find it inspiring to read about the ways in which pre-service teachers
engage proactively and sensitively with the issues they have encountered
in schools. They think critically about institutional practices and adjust
their own teaching practice to meet the needs of students and to respond to
the concerns of parents. These teachers are reflective practitioners.

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