Interanimation: repositioning possibilities in educational contexts

Lost in Translation?

Educational policies have a deep impact on the education of students. This article examines No Child Left Behind, the President's Commission on Excellence in Special Education, and the Individuals With Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2004 for their intended and unintended consequences with respect to secondary students with mild mental impairment. The author discusses issues of highly qualified teachers, accountability, and evidence-based practice as they relate to this population of students and also addresses curriculum and instructional environments for this population. The author concludes by raising issues that practitioners and institutions of higher education need to consider, as well as questions that need to be explored in future research.

A critique of Freire's perspective on critical social theory in nursing education

Nursing has been perceived as oppressed by virtue of among other things gender, occupation and class. It has been suggested that historically, nursing education perpetuated the rituals of tradition and was oppressive in terms of what was taught and how it was taught. Developments in nurse education have resulted in nurse educators seeking alternative means of educating, with the aim of emancipating nurses. Paulo Freire (1921-1997) promoted liberation through reflection and action, directed at transforming the conditions which lead to oppression. The fundamental basis of this approach is critical social theory, which is underpinned by the philosophy that social phenomena must be understood in terms of their context and history. From a critical social theory perspective, fruitful nursing education will only be possible if the history and structure of nursing are clearly understood by those involved in the educational process. We contend that the adoption of Freire's theory in nursing education may contribute towards the development of nurses who will be competent to meet the demands of contemporary healthcare practice. However, the application of this theory to nursing education can be challenging because of constraints imposed by the system in which nurse education takes place. It is therefore important that the application of critical social theory in nurse education be evaluated.