Reconceptualizing professional literacy in teacher education : foundations of education reconstructed

Social interaction within a society gives rise to the formulation of ideologies subscribed to by that society The dominant deology or the ideology espoused by the dominant group becomes the template for philosophies, policies and practices espoused by that society. The character and context of the social interaction determines the nature and content of the ideology which determines the basis and focus of the philosophy, purpose of policies and directions of practices in education (Ratnavadivel, 1985) However, it would be erroneous to assume that ideology assumes a static form and transcends time, space and context. As much as social interaction determines ideology and ideology dictates social interaction leading to an interactive, dialogical and dialectical relationship between philosophy (thinking/cognitive dimension) and practice (action/psychomotor and affective dimensions), changing trends will catalyze changing needs and changing thoughts which will impact on practices, thereby demanding new paradigms of action. In the context of knowledge, except for religious practices and revealed knowledge, all other forms of knowledge, be it empirical, intuitive, authoritative or rational is liable to change with the passage of time. Similarly, changing philosophies and emerging curriculum trends are continually impacting on teacher education.