| The philosophy of Michel Foucault is applied to the field of education to better understand relations of knowledge, power, and ethics. Knowledge consists of influential labels, distinctions, and unified theories even though students and education are not unified, continuous, and predictable. Foucault attempts to direct attention to questions, problems, and forgotten issues which are overlooked in the face of comfortable discussions.;Knowledge is intertwined with power, for Foucault, since distinctions and categories have an impact on behavior, institutions, and thinking. Social scientists are most influential, and most questionable in their influence on people, due partially to their role as both observer and observed. Foucault argues for active decision-making by individuals, even though decisions are not free or pure. He argues that individuals should consider how to shape themselves as ethical individuals by setting goals, practicing actions, selecting controls for behavior and deciding the focus of ethical actions. |
