Book Review The Educationalization of Social Problems: A Review Smeyers, P., & Depaepe, M. (Eds). (2008). Educational Research: The Educationalization of Social Problems. Gent, Belgium: Springer. Reviewed by: MARINA SCHWIMMER Department of Applied Humanities University of Montreal Montréal, Québec, Canada The Educationalization of Social Problems, third volume of the series Educational Research, 1 com- prises 16 essays. “Scientific” research, the series claims, is too often defined in a narrow utilitarian way “that discourages scholarship of a more speculative, exploratory, or critical sort” (p. ii). In this context, one of the series’ main purposes is to defend the idea that educational theory has to go beyond “a limited conception of empirical educational research to provide a real understanding of education as a human practice” (p. ii). It presents educational research as an inquiry into social reality where questions of meaning, values, interpretation and judg- ment cannot be put aside. Such discourses appear particularly relevant in a context where faculties of education are more and more dismissive of the importance of philosophy of education within their walls (e.g., increasing closure of philosophy of education graduate programs; lack of study of philosophy in teacher education programs). In this respect, one important role of educational research is to question contemporary education not only through its material manifestations but also through its meaning in the social world. While there is no uniform perspective amongst the contributors, there is a strong Foucauldian presence in many of the essays. Implicit in this collection is the view that research- ers should distance themselves from the dominant discourses of the time and provide new perspectives and arguments on the issues of the day. Aligned to a post-structuralist stance, the third volume of the series Educational Research examines the concept of educationalization which generally refers to the phenomenon of transferring social responsibility onto the school. 2 This volume seeks a deeper understanding of this concept through the philosophical and historical investigation of its meaning, genesis, development and implications. Because the volume is organised as a sum of essays, each one distinctive and rich, it is impossible to extract one unique and straightforward argument. Trying to do so would be contradictory considering the post-structuralist tone of this book, meaning its multi-vocality and its recognition of the complexity and multi-layeredness of concepts. Therefore, in this review, I examine the core aspects of the concept of educational- ization using three lenses: progress, power and language. © 2011 by The Ontario Institute for Studies in Education of the University of Toronto Curriculum Inquiry 41:1 (2011) Published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc., 350 Main Street, Malden, MA 02148, USA, and 9600 Garsington Road, Oxford OX4 2DQ, UK doi: 10.1111/j.1467-873X.2010.00537.x