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Personal autonomy and compulsory liberal education

University of British Columbia

The aim of this thesis is to justify on paternalistic grounds the compulsory imposition of liberal education on children. In opposition to the increasingly influential views of many educational theorists in the "sociologist of knowledge" tradition, it is argued that liberal education benefits students because it contributes towards the development of personal autonomy. Personal autonomy is accepted as both an extrinsic and an intrinsic good, and its development is taken as the most defensible aim of compulsory education. Because compulsory education clearly violates a student's prima facie right to non-interference, the thesis considers the kinds of cases in which the right to non-interference can be justifiably overridden. It presents an argument for the justification of paternalistic intervention based on the forfeiture of rights through consent. Because this argument permits us to impose an enormous range of studies and activities on students, some criterion is required to help us choose curricular components. The development of personal autonomy is chosen as that criterion. Three conditions are taken as necessary for the presence of personal autonomy: freedom of choice, rational reflection, and strength of will. Breadth and depth of knowledge in the traditional disciplines are considered necessary for satisfying the rational-reflection condition of autonomy, and compulsory liberal education is taken as the best way to help students obtain breadth and depth of knowledge.

Text

2010-03-26

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http://hdl.handle.net/2429/22567

Education

University of British Columbia

Graduate