Our in class discussion of the pendulum swings in education reminded me of a paper I read in a fourth year anthropology course. The paper's author is Max Gluckman a South African Anthropologist and activist. In his paper entitled "The utility of the equilibrium model in the study of social change" Gluckman explores theoretical models that deal with social change. He is particularly interested in how people describe social change and whether we can actually distinguish true change from variations in the status quo.
The paper talks about "pendulum swings" as inevitable cycles that are caused by internal structural logics of institutions and organizations. Wow, what does that even mean. The article is fascinating but dense. I think that what he means is that by imagining humanity on a grand scale one can see the cycles in attitudes and practices that are present in governments, the field of education, classrooms, and even households. In the long-view patterns of how long parties stay in office or how long particular agendas last in education emerge. I do not fully agree with this mechanistic view of how societies function but I enjoy thinking about this concept once in a while. There is comfort in knowing that somethings are are beyond our control. I tried to find excerpts from the article online but I think that it is only available through catalogs like J-Stor.
Gluckman, Max. 1970. "The utility of the equilibrium model in the study of social change." American anthropologist, 72, 21-237
Saturday, October 25, 2008
Tuesday, October 21, 2008
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