An Education for Which to be Fearful. The Background. The sociological background ; A sociological perspective ; The philosophical and theoretical background ; The existing arguments for authority in education: background reading for this book ; The challenge of progressivism: right problem, wrong solution
A definition of authority: the distinction of authority and power ; Authority: why all the fuss? ; The implications for learning ; The Meno paradox: a learning conundrum ; The implications for the foundations of knowledge: the Aristotelian problem ; The implications for education.
The Argument. Polanyi on Authority. A brief philosophical history of authority and doubt ; Polanyi's fiduciary framework ; The importance of traditions and communities within the fiduciary framework ; The paradigmatic example: learning how to speak ; Polyani's 'theory of knowledge': a critique ; Tacit knowledge or guided by rules? ; A proof by contradiction ; The rule-following paradox ; Concluding the proof by contradiction ; Back to Polyani.
Oakeshott on Authority. Teacing and learning: Oakeshott's definition ; Information as 'inert' knowledge ; Judgement as 'dynamic' knowledge ; The need for both information and judgement.
The Need for Authority in Knowledge, Teaching and Learning, and Education. Authority and knowledge ; Authority in teaching and learning ; The inbuilt safeguards of authority.
Wittgenstein on Authority. A foundationalist approach ; The categorical distinction between certainty and knowledge ; Bedrock certainty: trust and training ; How 'training' and 'trust' depend on authority ; Beyond the Wittgensteinian vision.
