roundtable: re: electronic corporate education

roundtable: re: electronic corporate education

re: electronic corporate education

Richard K. Moore (rkmoore@internet-eireann.ie)
Thu, 28 Dec 1995 19:26:36 GMT 

Date: Thu, 28 Dec 1995 19:26:36 GMT
Message-Id: <v02110102ad0889db9d7f@[194.9.35.154]>
To: roundtable@cni.org, Cyberspace Society <cyber-soc@READNS1.READADP.COM>
From: rkmoore@internet-eireann.ie (Richard K. Moore)
Subject: re: electronic corporate education


On Wed, 27 Dec 1995 Ted Kircher wrote:
> 
> In summary, I believe that student education should take place primarily
> via CBT courses, mentors and access to people in industry, and the
> 'teacher' should be the facilitator to bring these together.
> 
> This should reduce the administrivia cost of schools as well as teachers,
> and direct money more directly to the education of the students who should
> greater responsibility as well as opportunity for their own success.

What a backward attitude toward education!  I guess it makes superficial
sense, if you accept the premise that citizenship in a democracy has been
replaced by employment in a corporation -- but even then it overlooks a
fundamental fact: with rapidly changing technology, one is more valuable
(in the long run) as a worker if he or she understands a broad range of
fundamental principles, not by undergoing narrow, short-sighted,
occupational training.

But worse is the abandonment of the whole Western tradition of education
for citizenship: attaining a cosmopolitan perspective historically,
philosophically, scientifically, politically, etc.  I imagine Mr. Kircher
benefitted from such an education, a shame that he uses his philosophical
insights to discourage future generations from having the same opportunity.

There seems to be an underlying assumption that our educational system is
totally mis-designed and needs to be abandoned -- a theme perpetuated by
the media.  It just ain't so.  This is one more of the myths designed to
blame economic and social collapse on the victims.  Education has been
under-funded for years, and through the miracle of propaganda, we are 
urged to blame anything but the under-funding itself for the decline in
educational performance that it  has caused.

There may also be an assumption that U.S. workers are woefully under
educated, and that this is a significant cause of economic decline in
industry.  Again the media promulgates this myth, but myth it is.
Increasingly young people with high quality educations -- and excellent
vocational preparation -- find there simply aren't jobs.  This is a result
of government-encouraged corporate dis-investment and capital flight,
certainly not the result of an ill-prepared U.S. workforce.  The U.S.
compares very favorably in terms of productivity, worker-attitude, and
worker-skills with other industrialized countries.

CBT (sounds like a pesticide) can contribute a lot to various kinds of
learning, but as a primary channel of education, it is sadly sterile and
narrow.

Finally, this bit about "reduce the administrivia cost of schools" so as to
"direct money more directly to the education of the students" is a "cheap
capitalist trick", as someone used to put it.  Money cut from teaching
isn't likely be earmarked for other educational use, just as money cut from
Social Security won't be earmarked for education.  It'll go where all our
incremental tax dollars go -- to corporate subsidies.


Yuk!
Richard


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 Posted by Richard K. Moore (rkmoore@internet-eireann.ie) Wexford, Ireland
 CyberJournal@cpsr.org  | Cyberlib=http://www.internet-eireann.ie/cyberlib
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