Educational Psychology—Limitations and Possibilities

966 The Praeger Handbook of Education and Psychology
when reading is practice, not praxis. Postformal thinking moves thought to those spaces between
the lines to reveal the need for asking what unacknowledged assumptions invisibly inhere there.
It reconceptualizes traditional educational psychology ideologies, creating space for spirituality
to be understood as a critical part of an education which is “ ...not to make you fit into the social
pattern; on the contrary, it is to help you to understand completely, deeply, fully, and thereby
break away from the social pattern ...” (Krishnamurti, 1964/1970, p. 95). Deep awareness of the
power of culture to establish unquestioned hierarchies offers the opportunity to see differently.
The spirituality of postformal thought lies in the living out of answers to the question: Who
benefits when postformal thought as a way of being in the world orients the reader to a praxis in
the in-between-spaces where we meet the other as an enfoldment of ourselves?
TERMS FOR READERS
Discourse—the medium by which ideas are exchanged; a field’s discourse is a system of
knowledge or a “language map” by which the truth of statements related to that field can be
determined.
Governmentality—A centralization and increase of government power, which produces reality
through “rituals of truth.” Governmentality also includes a growing body of knowledge that
presents itself as “scientific,” and which contributes to the power of governmentality.
Normalize—To mold people into “normal” as opposed to “abnormal” forms, and the process by
which a culture encourages each individual to regulate and achieve his or her own conformity
with the established rules. This is achieved through governmentality.
Praxis—Cycle of reflection and action of individuals upon their world to transform it.
Surveillance—As used here, this term means more than simply “observation.” It refers to part
of the technique by which individuals are continuously observed, categorized, and disciplined,
so that they are normalized, so that they docilely fit into the machinery of society’s needs.
Technorational—An approach to education which values efficiency and effectiveness above all
else.
NOTES
1. Evidenced by the fact that it is now in its ninth edition. We wish to emphasize here that our purpose
is not to debase the work of any other early childhood educators. These texts serve merely as an example of
the construction and function of discourse in the field.
2. Gail Cannella, a well-known scholar of early childhood education, points out that professionalism is a
double-edged sword that (1) could lead to strengthening of position and increased respect, but (2) has more
often resulted in increased domination by those in power.
FURTHER READING
Cannella, G. (1999). Postformal Thought As Critique, Reconceptualization, and Possibility for Teacher
Education Reform. In J. L. Kincheloe, S. R. Steinberg, and L. E. Villaverde (Eds.), Rethinking
Intelligence: Confronting Psychological Assumptions About Teaching and Learning, pp. 145–163.
New York: Routledge.