A Praxis of Presence in Curriculum Theory: Advancing Currere against Cultural Crises in Education

by William F. Pinar

Building on his seminal methodological contribution to the field – currere – here William F. Pinar posits a praxis of presence as a unique form of individual engagement against current cultural crises in education.

Bringing together a series of updated essays, articles, and new writings to form this comprehensive volume, Pinar first demonstrates how a praxis of presence furthers the study of curriculum as lived experience to overcome self-enclosure, restart lived and historical time, and understand technology through a process of regression, progression, analysis, and synthesis. Pinar then further illustrates how this practice can inform curricular responses to countering presentism, narcissism, and techno-utopianism in educators’ work with "digital natives."

Ultimately, this book offers researchers, scholars, and teacher educators in the fields of curriculum theory, the sociology of education, and educational policy more broadly the analytical and methodological tools by which to advance their understanding of currere, and in doing so, allows them to tackle the main cultural issues that educators face today.

260 pages, Kindle Edition

Published August 31, 2022

About the author

William Pinar (born 1947) is an American educator, curriculum theorist and international studies scholar. Known for his work in the area of curriculum theory, Pinar is strongly associated with the reconceptualist movement in curriculum theory since the early 1970s. In the early 1970s, along with Madeleine Grumet, Pinar introduced the notion of currere, shifting in a radical manner the notion of curriculum as a noun to curriculum as a verb.[1] Apart from his fundamental contributions to theory, Pinar is notable for establishing the Journal of Curriculum Theorizing, founding the Bergamo Conference on Curriculum Theory and Classroom Practice, and founding the International Association for the Advancement of Curriculum Studies.

Although Pinar is known best for his publications concerning curriculum theory, he has also spoken about and written on many other topics, including education, cultural studies, international studies, and queer studies.
(from wikipedia)