These theorists and activists were linked with groups such as the Frankfurt School of Cultural Theorists, USA social reconstructionists, UK critical sociologists and Latin American educational activists, feminists and black activists. Each of these groups has, in its way, contributed to ideas about how education might transform society, and educationalists have drawn on those ideas to build what is called critioal educational theory. Critical educational theory rests on these assumptions about education (Carr and Kemmis 1986; Sleeter and McClaren 1995; Darder 2002):
education is historically located;
education is a social activity with social consequences, so it concerns not just individuals but social outcomes;
education is a political activity affecting the life chances of people involved in it;
education is fundamentally problematic.