Education in Hope

This book explores the relationship between critical pedagogies and an ethic of care. The critical pedagogies of John Dewey, Paulo Freire, and scholars/activists in the field of feminist pedagogy are examined and shown to reflect this ethic of care. In clarifying this relationship. Education in Hope uncovers and challenges the dominant ethical models underlying contemporary educational paradigms.

"Tony Monchinski's new book is wonderfully readable, inspiringly humane, eminently sensible, and educationally practical. He teaches us what `an ethic of care' means and how to use it. He poses the urgent need to install `caring' in a society driven by Wall Street's money market and by standardized testing in schools. Human beings and human needs have disappeared in the equation that now rules school and society. This is the right book at the right time, a book of knowledge and remedies just in time. It shows us how the theme of `care' unifies and underlies great theories in education. He also proposes practical reforms to make `caring' the strong foundation for teaching and learning. The scope of his critique is breathtaking. while the scale of his solutions is sensible. This is a wise book for troubled times." ---Ira Shor, Professor, City University Graduate Center, New York

"Although most progressive thinkers have always assumed that a good education must be connected to an universal ethical code, no one has yet spelled out how such a connection is to be primordial in the educational process---that is until Tony Monchinski undertook such a task in this book. By first analyzing the pedagogical works of John Dewey, Paulo Freire, and such feminists as Carol Gilligan who first posited the link between education and the ethic of care, Monchinski is able to show how such a link is especially needed today. That link, Monchinski brilliantly insists, is fundamental to all critical theories of pedagogy." ---John Gerassi, Professor of Political Science, Queens College, City University of New York

"Tony Monchinski has accomplished an important task here. He has drawn interesting parallels between critical pedagogy and feminist ethics of care. In doing so, he expands greatly how creative teachers can truly `care' about their students and social justice at once."---Joan C. Tronto, Professor of Political Science, University of Minnesota