Michael Hand is Professor of Philosophy of Education at the University of Birmingham. He is editor of the IMPACT pamphlet series and the Bloomsbury Philosophy of Education book series. His latest book is A Theory of Moral Education (Routledge, 2018).
How should patriotism be handled in schools? We argue that schools cannot afford to ignore the to... more How should patriotism be handled in schools? We argue that schools cannot afford to ignore the topic, but nor are they justified in either promoting or discouraging patriotic feeling in students. The only defensible policy is for schools to adopt a stance of neutrality and teach ...
Because there are good arguments both for and against loving one’s country, patriotism should be ... more Because there are good arguments both for and against loving one’s country, patriotism should be taught as a controversial issue in schools. But is this pedagogical approach practically viable in the British educational context? Here we report on a small‐scale survey of teachers and students in secondary schools and show that their perspectives and practices are highly compatible with our recommended approach.
In his belated reply to my 2006 article 'Against autonomy as an educational aim', Christian Wende... more In his belated reply to my 2006 article 'Against autonomy as an educational aim', Christian Wendelborn advances two objections to my argument and proposes two new candidates for an educational aim deserving of the name autonomy. I show here that his objections miss their mark and that neither of his new candidates is appointable.
Sharon Lamb, Sam Gable and Doret de Ruyter have recently argued that sex education in schools sho... more Sharon Lamb, Sam Gable and Doret de Ruyter have recently argued that sex education in schools should promote a more demanding standard for morally permissible sex than consent. On their view, pupils should be taught that morally permissible sex is not only consensual but also mutual, where mutuality requires participants in sex to ‘try to know what is knowable’ about each other. I argue here that, while Lamb et al. are right about the insufficiency of consent, the case for mutuality as a standard of moral permissibility cannot be sustained. Mutuality fares better as a standard of moral desirability, but even in this weaker form, it is too controversial to promote in schools.
states, what the teachers teach 5 Nicole Brown: The construction of academic identity under the i... more states, what the teachers teach 5 Nicole Brown: The construction of academic identity under the influence of fibromyalgia 6 Fouzia Choudry: An investigation into the barriers to participation in education and employment for female Muslim ESOL learners 7 Heather Cockayne: 'I should work harder, just work harder to make sure I get my MA degree: An exploratory study of the lived experience of Chinese postgraduates in a UK university 8 Belinda Ferguson: Using student voice to develop feedback to enhance learning 9 Alexandra Georgiou: An ethnographic case study of the linguistic practices of newly arrived migrant children in a Cypriot primary school 10 Jon Harrison: Making connections in workplace learning: Why we should take humour seriously 11 Joshua Heyes: 'I liked it but I was also disgusted': Challenging British sex and relationships education through Christian young people's experiences of romantic relationships 12 Aray Ilyassova: The applicability of the policy transfer framework to understanding Higher Education reforms in Kazakhstan: the case of the Bologna Process
Michael Gove recently proposed that the Independent School Standards require schools to ‘actively... more Michael Gove recently proposed that the Independent School Standards require schools to ‘actively promote’ British values. But in what sense are democracy, liberty, respect, tolerance and the rule of law supposed to be British? The answer is a hope on the government’s part that schools might be able to strengthen allegiance to liberal democratic values by tying it up with national identity. Michael Hand argues that this strategy risks putting these values on a precarious footing, given the vicissitudes of national sentiment. Moreover, since many children may not think of themselves as British, they may well draw the inference that these values are not for them.
states, what the teachers teach 5 Nicole Brown: The construction of academic identity under the i... more states, what the teachers teach 5 Nicole Brown: The construction of academic identity under the influence of fibromyalgia 6 Fouzia Choudry: An investigation into the barriers to participation in education and employment for female Muslim ESOL learners 7 Heather Cockayne: 'I should work harder, just work harder to make sure I get my MA degree: An exploratory study of the lived experience of Chinese postgraduates in a UK university 8 Belinda Ferguson: Using student voice to develop feedback to enhance learning 9 Alexandra Georgiou: An ethnographic case study of the linguistic practices of newly arrived migrant children in a Cypriot primary school 10 Jon Harrison: Making connections in workplace learning: Why we should take humour seriously 11 Joshua Heyes: 'I liked it but I was also disgusted': Challenging British sex and relationships education through Christian young people's experiences of romantic relationships 12 Aray Ilyassova: The applicability of the policy transfer framework to understanding Higher Education reforms in Kazakhstan: the case of the Bologna Process
In Moral Education in a Secular Society, Paul Hirst offers accounts of the content and justificat... more In Moral Education in a Secular Society, Paul Hirst offers accounts of the content and justification of morality and the aims and methods of moral education. My own recent book, A Theory of Moral Education, does the same. Here I explore the similarities and differences between our theories. In the first part of the essay, I outline what Hirst calls the ‘sophisticated view of education’, which I wholeheartedly endorse, and highlight his attention to the noncognitive as well as the cognitive aspects of morality. In the second part, I explain how Hirst’s transcendental justification of morality differs from my contractarian justification, and trace the implications of this difference for our respective accounts of moral education.
There has not been a Professor of Philosophy of Education at the University of Birmingham for som... more There has not been a Professor of Philosophy of Education at the University of Birmingham for some time. Prior to my appointment, the title was last held here by Robert Dearden, from 1978 until his retirement in 1989. Dearden, along with Richard Peters and Paul Hirst, was one of the founding fathers of philosophy of education as a distinct academic field in the UK. His best known book, The Philosophy of Primary Education (Dearden, 1968), effectively demolished the child-centred growth theory that dominated thinking about primary education in the 1960s. And his name is closely associated with the still influential idea that the central aim of education is the development of personal autonomy. Dearden gave his own inaugural lecture 35 years ago, in February 1979. Entitled 'Theory and practice in education', the lecture drew some important distinctions between different kinds of educational theory and their relation to practice (Dearden, 1984). As my intention today is to sketch the contours of a theory of moral education, it may be instructive to begin by locating my project within the wider conceptual landscape Dearden maps.
RELIGIOUS EDUCATION (RE) currently enjoys the status of a compulsory curriculum subject in state ... more RELIGIOUS EDUCATION (RE) currently enjoys the status of a compulsory curriculum subject in state schools in England and Wales.1 There is, at present, a broad consensus among policy-makers on two distinct justifications for compulsory RE: (i) that an understanding of religious individuals and communities better equips pupils for life in a multicultural society; and (ii) that the study of religion is morally educative. The authors of the present paper agree that neither of these justifications is adequate. In his contribution to a recent volume on the school curriculum2, Hand sets out an alternative rationale for the study of religion in schools, which he calls the possibility-of-truth case (Hand, 2003). The following dialogue explores the adequacy of Hand's argument.
Analyses of the ordinary concept of intelligence are few and far between in philosophical literat... more Analyses of the ordinary concept of intelligence are few and far between in philosophical literature. Such analyses as there have been in recent years are heavily influenced by Ryle's suggestion that to act intelligently is to act well or competently in a particular domain. Here I show that there are serious problems with Ryle's account and try to offer a more adequate analysis. I argue that to be intelligent is to have an aptitude for theory-intensive activities . I go on to explain why I think the ordinary concept of intelligence is a useful one for those professionally involved in the practice of education.
The 'new school system' described in the Schools White Paper (DfE, 2010) presents religious organ... more The 'new school system' described in the Schools White Paper (DfE, 2010) presents religious organisations with two interesting opportunities. The first is an opportunity to play a significantly enhanced role in the management of faith-based schools. The second is an opportunity to rethink quite radically the content of their curricula. In this paper I advance a proposal for the consideration of religious organisations: that they take up the opportunity to develop innovative, religiously distinctive curricula whilst eschewing the activity of confessional religious education. I show how non-confessional, faith-based curricula are possible and offer some suggestions about what they might include. The Schools White Paper The Importance of Teaching (DfE, 2010) sets out the Coalition Government's vision for a 'new school system' in the UK. The panacea with which the nation's various educational ills are to be treated is school autonomy, construed as the devolution of 'as much decision-making to school level as possible' (para 5.1). This devolution of power is to be achieved by enabling and encouraging all schools to become Academies: 'It is our ambition that Academy status should be the norm for all state schools' (para 5.6). Academies are schools directly funded by and accountable to central government. They are legally classified as independent schools on the grounds that they are independent of local authority control. Academies must offer a 'balanced and broadly based curriculum' and must provide education for 'pupils of different abilities' and 'pupils who are wholly or mainly drawn from the area in which the school is situated' (Academies Act, 2010, Section 1.6). Unlike local authority maintained schools, they are not required to teach the National Curriculum and are free to set their own pay and conditions for staff and to change the lengths of terms and school days.
How should patriotism be handled in schools? We argue that schools cannot afford to ignore the to... more How should patriotism be handled in schools? We argue that schools cannot afford to ignore the topic, but nor are they justified in either promoting or discouraging patriotic feeling in students. The only defensible policy is for schools to adopt a stance of neutrality and teach ...
Because there are good arguments both for and against loving one’s country, patriotism should be ... more Because there are good arguments both for and against loving one’s country, patriotism should be taught as a controversial issue in schools. But is this pedagogical approach practically viable in the British educational context? Here we report on a small‐scale survey of teachers and students in secondary schools and show that their perspectives and practices are highly compatible with our recommended approach.
In his belated reply to my 2006 article 'Against autonomy as an educational aim', Christian Wende... more In his belated reply to my 2006 article 'Against autonomy as an educational aim', Christian Wendelborn advances two objections to my argument and proposes two new candidates for an educational aim deserving of the name autonomy. I show here that his objections miss their mark and that neither of his new candidates is appointable.
Sharon Lamb, Sam Gable and Doret de Ruyter have recently argued that sex education in schools sho... more Sharon Lamb, Sam Gable and Doret de Ruyter have recently argued that sex education in schools should promote a more demanding standard for morally permissible sex than consent. On their view, pupils should be taught that morally permissible sex is not only consensual but also mutual, where mutuality requires participants in sex to ‘try to know what is knowable’ about each other. I argue here that, while Lamb et al. are right about the insufficiency of consent, the case for mutuality as a standard of moral permissibility cannot be sustained. Mutuality fares better as a standard of moral desirability, but even in this weaker form, it is too controversial to promote in schools.
states, what the teachers teach 5 Nicole Brown: The construction of academic identity under the i... more states, what the teachers teach 5 Nicole Brown: The construction of academic identity under the influence of fibromyalgia 6 Fouzia Choudry: An investigation into the barriers to participation in education and employment for female Muslim ESOL learners 7 Heather Cockayne: 'I should work harder, just work harder to make sure I get my MA degree: An exploratory study of the lived experience of Chinese postgraduates in a UK university 8 Belinda Ferguson: Using student voice to develop feedback to enhance learning 9 Alexandra Georgiou: An ethnographic case study of the linguistic practices of newly arrived migrant children in a Cypriot primary school 10 Jon Harrison: Making connections in workplace learning: Why we should take humour seriously 11 Joshua Heyes: 'I liked it but I was also disgusted': Challenging British sex and relationships education through Christian young people's experiences of romantic relationships 12 Aray Ilyassova: The applicability of the policy transfer framework to understanding Higher Education reforms in Kazakhstan: the case of the Bologna Process
Michael Gove recently proposed that the Independent School Standards require schools to ‘actively... more Michael Gove recently proposed that the Independent School Standards require schools to ‘actively promote’ British values. But in what sense are democracy, liberty, respect, tolerance and the rule of law supposed to be British? The answer is a hope on the government’s part that schools might be able to strengthen allegiance to liberal democratic values by tying it up with national identity. Michael Hand argues that this strategy risks putting these values on a precarious footing, given the vicissitudes of national sentiment. Moreover, since many children may not think of themselves as British, they may well draw the inference that these values are not for them.
states, what the teachers teach 5 Nicole Brown: The construction of academic identity under the i... more states, what the teachers teach 5 Nicole Brown: The construction of academic identity under the influence of fibromyalgia 6 Fouzia Choudry: An investigation into the barriers to participation in education and employment for female Muslim ESOL learners 7 Heather Cockayne: 'I should work harder, just work harder to make sure I get my MA degree: An exploratory study of the lived experience of Chinese postgraduates in a UK university 8 Belinda Ferguson: Using student voice to develop feedback to enhance learning 9 Alexandra Georgiou: An ethnographic case study of the linguistic practices of newly arrived migrant children in a Cypriot primary school 10 Jon Harrison: Making connections in workplace learning: Why we should take humour seriously 11 Joshua Heyes: 'I liked it but I was also disgusted': Challenging British sex and relationships education through Christian young people's experiences of romantic relationships 12 Aray Ilyassova: The applicability of the policy transfer framework to understanding Higher Education reforms in Kazakhstan: the case of the Bologna Process
In Moral Education in a Secular Society, Paul Hirst offers accounts of the content and justificat... more In Moral Education in a Secular Society, Paul Hirst offers accounts of the content and justification of morality and the aims and methods of moral education. My own recent book, A Theory of Moral Education, does the same. Here I explore the similarities and differences between our theories. In the first part of the essay, I outline what Hirst calls the ‘sophisticated view of education’, which I wholeheartedly endorse, and highlight his attention to the noncognitive as well as the cognitive aspects of morality. In the second part, I explain how Hirst’s transcendental justification of morality differs from my contractarian justification, and trace the implications of this difference for our respective accounts of moral education.
There has not been a Professor of Philosophy of Education at the University of Birmingham for som... more There has not been a Professor of Philosophy of Education at the University of Birmingham for some time. Prior to my appointment, the title was last held here by Robert Dearden, from 1978 until his retirement in 1989. Dearden, along with Richard Peters and Paul Hirst, was one of the founding fathers of philosophy of education as a distinct academic field in the UK. His best known book, The Philosophy of Primary Education (Dearden, 1968), effectively demolished the child-centred growth theory that dominated thinking about primary education in the 1960s. And his name is closely associated with the still influential idea that the central aim of education is the development of personal autonomy. Dearden gave his own inaugural lecture 35 years ago, in February 1979. Entitled 'Theory and practice in education', the lecture drew some important distinctions between different kinds of educational theory and their relation to practice (Dearden, 1984). As my intention today is to sketch the contours of a theory of moral education, it may be instructive to begin by locating my project within the wider conceptual landscape Dearden maps.
RELIGIOUS EDUCATION (RE) currently enjoys the status of a compulsory curriculum subject in state ... more RELIGIOUS EDUCATION (RE) currently enjoys the status of a compulsory curriculum subject in state schools in England and Wales.1 There is, at present, a broad consensus among policy-makers on two distinct justifications for compulsory RE: (i) that an understanding of religious individuals and communities better equips pupils for life in a multicultural society; and (ii) that the study of religion is morally educative. The authors of the present paper agree that neither of these justifications is adequate. In his contribution to a recent volume on the school curriculum2, Hand sets out an alternative rationale for the study of religion in schools, which he calls the possibility-of-truth case (Hand, 2003). The following dialogue explores the adequacy of Hand's argument.
Analyses of the ordinary concept of intelligence are few and far between in philosophical literat... more Analyses of the ordinary concept of intelligence are few and far between in philosophical literature. Such analyses as there have been in recent years are heavily influenced by Ryle's suggestion that to act intelligently is to act well or competently in a particular domain. Here I show that there are serious problems with Ryle's account and try to offer a more adequate analysis. I argue that to be intelligent is to have an aptitude for theory-intensive activities . I go on to explain why I think the ordinary concept of intelligence is a useful one for those professionally involved in the practice of education.
The 'new school system' described in the Schools White Paper (DfE, 2010) presents religious organ... more The 'new school system' described in the Schools White Paper (DfE, 2010) presents religious organisations with two interesting opportunities. The first is an opportunity to play a significantly enhanced role in the management of faith-based schools. The second is an opportunity to rethink quite radically the content of their curricula. In this paper I advance a proposal for the consideration of religious organisations: that they take up the opportunity to develop innovative, religiously distinctive curricula whilst eschewing the activity of confessional religious education. I show how non-confessional, faith-based curricula are possible and offer some suggestions about what they might include. The Schools White Paper The Importance of Teaching (DfE, 2010) sets out the Coalition Government's vision for a 'new school system' in the UK. The panacea with which the nation's various educational ills are to be treated is school autonomy, construed as the devolution of 'as much decision-making to school level as possible' (para 5.1). This devolution of power is to be achieved by enabling and encouraging all schools to become Academies: 'It is our ambition that Academy status should be the norm for all state schools' (para 5.6). Academies are schools directly funded by and accountable to central government. They are legally classified as independent schools on the grounds that they are independent of local authority control. Academies must offer a 'balanced and broadly based curriculum' and must provide education for 'pupils of different abilities' and 'pupils who are wholly or mainly drawn from the area in which the school is situated' (Academies Act, 2010, Section 1.6). Unlike local authority maintained schools, they are not required to teach the National Curriculum and are free to set their own pay and conditions for staff and to change the lengths of terms and school days.
Is Religious Education Possible?: A Philosophical Investigation tackles a well-established proble... more Is Religious Education Possible?: A Philosophical Investigation tackles a well-established problem in the philosophy of education. The problem is the threat posed to the logical possibility of non-confessional religious education by the claim that religion constitutes an autonomous language-game or form of knowledge. Defenders of this claim argue that religion cannot be understood from the outside: it is impossible to impart religious understanding unless one is also prepared to impart religious belief.
Michael Hand argues for two central points: first, that non-confessional religious education would indeed be impossible if it were true that religion constitutes a distinct form of knowledge; and, second, that religion does not in fact constitute a distinct form of knowledge.
Philosophy in Schools is a collection of original philosophical essays that together make a robus... more Philosophy in Schools is a collection of original philosophical essays that together make a robust case for the teaching of philosophy in schools. Leading philosophers of education explode the myth that philosophy is somehow too difficult or abstract for children and set out a series of compelling arguments for its inclusion in the school curriculum.
Education, Ethics and Experience is a collection of original philosophical essays celebrating the... more Education, Ethics and Experience is a collection of original philosophical essays celebrating the work of one of the most influential philosophers of education of the last 40 years. Richard Pring’s substantial body of work has addressed topics ranging from curriculum integration to the comprehensive ideal, vocational education to faith schools, professional development to the privatisation of education, moral seriousness to the nature of educational research.
The twelve essays collected here explore and build on Pring’s treatment of topics that are central to the field of philosophy of education and high on the agenda of education policy-makers. The essays are by no means uncritical: some authors disagree sharply with Pring; others see his arguments as useful but incomplete, in need of addition or amendment. But all acknowledge their intellectual debt to him and recognise him as a giant on whose shoulders they stand.
This book will be a welcome and lively read for educational academics, researchers and students of Educational Studies and Philosophy.
Children must be taught morality. They must be taught to recognise the authority of moral standar... more Children must be taught morality. They must be taught to recognise the authority of moral standards and to understand what makes them authoritative. But there’s a problem: the content and justification of morality are matters of reasonable disagreement among reasonable people. This makes it hard to see how educators can secure children’s commitment to moral standards without indoctrinating them.
In A Theory of Moral Education, Michael Hand tackles this problem head on. He sets out to show that moral education can and should be fully rational. It is true that many moral standards and justificatory theories are controversial, and educators have an obligation to teach these nondirectively, with the aim of enabling children to form their own considered views. But reasonable moral disagreement does not go all the way down: some basic moral standards are robustly justified, and these should be taught directively, with the aim of bringing children to recognise and understand their authority.
This is an original and important contribution to the philosophy of moral education and lays a new theoretical foundation for the urgent practical task of teaching right from wrong.
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Michael Hand argues for two central points: first, that non-confessional religious education would indeed be impossible if it were true that religion constitutes a distinct form of knowledge; and, second, that religion does not in fact constitute a distinct form of knowledge.
The twelve essays collected here explore and build on Pring’s treatment of topics that are central to the field of philosophy of education and high on the agenda of education policy-makers. The essays are by no means uncritical: some authors disagree sharply with Pring; others see his arguments as useful but incomplete, in need of addition or amendment. But all acknowledge their intellectual debt to him and recognise him as a giant on whose shoulders they stand.
This book will be a welcome and lively read for educational academics, researchers and students of Educational Studies and Philosophy.
In A Theory of Moral Education, Michael Hand tackles this problem head on. He sets out to show that moral education can and should be fully rational. It is true that many moral standards and justificatory theories are controversial, and educators have an obligation to teach these nondirectively, with the aim of enabling children to form their own considered views. But reasonable moral disagreement does not go all the way down: some basic moral standards are robustly justified, and these should be taught directively, with the aim of bringing children to recognise and understand their authority.
This is an original and important contribution to the philosophy of moral education and lays a new theoretical foundation for the urgent practical task of teaching right from wrong.