[Peace-discuss] More on school as propaganda

[Ken Urban]

I think the article below from commondreams.org misses the point, Dewey
wasn't concerned with democracy, he was interested in a stable society
that generated good docile, standardized workers.  Our democracy
survived quite well before compulsary schooling, we even defeated
Britian in a war.  If you're interested in someone who has no time for
school, read Ben Franklin's autoboigraphy.

There's no answer to why we need to keep public schools, just that we
do.  John Taylor Gatto has no qualms with the cirruculum, it's mostly
filler anyway, he has issues with the way schools operate.  

BTW, Illinois has quite liberal home schooling laws,  "the law is not
made to punish those who provide their children with instruction equal
or superior to that obtainable in the public schools. It is made for the
parent who fails or refuses to properly educate his child (Levison, at
215)."  For more info on Illinois Home Schooling Laws See:
http://www.illinoishouse.org/a15.htm

Ken

Published on Tuesday, July 15, 2003 by CommonDreams.org  
Got Democracy?...A Modest Proposal For Parents  
by Alan Morse  
  
Let's take a break from yapping at George Bush's heels and contemplate
the long view. 

John Dewey, one of the 20th Century's foremost philosophers of
education, argued that a democracy cannot survive without a strong
system of education. His statements echoed Thomas Jefferson's from
another era. 

Recent reformers, such as John Taylor Gatto, warn that public schools
become the premiere propaganda tools of the state, creating a citizenry
which enthusiastically participates in subverting its own interests. 

Repair public schools, we must, but not at the expense of eliminating
them. Those who would destroy public schools to save them might as well
join hands with Bush's privatizers. 

Here's another idea. It works off-the-shelf in some states, but may
require jiggering in others. Its simplicity and versatility make it a
tool for parents of any class or political stripe...thus democracy. 

Frustration with "standards based" education and "accountability," most
visible in the tip-of-the-iceberg standardized tests pushed by industry,
drive many parents to homeschool. Too many others grit their teeth in
the name of supporting public schools. 

Consider a third alternative: file papers stating your intent to
homeschool, then, under "education plan," state your intent to enroll
your child in public school. In one stroke, you have removed the baggage
of accountability and agenda-setting from the schools and put it back
where it belongs: with parents and children. 

Now, do with freedom what you will. Perhaps you dislike testing but are
fine with all else. Now it is your choice to find other activities for
your child, either within the school or at home, while the rest of the
class fills in bubbles on answer sheets. Perhaps you have a problem with
the separation of church and state. Ok, your child can study religion
quietly in the corner while others pursue their own assignments. Perhaps
you feel history lessons favor lions over lambs. Make Zinn's People's
History your child's text. 

You get the idea. Choose your agenda, and create your strategy. One
size fits one. 

As a former teacher with two children in their thirties and one just
starting first grade, I can't resist pushing my own goals. You may
borrow from them or burn them in creating your own. That's democracy. 

I want to offer my daughter's teachers license to be professional and
creative: to foster an environment where my child can learn, and to
treat my daughter with respect as her own agent. In turn, they will have
our support and respect as partners in my daughter's education. I want
to protect my daughter's teachers from having to read the scripts of
others or waste time on mounds of paperwork proving my 6-year-old knows
the Maine State Bird. I want to make it possible for them to relax and
be human, to step back from the pressure to be grading machines. 

I want to eliminate boredom-induced discipline problems from the
complex classroom soup, while returning responsibility for learning to
children. Let my daughter bring books or projects interesting to her to
school, and let her switch quietly to them when other exercises don't
strike her fancy. As a homeschooling parent, I will certify she is not
wasting her time and will work with her and her teachers to ensure
minimal disruption to others. As she gets older, her freedom and
responsibility will mean more to her with each passing year. Her
presence within the school will make her both object and agent of
change...a true, full citizen. 

Together, we will re-create democracy. 

Alan Morse lives in Phillips, Maine and can be contacted at
amorse at somtel.com 

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