Ideology, Equality, and the New Right

Abstract

Introduction We live in a period in which our educational system has become increasingly politicized. The curriculum and the values that underpin it and that are included and excluded from it are now being placed under intense ideological scrutiny. The Spencerian question, "What knowledge is of most worth?" has now been replaced with an even more pointed question, "Whose know ledge is of most worth?" That this latter question has become so powerful highlights the profoundly political nature of educa tional policy and practice. This is not simply an abstract issue. It is made strikingly clear in the fact that the curriculum of many school districts throughout the country has been turned into what can best be described as a political football. Conservative groups in particular have attacked the school and, in the pro cess, have had a major impact on educational debate, not only in the United States, but in other nations as well.