Philosophy of Education

This volume provides the most comprehensive and systematiccollection of essential writings on the philosophy of education.Offering a balanced treatment of the fundamental questions andphilosophical issues regarding the nature and aims of education, aswell as the central debates in current educational policy, thisbook explores topics such as teacher professionalism andaccountability, the commercialization of schooling, multiculturaleducation, parental choice, educational equality and disabilities, and curricular controversies.Selected for their focus on important issues of educationalpractice as well as their philosophical merit and readability, thereadings include seminal selections from Plato, Aristotle, Socrates, Locke, Rousseau, Mill, and Dewey, as well as numerouscontemporary writings. The five major sections of the textcorrespond to the five basic normative dimensions of educationalpractice: its nature and aims, the authority it rests on, itsresponsibilities, the manner in which it is conducted, and thecontent that is communicated or learned. This innovative frameworkgives the collection its comprehensive scope, while keeping thefocus on the fundamental philosophical issues of educationalpractice and policy.