Curriculum and knowledge-building as social practice

“Every pedagogical project is political and filled with ideology. It seems important to talk about the impossibility, at all times of having an educational practice devoid of [content], an object to be taught and learned… The fundamental issue is politics. It has to do with what content gets taught to who, in favour of whom, against what, against whom, and how it gets taught.”

(Friere, 1993, Pedagogy of the City, p. 41)

In light of the quote above, discuss how schooling may perpetuate and/or disrupt social inequalitiesthrough EITHER the curriculum OR teachers’ pedagogic choices.

In your answer, focus on one main idea/framework from the section on Curriculum as social practice. Draw on insights from relevant readings, and illustrate your argument usinga case study/critical incident from your own classroom experience.

Suggestion for essay structure with word length guidelines:

• Introduce aschool-based problem you want to focus on (about 100-150 words)
• Give an account of the case study/critical incident you have chosen (about 150 – 200 words)
• Explain the main concept/framework you have chosen for your essay (about 250 – 300 words)
• Use the framework/concept you have to analyse the role of schooling in supporting social justice (600 – 850 words)

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Introduction
Discrimination within the school environment is quite evident from long ago, and in case of South African schooling, the curriculum decisions often reproduce inequalities. The main focus of this essay is on analysing curriculum as a social practice by utilising a case study of language use in the classroom.
Case Study
The teacher requested students in a classroom to conduct discussions in English even though the majority of the learners being isiZulu. Learners who are not able to speak in English were penalised for poor communication and their grades were adversely affected. Another teacher in the same school adopted a different approach whereby the teacher encouraged learners to use their home language. As a result of this, there is positive participation among students and greater confidence was evident, and this shows the differences in the pedagogical choices can lead to inequalities or foster inclusivity.
Analysis
The conceptual framework that is considered for the purpose of analysis is curriculum as a social practice. The role of schooling in supporting social justice can be identified from the discussion below on reproduction of inequalities, disruption of inequalities and the role of teachers in accomplishing social justice. 

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