(Teachers College Press, 1992)

Nel Noddings writes with uncommon wisdom on the moral and ethical dimensions of education. In The Challenge to Care in Schools, Noddings argues that schooling, like other social institutions in our time, fails to care for people — that is, address their real needs and nourish their growth. Ruled by a “methodolatry” that values standardization over individuality, and by an “ideology of control” that sees young people as merely an economic resource, schools do not nurture students’ diverse interests, talents, and abilities. Even the venerable notion of the liberal arts, says Noddings, embraces only a limited intellectual portion of the spectrum of human possibilities. If schools are to serve humane and moral ends, argues Noddings, they must expand from their narrow focus on academic discipline and instead involve the student in multidimensional “domains of caring.” “We need a scheme that speaks to the existential heart of life — one that draws attention to our passions, attitudes, connections, concerns, and experienced responsibilities” (p. 47).

Noddings elaborates on the widening domains or spheres of caring with which education ought to be concerned, from the self through the family and community to the ecosystem of the planet. Each of these spheres is rich and complex; Noddings understands the self, for example, in its physical, emotional, interpersonal, cultural, aesthetic and spiritual as well as intellectual aspects. Each of these areas is fertile ground for meaningful, engaging educational experiences, but most of them are neglected in the conventional curriculum. All of the domains of caring relate to the “passions” and “responsibilities” of young people’s lives, and Noddings describes an education that would nurture caring relationships in every sense. Her thinking is original and refreshing, yet firmly grounded in feminist scholarship and in John Dewey’s best insights.

Noddings explains how an ethic of caring involves community and a relationship of trust. “Kids learn in communion. They listen to people who matter to them and to whom they matter” (p. 36). She defines caring in terms of continuities — relationships to persons and places that are built up over time. She emphasizes the crucial need for dialogue — authentic mutual engagement rather than moralizing — which lead to compassion and understanding as well as a critical awareness of the limitations of our own cultural conditioning.

A brief review can hardly do justice to this important book; Noddings reflects thoughtfully on democracy, the unequal status of different occupations, the severe problems young people face in today’s changing society, the virtue of moderation, the theory of multiple intelligences, and much more. Ultimately, Noddings challenges our competitive, economically oriented view of education with a radically different set of priorities: In a human sense, she asks, how can we value academic rigor over inner peace, sensitive and caring relationships, a nonviolent community and a culture that exists in harmoney with the Earth?

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