Facing the fast-changing times, “innovation and competition” turns to be a central theme widely used in the understanding and potentially treatment of democratic issues. It suggests that education in the service of politics can be substantive, tha...
Facing the fast-changing times, “innovation and competition” turns to be a central theme widely used in the understanding and potentially treatment of democratic issues. It suggests that education in the service of politics can be substantive, that is, impart skills to the students for adaptation to the demands of a constantly changing society without enhancing their nature. Or procedural, that is, technologically and purposely reshaping politics into a pattern dominated by technical rationality. Citizens, in this sort of political pattern, are encouraged to adopt programmable lifestyles. This may be a complete misunderstanding of education. In this context, conservatives are acutely aware that conservatism can provide education with another stable and sustainable perspective. The inherent link between conservatism and education is not surprising if it is not supported by citizens. Michael Oakeshott, who had deep insights into both political theory and liberal education, may have provided another way to assess the link between conservatism and education. This article has two goals. The first is exegetical: is to illuminate the conservative disposition in politics and its approach to education. The second goal is to propose a conservative disposition of freedom that involves an introspective defense mechanism. I argue that the goal of conservative criticism is to reach as deliberative a point as possible. In this case, it tends to dwell on the educational visions as they are defined outside of their different appearances, rather than in the ever changing educational circumstances.