As defined by Dictionary.com, Democracy is government by the people; a form of government in which the supreme power is vested in the people and exercised directly by them or by their elected agents under a free electoral system. In order for the people to effectively participate in the democratic system of government, they must be capable of making informed and educated decisions. The basis of these decisions is ability to absorb information, contemplate it, render an opinion and make a decision. Without the ability to read, reason and calculate,which are all skills taught in public schools, the average citizen would be unable to participate in a democracy.
On average, children start school at the age of five and leave the public school system at eighteen. They spend their most impressionable years, six hours a day, 180 days a year in a classroom being taught how to participate in a democratic society. However, are schools themselves democratic? In public school, start time, end time, lunch time, vacation time, recreation, workload, and methods of discipline are all dictated by the schools administration. For the most part, students are not given the option to vote on these critical elements of their school experience. Likewise, the subject matter, course requirements, test administration, and even sometimes dress code are established without the direct involvement of the students or their parents.
Fascism, as defined by dictionary.com is a governmental system led by a dictator having complete power, forcibly suppressing opposition and criticism, regimenting all industry, commerce, etc., and emphasizing an aggressive nationalism and often racism. In my opinion the public school environment more closely resembles a fascist government than a democratic one. One might argue that this level of control in the public schools is necessary to keep order. Many fascist leaders believe that their populace needs such regimentation because they can not provide it for themselves.
After spending more than half of their lives existing in a fascist environment, are newly graduated Americans really prepared to support and participate in democratic government? Is the content of the education more compelling than the structure? Young Americans are taught what democracy means, but the environment in which they are taught is the opposite of democratic. Further, public schools are an extension of our government. If schools are fascist, by default, so is the government. Are we really graduating democrats or are we really a nation of fascists?
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Work Cited
Dictionary.com. Dictionary.com, n.d. Web. 03 Sept. 2013
Well if we all could vote about the critical elements of a school experience, it would seem to me that we would be governed by mob rule rather than educated individuals that could help steer the country on the right path.
ReplyDeleteKevin, you could say that about anything. Was is the mob rule that voted Obama into office or decisions based on educated individuals? Based on what you said we cannot not trust people to make decisions to steer the country in the right path. Starting to sound like a dictator in training. (No offense)
ReplyDeleteThat was not my point. I meant to say if we all had a say on national school standards, this nation would become divided and fall back into sectionalism. What you are saying supports an idea of nullification that would void national standards we disagree with. In that case, we would be better off functioning as 50 individual states rather than a whole nation.
DeleteKeith, this is awesome. I love everything about your response and your exchange with Kevin. Although, ironically, I simultaneously disagree your thesis.
ReplyDeleteFirst, I thank you for choosing one idea about education in a democracy and writing your entire post about it. Many of your classmates have written posts that include just a list of ideas. You, instead, choose one idea - an ironic relationship between democracy and totalitarian control of schools - and develop that. Great. This is exactly what readers want.
Second, you write well and offer an idea that you clearly had to think about. I respect and appreciate that.
I do need to share with you the one part of your post that I find to be incomplete. Often students are unaware of the role of the School Committee in their educations. Public schools do, in a very quiet manner, adhere to the tenets of democracy. The ultimate decision making authority in a school district, like Milton, is the School Committee. This is a democratically elected body that hires the Superintendent. These elected officials have great authority. They approve all school policies (dress code, attendance policy, etc.) and hire the superintendent, who makes the decisions about academics. By hiring the superintendent, they indirectly influence how and what you learn. In addition, the governor made a decision about whether or not Massachusetts schools would adhere to the national Common Core standards, and he is obviously elected. I totally understand how you feel like the schools are fascist regimes, but this is not completely true. Your parents have had a vote in each school decision that you might feel is excessively authoritarian. The schools feel fascist because people have voted them to be that way.
If you had included two things in this post, it would have been perfect - a post to use as an example in the class. First, you needed to account for the School Committee. Second, you need one or two specific examples to paint a mental picture of the fascism that you condemn. We all knows that there are plenty of examples!