Self-Esteem as Common Sense

This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book demonstrates that the term self-esteem and the self-esteem movement that described in GÇ£Complaints and GrievancesGÇ¥ are still going strong, especially in the context of education. Ideas of self-esteem, propelled by the influence of common sense, quickly captivated the public imagination, causing parents, educators, policy-makers, and others to believe it GÇ£unpardonable for schools, educators, and educational researchers to neglect the cultivation of this core resourceGÇ¥. The incursion of self-esteem principles within educational policy have produced ineffective results for society, as a whole, and are responsible for the creation of even greater educational inequities, especially among subaltern populations who have been simultaneously neglected by and blamed for society&s;s ills.