Schooling and the Politics of Ethics: Beyond Liberal and Conservative Discourses

One of the major struggles for control currently being waged in American society is around the issue of schooling and moral values. However, radical educators have effectively removed themselves from this debate by substituting the discourse of moral indignation for a theory of ethics. In part, this has meant that they have been unable either to ground their own political projects and views of schooling in a moral vision or to effectively challenge the retrograde and formalistic views of ethics and schooling that have been put forth by various conservatives and liberals. This article examines the inadequacy of mainstream conservative and liberal views in this area and suggests alternative categories and interests around which a critical discourse linking ethics, education, and politics can be developed.