Blog 2: Theories in the Sociology of Education
After reading this chapter I have a better understanding of the various theories that have shaped sociology today. I found many of these theories to be very interesting and thought provoking. From my experience in undergrad psychology courses, it is very intriguing to consider a variety of parts to society and how it all comes together to form the whole picture. I appreciated that the authors made a disclaimer in their introduction of the chapter, "no one theory is right - you will see that every theory has its own strengths and weaknesses" (15). This has been my experience with various psychology theories as well. I also appreciated that the authors defined the various terms for each theory as they came in the text and did not bombard us with them in the introduction, which would have endorsed flipping back and forth. (What does that term mean again???)
The section on cultural hegemony resonated with me the most from this chapter. Within it was the theory of critical race and how it relates to education in Canada. The example they provided was the discourse and understanding of Canadian history displayed in the curriculum. As a history major I have seen how textbooks present eurocentric views only, and in doing so have incorrectly displayed the events that took place during initial contact with North America with blatant disregarded for the voices of First Nations people. This discourse "is perpetuated is one that characterizes Canada as being 'fair,' perhaps a 'little bit racist' but nowhere as bad as the United States" (47-48). In my opinion, the mainstream belief that Canada is a peaceful and multicultural nation is a farce. This image that is portrayed to the public, is simply a white perspective that is being depicted as fact and taught to students in classrooms. If the accounts of First Nations people were to be taken into account, the truth behind "lands given to settlers in treaties" actually means "free land originally governed by First Nations people and taken by violent and coercive means" (48). This was my experience in history classes taught in middle school and high school. Once I entered university and began my degree in history (focusing on Canadian history) I was shocked to discover the misconceptions I had about the events that led to Canada's development as a nation.
Discussion Question:
As teachers how can we actively breakdown these misconceptions and incorporate Aboriginal perspectives into our teaching?
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