ABSTRACT
The previous chapter began by showing that schooling has been, and largely still is, deeply patterned on the methodologies of the empirical sciences. While some of this framework needs to be retained if only because we know that it probably works well for certain areas, there has been another fundamental shift in the way we think about knowledge which could have radical implications for the curriculum, the way schools are organized, and the processes of teaching and learning. Put simply, the shift depends on the metaphor of networks, and the living organism as a bonded, interdependent network of parts. As we would expect, this same metaphor is now being used to explain many other aspects of the space we live in. In this chapter, we will consider several of these dimensions, chosen because of their relevance for what schooling is and does.
