"A child's learning is the function more of the characteristics of his classmates than those of the teacher." James Coleman, 1972

Sunday, July 22, 2007

I Labor, Therefore I Am

He's a jogger, he's a boozer, he's a right-wing president, and he has a long history as a mediocre student with a lower regard for intellectuals. No, no, not W. I'm talking about the new French leader, Nicholas Sarkozy, who is urging his countrymen to work hard, be nice, and don't think about it. Whether or not Sarkozy can elevate anti-thought in France to the wild-eyed religious status it has here depends largely on how well Sarkozy can re-direct France's educational system away from thought and learning and toward an embrace of corporate domination and market totalitarianism. Don't be surprised to hear that school "accountability" has become the chief concern of French politicians.

Meanwhile, here in the States we continue our own war against history, theory, and thought by stripping teacher education programs from their only remaining connections to the humanities. Foundations courses that explore the history and philosophy of education are fighting for survival as universities and accrediting agencies kowtow to the techocratic and anti-democratic political forces intent upon the imposition of ideology over ideas, histrionics over history, fascism over freedom.

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