INFORMATION TO USERS This manuscript has been reproduced from the microfilm master. UMI films the text directly from the original or copy submitted. Thus, some thesis and dissertation copies are in typewriter face, while others may be from any type of computer printer. ‘The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. Broken or indistinct print, colored or poor quality illustrations and photographs, print bleedthrough, substandard margins, and improper alignment can adversely affect reproduction. In the unlikely event that the author did not send UMI a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if unauthorized copyright material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. Oversize materials (e.g, maps, drawings, charts) are reproduced by sectioning the original, beginning at the upper left-hand corner and continuing from left to right in equal sections with small overlaps. 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UMI Microform 9736333 Copyright 1997, by UMI Company. All rights reserved. ‘This microform edition is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code. 300 North Zeeb Road ‘Ann Arbor, MI 48103© Copyright 1997 Linda Cathleen MeuterDoctoral Dissertation In presenting this dissertation in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Doctoral degree at the University of Washington, I agree that the Library shall make its copies freely available for inspection. I further agree that extensive copying of this dissertation is allowable only for scholarly purposes, consistent with "fair use’ as prescribed in the U.S. Copyright Law. Requests for copying or reproduction of this dissertation may be referred to University Microfilms, 1490 Eisenhower Place, P. O. Box 975, Ann Arbor, MI 48106, to whom the author has granted “the right to reproduce and sell (a) copies of the manuscript in micro- form and/or (b) printed copies of the manuscript made from microform.” Signal weve 16,227 —University of Washington Abstract Redescribing Competition in Education by Linda Cathleen Meuter Chairperson of the Supervisory Committee Professor Donna H. Kerr Department of Education This dissertation presents a complex look at competition as a form of human relation, specifically within the context of education. Ilocate this dissertation among a variety of discourses that contend with moral issues surrounding human relationships in institutional settings. Despite the pervasive acceptance of objectified relationships embedded in the meritocratic institutional design of American education, this dissertation argues it is not morally tenable to consider competition in education simply in politically neutral terms of a "win" or "lose" proposition or exchange that two or mote people engage in for some mutually sought after reward. Such a simplistic definition too narrowly describes the competitive act. It does not account for the more complex meaning that can be illuminated only by acknowledging the personal and social issues surrounding the quality of relationship between competitors. ‘Asa social critic, in this dissertation I explore, in particular, both the rituals and the language of competition in education as they have become forged through pedagogies of domination. Combining the tools of critical theory and pragmatic philosophy, [enlist the support of contemporary moral philosophers such as John Dewey, Richard Rorty, Richard Wollheim, Cornel West, Michel Foucault, Nancy Fraser and bell hooks in order to demythologize and demystifythe cultural script of competition in education, as I interpret competitive relationships, as such, in the context of a society aspiring to be a democracy. Although a critique of competitivism in education is central to this dissertation I also propose that we begin to imagine new relationships we wish to cultivate through educational practice. Here, I redescribe other possibilities for competition in education that, when perceived within a language of morality, provide opportunities for human relationship which acknowledge the competitor as an interdependent other and competition as an intersubjective pursuit of moral progress as well as creative productivity. The competitors mutually benefit, not one at another's expense. Moral democracy prevails and democratic relationships flourish as individuals find fulfillment in their educational experience.TABLE OF CONTENTS Introduction ... Part I: The Culture of Competivism and the Demise of Democracy Chapter One The Human Relation of Competition in a Culture of Competivism Chapter Two Exploring the Language of Competition in Education: Pedagogies of Domination and Care ... Chapter Three Competition as Ritual: Creating “Us-Them” Relationships in Education . Part II: Competition in the Narrative Chapter Four The Power to Punish: Parts Land II ... Chapter Five Teaching Competivism Chapter Six Parenting Powerlessness 131 199Part III: Competition in the Context of Democratic Relationship Chapter Seven Redescribing Competition: Changing the Script ‘Moving the Boundaries . 239 Chapter Eight “Competing With" in a Social Ecology: Implications for Freedom and Learning .....0.0.+++004+ 276 Bibliography 287 iiACKNOWLEDGMENTS Iwish to express my heartfelt appreciation and gratitude to Professor Donna Kerr for her guidance and friendship. She has been a wonderful mentor these past six years. Ihave learned more from her than words can express. Professor Kerr brought into her teaching a thoughtful integrity and a love for exploring ideas with great depth that kept bringing returning students again and again to her courses. I was fortunate to have been among them. After a couple of years and many books later, several of her students formed a colloquium and we began a very gratifying relationship around some very rich topics. Jaylynne Hutchinson, Rosalie Romano, Jim Golubich, Alexander Sodorkin, Neetha Ravjee, Ross Okawa, Ellen Timothy and so many others, am very grateful for all their friendship and support. This dissertation was shaped through an educational experience that I will treasure for many years to come. My Supervisory Committee was made up of very special people. Professor John Goodlad has kept his office door open for me for so many years. Every visit has been as warm and congenial as the first. I feel proud to have had the privilege to have learned much from him. Moreover, Iam going to miss everyone associated with him at the Center for Educational Renewal and the Institute for Educational Inquiry. Many heartfelt thanks go to Roger Soder, Paula McMannon, and Joan Waiss. Professor Michael Knapp, who | first met in his course on the study of disadvantagement in education, lita spark several years ago that made me think about education in new and very worthwhile ways. Iam grateful for his continued encouragement and support. Ialso want to thank Professor Stephen Kerr for my Russian connection to education. I will cherish my visit to the Russian schools all my life. It was a very rewarding experience. iiiAnd finally, my thanks go to Professor David Allen. I will particularly miss our critical theory seminars and his ways of understanding that make it all seem so easy. His support has been tremendous over these past two years and I feel very fortunate to have met him when I did. Much of this dissertation has grown out of conversations in his presence. Talso want to thank someone not on my committee who I had the pleasure to come to know because I had an office next door tohis. Professor Husain Bashey not only added an interesting perspective to my work his sustained encouragement was greatly felt, especially when I felt disconnected to academic life. have a number of people to thank on the homefront. It is amazing to have a friend and neighbor who not only works at the university bookstore but reads all the books you buy. Iowe a great deal of thanks to Nancy Foster for her friendship and her wonderful mind. Friends, who will hanker over books, pick up your kids, go for a run with you, and listen to your first version of profound thinking make it possible to go to school and stay connected to your home life at the same time. Along with Nancy, I extend my thank yous here to Connie Adams, Terry Voss and Linda Eirich. I especially wish to acknowledge Audney Meuter, a very strong woman who has always been there for myself and the family. She figured out early on how the quarter system works and has always remained geared up for it, What stamina and loyalty she has shown to all of us over these past ten years. Thank you Audney. Steve Meuter, my partner and friend, has weathered a long but very worthwhile journey. I will always appreciate the fact that he stuck behind me all these years. To my children, Erika, Jane and Aimee, I owe a special sort of thanks. They have been and continue to be an inspiration for my work. iw