AbstractsEducation Research & Administration

There are no published books by Noam Chomsky which concern themselves with education or which are written with educationists in mind as the intended and specific audience. Of his many published articles, only one short paper deals specifically with some of his views on education, and, even here, mainly in the general philosophical terms of the humanistic conception of education. Yet Chomsky's influence on courses of teacher training and on the teaching of language, by any standard, is immense. At the same time it would be reasonable to assume that the classroom teacher has only a vague impression of Chomsky's significance for education. What are his attitudes towards those areas of education to which he has directly contributed? To what other areas has he turned his attention and how has he attempted to influence them indirectly through his writings? . To what extent do his published writings reveal his attitudes toward pedagogy? Is his philosophy of education clearly and cogently revealed in his works? What can be deduced about his attitudes to the "institution" (in a sociological sense) of education? Are his attitudes consistent and do they have a common source? This study explores each text and published paper of ChomsKy, from his most productive and diversified period, in order to extrapolate all references to education, as defined within certain narrow and exclusive limits. The period selected, the method of extrapolation and the definitive boundaries applied, are discussed more fully in the INTRODUCTION which follows. From each extrapolated reference, wherever it is more than incidental, and from its context, inferences are made which comment upon and try to reveal Chomsky's attitudes to education, as it is narrowly and exclusively defined in the INTRODUCTION. Part One of the study briefly describes Chomsky's place in that disciplinary area where he has made his most notable contributions; theoretical linguistics and linguistic philosophy. Each of Parts Two, -Three and Four deals with a chronological period, extrapolating references from all the published works which have relevance in the terms of this study. Part Five collates and categorises the many attitudes inferred and discussed in Parts Two to Four.