Non-Western Educational Traditions: Indigenous Approaches to Educational Throught and Practice (Sociocultural, Political, and Historical Studies in Education) [Paperback]

Timothy Reagan (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0805848576 | ISBN-13: 978-0805848571 | Publication Date: August 2004 | Edition: 3

This text provides a brief yet comprehensive overview of a number of non-Western approaches to educational thought and practice. Its premise is that understanding the ways that other people educate their children--as well as what counts for them as "education"--may help us think more clearly about some of our own assumptions and values, and to become more open to alternative viewpoints about important educational matters. The value of this informative, mind-opening text for preservice and in-service teacher education courses is enhanced by "Questions for Discussion and Reflection" and "Recommended Further Readings" included in each chapter.

New in the Third Edition:
*Chapter 2, "Conceptualizing Culture:" 'I, We, and The Other,' is new to this edition. It is a response to feedback about the problems inherent in our general discourse about "culture," and in addition provides an example of a culture that is near to us but nevertheless alien-the culture of the Deaf-World.

*Chapter 9-which deals with Islam and traditional Muslim education-has been substantially revised.

*The subtitle of the Third Edition has been changed to Indigenous Approaches to Educational Thought and Practice, reflecting not so much a change in the emphases found in the book, but rather, a recognition of the growing scholarly interest in indigenous peoples, their languages, cultures, and histories.

*Various points throughout the text have been expanded and clarified, and chapters have been updated as needed.

Editorial Reviews

Review

The book works to expand, not replace, current understandings of Western education, by examining approaches less familiar to Western education practitioners. For those who are teaching and want to incorporate non-western teaching practices into current curricula, this book has a foundational background on a range of indigenous educational practices....immensely valuable.

—TESL-EJ

This volume is written clearly and with authority....serve as a useful supplementary text in applied linguistics or education courses or as a background reader for anyone interested in cross-cultural and international education. 
—Studies in Second Language Acquisition

Product Details

• Paperback: 328 pages
• Publisher: Routledge; 3 edition (August 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0805848576
• ISBN-13: 978-0805848571
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #161,778 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Worthless book, March 1, 2010

By 

FreeGirl420 - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Non-Western Educational Traditions: Indigenous Approaches to Educational Throught and Practice (Sociocultural, Political, and Historical Studies in Education) (Paperback)

I am absolutely amazed at this book's ability to say so little in so many words. The author is mercilessly redundant and discusses some very simple, superficial aspects of different cultures and tries (and fails) to connect them relevantly to the theme of education.

If you're wondering why I am still reading this book, it's because it is mandatory reading for my International Education class at my university. I wondered why anyone would want to read this book, too, until I learned that my professor is friends with Mr. T. Reagan.

After reading an entire 20+ page chapter on culture in Africa, all I have learned is:
1. Tribal Africans are community-oriented.
2. Africans really like their proverbs

And the rest is obvious, self-explanatory "information" dissected and reconstructed by some old windbag in order to make it seem like it is some new sort of development or discovery.

I feel really bad if you have to get this book for a class. If possible, switch your class because if this textbook is the basis for your education you're not going to be getting much, unless you've been living in a cave and have no idea about different cultures in this world! Suitable for a third grader but written in college-level writing, I just don't see the point of this book's existence.

5.0 out of 5 stars FAR from "worthless", August 6, 2010

By 

Carolyn E. Hill (U.S.) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Non-Western Educational Traditions: Indigenous Approaches to Educational Throught and Practice (Sociocultural, Political, and Historical Studies in Education) (Paperback)

My personal belief is that the reviewer who gave this book one star (March 2010)has not spent enough time reading the book, a reading that might have given her a more accurate sense of its overall meaning and the author's skill in exploring it. Focusing on the propensity we in the West have for misrepresenting non-Western cultures and their educating habits, the author explains how colonialism and imperialism have led us astray and how, by understanding histories and cultural needs of others, we might pull ourselves out of the ethnocentrism that so often bedevils our intercultural thinking.

My purpose here is simply to urge potential readers to examine the November 2009 review for information and to expect from the book a careful, knowledgeable, and interesting look at the ways several non-Western cultures have educated their young and how we benefit from learning these ways.

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Really good book!!!!!, November 4, 2009

By 

Y. Argueta "SunShines =o]" (Boston MA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

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This review is from: Non-Western Educational Traditions: Indigenous Approaches to Educational Throught and Practice (Sociocultural, Political, and Historical Studies in Education) (Paperback)

This book is fabulous it is not biased, it brings out good points for western educational values as well as a very different perspective and respect towards non-western indigenous approaches to education, which is truly appreciated because there are few books that have the courage to explore to differenet approaches to education that have been practiced in other cultures for centuries.... this is a stepping stone for the change that must come in our American society that is filled with such diverse cultures and as such requires new approaches to meet the demands of our children's generations and the different cultures that we will find in the generations to come.