It's Not Education that Scares Me, It's the Educators...: Is there Still Hope for Democracy in Education, and Education for Democracy? - Softcover

Democracy and education are commonly used in public discourse. Yet these two grand words are often regrettably misunderstood. Paul and Gina's timely book offers fresh and critical perspectives on democracy and education and what they can become, particularly for those who have been historically oppressed. Educators, policymakers, researchers, and avid readers genuinely interested in knowing or at least imagining what education for all might look like in a democratic society should not miss this amazing empirical work!--Pierre W. Orelus, Fairfield University "Generation after generation has amassed piles of knowledge and written piles of books," cries a teacher in Bertolt Brecht's play The Mother (1931). "And never have we seen such confusion," he continues. How apt are these words, written almost a century ago, and how timely the topic of Professor Paul R. Carr and Professor Gina Th s e's book on democracy and its links to education. We desperately need to find the roots for democracy and democratic education anew, and that's exactly what the authors are looking for.--Juha Suoranta, Tampere University With our fragile democracy under siege, fake news obfuscating truth at every turn, and a newly invigorated White supremacy on brazen display, this book--more than ever--is required reading. A critically engaged and participatory democracy is our only hope for resistance, resilience, and, ultimately, justice. By interrogating (read more)--Marc Spooner, University of Regina Against all odds, Carr & Th s e have created a book that offers hope for the potential of democracy in education. Exhibiting a rare balance of critical scholarship, possibility, and readability, they show how teachers are responsible for the kind of transformative education required for authentic democracy and compassionate global citizenship. In re-imagining how (read more)--Four Arrows (Don Trent Jacobs), Fielding Graduate University In their book "It's not Education that Scares me, it's the Educators..." Is There Still Hope for Democracy in Education, and Education for Democracy?, Paul R. Carr & Gina Th s e investigate and analyze the possibilities and hopes for a global transformative and democratic education. Any important transformative education must (read more)--William M. Reynolds, Georgia Southern University Carr and Th s e's combined talents and life forces pierce our consciousness and awaken our democratic barometers with provocative questions and evoke an urgency to conduct a democratic audit and action plan. During these troubled times, as democracy seemingly (read more)--Suzanne SooHoo, Chapman University

We are not "scared" of educators but do understand the fear that many may and do feel, and why some people may believe that "education" has a disproportionately negative effect on them and those close to them. With so much wealth, technological prowess, innovation, and economic development, why do we still have marginalization, social inequalities, conflict, mass incarceration and generational poverty? The connection to democracy, Education for Democracy (EfD) and social justice is, for Carr and Thesee, clear, and this volume interweaves a narrative within these themes based on a Freirian theoretical backdrop. Aiming to deconstruct, re-imagine and plan for a more meaningful, vibrant, social-just-based democracy that problematizes the normative, representative, hegemonic democracy in place that holds sway over formal relations, institutions, processes and education is a central preoccupation for the authors. This book presents a vision for transformative education and EfD, seeking to cultivate, stimulate and support political and media literacy, critical engagement and a re-conceptualization of what education is, and, importantly, how it can address entrenched, systemic and institutional problems that plague society. Based on over a decade of empirical research in a range of contexts and jurisdictions, the authors strive to link teaching and learning with agency, solidarity, action and transformative change within the conceptual framework of a critically-engaged EfD.