Schools as Communities: Four Metaphors, Three Models, and a Dilemma or Two

Abstract

This paper examines two questions. The first is what it would mean for schools to be communities. This question is pursued by examining four metaphors for community: families, congregations, guilds, and democratic polities. Three models of school communities are then sketched. The second question is whether schools that are communities are inherently illiberal. The paper distinguishes between a liberal interpretation of schools as communities, where schools are viewed as limited-purpose free associations, and a communitarian interpretation where community and polity are not adequately distinguished. I argue that, within a framework of liberal pluralism, schools can be communities without being illiberal.