the hidden curriculum

This blog has already considered the work of
Ivan Illich - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
and his
Deschooling Society - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
together with that of
John Taylor Gatto - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
and his:
Dumbing Us Down - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

They have been interested in exploring the notion of a 'hidden curriculum' in education:

A hidden curriculum is a side effect of an education, "[lessons] which are learned but not openly intended”^[1] such as the transmission of norms, values, and beliefs conveyed in the classroom and the social environment.^[2]

Any learning experience may teach unintended lessons.^[3] Hidden curriculum often refers to knowledge gained in primary and secondary school settings, usually with a negative connotation where the school strives for equal intellectual development.^[4] In this sense, a hidden curriculum reinforces existing social inequalities by educating students according to their class and social status. The unequal distribution of cultural capital in a society mirrors a corresponding distribution of knowledge among its students.^[5]

John Dewey explored the hidden curriculum of education in his early 20th century works, particularly his classic, Democracy and Education. Dewey saw patterns evolving and trends developing in public schools which lent themselves to his pro-democratic perspectives. 

His work was quickly rebutted by educational theorist George Counts, whose 1929 book, Dare the School Build a New Social Order challenged the presumptive nature of Dewey's works. Where Dewey (and other child development theorists including Jean Piaget, Erik Erikson and Maria Montessori) hypothesized a singular path through which all young people travelled in order to become adults, Counts recognized the reactive, adaptive, and multifaceted nature of learning. This nature caused many educators to slant their perspectives, practices, and assessments of student performance in particular directions which affected their students drastically. Counts' examinations were expanded on by Charles A. Beard, and later, Myles Horton as he created what became the Highlander Folk School in Tennessee.

The phrase "hidden curriculum" was reportedly coined by Philip W. Jackson (Life In Classrooms, 1968). He argued that we need to understand "education" as a socialization process. 

Shortly after Jackson's coinage, MIT's Benson Snyder published The Hidden Curriculum, which addresses the question of why students—even or especially the most gifted—turn away from education. Snyder advocates the thesis that much of campus conflict and students' personal anxiety is caused by a mass of unstated academic and social norms, which thwart the students' ability to develop independently or think creatively.

The hidden curriculum has been further explored by a number of educators. Starting with Pedagogy of the Oppressed, published in 1972, through the late 1990s, Brazilian educator Paulo Freire explored various effects of presumptive teaching on students, schools, and society as a whole. 

Freire's explorations were in sync with those of John Holt and Ivan Illich, each of whom were quickly identified as radical educators. 

Other theorists who have identified the insidious nature of hidden curricula and hidden agendas include Neil Postman, Paul Goodman, Joel Spring, John Taylor Gatto, and others.

More recent definitions were given by Roland Meighan ("A Sociology of Education", 1981):

The hidden curriculum is taught by the school, not by any teacher...something is coming across to the pupils which may never be spoken in the English lesson or prayed about in assembly. They are picking-up an approach to living and an attitude to learning.

and Michael Haralambos ("Sociology: Themes and Perspectives", 1991):

The hidden curriculum consists of those things pupils learn through the experience of attending school rather than the stated educational objectives of such institutions.

Recently a variety of authors, including Neil Postman, Henry Giroux, bell hooks, Jonathan Kozol, and John Taylor Gatto have examined the effects of hidden curriculum.

Hidden curriculum - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

See also:
Critical pedagogy - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
.
.
.