Teaching critical citizenship: Implications of a Foucauldian analysis for educational institutions

This thesis performs a Foucauldian analysis of educational institutions by explicating Michel Foucault's concepts of juridico-discursive power, bio-technico-power, disciplinary technology, docile body formation, resistance, and agency and then applies these concepts to educational institutions. It argues that if educators accept Foucault's conception of bio-technico-power and its effects, then educational institutions must embrace a critical form of pedagogy that aids in the development of critical awareness and critical citizenship. Further, this thesis suggests strategies which traditional educational institutions may employ to aid in students' development of critical awareness and critical citizenship. This thesis also suggests that a living-and-learning restructuring of higher educational institutions is a critical pedagogical approach to education that successfully addresses the concerns made salient by the Foucauldian analysis of education.