A Liberal Professor--straight from the donkey's mouth
I’m one of those left-wing teachers, but I’m not too concerned about that affecting the way my students think, though I’m sure it does if only minutely. I’ve had some pretty right-wing students (a self-described member of the Klan for instance) who I was able to disabuse of some notions (that Thomas Jefferson had children with/by at least on slave). I make no apologies for my being a liberal at all and I don’t attack students for conversative views. I teach in an Air Force town with a lot of students from rural farming and ranching communities and these students come in with a pretty conservative, and often ill-formed, view of the world (like about any recent high school graduate who doesn’t attend an elite high school) because that’s what they’ve grown up with. They may see things a little differenlty once they’ve had me, though I doubt I could ever turn them into card carrying lefties even if that were my goal.
By the same token, I teach what might be some conservative texts. Last year the core text for my first year composition class was Tocqueville’s Democracy in America and this year it’s Lockes Treatises on Government. We’ll tie these texts into current events as much as possible, which I think we can readily do. I don’t necessarily teach any particular conflicts, nor from any overtly pc texts, and I hold my students to the same standards. They can’t write from a so-called liberal perspective and get away with sloppy work anymore than I beat up on someone who writes from a conservative perspective. I suspect most good teachers are this way, whether they are liberal or conservative.
Now, I don’t know if this is the case, but my sense is that education is populated by more liberals than conservatives because liberals are more willing to work for the common good whereas conservatives are more likely to take care of themselves, invoking their notions of personal responsibility, taking care of themselves as they expect others should do as well. Liberals are more likely to maybe work for less if they can help students get on in the world. I’ve no evidence for this, and may not have expressed myself well, but would be interested in what others think. And when I talk about helping students get on in the world, it means with as much understanding of how the world works as they can muster, which often means holding the statua quo and dominant powers and paradigms up to examination so students can see for themselves how well this status quo serves their needs, who wins and who loses in the various equations. If that’s liberal or pc, so be it.
bradley bleck, instructor at Spokane Falls CC, at 9:30 pm EDT on August 22, 2006
So basically, "Brad" advocates spurring the students to discontent so they will demand more for THEMSELVES--so much for selfless liberals.
A very interesting interpretation. Its odd that since most kids come out of high school know less about government, civics and history than they know about how not to get pregnant, that Brad (surfer dude no doubt,) would consider such an education Conservative. No, in fact, its the opposite.
If Conservatives ran the schools:
Students would know the three branches of government, their functions, and their history.
Students would understand the constitution as an enduring record of our god-given freedoms and rights as expressed in the best government in the world.
Patriotism wouldn't be a dirty word--and would not be conflated with Jingoism.
Honesty, morals, and a personal effort at improving oneself are the cornerstones of education.
Children are not delicate flowers, they need structure and standards to live up to. No outcome based education.
Students would learn that our cultural and philosophical heritage is worth defending. Yes, the Greco-Roman, Judeo-Christian tradition.
Neither mandatory teacher run prayer, nor "be a Muslim for a week" programs would be allowed.
Non-classes such as "drivers ed," "home-ec," and "sex-ed" would be left to the parents. They would be replaced with Latin and Greek.
Debate and speech would be required. Not because of its confidence building capacity, but because it is important to learn to research, compress, and convey an argument effectively whether you're a doctor, a lawyer, or an IT guy.
Sports teams would be funded by the families of the students who choose to participate (as a per-semester fee.) The money saved would be used on programs in the arts.
The curriculum would be rigorous, demanding and rewarding. If you can't keep up, stay behind a year. We aren't going to cheat you by graduating you if you're illiterate. Literacy (in the true sense of the word) would be close to 100% in our graduating classes.
Our graduates will be ready to take their place in society as proud and thoughtful American citizens.
By the same token, I teach what might be some conservative texts. Last year the core text for my first year composition class was Tocqueville’s Democracy in America and this year it’s Lockes Treatises on Government. We’ll tie these texts into current events as much as possible, which I think we can readily do. I don’t necessarily teach any particular conflicts, nor from any overtly pc texts, and I hold my students to the same standards. They can’t write from a so-called liberal perspective and get away with sloppy work anymore than I beat up on someone who writes from a conservative perspective. I suspect most good teachers are this way, whether they are liberal or conservative.
Now, I don’t know if this is the case, but my sense is that education is populated by more liberals than conservatives because liberals are more willing to work for the common good whereas conservatives are more likely to take care of themselves, invoking their notions of personal responsibility, taking care of themselves as they expect others should do as well. Liberals are more likely to maybe work for less if they can help students get on in the world. I’ve no evidence for this, and may not have expressed myself well, but would be interested in what others think. And when I talk about helping students get on in the world, it means with as much understanding of how the world works as they can muster, which often means holding the statua quo and dominant powers and paradigms up to examination so students can see for themselves how well this status quo serves their needs, who wins and who loses in the various equations. If that’s liberal or pc, so be it.
bradley bleck, instructor at Spokane Falls CC, at 9:30 pm EDT on August 22, 2006
So basically, "Brad" advocates spurring the students to discontent so they will demand more for THEMSELVES--so much for selfless liberals.
A very interesting interpretation. Its odd that since most kids come out of high school know less about government, civics and history than they know about how not to get pregnant, that Brad (surfer dude no doubt,) would consider such an education Conservative. No, in fact, its the opposite.
If Conservatives ran the schools:
Students would know the three branches of government, their functions, and their history.
Students would understand the constitution as an enduring record of our god-given freedoms and rights as expressed in the best government in the world.
Patriotism wouldn't be a dirty word--and would not be conflated with Jingoism.
Honesty, morals, and a personal effort at improving oneself are the cornerstones of education.
Children are not delicate flowers, they need structure and standards to live up to. No outcome based education.
Students would learn that our cultural and philosophical heritage is worth defending. Yes, the Greco-Roman, Judeo-Christian tradition.
Neither mandatory teacher run prayer, nor "be a Muslim for a week" programs would be allowed.
Non-classes such as "drivers ed," "home-ec," and "sex-ed" would be left to the parents. They would be replaced with Latin and Greek.
Debate and speech would be required. Not because of its confidence building capacity, but because it is important to learn to research, compress, and convey an argument effectively whether you're a doctor, a lawyer, or an IT guy.
Sports teams would be funded by the families of the students who choose to participate (as a per-semester fee.) The money saved would be used on programs in the arts.
The curriculum would be rigorous, demanding and rewarding. If you can't keep up, stay behind a year. We aren't going to cheat you by graduating you if you're illiterate. Literacy (in the true sense of the word) would be close to 100% in our graduating classes.
Our graduates will be ready to take their place in society as proud and thoughtful American citizens.
posted by Conservotarian Emmy at 12:39 AM
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