Describe the core principles of reconstructionism. Highlight any two major merits and two major demerits it may have on teaching at the secondary school level.
Answers
Answer:
Social-reconstructionist education was based on the theory that society can be reconstructed through the complete control of education. The objective was to change society to conform to the basic ideals of the political party or government in power or to create a utopian society through education.
Explanation:
In the first half of the 20th century, communist education was possibly the most pervasive version of operational social-reconstructionism in the world. Originally based on the philosophy of Karl Marx and institutionalized in the Soviet Union, it reached a large proportion of the world’s youth. In the 1950s much attention was paid to the ideal of “polytechnization.” The human being, so the argument ran, is not simply Homo sapiens but rather Homo faber, the constructor and builder. He attains full mental, moral, and spiritual development through entering into social relations with others, particularly in cooperative efforts to produce material, artistic, and spiritual goods and achievements. The school should prepare pupils for such productive activities—for instance, by studying and, if possible, sharing in the work done in field, farm, or factory.
A different social-reconstructionist movement was that of the kibbutzim (collective farms) of Israel. The most striking feature of kibbutz education was that the parents forgo rearing and educating their offspring themselves and instead hand the children over to professional educators, sometimes immediately after birth. The kibbutzim type of education developed for both practical and economic reasons, but gradually four educational considerations gained prominence: (1) that the kibbutz way of life makes for complete equality of the sexes, (2) that the education of children in special children’s houses is the best way of perpetuating the kibbutz way of life, (3) that collective education is more “scientific” than education within the family, inasmuch as children are reared and trained by experts—i.e., qualified nurses, kindergarten teachers, and other educators—in an atmosphere free of the tensions engendered by family relationships, and (4) that collective education is more democratic than traditional education and more in keeping with the spirit of cooperative living.
Major trends and problems
The idea of social-reconstructionist education was based on a 19th-century belief in the power of education to change society. In the last quarter of the 20th century there was considerable pessimism, but the idea that schooling could influence either society or the individual was widely held, affecting the growth of tertiary-level alternatives, management strategies, and education of disadvantaged people, in both industrialized and developing countries.
The international concern with assistance to people in the non-Western world was paralleled by the inclusiveness that characterized education in the 20th century. Education was seen as a primary instrument in recognizing and providing equality for those suffering disadvantage because of sex, race, ethnic origin, age, or physical disability. This required revisions of textbooks, new consciousness about language, and change in criteria for admission to higher levels. It led to more demanding definitions of equality involving, for example, equality of outcome rather than of opportunity.
The inclusion of all children and youth was part of a general integrative trend that accelerated following World War II. It related to some newer developments as well. Concern for the Earth’s endangered environment became central, emphasizing in both intellectual and social life the need for cooperation rather than competition, the importance of understanding interrelationships of the ecosystem, and the idea that ecology could be used as an organizing concept. In a different vein, the rapid development of microelectronics, particularly the use of computers for multiple functions in education, progressed far beyond the possibilities of earlier technological advances. Although technology was thought of by some as antagonistic to humanistic concerns, others argued that it made communication and comprehension available to a wider population and encouraged “system thinking,” both ultimately integrative effects.