Pedagogy, Praxis and Purpose in Education

C. M. Mulcahy is Associate Professor in Reading and Language Arts, Central Connecticut State University, USA. Alongside her book, Marginalized Literacies (2010), she has published in Irish Educational Studies, Language and Cultural Diversity in Education (2005), Critical Literacy as Resistance (2008), and Transforming Schools (2013).D. E. Mulcahy is Assistant Professor and Director of Elementary Education, Department of Education, Wake Forest University, USA. His publications include Education in North America (co-editor, 2014), articles in Radical History Review (co-author) and The Educational Forum, and a chapter in The Praeger Handbook of Education and Psychology (2006).D. G. Mulcahy is Connecticut State University Professor and Professor in the School of Educaton and Professional Studies, Central Connecticut State University, USA. His publications include Knowledge, Gender, and Schooling (2002), The Educated Person (2008), and Education in North America (co-editor, 2014).

"It is our avocation to become more self-actualized, reflective and human as persons in the world. The Mulcahy family has shown us a way this is possible for our schools, curriculum, teachers and students." – Jim McKernan, East Carolina University, USA"A book that focuses on pedagogy and the purposes of education in a way that explores important issues of privatization, literacy, liberal education, progressive and critical pedagogies, in historical and contemporary contexts. All this is brilliantly investigated as it pertains to discourses of control, knowledge and understanding, and praxis. A wise book, accessible, and very timely." - Ronnie Casella, Associate Dean and Professor, SUNY Cortland

• Acknowledgements 1. Introduction Part I: Autocratic Control and Subjugation 2. Evolving Aspirations from Local Community to Global Village 3. Centralization and Control in Chester Finn and the Fordham Institute Part Two: Knowledge and Understanding 4. General Education As Education For Knowledge and Understanding 5. Literacy As Pathway to Education for Knowledge and Understanding Part Three: Praxis: Autonomy, Democracy, and Transformation 6. Toward a Pedagogy of Praxis: Progressive Education and Critical Pedagogy 7. Implementing a Pedagogy of Praxis: Beyond Knowledge and Understanding Part Four: The Vocation to Become More Fully Human 8. Pedagogy and Purpose