Late capitalism emerged as colored with the transformations in media and information enterprises, intensified global migrations and the stabilization of class allocations in the United States. The values which are developed and practiced during capitalism era proved themselves good but insufficient to satisfy the definition of a good society or a fair society. Capitalism tends to seek the equality of rights and responsibilities between various races, genders, and classes; and people thrive for the equity and fairness in sharing the social rights and responsibilities and preserving their freedom.
How does public education reflect the innovations in accelerated life rates, and does the current educational scheme reflect the changes at all?
For the past sixty-five or so years – post-Sputnik era, the core purpose of American mandatory education focuses on training our students in providing the immediate results – final products of people’s critical evaluations and creativity. We are using the whole developed systems of curricula requirements and standardized tests which were originally designed to push students of all races and backgrounds to deliver the minimal results, those competitive with other countries’ intellectual resources (such Europe and USSR until 1990). Didn’t those standard requirements turn into the desired maximal results we can ever demand from our children?
Somehow, each federally funded subject in public schools is conceived to manufacture the intellectually paralyzed screws to the regime out of students. Students are targeted to excel in math and sciences – and are cheered to further contribute to the society by pursuing engineering and accounting careers. In the meantime, the allowance of free time and the advancing in cultural development such as learning music and arts subjects became – all of a sudden – irrelevant as it is reflected in outlining the funds’ distribution, planning schedules, and curriculum for public schools. Because human beings of the industrial society should not have the free time to critically survey the existing regime and the social norms set by the dominant culture a while back.
The fact that media disseminates the racial and religious intolerance in this country leads to the thought that the entire entertainment industry only enhances the constant human’s distraction from inquiring into the main life questions which each individual tends to ask themselves. We can clearly acknowledge that both educational and popular culture industries support the status quo and prevent the implementation of the innovations in social life and political structure of the United States.
In addition to that, while late capitalism rushes into the era of technological globalism, the hypocrisy of food and pharmaceutical industries corrode every chance Americans have to arrange the implementation of the global change we thrive for. When the food itself is a poison and every second product in the food market is indigestible and/or induces cancer, people rush for their physical survival and seek the stability – instead of questioning the existing order and implementing changes. Since when does our public education system warn students of the dangers of the consumption of processed foods? Since never? graduating physically and mentally healthy humans would inevitably affect the remains of the late capitalism in favor to more of the socialist ideological order.
Should it be a difficult task to establish a picture of a good man given the complexity of everyday tasks we face: a “good person” possesses the healthy body, healthy emotions, and healthy thoughts, in every other historical era as much as today. A good person is a healthy person; only a healthy person can fully contribute to the needs of the society. A good person is a person who preserves the existing treasures and creates a foundation for the future progress.
What if – “if” before demanding from every kid the excellence in math we educate students in how to preserve their physical and mental abilities for the long years of use in stressful environmental conditions; what “if” we expose school students to the techniques of emotional management and control. What “if” we stop demanding from the students to acquire the standardized knowledge and test them for it – knowledge which each student has access to through the widely opened informational resources and internet; “if” we reform the public school to prepare the citizens to be able to adequately take care of themselves, their families, communities and to succeed in chosen careers. “If” the public school breaks not the progress of the society by dragging young minds into the thinking “inside the box”, but supports the individual physical and intellectual needs of each child’s development in a “safe” environment where no racial and gender issues are reported as outspokenly problematic.
Stasie Gonikberg Blog 