The Desire for Westernized Teachers
Before enrolling in this class studying elite schooling and education, I did not understand all the aspects that affected an institution’s “prestige.” However, after reading many papers such as Tarc & Tarc’s on schooling in the Global South, I began to understand that a major aspect in the reproduction of eliteness in these different countries is focused almost entirely on communicating western ideas to students. The emphasis on western ideas demonstrates the connectedness of western curriculum to economic capital as well as cultural capital. Parents who send their children to western elite schools abroad or in their country believe that these schools will reproduce and reinforce their elite status. The key link between these schools and their high status is their westernized curriculum which parents see as valuable in the reproduction of eliteness. What makes these schools so elite is the fact that the basis of their curriculum is centered in western education to prepare students for a western elite higher education or a globalized job market. Western ideals create identities and cultural capital that are highly profitable and will allow students to thrive fit in a western focused global economy.
So how do schools emphasize a western curriculum? Hiring certain teachers, aligned with Western curriculum is often the answer. Before taking this class, I had not realized before the extent to which eliteness manifested itself in the hiring processes of the school. As one of the major contributors to a school’s eliteness and the reproduction of that eliteness, teachers are integral in maintaining a school’s prestigious status. Gaining access to an elite school as a teacher, is almost as difficult as gaining admission as a student. Teachers are highly valuable aspects of a school and as a result, it is much more likely that certain teachers, ones that reinforce the schools elite western image, will be hired. Teachers and school staff greatly affect a schools ability to boast a “western” curriculum. Schools are the starting point for the formation of some of the most elite spheres, and teachers are the leaders of those schools. As a result, teachers and school staff greatly affect a schools ability to boast a “western” curriculum. Communicating western ideas is more than just understanding a western curriculum, it is strongly tied to the way western teachers communicate, think and feel.
After learning about the desire for teachers versed in western curriculum, I was not surprised to learn that in the Elite Chilean School, The Croft School, western teachers are paid significantly higher than what Chilean teachers are paid. This pay gap further proves the point that a school focused on preparing students for a future in the global west requires western teachers, and is one key aspect to the reproduction of a schools eliteness. The Croft school wants to entice teachers to travel to Chile and begin a new life, and a high pay rate is one of the best ways to do that. I find myself wondering, does the Croft school try to maintain some number of teachers who are from Chile, or are they only focused on recruiting teachers versed in western culture and education?
