Toward a Critical Theory of Education*

Abstract

I propose developing a critical theory of education for the new millennium articulating a metatheory for the philosophy of education and key themes of a democratic reconstruction of education. These include developing new literacies as a response to new technologies, a new critical pedagogy to meet the challenges of globalization and multiculturalism, and radical democratization to counter the trend toward the imposition of a neo-liberal business model on education. I argue that democratic reconstruction of education needs to build on and synthesize perspectives of classical philosophy of education, Deweyean radical pragmatism, Freirean critical pedagogy, poststructuralism, and various critical theories of gender, race, class and society.