EDUCATION FOR THE GOOD SOCIETY - Support

and joyful relations between persons. Thus, inaddition to undergirding a collaborative typologywith overt reference to power there is also a needto include explicit reference to relationships,dispositions and orientations to each other aspersons. Hence my revival of the notion of democraticfellowship.The six-fold typology presented in Table 7.1is thus not just about power relations, importantas these are. It is also about our encountersas persons within two very different orientingcontexts – what I have called ‘the instrumentaldimension’ typified by high performanceschooling through market accountability andthe ‘fellowship dimension’ typified by personcentrededucation for democratic fellowship.With the possible exception of Pattern 6, allof the patterns of partnership can be approachedfrom either an instrumental or a fellowshipstandpoint, or indeed from any other standpoint. 6For example, on the one hand, a joint projectinvolving different groups or classes providingmutual critique can be approached atomisticallywith prime emphasis being placed on individualskills acquisition, team work as a saleable CVcommodity, and a competitive ethos re-enforcingthe virtues of extrinsic motivation and the cutand thrust of the marketplace. On the otherhand, it can be approached in a spirit of criticalfriendship, with prime emphasis being placed onindividual learning within the context of overtreciprocity, collegial work within a communalnexus, and emulative striving within the contextof an inclusive, emergent common good. Thecrucial point to make here is that it matters whichone chooses, whether deliberately or by default:it matters for our desire and capacity to flourishas persons; it shapes and limits our learning, andit enables or prohibits the kind of democraticsociety we aspire to.Schools for democracyEach generation has a duty to re-imagine andremake democracy and to do so not only withregard to contemporary challenges, but also in thelight of its multiple histories. Which genealogywe chose is crucial, for in the fabric of thetradition to which we give our allegiance is wovenTable 7.1 Patterns of partnership – how adults listen to and learn with students in school6 See Michael Fielding, ‘Patternsof partnership: student voice,intergenerational learning anddemocratic fellowship’, in NicoleMocker and Judyth Sachs (eds),Rethinking Educational PracticeThrough Reflexive Research: Essaysin Honour of Susan Groundwater-Smith, Springer, 2011, forthcoming,for detailed practicalexamples.InstrumentaldimensionHigh performanceschoolingthrough marketaccountabilityPatterns of partnership6. Intergenerational learning as lived democracy:• shared commitment to and responsibility forthe common good5. Students as joint authors:• students and staff decide a joint course ofaction together4. Students as knowledge creators:• students take lead roles with active staffsupport3. Students as co-enquirers:• staff take a lead role with high-profile, activestudent support2. Students as active respondents:• staff invite student dialogue and discussion todeepen learning and professional decisions1. Students as data source:• staff use information about student progressand well-beingFellowshipdimensionPerson-centrededucation fordemocratic fellowship36 | www.compassonline.org.uk