Neo-Liberalism Takes Hold: Educational Reform in the Brave New Faculty of Education

Overview & Synopsis

With the corporatization of higher education in Canada and acceptance of the ideology of neo-liberalism as the organizing principle of education, university teacher education programs have seen massive reform. Drawing on the work of Michael Apple, Stephen Ball and others, the author asks how notions that once would have been dismissed as inimical to the education of a well-prepared teacher, have now become accepted and indeed, considered common sense. Priorities for teacher education have changed drastically. Where once established faculties of education sought to become "full-service" institutions, preparing teachers for a wide-variety of levels of education in many different subject discipline areas, now the choice is drastically reduced to those areas where teacher candidates might possibly find a teaching position: language arts/literacy, mathematics, science and technology and second language teaching. In keeping with the new "business" approach to education, the kind of research that is encouraged will hold the possibility of developing a product that may result in profit for the university. Managerialism proliferates, numbers of tenure track positions are cut but more vice-presidents and managers are appointed. The author questions the sustainability of the "brave new" faculty of education but points out possibilities for resistance to counter the narrow approach now viewed as the norm for teacher education and higher education in general.