Running Head: Postmodernist Thinking in Curriculum

Three Recommendations from Postmodernist Thinking in Curriculum

Running Head: Postmodernist Thinking in Curriculum

In today’s world, there are two important aspects to be considered important in curriculum

studies. One of them is human capital theory as a significant component of neoliberal policies and

the other is postmodernist ideas. First, it is important to start with what roles neoliberal policies

assign to education and then the paper will elaborate on the importance of inclusion of

postmodernist elements in the curriculum.

Neoliberal policies reflect a change for the states (including Turkey) towards becoming an

important part of the competitive market- oriented world. In order to take part in this globalizing

world, in terms of economic benefits, neo- liberal state assign education (or training) a role in

accumulating more human capital. According to Marshall (1944), an educated population is

important to meet the demands of industrialization, a skilled labor and technicians, and to raise

educated electoral body for a civil society. It is known widely that high- skilled labor force is

important for governments not to lag behind globalized competitive markets, therefore each state on

its own promotes the idea of constructing a knowledge economy which will be promoted by the

accumulated human capital. As Lyotard (as cited in Alba et al, 2000) argues knowledge is produced

to be sold and consumed and in that sense the goal is exchange. This is the first role of education

according to Marshall (1944). Nevertheless, this point on its own promotes the idea that education

is for training or vocational outputs as opposed to “education for education’ sake” (Alcock, Daly,

Gricks, 2008). On the other hand, to have a civil society, education needs to reflect the speeding- up

changes in the world. Now, it is more important than ever for societies to adapt to the prevailing

paradigms and changes in the societies. Most importantly, it is known that globalization’s

challenges of social and culturel life inside the borders of a society is irreversable or uncontestable

(Deacon, 2007). At that point, today, solidarity in global, national and local level are being sought

for most of the neo- liberal oriented countries that they want to ensure the trade- offs between

economic activity and equity/ social justice (Hulme & Hulme, 2008). Therefore, in order to ensure

this trade- off, empowering different identities or agencies and revising school curriculum

accordingly seems to be more than a need. How is this going to be applied then? There comes the

postmodernist ideas into the stage.

Even though post- modernism also reflects change, it is rather concerned with the way we

construct things in the cultural/ social change and uncovering the truth about the world (Morgan,

2010). However, although postmodernism in nature does not engage in changing social life, while

revising the curriculum, postmodernist thinking is important to infer some recommendations which

are worth underlining and considering. Three most urgent ones to deal with the challenges of

globalizing world are explained respectively. First, today, Turkey is striving to become a part of

European Union and global world and even emerges as the direction of migration. The students are

witnessing easily accessible information about different people or livestyles in enourmous amount

Running Head: Postmodernist Thinking in Curriculum

with the aid of the internet and internalization of industries. They need to be presented with

different perspectives and ideas in order to minimize the intimacy and resistance to the global

changes. Hence, the curriculum should reflect a multicultural basement reflecting different cultures/

lifestyles and the importance of showing respect to “substantial variance in experiences,

backgrounds, abilities and belief systems” (Johnson & Nieto, 2007, p. 33). That is the reason why

curriculum needs to reflect different cultural aspects such as a text about Peru or the social life in

Monaco. Apart from this, the postmodernist ideas strongly emphasize that there is not innate self

but everything is socially constructed and produced that labeling oneself to an identity creates more

confusion and division (Lither, 2010). Including different identities such as lesbians, gays, or

disabled people in curriculum need to be considered since empowering different voices comes after

a society which is respectful to different identities.

Secondly, according to Bernstein (1975), there is a language code which is working different

in different social strata. He argues that two groups of children with different backgrounds and

experiences classify common and familiar objects in different types of way (Scott, 2008). He points

out that the way how we construct our discourses is closely related to the language code. However,

he (as cited in Scott, 2008) strongly emphasizes that the differences in language stems from the

specific contexts. Moreover, according to Foucault (as cited in Scott, 2008), this discourse is

directly related to power. What/ who has the power determines the discourse and the discourse is

not reinforced by the ruling class but available at different strata in the society. Besides, Bourdieu

(1984) argues that the curriculum or school context acts as favoring the bourgeois or their lifestyles

devaluing or excluding others such as local ones or even national ones. Combining all three views

turns our attention back to local issues alongside above- mentioned global or national issues, hence

excluding local issues in different strata in the society put some groups of people at a

disadvantaged. However, this does not necessarily reinforce the idea of developing curriculum

based on traditional views but the discourse in the curriculum content is supposed to “lay bare the

assumptions and internal contradictions” (Lister, 2010). It is important to move towards raising

students’ their immediate environment or, for instance, to promote them re-contextualize within

local sites of global influences. Including local aspects such as ecological sustainability in their

local environment or local cultures need to be taken into consideration in curriculum in that sense.

Thirdly, according to Foucault (1982), knowledge is relative and emergent. In other words,

knowledge systems are embedded in particular social arrangements that it does not persist over time

and space (Scott, 2008). Therefore, knowledge should be presented in a way that students should

not feel it as fixed. This way, students develop questioning and critical thinking skills, which in turn

lead to thinking knowledge societies and solidarity in the society respectively.

Running Head: Postmodernist Thinking in Curriculum

In conclusion, in revising curriculum, postmodernist ideas should be considered besides

human capital theories.

References

de Alba, A., Gonzalez- Gaudiano, E., Lankshear, C., Peters, M. (2000). Curriculum in the

postmodern condition. NY: Peter Lang Publishing.

Alcock, C., Daly, G., and Griggs, E. (2000). Introducing social policy. London: Pearson

Longman.

Bourdieu, P. (1979. Distinction: A social critique of the judgement of taste. London: Routledge and

Kegan Paul.

Bernstein, B. (1975). Class, codes, control: Theoratical studies towards a theory of educational

transmission. London: Routledge and Kegan Paul.

Deacon, B. (2007). Global social policy & governance. London: Sage.

Deacon, R. (2006). Michel Foucault on education: A preliminary theoretical overview. South African

Journal of Education, 26 (2), 177-187.

Foucault, M. (1982). The subject and power. Critical Inquiry, 8 (4), 777-795.

Hulme, R. and Hulme, M. (2008). Understanding Global Social Policy. Bristol: Policy Press.

Johnson, J. and Nieto, J. (2007). Towards a cultural understanding of the disability and deaf

experience: A content analysis of introductory multicultural education textbooks. Multicultural Perspectives,

9(3), 33-43.

Lister, R. (2010). Understanding theories and concepts in social policy. Bristol: The Policy and

Press and the Social Policy Association.

Marshall, T. H. (1944). Citizenship and social class. London: Pluto Press.

Morgan, J. (2010). Teaching geography for a better world? The postmodern challenge and

geography education. International Research in Geographical and Environmental Education, 11 (1), 15-29.

Scott, D. (2008) Critical essays on major curriculum theories. NY: Routledge.