Change in Classroom Relations: An Attempt that Signals Some Difficulties

Abstract

This article describes attempts to change classroom relations and the obstacles encountered in the search for new learning possibilities for bothstudents and faculty. In a graduate course with three different groups of students, the author used insights from critical theory to change the hierarchical division of labor and classroom incentives and to ask students to bring their life into the learning process. One roadblock to reform is the preservation of identities: Students remain consumers while teachers continue to manage knowledge production. When they prefer to comply with certain social roles rather than challenge them, education is little more than a certification process.