Matters of care in Alberta's "inspiring Education" policy: A critical feminist discourse analysis

Abstract

Using the ethics of care as a theoretical lens, alongside the techniques of discourse analysis, I critically analyze texts from Alberta's Inspiring Education policies. On the basis of this analysis, I identify two discourses: The sentimental treatment of care and the "facilitator discourse." I argue that a caring teacher-student relationship is more complex than a doting teacher responding to the desires of a "learner." We must begin to reflect in educational policies the reciprocity of caring educational relationships, the rightness of mutually accepted authority, and the skills required to competently perform the work of caring.