Abstract
Reviews recent definitions of education from anthropologists such as Ortner and Varenne, who draw on Geertz, Garfinkel, Ranciere, Dewey, and others to show that culture is maintained and developed by—surprisingly— ignorance and an everyday need to solve problems. Education is development of cultural wisdom evidenced in ability to meet complex challenges (do “duty”). Each paradigm develops its society’s wisdom, whether maintenance of secrets (Mende), avoiding social corruption of pristine nature (Rousseau), or application of transcendent revelation to human history (Jesus).
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Notes
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© 2014 Ted Newell
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Newell, T. (2014). Summary: What Is “Education”?. In: Five Paradigms for Education: Foundational Views and Key Issues. The Cultural and Social Foundations of Education. Palgrave Pivot, New York. https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137391803_7
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