Response to Loomis et al.: Information flows, knowledge transportability, teacher education and world culture

"The logic of convergence and uniformity in teacher production" argues for a need to understand teacher education within the history of economic institutions. In the contemporary world, so the argument goes, where global information, capital flows, and opened markets are said to be making...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inTeaching education (Columbia, S.C.) Vol. 19; no. 1; pp. 13 - 15
Main Author Ladwig, James G.
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Routledge 01.03.2008
Subjects
Economic Factors
Educational Change
Educational Environment
Educational Philosophy
Educational Policy
Educational Principles
Educational Theories
Educational Trends
Global Approach
Government Role
Government School Relationship
Influence of Technology
Institutional Environment
Organizational Culture
Role of Education
Schools of Education
Standardization
Teacher Education Programs
Technological Advancement
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Summary:"The logic of convergence and uniformity in teacher production" argues for a need to understand teacher education within the history of economic institutions. In the contemporary world, so the argument goes, where global information, capital flows, and opened markets are said to be making the world "flat", it is crucial to consider just what the institutional mechanisms are that educate the broader populations of the (entire) world and ask again just what the nature and quality of those institutions are, as institutions. For Richard Hofstadter, the institutional mechanisms that drew individuals into teaching in schools, and the mechanisms for determining what was taught and learned in schools were crucial (for him the shift from predominantly male to predominantly female teaching populations was a new thing). In this article, the author argues that an institutional focus is now not only appropriate, but imperative if teachers are to see through the sham that floats around government halls and hotel conference facilities under the banner of educational policy. Seeing schools and teacher education as economic institutions is, of course, eminently correct and important; however, as the example of Hofstadter reminds them, the view presented by economic institutionalism is also only a small portion of the story they need to understand, and at times provides a misleading focus.
ISSN:1047-6210
1470-1286
DOI:10.1080/10476210801931154