ABSTRACT

Teachers in many countries complain that their pedagogic work is impeded by unreasonable bureaucratic demands by government agencies. This paper suggests that historical, institutional and cultural perspectives are needed to understand the processes at work. It draws on Weber’s classic study of bureaucracy, but also makes reference to claims that traditional bureaucracies have been modified in ways that ameliorate their authoritarian character. The central part of the paper examines the attempts of one country (Scotland) to address complaints about excessive bureaucracy: it is argued that they show a limited understanding of the nature of institutional power. In the discussion that follows, a number of critical interpretations are considered: that bureaucracies are, by their very nature, anti-educational; that they undermine ethical consciousness and cause psychological damage; and that enhanced professionalism can serve as a counterweight to bureaucratic tendencies. The paper ends by suggesting that the powerful pragmatic argument that mass, state-run educational systems cannot function without complex administrative structures, should not be used to disguise the fact that they have unintended consequences, some of which tend to subvert their stated aims.

摘要

许多国家的教师抱怨政府机构不合理的官僚要求阻碍了他们的教学工作。本文建议从历史、制度和文化的角度来理解工作过程。它借鉴了韦伯对官僚机构的经典研究，但也提到了传统官僚机构已经以改善其威权特征的方式进行了修改的说法。论文的核心部分考察了一个国家（苏格兰）试图解决对过度官僚主义的抱怨：有人认为它们对制度权力的性质表现出有限的理解。在接下来的讨论中，我们考虑了一些批判性的解释：官僚机构就其本质而言是反教育的；他们破坏道德意识并造成心理伤害；增强的专业精神可以作为对官僚主义倾向的平衡。这篇论文最后提出，如果没有复杂的行政结构，大规模的国营教育系统就无法运作，这一强有力的实用论据不应被用来掩盖它们会产生意想不到的后果的事实，其中一些后果往往会颠覆其既定目标。