Essay
The notion of a teacher and public traditions taught in schools.
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- University Of Johannesburg (UJ)
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The notion of a teacher and public traditions taught in schools.Introduction.
This essay serves to discuss the manner in which Stenhouse perceives the role of educators
within the educational institute and how this is interwoven with the functions of school. As per
Stenhouse's perspective it is the role of the educator to transmit knowledge to learners in a way
that it will still be comprehensible and valid to learners even if an obstacle is encountered
(Stenhouse, 1983). Thus, it can be inferred that his interpretations of educators are that they are
the captains of the educational ship, in which students are the crew set sail. However, it is the
school who provides tools and manuals for which the captain (educator) is to guide the crew
(students). This guidance into how they should respond to distinct challenges and the
knowledge to detect when a crew is bound to make an error is a responsibility of the educator
and thus a prerequisite is to find improved alternatives. It can be ascertained that in the past
certain aspects of theory in education have been expressed in a hyperbolic manner meaning
that a lot more attention and focus is placed on the more dominant groups of society in the
theory part of knowledge of a culture (Stenhouse, 1983). This has resulted in educational
institutes placing greater emphasis on the process of initiation to the entity of culture as part of
the learning experience and requirements. Firstly, this essay will discuss the notion of a teacher
being the responsibility and task to translate this knowledge of culture to student. Secondly, it
will investigate the relationship between social traditions and places of learning. It will also
compare and contrast the different ideologies of Stenhouse (1983) and R.S. Peters (1967) on
the basis of culture being learned.
The education of culture can be perceived as a method that can lead to the emancipation of
individuals. Thus, as an educator you are delegated with the task to provide the aids necessary
for your learners to enter the ‘commonwealth’ of knowledge. It is arts, skills, languages,
conventions and values which embody knowledge (Stenhouse, 1983). Culture can then be
defined as ‘that complex whole which includes knowledge, belief, art, morals, law, custom and
any other capabilities and habits acquired by man as a member of society’ (Tylor, 1871). Culture
is subsequently a determinant of our actions, we observe this as it dictates to us who we may
interact with, when we may interact with them, and what you may talk to them about. It is
possible to view culture as the medium through which human minds interact in communications.
It can then be queried that culture is an abstract object. Culture is an ‘intellectual commodity’
and it is because of this that schools utilize this product to determine and extract the educational
content delivered (Stenhouse 1983). As per Giroux (1981) schools are institutions of cultural
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, and social reproduction that embody what Pierre Bourdieu calls ‘cultural capital’. However, this
cultural capital present is possessed and controlled by those individuals within a minority of a
society. It is agreed that this commodity is public tradition. It is the school that is tasked to
provide learners with the availability and access to the society’s categories of emotional,
technical and intellectual commodities (Stenhouse, 1983). The bodies of knowledge consist of
the arts, skills, languages, conventions involving initiation and grooming, and values all existing
as sociofacts. It is this complex as a whole that is inclusive of knowledge, belief, art, morals,
law, customs and numerous alternative capabilities acquired by an individual which defines him
as being a part of society (Tylor, 1871).
The disparity between Stenhouse (1983) and Peters (1965) can be investigated as such Peters
and Stenhouse had relatively similar views regarding knowledge. Peters promoted that the main
aim of an educator is to pass over knowledge in such a way that it develops life in the minds of
others, he believed that the knowledge taught should be of value, while Stenhouse expresses
knowledge by arguing that knowledge should be useful in other's thinking, this eludes to the
idea of knowledge learnt by an individual being relevant and relatable so that one can take what
has been learnt in the classroom and society and implement it in everyday life. Stenhouse
moves forward to argue that knowledge that has been observed without sufficient structure to
internalize it, is likely not to be embedded in long term memory. Peters subsequently agrees
with Stenhouse by stating that the comprehension of principles is basic to the procurement of
knowledge which is higher thinking and knowledge which should not be inert (Battle, 1965).
The content delivered in educational processes must thus be transmitted, learned and shared. It
can be agreed that cultural variations are of more interest to investigate than congruencies
shared. Social interaction is dynamic, it is constantly revolving and adapting to meet modern
requirements and is thus never stationary. Education exists to facilitate the learning of cultural
groups external from one’s own cultural belonging. The community one matures in either has a
concept that is stated clearly or implied without being stated. The school is thus merely a
distributor of knowledge rather than a creator of it as the first steps and most integral knowledge
is initiated within the community and further developed by the school. Learners are often
exposed to diverse environments whether be it in their community or even places of worship,
thus they tend to acquire variation in the forms of knowledge and skills external of their school
environment. This is also based on the arguments raised by Stenhouse that knowledge can at
some point originate exterior to the confined walls of the school environment. This is corroborated
by the social scientist perspective that the intention of the concept of ‘culture’ might also be
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