Social Science Theories on Teachers, Teaching, and Educational Systems

Abstract

These are but a few examples of the plethora of books that analyze the crisis in education and classrooms and propose measures to fix problems in our education systems across the years. Each new era – political administration, economic trend, global crisis – brings new suggestions for changes in education processes. To understand how education systems work – or don’t work – social scientists develop theories providing logical explanations to better understand educational systems. These theories inform research on education and provide valuable insights into classroom interactions and methods of teaching students. Some theories have limited value, but others stand the test of time and have relevance beyond the immediate circumstances that generated them. However, the link between social science theory and schools is complicated. A major problem is that educational systems are often governed by political or ideological agendas of those in power at the time, and not on long-term planning or policy based on available theories and research. Part of this problem also lies with social science researchers who may not make findings based on social science theory readily accessible to policy makers. As with the books listed above, social science theories fall in and out of favor as the tides of educational reform change. Theories rarely drive educational reforms, rather they often carry on and support particular waves of educational reforms. As such, these social science theories shape and provide support for the context within which teachers teach, including the way we think about and carry out the responsibilities of teaching, the structure of the curriculum, how schools operate, and links to the students and communities that schools serve. SOCIAL SCIENCE THEORIES ON TEACHERS, TEACHING, AND EDUCATIONAL SYSTEMS