I would like to take this opportunity to take you on a brief tour of what is available to you, the readers of this blog, beyond the opinions of the blogger(s). In fact, the other features of the blog may in many cases be of greater value to readers than the contributions of the blogger(s)!
On the left two-thirds of the cover page you have the latest posts, starting with the most recent. Please note that at the end of each post there is a box for you to express your comments, reactions or questions to each post. We really encourage you to do this! You can preview your comments before you are ready to post them. Also, you may want to review the comments of previous readers to each of the posts. You will find much thoughtful analysis and opinions from previous readers!
On the right margin, you find what may be the least interesting part of the blog: the "About Me" section, relating to my personal background. At the end of this section, you may click on the link to view a slightly more thorough version of my personal profile (does anyone really care about my favorite books, or what films I enjoy the most? Doubtful.)
Now comes the good stuff! On the right margin, below the "About me/Profile" section, there is a long section entitled "Comments/Links/Resources." It explains what links are available to the readers of the blog. These are invaluable resources to anyone who wants to develop his/her "State of The World Awareness" and his/her "Knowledge of Global Dynamics," as suggested by Robert Hanvey, in order to become an effective global citizen.
You cannot do any better than using these resources to learn about and understand what is going on in the world today. You will have direct access to: BBC Global News, perhaps the most respected news organization in the world (both print and TV resources); The New York Times Global Edition in association with The International Herald Tribune, the top news and analysis vehicles in the Western world; WorldPress.org, a thorough and invaluable resource for discovering what the world's media is saying about our global reality. (Often the stories covered and how they are covered will be substantially different from what we find in the Western media); and Worldfocus, an excellent and much needed effort by Western news professionals to cover the important stories that somehow bypass the mainstream media. We will return to these great resources in Part II of this post. For now, let's continue to discover what else is available in this blog.
Below the links just outlined, there are boxes for subscribing to this blog, and/or to our readers' comments. Below these boxes there is a "Search This Blog" box for locating material of interest in the blog without having to hunt through all posts.
Immediately below, still on the right margin, there is another box to subscribe as a follower of this blog; we hope that you will consider doing so and be notified of new entries as they are posted. A list of current followers is next.
Finally, the Blog Archive is shown, organized by month of entry. The entries of the current month are outlined; you have to click on each of the preceding months to access previous entries.
We hope that this brief tour will help you get the most from this blog. In the next entry, we will focus in more detail on the wonderful news resources that were mentioned earlier -- The BBC; The New York Times/International Herald Tribune; Worldpress.org; Worldfocus -- and we will describe in more detail the great information available in each of these resources.
Until soon, then.
October 25, 2009
October 10, 2009
CAN WE HELP OUR STUDENTS TO DEVELOP EMPATHY? -- PART III
In our last post we discussed how cultural and individual/personal conditioning can conspire to derail a student's normal development of empathy toward other humans who suffer in pain and misery. Now we will focus on how we as teachers can help to re-awaken our students' potential for empathy.
Following are some approaches -- not the only approaches -- that we can employ in the classroom. I invite readers to share (in the "Comments" section following this post) their opinions about these suggested approaches and all other ways in which our students can be helped in this often difficult process.
The possibilities suggested below have been intentionally stated in a very general manner. Global teachers wishing to pursue any of these suggestions should select the specific avenues most suitable to their students' situation.
(1) The first step should normally be to provide solid information to the students about the human condition around the planet. What is the extent of human suffering in the world? How many men, women and children suffer from destructive poverty, chronic hunger and malnutrition, lack of the most basic health services, elementary education, or other elements that we consider essential to a meaningful life as a human being? What human rights are not respected around the world? What is the condition of women around the planet?
How do the students feel about the answers to these questions? Are they comfortable with the status quo? Rarely will the answer be "yes." Students need to know what the state of the world is; often, they will be astonished at the extent of suffering among their fellow humans.
(2) A follow-up line of questioning: Do all humans start life from the same starting point, in the same level playing field? Do some of us have a head start over others? Why? What did we do to deserve that head start? What did the disadvantaged do to deserve their handicapped beginning and their very limited potential?
Let's bring the issue to a very personal level of reflection. If your parents had lived in a Mumbai slum, or a favela in Rio de Janeiro, would you be in this school today? Would you have the same potential that you now have? What would your life be like? What would your parents' and your siblings' life be like? How would you feel about your lot in life?
Would your disempowered and disenfranchised condition be your own fault? Do you think that you would want a better chance at life? How would you view those who enjoy all the material benefits that in fact you actually do enjoy today?
(3) Let's engage the power of the informed imagination. Ask your students to sit comfortably, close their eyes and allow themselves to be transported to an alternate reality that you will construct and narrate to them -- a reality that in fact reflects the real world of millions upon millions of humans around the planet.
Building on solid data known to you, ask students to imagine themselves living for 24 hours in the world of the downtrodden. Slowly narrate this verbal fantasy to your students. Describe the world that they would face as they wake-up in the morning. Take them with your narration through a day in the life of their new selves, somewhere in the world. Describe the details of the life they encounter. Slowly, let them face their new reality as you describe it.
At the end of the imaginary experience, ask them to explore their thoughts and feelings as they "lived" that imaginary life. Ask them to write them down, without discussion. Then, ask volunteers to share what they have written; allow discussion from other students.
This can be an enlightening experience for those students who allow themselves entry into their vicarious life.
(4) The power of good literature can be extraordinary. A good writer can make an unknown world come alive to his/her reader. Select, from the multitude of relevant options available, which books should be read by your students. Part of your assessment should be a written personal reaction to the existential plight of the disempowered characters in the book. After this has been written, a class discussion could expand the potential for empathetic understanding.
(5) Within the world of literature, poetry offers the most potential for affective growth. Choose the poems that would be most relevant for your objectives and situation. Have students familiarize themselves with the poems and then read them aloud in class. Explore, in class discussion, the relevant affective elements brought up by the poems. There is no need to overdo it. Let the truth of each poem speak for itself.
(6) We should not underestimate the power of music. From the "Ode to Joy" of Beethoven's 9th Symphony, to some of today's socially committed rap artists, great composers and performers have already communicated affective truths to our students with greater success than a brilliant scientist could.
Ask your students to identify music of any genre that communicates the plight of the dispossessed and the disempowered. They could bring a CD to play in class, provide copies of lyrics for reading and discussion, or -- in the case of the more musically gifted -- perform the piece for the benefit of the whole class.
(7) Many countries (like the USA) wisely forbid religious instruction in the public classroom. However, we can inquire into the social morality directives promulgated by the religious faiths of our students. All the major religious faiths clearly and powerfully enjoin their followers to care for their fellow human beings. Justice and charity are at the core of all major faiths, even if followers often ignore the teachings. (Unfortunately, the social doctrine of any religious faith is often the least emphasized message in sermons, writings, etc.)
We can ask our students to reflect on the directives of their faiths. What is the social doctrine of your church? What does your religion say about caring for others unknown to you? What is the place of justice? What does your religion say about charity? What does your religious faith say about the suffering of others? What does your religion ask of you when it comes to helping your human brothers and sisters?
We should be careful not to assume that all our students have a religious commitment (in the USA, 30% of the population -- and growing -- claims "no religious affiliation.") In the case of these students, ask them to reflect on what the application of social ethics might require. (You may need to explain the difference between "morality" and "ethics.")
(8) Ask students to share stories of individuals personally known to them who, through no fault of their own, lived lives of misery or despair. Discuss in class: Are people normally responsible for their own misery? What is the normal, human response to the misery of others?
(9) Discuss in class, "What kinds of things can interfere with our normal human capacity to develop Basic Human Empathy?" "What can we do to help develop our human potential for empathy?"
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
We can only help. Our students must do the hard thinking and the "hard feeling" for themselves. They have to be ready, willing and able to challenge any remaining insensitivity that remains like a hardened shell around their sense of empathy. Are our students capable of this? In the case of the great majority, yes!
Following are some approaches -- not the only approaches -- that we can employ in the classroom. I invite readers to share (in the "Comments" section following this post) their opinions about these suggested approaches and all other ways in which our students can be helped in this often difficult process.
The possibilities suggested below have been intentionally stated in a very general manner. Global teachers wishing to pursue any of these suggestions should select the specific avenues most suitable to their students' situation.
(1) The first step should normally be to provide solid information to the students about the human condition around the planet. What is the extent of human suffering in the world? How many men, women and children suffer from destructive poverty, chronic hunger and malnutrition, lack of the most basic health services, elementary education, or other elements that we consider essential to a meaningful life as a human being? What human rights are not respected around the world? What is the condition of women around the planet?
How do the students feel about the answers to these questions? Are they comfortable with the status quo? Rarely will the answer be "yes." Students need to know what the state of the world is; often, they will be astonished at the extent of suffering among their fellow humans.
(2) A follow-up line of questioning: Do all humans start life from the same starting point, in the same level playing field? Do some of us have a head start over others? Why? What did we do to deserve that head start? What did the disadvantaged do to deserve their handicapped beginning and their very limited potential?
Let's bring the issue to a very personal level of reflection. If your parents had lived in a Mumbai slum, or a favela in Rio de Janeiro, would you be in this school today? Would you have the same potential that you now have? What would your life be like? What would your parents' and your siblings' life be like? How would you feel about your lot in life?
Would your disempowered and disenfranchised condition be your own fault? Do you think that you would want a better chance at life? How would you view those who enjoy all the material benefits that in fact you actually do enjoy today?
(3) Let's engage the power of the informed imagination. Ask your students to sit comfortably, close their eyes and allow themselves to be transported to an alternate reality that you will construct and narrate to them -- a reality that in fact reflects the real world of millions upon millions of humans around the planet.
Building on solid data known to you, ask students to imagine themselves living for 24 hours in the world of the downtrodden. Slowly narrate this verbal fantasy to your students. Describe the world that they would face as they wake-up in the morning. Take them with your narration through a day in the life of their new selves, somewhere in the world. Describe the details of the life they encounter. Slowly, let them face their new reality as you describe it.
At the end of the imaginary experience, ask them to explore their thoughts and feelings as they "lived" that imaginary life. Ask them to write them down, without discussion. Then, ask volunteers to share what they have written; allow discussion from other students.
This can be an enlightening experience for those students who allow themselves entry into their vicarious life.
(4) The power of good literature can be extraordinary. A good writer can make an unknown world come alive to his/her reader. Select, from the multitude of relevant options available, which books should be read by your students. Part of your assessment should be a written personal reaction to the existential plight of the disempowered characters in the book. After this has been written, a class discussion could expand the potential for empathetic understanding.
(5) Within the world of literature, poetry offers the most potential for affective growth. Choose the poems that would be most relevant for your objectives and situation. Have students familiarize themselves with the poems and then read them aloud in class. Explore, in class discussion, the relevant affective elements brought up by the poems. There is no need to overdo it. Let the truth of each poem speak for itself.
(6) We should not underestimate the power of music. From the "Ode to Joy" of Beethoven's 9th Symphony, to some of today's socially committed rap artists, great composers and performers have already communicated affective truths to our students with greater success than a brilliant scientist could.
Ask your students to identify music of any genre that communicates the plight of the dispossessed and the disempowered. They could bring a CD to play in class, provide copies of lyrics for reading and discussion, or -- in the case of the more musically gifted -- perform the piece for the benefit of the whole class.
(7) Many countries (like the USA) wisely forbid religious instruction in the public classroom. However, we can inquire into the social morality directives promulgated by the religious faiths of our students. All the major religious faiths clearly and powerfully enjoin their followers to care for their fellow human beings. Justice and charity are at the core of all major faiths, even if followers often ignore the teachings. (Unfortunately, the social doctrine of any religious faith is often the least emphasized message in sermons, writings, etc.)
We can ask our students to reflect on the directives of their faiths. What is the social doctrine of your church? What does your religion say about caring for others unknown to you? What is the place of justice? What does your religion say about charity? What does your religious faith say about the suffering of others? What does your religion ask of you when it comes to helping your human brothers and sisters?
We should be careful not to assume that all our students have a religious commitment (in the USA, 30% of the population -- and growing -- claims "no religious affiliation.") In the case of these students, ask them to reflect on what the application of social ethics might require. (You may need to explain the difference between "morality" and "ethics.")
(8) Ask students to share stories of individuals personally known to them who, through no fault of their own, lived lives of misery or despair. Discuss in class: Are people normally responsible for their own misery? What is the normal, human response to the misery of others?
(9) Discuss in class, "What kinds of things can interfere with our normal human capacity to develop Basic Human Empathy?" "What can we do to help develop our human potential for empathy?"
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
We can only help. Our students must do the hard thinking and the "hard feeling" for themselves. They have to be ready, willing and able to challenge any remaining insensitivity that remains like a hardened shell around their sense of empathy. Are our students capable of this? In the case of the great majority, yes!
October 4, 2009
CAN WE HELP OUR STUDENTS TO DEVELOP EMPATHY? -- PART II
In our last post we proposed that the normal, healthy emotional and intellectual development of adolescents would lead them to develop "Basic Human Empathy." We defined Basic Human Empathy as "The intellectual and emotional ability to feel the joy and pain of others who are not personally close to us." We also raised the questions of whether we as teachers could help in the development of Basic Human Empathy and how we could do so.
We will now try to explore what factors intervene to thwart the normal development of Basic Human Empathy. Two such factors are: (1) cultural conditioning, and (2) individual, personal conditioning.
(1) By "cultural conditioning" we mean the sum total of the conditioned learning provided by the culture or sub-culture in which we live, injected unconsciously into our minds through associative learning. Some sub-cultures glorify individualism and denigrate (at least in practice) normal human concern for others. In the USA, for instance, there is a profound theological / philosophical under-current among some religious groups which minimizes the value of empathy as it glorifies an emphasis on individualism. This under-current is sometimes mistakenly referred to as "the Protestant ethic." This is an unwarranted term, as most major Protestant denominations do not subscribe to it. More accurate terms are "the Puritan ethic," or "the Calvinist ethic."
As dogmatic practitioners of strict Calvinism, the Puritan settlers in what would become the United States of America believed that their God had already predestined all human beings to either eternal heaven or hell, and that the human experience on earth correlated to this divine judgment. The "saved" would enjoy riches and benefits on earth; the "condemned" would not -- they would experience want and despair.
While this "Puritan ethic" is not always consciously embraced in American culture, it has undoubtedly had a major impact on the ethos of American culture due to the importance of the Puritans in the American story. It is an under-current that pervades many sectors of secular culture (such as the business world) and is predominant in some religious subcultures.
The practical effect of the conscious or unconscious spread of this Puritan ethic is the logical conclusion that (having accepted the predestination premise,) if God has condemned the unworthy person to hell for his/her iniquity, why should I care about his/her well-being on earth? Thus, the poor are condemned for their poverty, the weak for their own powerlessness, and the sick for their sickness. The Puritan ethic blesses our indifference and our lack of caring. It undermines the normal development of Basic Human Empathy.
We must stress that many or most Protestant denominations -- among them Lutherans, Methodists, Anglicans and many others -- do not subscribe to this theology or its consequent social doctrine of non-empathy. Neither does the Catholic church, whose social doctrine is among the most empathetic of all, even if most Catholics are blissfully unaware of their own church's social teaching.
Due to its historical importance as a foundation stone of American culture, the Puritan ethic has created a powerful under-current of insensitivity in American society -- even among members of religious groups that do not support the Puritan theological premise or conclusions.
Other nations and cultures have their own historical and philosophical barriers that interfere with the development of Basic Human Empathy. We each need to explore our cultural and historical contexts in order to identify what variables are at play.
(2) Individual, personal conditioning often builds on cultural conditioning. Continuing the USA example, wave upon wave of immigrants struggle in the "land of opportunity" to reach the "American dream." Those who reach the dream of material welfare, unaware (and uninterested) in the real difficulties faced by others, often assume that if others haven't found the same level of material success it must be due to their lack of trying, some moral failing, or some other internal weakness.
The adults in American society who hold such views may intentionally or unintentionally condition their children to believe that if others suffer, it must be due to their own avoidable failings, or lack of hard work. Didn't they, recent immigrants, reach success through hard work? Therefore, why waste time, energy and money worrying about the downtrodden?
We can now explain how, in the richest large country in the world, we accept homelessness, poverty, lack of access to health care or legal care, etc. and do not appear to be particularly motivated to take political steps to bring about greater social justice.
Often, adolescents reach our schools carrying the huge burden of non-empathetic cultural and personal conditioning. This conditioning has been unconscious and not requested. They usually have not stopped to reflect on their own mental schemas about empathy, economic success, and how pain and suffering can come to those who do not deserve it. That is the beginning of our work as teachers.
In our next post, we will explore some specific avenues to help our students breakaway from any residual cultural or personal conditioning and recover their potential for development of Basic Human Empathy.
We will now try to explore what factors intervene to thwart the normal development of Basic Human Empathy. Two such factors are: (1) cultural conditioning, and (2) individual, personal conditioning.
(1) By "cultural conditioning" we mean the sum total of the conditioned learning provided by the culture or sub-culture in which we live, injected unconsciously into our minds through associative learning. Some sub-cultures glorify individualism and denigrate (at least in practice) normal human concern for others. In the USA, for instance, there is a profound theological / philosophical under-current among some religious groups which minimizes the value of empathy as it glorifies an emphasis on individualism. This under-current is sometimes mistakenly referred to as "the Protestant ethic." This is an unwarranted term, as most major Protestant denominations do not subscribe to it. More accurate terms are "the Puritan ethic," or "the Calvinist ethic."
As dogmatic practitioners of strict Calvinism, the Puritan settlers in what would become the United States of America believed that their God had already predestined all human beings to either eternal heaven or hell, and that the human experience on earth correlated to this divine judgment. The "saved" would enjoy riches and benefits on earth; the "condemned" would not -- they would experience want and despair.
While this "Puritan ethic" is not always consciously embraced in American culture, it has undoubtedly had a major impact on the ethos of American culture due to the importance of the Puritans in the American story. It is an under-current that pervades many sectors of secular culture (such as the business world) and is predominant in some religious subcultures.
The practical effect of the conscious or unconscious spread of this Puritan ethic is the logical conclusion that (having accepted the predestination premise,) if God has condemned the unworthy person to hell for his/her iniquity, why should I care about his/her well-being on earth? Thus, the poor are condemned for their poverty, the weak for their own powerlessness, and the sick for their sickness. The Puritan ethic blesses our indifference and our lack of caring. It undermines the normal development of Basic Human Empathy.
We must stress that many or most Protestant denominations -- among them Lutherans, Methodists, Anglicans and many others -- do not subscribe to this theology or its consequent social doctrine of non-empathy. Neither does the Catholic church, whose social doctrine is among the most empathetic of all, even if most Catholics are blissfully unaware of their own church's social teaching.
Due to its historical importance as a foundation stone of American culture, the Puritan ethic has created a powerful under-current of insensitivity in American society -- even among members of religious groups that do not support the Puritan theological premise or conclusions.
Other nations and cultures have their own historical and philosophical barriers that interfere with the development of Basic Human Empathy. We each need to explore our cultural and historical contexts in order to identify what variables are at play.
(2) Individual, personal conditioning often builds on cultural conditioning. Continuing the USA example, wave upon wave of immigrants struggle in the "land of opportunity" to reach the "American dream." Those who reach the dream of material welfare, unaware (and uninterested) in the real difficulties faced by others, often assume that if others haven't found the same level of material success it must be due to their lack of trying, some moral failing, or some other internal weakness.
The adults in American society who hold such views may intentionally or unintentionally condition their children to believe that if others suffer, it must be due to their own avoidable failings, or lack of hard work. Didn't they, recent immigrants, reach success through hard work? Therefore, why waste time, energy and money worrying about the downtrodden?
We can now explain how, in the richest large country in the world, we accept homelessness, poverty, lack of access to health care or legal care, etc. and do not appear to be particularly motivated to take political steps to bring about greater social justice.
Often, adolescents reach our schools carrying the huge burden of non-empathetic cultural and personal conditioning. This conditioning has been unconscious and not requested. They usually have not stopped to reflect on their own mental schemas about empathy, economic success, and how pain and suffering can come to those who do not deserve it. That is the beginning of our work as teachers.
In our next post, we will explore some specific avenues to help our students breakaway from any residual cultural or personal conditioning and recover their potential for development of Basic Human Empathy.
September 28, 2009
CAN WE HELP OUR STUDENTS TO DEVELOP EMPATHY ? -- PART l
When we consider current global issues in our classrooms, a question arises regarding our students' ability to feel and understand the pain and suffering of others around the globe. How can middle or upper-class students feel the pain of hunger, or the hopelessness of poverty? How can they relate to totally disempowered human beings around the world? The ability to personally feel the impact of these powerful situations, unknown to them "in the flesh," is critical to a thorough understanding of the global reality. So, how can we help our students develop empathy for their fellow humans? Let's start at the very beginning.
Psychologists tell us that when we as infants first develop our awareness of others as beings not directly linked to us and not part of "our group," we respond with concern, rejection or fear. (Aunt Sally can attest to this, as little Jimmy begins to cry when she first visits the family and picks him up.) This is an understandable evolutionary reaction to a possible threat to our well-being. To the infant, others are present only to meet his/her needs or as possible threats. An infant has no sense of empathy for the welfare of others.
As we gain confidence in ourselves and in our environment, we lower our guard and become less insular; we are more accepting of new faces. We begin to develop our social self and learn to interact productively with others. We begin to accept the existence of others in our world.
Although we remain self-centered as children, we normally begin to develop a rudimentary -- but very real -- concern for fairness and justice. We automatically reject obvious perceived injustices perpetrated against our siblings and our social group. As we reach what Jean Piaget called the "Concrete Operational Stage" of cognitive development, we reject specific examples of perceived wrongdoing against those close to us.
A little later, we reach Piaget's "Formal Operational Stage" and we are able to internalize abstract concepts that we can apply to specific situations; concepts such as "justice," "fairness," and "empathy." We now have the tools to develop empathy toward those who are personally unknown to us.
The specific attributes of human nature have been a matter of considerable philosophical and psychological debate over the years. I am going to be on the side of those who believe that in a normal, non-threatening environment, all humans begin to develop "basic human empathy." I am going to define "basic human empathy" as "the intellectual and emotional ability to feel the joy or pain of others who are not personally close to us."
Not everyone develops basic human empathy. In very threatening environments, some children/adolescents cannot get beyond the evolutionary dictates of self-preservation-at-any-cost and do not develop a sense of empathy; this is not normal human development. Fortunately, most humans do develop empathy as we develop cognitively and morally/ethically.
In those cases when our environment and our conditioning conspire to thwart normal development, the result is an adolescent or adult with an under-developed capacity for empathy. Several questions arise: What specific factors can interfere with the development of the human capacity for empathy? Can we as teachers help our students develop their normal potential to become empathetic human beings and care for both the pain and the well-being of those unknown to them? If so, how can we do it?
In our next post we will explore some possibilities....
Psychologists tell us that when we as infants first develop our awareness of others as beings not directly linked to us and not part of "our group," we respond with concern, rejection or fear. (Aunt Sally can attest to this, as little Jimmy begins to cry when she first visits the family and picks him up.) This is an understandable evolutionary reaction to a possible threat to our well-being. To the infant, others are present only to meet his/her needs or as possible threats. An infant has no sense of empathy for the welfare of others.
As we gain confidence in ourselves and in our environment, we lower our guard and become less insular; we are more accepting of new faces. We begin to develop our social self and learn to interact productively with others. We begin to accept the existence of others in our world.
Although we remain self-centered as children, we normally begin to develop a rudimentary -- but very real -- concern for fairness and justice. We automatically reject obvious perceived injustices perpetrated against our siblings and our social group. As we reach what Jean Piaget called the "Concrete Operational Stage" of cognitive development, we reject specific examples of perceived wrongdoing against those close to us.
A little later, we reach Piaget's "Formal Operational Stage" and we are able to internalize abstract concepts that we can apply to specific situations; concepts such as "justice," "fairness," and "empathy." We now have the tools to develop empathy toward those who are personally unknown to us.
The specific attributes of human nature have been a matter of considerable philosophical and psychological debate over the years. I am going to be on the side of those who believe that in a normal, non-threatening environment, all humans begin to develop "basic human empathy." I am going to define "basic human empathy" as "the intellectual and emotional ability to feel the joy or pain of others who are not personally close to us."
Not everyone develops basic human empathy. In very threatening environments, some children/adolescents cannot get beyond the evolutionary dictates of self-preservation-at-any-cost and do not develop a sense of empathy; this is not normal human development. Fortunately, most humans do develop empathy as we develop cognitively and morally/ethically.
In those cases when our environment and our conditioning conspire to thwart normal development, the result is an adolescent or adult with an under-developed capacity for empathy. Several questions arise: What specific factors can interfere with the development of the human capacity for empathy? Can we as teachers help our students develop their normal potential to become empathetic human beings and care for both the pain and the well-being of those unknown to them? If so, how can we do it?
In our next post we will explore some possibilities....
September 20, 2009
OUR STUDENTS SHOULD NOT BE MERE HUMANTS
Behold the wonder of an anthill. Thousands, tens of thousands of ants, each pursuing its single-minded duty with the utmost efficiency and commitment: collecting food, creating additions to their habitat, defending their queen and their way of life, reproducing in earnest. Interfere with their activity, and you do it at your own peril; the entire colony will go into defensive mode and attempt to contain the intrusion with total concentration. The colony will continue to grow, build, reproduce and add to their habitat. Ants have no way to alter their genetic demands. They have no free will.
We can marvel at this example of inflexible, pre-programmed activity. It becomes an object of interest, as human observers occasionally intrude through a glass wall and observe the never-ending pursuit of ants to be ants. Yet, (as far as we now,) no ant stops to question its pre-programmed genetic dictate. No ant questions its role, its work, or its goal. No ant challenges its genetic destiny.
Free will does not play a role in an ant's world. They live and die pushed and pulled by their genetic directives. Of course. They are, after all, ants. We would not expect them to do otherwise -- to rebel against their genes or challenge their conditioning.
Behold now the humant habitat. Tens of thousands -- or hundreds of millions -- of humants, hurrying about in pursuit of their socially ordained duty, building additions to their habitats, acquiring and consuming food, defending their way of life and their "queen," reproducing in earnest. Behold their magnificent buildings, their advanced vehicles, their designer clothing, their work and their play. How many of them live in a higher plain than ants? How many of them question the directives of their social order? How many look inward for answers, rather than blindly submit to their cultural conditioning? How many challenge the norms, the expectations, the goals that their societies inject? How many humans are, in fact, humants?
Whatever the number of humans that you would include in the "humant" category (and I would include a very high proportion,) it seems beyond doubt that these humans have lost -- at least temporarily -- the defining characteristic of "humanness": free will. Through social conditioning, they have lost the ability to think for themselves, to question, to reflect, to challenge. They have become humants.
Humants accept the status quo unquestioningly. They have drowned their ability to envision options under the sea of "what is," not allowing themselves to envision "what could be." Humants are guided by obedience to the social dictates. They obey well. They don't allow themselves the human luxuries of questioning, challenging, or envisioning alternatives. When visionary humans depict a different option for humanity, humants fight against it automatically, as an attack on the anthill. This anthill, they feel, is the only anthill. All other options must be rejected.
Throughout history, there have always been more humants than humans. Humants have rejected change and progress to the best of their ability. Yet, that minority of brave humans who have allowed themselves the power to think, to question, to challenge and envision better options have managed to move us forward in spite of humant resistance. They are responsible for all human progress. They have taken us from the cave and the dark ages to the present. They now envision our future potential as a species evolving toward a brighter future and a more just world. They will help create a better human society in a better world.
We must empower our students to not be mere humants. We must help them realize the human potential to attain justice and peace; for the enlightenment of humanity; for the greater good of the species. Knowing that they will find the opposition of humants along the way, we must empower them to engage in battle and prevail. Given the critical issues that we now face, the future of humanity rests on their success.
We can marvel at this example of inflexible, pre-programmed activity. It becomes an object of interest, as human observers occasionally intrude through a glass wall and observe the never-ending pursuit of ants to be ants. Yet, (as far as we now,) no ant stops to question its pre-programmed genetic dictate. No ant questions its role, its work, or its goal. No ant challenges its genetic destiny.
Free will does not play a role in an ant's world. They live and die pushed and pulled by their genetic directives. Of course. They are, after all, ants. We would not expect them to do otherwise -- to rebel against their genes or challenge their conditioning.
Behold now the humant habitat. Tens of thousands -- or hundreds of millions -- of humants, hurrying about in pursuit of their socially ordained duty, building additions to their habitats, acquiring and consuming food, defending their way of life and their "queen," reproducing in earnest. Behold their magnificent buildings, their advanced vehicles, their designer clothing, their work and their play. How many of them live in a higher plain than ants? How many of them question the directives of their social order? How many look inward for answers, rather than blindly submit to their cultural conditioning? How many challenge the norms, the expectations, the goals that their societies inject? How many humans are, in fact, humants?
Whatever the number of humans that you would include in the "humant" category (and I would include a very high proportion,) it seems beyond doubt that these humans have lost -- at least temporarily -- the defining characteristic of "humanness": free will. Through social conditioning, they have lost the ability to think for themselves, to question, to reflect, to challenge. They have become humants.
Humants accept the status quo unquestioningly. They have drowned their ability to envision options under the sea of "what is," not allowing themselves to envision "what could be." Humants are guided by obedience to the social dictates. They obey well. They don't allow themselves the human luxuries of questioning, challenging, or envisioning alternatives. When visionary humans depict a different option for humanity, humants fight against it automatically, as an attack on the anthill. This anthill, they feel, is the only anthill. All other options must be rejected.
Throughout history, there have always been more humants than humans. Humants have rejected change and progress to the best of their ability. Yet, that minority of brave humans who have allowed themselves the power to think, to question, to challenge and envision better options have managed to move us forward in spite of humant resistance. They are responsible for all human progress. They have taken us from the cave and the dark ages to the present. They now envision our future potential as a species evolving toward a brighter future and a more just world. They will help create a better human society in a better world.
We must empower our students to not be mere humants. We must help them realize the human potential to attain justice and peace; for the enlightenment of humanity; for the greater good of the species. Knowing that they will find the opposition of humants along the way, we must empower them to engage in battle and prevail. Given the critical issues that we now face, the future of humanity rests on their success.
September 13, 2009
"WHAT A BEAUTIFUL LIFE YOU LIVE"
A person very close to my heart recently surprised me by saying, "What a beautiful life you live..." upon hearing about my teaching and my commitment to global education.
I found it surprising to be the focus of this simple, almost magical bit of praise. I had, of course, thought about the intrinsic value of teaching and the personal rewards of my involvement in global education many times during my 30+ years of global teaching -- but I had never thought or heard words that touchingly simple: "What a beautiful life you live." Taken aback by the simple power of those words, I was forced to focus on them and ponder their implications.
We teachers who wake-up daily before the end of our dreams, who "punch-in-and-out" the bureaucratic clock on the way to and from educating others, who are typically immersed in paper and paperless work, parental contacts, lesson plans, test preparation, homework correction and classroom discipline, may be easily distracted from our real jobs: we are global educators. we intend to create a better world through the agency of our students.
We welcome young, eager, sometimes immature students -- ordinarily the products of our cultures' narrow-minded conditioning -- and take steps to help them develop their global vision, their human sensitivity, their intrinsic humanism. We attempt to nurture their potential and enrich their very being. We hope that they will become the masters and mistresses of their chosen professional futures and use their expertise and commitment to create a better world for all humanity.
Is there a better way to spend our years on this living planet? Is there a more noble or more powerful undertaking? Is there a more worthwhile and rewarding professional pursuit?
Let us at least occasionally look beyond the daily tasks and toils of daily schooling. Let us at least occasionally ignore the incongruity of society's limited material rewards. And during those moments, let us instead revel in the intrinsic value of our own efforts -- imperfect as they may be at times -- and look anew, freshly and hopefully at what we really do: we educate global citizens; we empower the princes and princesses of tomorrow; we endeavor to create a better world.
How many professions can claim that as their over-arching goal? How many industries contribute in the same measure? None that I know of. None. Not one.
So, fellow global educators, rest assured that beyond the daily tasks and toils, beyond the bureaucratic trivia and the occasionally overwhelming demands, your work has value that others cannot claim. Your work perdures beyond your life and grave. Your work is noble, beautiful and long lasting. And when someone at some future time approaches you and says, "What a beautiful life you live," you will perhaps be a little less surprised than I was.
I found it surprising to be the focus of this simple, almost magical bit of praise. I had, of course, thought about the intrinsic value of teaching and the personal rewards of my involvement in global education many times during my 30+ years of global teaching -- but I had never thought or heard words that touchingly simple: "What a beautiful life you live." Taken aback by the simple power of those words, I was forced to focus on them and ponder their implications.
We teachers who wake-up daily before the end of our dreams, who "punch-in-and-out" the bureaucratic clock on the way to and from educating others, who are typically immersed in paper and paperless work, parental contacts, lesson plans, test preparation, homework correction and classroom discipline, may be easily distracted from our real jobs: we are global educators. we intend to create a better world through the agency of our students.
We welcome young, eager, sometimes immature students -- ordinarily the products of our cultures' narrow-minded conditioning -- and take steps to help them develop their global vision, their human sensitivity, their intrinsic humanism. We attempt to nurture their potential and enrich their very being. We hope that they will become the masters and mistresses of their chosen professional futures and use their expertise and commitment to create a better world for all humanity.
Is there a better way to spend our years on this living planet? Is there a more noble or more powerful undertaking? Is there a more worthwhile and rewarding professional pursuit?
Let us at least occasionally look beyond the daily tasks and toils of daily schooling. Let us at least occasionally ignore the incongruity of society's limited material rewards. And during those moments, let us instead revel in the intrinsic value of our own efforts -- imperfect as they may be at times -- and look anew, freshly and hopefully at what we really do: we educate global citizens; we empower the princes and princesses of tomorrow; we endeavor to create a better world.
How many professions can claim that as their over-arching goal? How many industries contribute in the same measure? None that I know of. None. Not one.
So, fellow global educators, rest assured that beyond the daily tasks and toils, beyond the bureaucratic trivia and the occasionally overwhelming demands, your work has value that others cannot claim. Your work perdures beyond your life and grave. Your work is noble, beautiful and long lasting. And when someone at some future time approaches you and says, "What a beautiful life you live," you will perhaps be a little less surprised than I was.
September 7, 2009
A BRITISH APPROACH TO GLOBAL EDUCATION
Let us today take a look at global education in secondary schools from the perspective of British global educators.
In the U.K., the secondary curriculum includes the cross-cultural component, "Global Dimension and Sustainable Development." This dimension is organized around eight key concepts which apply to all the subjects in the secondary curriculum.
GLOBAL CITIZENSHIP: The awareness that in today's world we are not only citizens of a nation, but also citizens of the world. This self-perception is at the core of today's global reality.
INTERDEPENDENCE: The awareness that human actions on one side of the planet impact other humans around the world. Whether we talk about food production, climate change or nuclear proliferation, we are all inter-connected and interdependent to a degree never before seen in the history of the planet. Unilateral, self-centered actions by short-sighted nation-states are not likely to advance the human prospects on the planet.
SOCIAL JUSTICE: As humans develop morally and ethically, we recognize that principles of social justice (such as those embraced by most major religious denominations) should define human behavior around the world. This is a key link between global education and religious beliefs. Too often, the members of religious denominations appear to ignore their own religious leaders' calls for justice and peace. Global educators should, within the scope of the curriculum, clearly identify such links and build on their implications.
HUMAN RIGHTS: The quest for human rights for all is a never-ending struggle. We now have in our possession the key document to advance such universal rights: the United Nation's Universal Declaration of Human Rights. This document has been endorsed by practically all the nations of the world. While we can bemoan the wholesale lack of compliance around the planet, global educators should use it as a core document signifying our present best judgment of the rights of each and all humans; it is an indispensable document, and one of the hallmark achievements of humankind.
CONFLICT RESOLUTION: While destructive armed conflict was never a good thing in human history, the nature of present conflict -- exacerbated by the explosion of warfare technology -- makes it imperative that we develop alternative, effective means to resolve conflict. Reliance on international agreements and a supra-national legal apparatus with global reach and effective enforcement powers should in time replace the "cow boy" mentality of individual nation states. Much progress has already been made on the visualization and the conceptual framework that would support such legal structures, but progress lags in the implementation of the obvious necessary steps, largely due to the hesitation of the powerful countries of the planet.
DIVERSITY: Humans have an unending capacity for prejudice. Possibly stemming from our evolutionary past, we tend to distrust, demean and fear others who are not exactly like us. This attitude might have helped some human groups survive and procreate in our evolutionary past, but is today a key barrier to understanding and cooperation. The sciences, particularly biology and psychology, should take a leading role in explaining the "oneness" of humankind. Our oneness as human beings is overwhelmingly superior to the very minor attributes that by nature or nurture make us different. A global educator must combat the human tendency to feel superior to others and build on the foundations of science to ensure that our students embrace diversity and eschew prejudice and discrimination of all types.
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT: Could there be any doubt about our descendant's amazement of our present passive acceptance of hunger, poverty, malnutrition, sickness, lack of education, and so many other socio-economic ills? Won't their reactions be similar to our own amazement at the evils that our ancestors accepted as normal? The statistics of under-development are so horrifying that we calmly face a daily silent holocaust. "Silent," because we do not want to think or talk about it -- but that should be the tell-tale indicator that our present situation is not acceptable under any ethical or moral code known to humankind. The complex problem of under-development must be understood and squarely faced by our students.
VALUES AND PERCEPTIONS: "We see what is behind our eyes," says an ancient Chinese proverb; we perceive what our mind tells us to perceive. The real world outside of our own minds must battle our expectations, preconceptions, schemas and conditioning before it can be accepted by our minds. The reality outside our minds must battle the desired reality within our minds before it can gain admission to our cognitive awareness. This is a battle often lost. Psychological foundations of perception, conditioning, cognition and critical thinking will help our students to understand the real world.
Our value systems create "macro-schemas" through which all perceived reality is "sifted." That which is not acceptable to our value system is rejected. Awareness of this peculiar human cognitive process should help our students come to terms with reality and human rationality (or lack thereof.)
Global educators should consider starting their courses with these considerations before moving on to other complex issues.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Go to http://www.globaldimension.org.uk/ for much more of this valuable contribution from British global educators, including specific ways that you can introduce a global dimension into any subject that you teach. We would also like to invite educators from around the world to share other national perspectives and schemas of global education.
In the U.K., the secondary curriculum includes the cross-cultural component, "Global Dimension and Sustainable Development." This dimension is organized around eight key concepts which apply to all the subjects in the secondary curriculum.
GLOBAL CITIZENSHIP: The awareness that in today's world we are not only citizens of a nation, but also citizens of the world. This self-perception is at the core of today's global reality.
INTERDEPENDENCE: The awareness that human actions on one side of the planet impact other humans around the world. Whether we talk about food production, climate change or nuclear proliferation, we are all inter-connected and interdependent to a degree never before seen in the history of the planet. Unilateral, self-centered actions by short-sighted nation-states are not likely to advance the human prospects on the planet.
SOCIAL JUSTICE: As humans develop morally and ethically, we recognize that principles of social justice (such as those embraced by most major religious denominations) should define human behavior around the world. This is a key link between global education and religious beliefs. Too often, the members of religious denominations appear to ignore their own religious leaders' calls for justice and peace. Global educators should, within the scope of the curriculum, clearly identify such links and build on their implications.
HUMAN RIGHTS: The quest for human rights for all is a never-ending struggle. We now have in our possession the key document to advance such universal rights: the United Nation's Universal Declaration of Human Rights. This document has been endorsed by practically all the nations of the world. While we can bemoan the wholesale lack of compliance around the planet, global educators should use it as a core document signifying our present best judgment of the rights of each and all humans; it is an indispensable document, and one of the hallmark achievements of humankind.
CONFLICT RESOLUTION: While destructive armed conflict was never a good thing in human history, the nature of present conflict -- exacerbated by the explosion of warfare technology -- makes it imperative that we develop alternative, effective means to resolve conflict. Reliance on international agreements and a supra-national legal apparatus with global reach and effective enforcement powers should in time replace the "cow boy" mentality of individual nation states. Much progress has already been made on the visualization and the conceptual framework that would support such legal structures, but progress lags in the implementation of the obvious necessary steps, largely due to the hesitation of the powerful countries of the planet.
DIVERSITY: Humans have an unending capacity for prejudice. Possibly stemming from our evolutionary past, we tend to distrust, demean and fear others who are not exactly like us. This attitude might have helped some human groups survive and procreate in our evolutionary past, but is today a key barrier to understanding and cooperation. The sciences, particularly biology and psychology, should take a leading role in explaining the "oneness" of humankind. Our oneness as human beings is overwhelmingly superior to the very minor attributes that by nature or nurture make us different. A global educator must combat the human tendency to feel superior to others and build on the foundations of science to ensure that our students embrace diversity and eschew prejudice and discrimination of all types.
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT: Could there be any doubt about our descendant's amazement of our present passive acceptance of hunger, poverty, malnutrition, sickness, lack of education, and so many other socio-economic ills? Won't their reactions be similar to our own amazement at the evils that our ancestors accepted as normal? The statistics of under-development are so horrifying that we calmly face a daily silent holocaust. "Silent," because we do not want to think or talk about it -- but that should be the tell-tale indicator that our present situation is not acceptable under any ethical or moral code known to humankind. The complex problem of under-development must be understood and squarely faced by our students.
VALUES AND PERCEPTIONS: "We see what is behind our eyes," says an ancient Chinese proverb; we perceive what our mind tells us to perceive. The real world outside of our own minds must battle our expectations, preconceptions, schemas and conditioning before it can be accepted by our minds. The reality outside our minds must battle the desired reality within our minds before it can gain admission to our cognitive awareness. This is a battle often lost. Psychological foundations of perception, conditioning, cognition and critical thinking will help our students to understand the real world.
Our value systems create "macro-schemas" through which all perceived reality is "sifted." That which is not acceptable to our value system is rejected. Awareness of this peculiar human cognitive process should help our students come to terms with reality and human rationality (or lack thereof.)
Global educators should consider starting their courses with these considerations before moving on to other complex issues.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Go to http://www.globaldimension.org.uk/ for much more of this valuable contribution from British global educators, including specific ways that you can introduce a global dimension into any subject that you teach. We would also like to invite educators from around the world to share other national perspectives and schemas of global education.
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