The Ethics of Post-compulsory Education and Training in a Democracy

Abstract

This paper critically examines the ethical justification of non-advanced PostCompulsory Education and Training institutions, hereafter known as PCET, in a democracy. It concludes that, in terms of the major ethical theories, justification in this context is currently conducted primarily in terms of utilitarianism. References to PCET, both by government and by the institutions themselves, are frequently given in utilitarian terms. The organisations which comprise PCET, from Private Training Organisations to Colleges of Further Education, are presented as being instrumental in preparing individuals for work or fulfilling student (vocational) needs. Despite the current emphasis on vocationalism in PCET, the paper finds in democracy an ethical imperative to encourage the development of conceptual schemes and value literacy amongst all citizens. It concludes that policy measures have, despite the weaknesses in utilitarianism, encouraged wholesale vocationalism in PCET to the extent of neglecting the emergence of the reflective citizen. PCET is a stage in the educational process in which a democratic government should continue, through the curriculum, to realise its moral obligation to support a further generation of choosers.