| dc.description.abstract | Ritzer’s theory of the McDonaldization of society in general and of education in particular is firmly established in the field of sociology, but has not been used to inform research in ESL (English as a second language) training. The phrase, “McDonaldization of education,” has become standard in the literature, but has not been extended or applied to issues surrounding the use of standardized tests for ESL education in the United States. The characteristics of McDonaldization are efficiency, predictability, control, and calculability. This study reviews the literature on the McDonaldization of society and education, and contrasts this literature with the humanistic psychologies of James, Vygotsky, Piaget, Erikson, and Dewey, as they influenced education. These humanistic psychologists advocated teaching methods that oppose McDonaldization, including the nurturing of spontaneity, curiosity, life-long learning, and joy in learning. ESL education has been influenced by McDonaldization along with other fields in education.
The No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) was passed in 2001 and was replaced with Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) in 2015. A large body of research literature on NCLB concludes that NCLB discouraged native language instruction via bilingual education because of pressure on administrators, educators, and students to achieve high test scores on English-only standardized tests, and because of its explicit focus on learning English as quickly and efficiently as possible. Despite some differences from NCLB, ESSA maintains the previous use of standardized tests, punishment of schools for poor performance, discouragement of bilingual education, and focus on quick and efficient mastery of English for English language learners. These trends exemplify Ritzer’s McDonaldization of society theory. The State of Arizona’s highly structured and restrictive language education program will be analyzed as a case study and an illustration of the impact of McDonaldization on English language learner (ELL) students. It is concluded that researchers should invoke Ritzer’s theory in studying the impact of the McDonaldized culture of standardization upon ESL students, and seek ways to preserve the legacy of humanistic psychology. | en |
