Official Knowledge

This third edition of Official Knowledge, a classic text from one of education’s most distinguished scholars, challenges readers to critically examine how certain knowledge comes to be “official,” and whose agendas this knowledge represents. A probing and award-winning study, this new edition builds on the tradition of its predecessors to question the rightist resurgence in education while substantive updates throughout show how such policies continue to define our commonsense notions about what counts as a good school.

A new preface and two full, new chapters address current controversies over curriculum and textbooks, and extend the discussion of previous editions to reflect on some of the most important pressures being placed on higher education as well. Apple also considers the recent conversion of some prominent neoliberal, neoconservative, and managerial thinkers to more critical understandings of educational policies, proving that progressive change is possible if we examine the roots of these ideologies in the first place. As insightful as it is thorough, Official Knowledge is a refreshing call to challenge the dominant forces within education today, as Apple powerfully illustrates how larger social movements are only possible if we purposefully and inclusively deepen our understanding of the existing body of knowledge about education.

Michael W. Apple is John Bascom Professor of Curriculum and Instruction and Educational Policy Studies at the University of Wisconsin, Madison and Professor of Educational Policy Studies at the Institute of Education, University of London. He is also an elected member of the American Academy of Arts & Sciences.