Non-Western Educational Traditions ─ Local Approaches to Thought and Practice

Informative and mind-opening, this text uniquely provides a comprehensive overview of a range of non-Western approaches to educational thought and practice. Its premise is that understanding the ways that other people educate their children—as well as what counts for them as "education"—may help readers to think more clearly about some of their own assumptions and values, and to become more open to alternative viewpoints about important educational matters. The approach is deliberately and profoundly pedagogical, based in the author’s own teaching practice. Designed to be used in pre-service and in-service teacher education courses where substantial critical discussion and debate are encouraged, the text is enhanced by Questions for Discussion and Reflection in each chapter.

Two new chapters

• Five core features of the ‘Western educational tradition’

• Traditional educational thought and practice in Oceania, with special focus on the Maori in New Zealand, the Hawai’ians and the Australian Aboriginal peoples

Updated and revised chapters

• Theoretical foundation for the study of non-Western educational traditions and the problematic concept of ‘culture’

• Africa—fuller explanation of the diversity within the indigenous African experience including several contemporary cases of state education in Africa

• Islamic education—designed to help non-Muslims to understand the Muslim educational heritage and the growing issue of Islamophobia

• Chinese education—special emphasis on the thought of Confucius, the role of the imperial examination system, and the impact of political and economic changes in the 20th century

• Dharmic religious traditions—more information about contemporary educational practices in Hindu and Buddhist educational thought and practice and brief discussions of Jainism and Sikhism

• North American education

• Education in Mesoamerica—legacy of Spanish colonization, and the role of contemporary educational institutions in the on-going exploitation of indigenous peoples throughout the region

• The Roma (Gypsies)—deals with the persecution of the Rom both in Eastern Europe and in the West

Timothy Reagan is Dean, College of Education and Human Development, University of Maine, USA.