As a professor working in the social sciences, I often struggle with choosing appropriate content for my undergraduate students, which resources (i.e., books, articles, movies, etc.) they should consult, and how to best evaluate their understanding of these materials.
Over the years, I’ve come to realize that most K-12 public schools and community colleges do a poor job educating the majority of students I encounter. Based on conversations with other colleagues I hear similar concerns. More specifically, the current political situation has highlighted how little many Americans know about their history, the constitution, the political process, the ability to think critically, and information literacy.
This state of affairs poses a number of contradictions. For example, we ask people who are becoming American citizens many of the basics of American history, laws and politics.
Why do we do this?
We want them to know this information because we realize the importance of having citizens know these simple facts. So why should we not require the general public to do the same?
We don’t bother to ensure that this is true for natural born citizens. In fact, a lot of Americans have difficulty passing a citizenship test.
This state of affairs is a fundamental breeding ground for the the decline of democracy and the acceptance of authoritarianism.
I don’t mean this piece to be another drawn out critique of the current state of K-12 education in the United States. But I do want to highlight a few things that I have alluded to in earlier posts about inequality, political participation, and crimes of the powerful.
Most Americans are woefully ignorant about their history, civics, and the law. They also have challenges with logic and critical thinking. This is especially evident in their understanding of what a democracy is, what it can achieve, the threats to its existence, and its limits. This has led to many of our political leaders proclaiming on network television many things that are just not true. And in some cases journalists who are either lazy, unskilled, or don’t know the facts failing to challenge these claims.
Ever since Newt Gingrich’s rants in Congress, we have experienced a ramping up of the culture wars. This struggle is evident in rhetoric coming from many of the talking heads and pundits prominently featured in our news and played out in the content disseminated in social media outlets. It’s also evident in our local school boards fights. In many jurisdictions there’s a comprehensive effort to re-write history and dumb down civic education.
Rather than bemoan the situation, we need to ask ourselves, is it possible to right this ship? I believe it is. It’s by no means an easy task, but it’s achievable. I will start by suggesting a few subject areas that need to be emphasized.
Classics
Students need to be exposed to and forced to learn the classics. Not the Sparks Notes or sanitized Disney version of this content. We can debate the specifics of what the classics should consist of, but there is no debate here. By reading the classics students should learn that many of the debates we witness today are longstanding and that solutions to many of them have been offered, some of them have been tried and some of these experiments work better than others in particular situations. Again, this also means that we have qualified people who can teach these subjects, which is yet another argument, left for another day.
History
And just because you stand for Pledge and the national anthem, and wave the flag neither means that you understand American history nor the constitution. Students making their way through the public school system should learn both these items as they were originally written and the important commentaries. Americans need to learn how essential slavery was to the founding of the thirteen colonies, and how the founding fathers tried really hard not to abolish it. I also believe that it is necessary to understand that was not just founded but it relied upon the genocide of American Indians. I think it’s also important to teach that the Constitution is literally words on paper (which the founders recognized as imperfect) and almost every country has one, but ours has been elevated to some sort of mythic document.
Civics & Government
In terms of politics, it’s not sufficient to simply know how many years a senator can serve, or how a bill gets passed, but how ideas in the public realm make or don’t make their way into legislation, including the limits of the law on human behavior. Americans also need to learn the history of public protest, including nonviolent protest, and the heavy handedness of the state when legitimate protest is squashed by law enforcement, the national guard, or company goons. I also think that Americans believe that “government” is something that happens very far away and not in their backyard.
Critical Thinking & Information Literacy
Finally, students need to understand logic. There are multiple courses at the university level that teach this subject, but it should be mandatory at the K-12 level. I’m not talking about taking classes like today we learn about Descartes. I’m referring to systematically picking apart arguments and learning the different kinds of fallacies inherent in them. Closely connected to this point is that students should be well versed in information literacy. Simply going to google or a search engine of choice without being able to deconstruct (i.e., assess the validity) of what we read is insufficient.
The elements of this curriculum should apply to all students, whether they are enrolled in the public school system, or those in private or parochial schools, and homeschoolers.
-How will we establish this? How will we make sure that this is what is being taught? There needs to be a recurrent funding mechanism for this curriculum. Public schools should be primarily funded by the federal government and not through local property taxes. If the new system or funding model is properly designed it could be enabling and not a chokehold. If the private sector or wealthy individuals want to pitch through financial incentives with no strings attached, and get a tax break, that is fine. But we can no longer leave the curricula and teaching of important subjects subject to the whim of local preferences. We need a curricula and the subjects that are taught in order to be a bulwark against authoritarianism and one that is truly emancipatory.
photo credit woodleywonderworksFollow
6th grade parent day: english
disengaged in english class on what is a quote
https://jeffreyianross.com/wp-content/uploads/15530441492_86d94459d5_o.jpg13512026Jeffrey Ian Rosshttps://jeffreyianross.com/wp-content/uploads/jeffrey-ian-ross-logo-04.pngJeffrey Ian Ross2020-12-18 19:19:022024-09-22 12:23:44Curriculum for an emancipatory democracy
Addressing these crises will not be easy, but it will be made even more difficult by the Trump supporters who think that their votes were stolen. These include both elected Republicans in Congress as well as their constituents.
If the past few weeks are any indication, these loyalists are unlikely to cede peacefully. They will continue to jab at, poke away, and assault Biden’s and the Democratic Party’s proposals, initiatives, cabinet picks, etc..
But we knew that already. This should come as no surprise.
Although many people have attempted to dissect Trumps constituency and seeking to explain who they are, rather than repeat this information, instead I would like to offer some modest proposals on how we can potentially move forward as a country.
From those who voted for Biden and Harris, there seems to be (in general) two polar opposite proposals on how to deal with the disgruntled. One: that we need to make peace with the Trump supporters and find common ground, maybe recognize that there is some truth in their claim, and double down on reading books like The Hillbilly Elegy, to understand their concerns. The premise behind this approach is that this is the only way to “heal” our country
Others like Rick Wilson, of the Lincoln Project say “Fuck the Trump supporters.” The Trumpists are largely uncompromising, refusing to listen to reason, science, or experts. They don’t seem to want to find any common ground, and, some even have the capacity to be physically dangerous. Thus, we must learn how to navigate around them.
Maybe there is some sort of midrange approach between making peace and forgetting about the Trump supporters. The former method is already proving to be very difficult, while the latter may be impossible, as these individuals seem unlikely to fade away. Part of the response will have to do with how much oxygen Trump and his loyalists receive after January 20. If he and his closest allies are indicted, convicted or incarcerated on any of the federal or state charges that have been discussed, this may blunt or alter the way we deal with them collectively. This course of events may also enflame the support base. Part of the response also depends on how his enablers (e.g., Donald Trump, Jr., Ted Cruz, Mark Rubio, Lindsay Graham, Mike Pompeo, or any of the other less publicly visible sycophants) take up Trump’s torch, spinning conspiracy theories of their own.
With all this in mind, one last question remains: How do we prevent something like this from happening again?
My goal is not to convince those who don’t want their opinions to be changed. But I offer the following proposals in response to this question, the effect of which will hopefully be felt in the long term, if we are going to move forward and prevent something akin to a civil war:
To begin with, we should advocate for mandatory classes in critical thinking to be taught as early as elementary school. Some variety of this already takes place, but we need to redouble our efforts to create signature classes in this subject, including national standards and testing that is effective.
Another educational suggestion is to teach civics classes throughout the K-12 curriculum. Students making their way through the public school system should learn about the Constitution, not just by memorizing parts of it, but actually understanding its proper role in American society, what it is and is not, and how the Constitution continues to develop and evolve. Students should also be taught something beyond basic US geography and history, materials that would exceed the sanitized, standard public school version of our history currently being presented.
In order to accomplish both of these bold initiatives, all K-12 public education should be funded out of federal tax dollars, and not be based on property tax or taxes collected at the municipal or county level. We also need to establish a system to ensure that civics and critical thinking are properly taught. (Secondary schools are supposed to teach these skills, but so much of that educational framework is dogmatic in nature.)
Finally it’s time for the implementation of proportional representation (to which I add ranked order choice voting). A winner take all political system leads to too many people being angry at the outcome. It also incentivizes voter suppression in “key” battleground states.
We can talk later about how this approach can be best rolled out, but without these types of policies and practices we run the risk of remaining a country that seriously divided, one where a significant portion of its citizens are too willing to believe the musings of snake oil salesmen and hucksters.
Sure, we should address the bomb throwers and the dangers of the right-wing media, but there are other courses that could be pursued. Although the solutions I offer are not exclusive, they are places to start. They are options aimed to minimize and prevent polarization like we are experiencing now from happening again.
photo credit Mobilus In Mobili, “RVA Pro Gun Rally 2020-11”
https://jeffreyianross.com/wp-content/uploads/49419554052_febc0dffda_k.jpg16382048Jeffrey Ian Rosshttps://jeffreyianross.com/wp-content/uploads/jeffrey-ian-ross-logo-04.pngJeffrey Ian Ross2020-12-11 19:28:512023-09-17 03:50:50Grappling with Trump supporters who think that their vote was stolen?
Not the caricatured anarchists of a by-gone era, nor individuals who assume the role of the little boy who points out that the emperor has no clothes. Not even seasoned journalists asking tough questions, nor constituencies that demonstrate genuine backlash.
Instead, I’m talking about people both you and I have seen, heard, and maybe know; those individuals who exist in every organization and community: in our classrooms, boardrooms, and in our local, state and national politics.
The bomb throwers (call them contrarians or shit disturbers if you prefer), the ones who wait, primed for those in authority to say or do something even slightly controversial, and then pounce on them, pointing out flaws, real or imagined, when given the slightest opportunity.
Yesterday they argued for one position. Today they argue against themselves. It doesn’t matter. They are self-appointed, and their job is to confront, provoke, and maybe even humiliate leaders and managers.
Some of us may consider them to be brave members of our society that is typically passive or apathetic. We may be lulled into thinking that they are speaking truth to power, leading a resistance or counter movement with a better plan, but they seldom are.
I’m not saying that no one can criticize, nor am I dumping on people who have legitimate grievances and advance thoughtful counterarguments. Instead I have difficulties with people who only try to cause controversy and do so hypocritically.
But here is the thing about bomb throwers. When it comes time for them to manage or to lead, well they do a pretty shitty job.
Take for example our outgoing President. Every chance he gets, even before he assumed the office of POTUS, Donald J. Trump took the opportunity to bad mouth public figures who were not suitably fawning. This behavior in not simply reserved for his political opponents, but this treatment is also doled out to those he hand-picked to be part of his administration, who have ended up failing to support his policies. He performs for a cult-like army of followers, the core of whom believe he “tells is like it is.” They continue to support him, even as the masque falls away and the emperor is revealed to have no clothes.
Trump is not alone. There are numerous public figures, like many of the pundits (e.g., Lou Dobbs) who host shows on Fox News, or talk radio hosts (e.g., Rush Limbaugh) who appear to spend a disproportionate amount of their public career constantly complaining about the policies and plans of others, questioning their credibility, and offering nothing concrete at all to address the problem.
But instead of completely dismissing the bomb throwers and shit disturbers, to a certain extent we actually need these types of people.
Adversity and opposition keeps leaders on their toes. It prevents them from becoming complacent.
But, if you are in a leadership or management position, my advice to you is not to ignore the bomb throwers, but to dance with them. Acknowledge them, ask them to explain the data and rationale upon which they base their claims, and if warranted, publicly dismiss the absurdity or falseness of them. Point to the work you (and your organization) are doing to address the challenges. If the question is deserving of further study, suggest that they assemble a committee to examine the problem they raise, write a white or position paper for discussion, and offer to assist them in this endeavor. The sad truth is that it won’t happen. They are likely to respond with, “just saying.”
This kind of approach is not easy, but it is the mark of a good leader and manager to do so.
https://jeffreyianross.com/wp-content/uploads/Screen-Shot-2020-12-03-at-7.26.33-PM.png371303Jeffrey Ian Rosshttps://jeffreyianross.com/wp-content/uploads/jeffrey-ian-ross-logo-04.pngJeffrey Ian Ross2020-12-04 00:42:262024-09-22 12:23:45Dancing with the bomb throwers amongst us
Curriculum for an emancipatory democracy
/by Jeffrey Ian RossAs a professor working in the social sciences, I often struggle with choosing appropriate content for my undergraduate students, which resources (i.e., books, articles, movies, etc.) they should consult, and how to best evaluate their understanding of these materials.
Over the years, I’ve come to realize that most K-12 public schools and community colleges do a poor job educating the majority of students I encounter. Based on conversations with other colleagues I hear similar concerns. More specifically, the current political situation has highlighted how little many Americans know about their history, the constitution, the political process, the ability to think critically, and information literacy.
This state of affairs poses a number of contradictions. For example, we ask people who are becoming American citizens many of the basics of American history, laws and politics.
Why do we do this?
We want them to know this information because we realize the importance of having citizens know these simple facts. So why should we not require the general public to do the same?
We don’t bother to ensure that this is true for natural born citizens. In fact, a lot of Americans have difficulty passing a citizenship test.
This state of affairs is a fundamental breeding ground for the the decline of democracy and the acceptance of authoritarianism.
I don’t mean this piece to be another drawn out critique of the current state of K-12 education in the United States. But I do want to highlight a few things that I have alluded to in earlier posts about inequality, political participation, and crimes of the powerful.
Most Americans are woefully ignorant about their history, civics, and the law. They also have challenges with logic and critical thinking. This is especially evident in their understanding of what a democracy is, what it can achieve, the threats to its existence, and its limits. This has led to many of our political leaders proclaiming on network television many things that are just not true. And in some cases journalists who are either lazy, unskilled, or don’t know the facts failing to challenge these claims.
Ever since Newt Gingrich’s rants in Congress, we have experienced a ramping up of the culture wars. This struggle is evident in rhetoric coming from many of the talking heads and pundits prominently featured in our news and played out in the content disseminated in social media outlets. It’s also evident in our local school boards fights. In many jurisdictions there’s a comprehensive effort to re-write history and dumb down civic education.
Rather than bemoan the situation, we need to ask ourselves, is it possible to right this ship? I believe it is. It’s by no means an easy task, but it’s achievable. I will start by suggesting a few subject areas that need to be emphasized.
Classics
Students need to be exposed to and forced to learn the classics. Not the Sparks Notes or sanitized Disney version of this content. We can debate the specifics of what the classics should consist of, but there is no debate here. By reading the classics students should learn that many of the debates we witness today are longstanding and that solutions to many of them have been offered, some of them have been tried and some of these experiments work better than others in particular situations. Again, this also means that we have qualified people who can teach these subjects, which is yet another argument, left for another day.
History
And just because you stand for Pledge and the national anthem, and wave the flag neither means that you understand American history nor the constitution. Students making their way through the public school system should learn both these items as they were originally written and the important commentaries. Americans need to learn how essential slavery was to the founding of the thirteen colonies, and how the founding fathers tried really hard not to abolish it. I also believe that it is necessary to understand that was not just founded but it relied upon the genocide of American Indians. I think it’s also important to teach that the Constitution is literally words on paper (which the founders recognized as imperfect) and almost every country has one, but ours has been elevated to some sort of mythic document.
Civics & Government
In terms of politics, it’s not sufficient to simply know how many years a senator can serve, or how a bill gets passed, but how ideas in the public realm make or don’t make their way into legislation, including the limits of the law on human behavior. Americans also need to learn the history of public protest, including nonviolent protest, and the heavy handedness of the state when legitimate protest is squashed by law enforcement, the national guard, or company goons. I also think that Americans believe that “government” is something that happens very far away and not in their backyard.
Critical Thinking & Information Literacy
Finally, students need to understand logic. There are multiple courses at the university level that teach this subject, but it should be mandatory at the K-12 level. I’m not talking about taking classes like today we learn about Descartes. I’m referring to systematically picking apart arguments and learning the different kinds of fallacies inherent in them. Closely connected to this point is that students should be well versed in information literacy. Simply going to google or a search engine of choice without being able to deconstruct (i.e., assess the validity) of what we read is insufficient.
The elements of this curriculum should apply to all students, whether they are enrolled in the public school system, or those in private or parochial schools, and homeschoolers.
-How will we establish this? How will we make sure that this is what is being taught? There needs to be a recurrent funding mechanism for this curriculum. Public schools should be primarily funded by the federal government and not through local property taxes. If the new system or funding model is properly designed it could be enabling and not a chokehold. If the private sector or wealthy individuals want to pitch through financial incentives with no strings attached, and get a tax break, that is fine. But we can no longer leave the curricula and teaching of important subjects subject to the whim of local preferences. We need a curricula and the subjects that are taught in order to be a bulwark against authoritarianism and one that is truly emancipatory.
photo credit woodleywonderworksFollow
6th grade parent day: english
disengaged in english class on what is a quote
Grappling with Trump supporters who think that their vote was stolen?
/by Jeffrey Ian RossBiden, Harris, and the Democrats know that once they formally assume office, they’re going to have a tough job.
With the COVID-19 pandemic raging, a suffering economy, 14 million unemployed, and trust in police at an all-time low, they have their work cut out for them.
Addressing these crises will not be easy, but it will be made even more difficult by the Trump supporters who think that their votes were stolen. These include both elected Republicans in Congress as well as their constituents.
If the past few weeks are any indication, these loyalists are unlikely to cede peacefully. They will continue to jab at, poke away, and assault Biden’s and the Democratic Party’s proposals, initiatives, cabinet picks, etc..
But we knew that already. This should come as no surprise.
Although many people have attempted to dissect Trumps constituency and seeking to explain who they are, rather than repeat this information, instead I would like to offer some modest proposals on how we can potentially move forward as a country.
From those who voted for Biden and Harris, there seems to be (in general) two polar opposite proposals on how to deal with the disgruntled. One: that we need to make peace with the Trump supporters and find common ground, maybe recognize that there is some truth in their claim, and double down on reading books like The Hillbilly Elegy, to understand their concerns. The premise behind this approach is that this is the only way to “heal” our country
Others like Rick Wilson, of the Lincoln Project say “Fuck the Trump supporters.” The Trumpists are largely uncompromising, refusing to listen to reason, science, or experts. They don’t seem to want to find any common ground, and, some even have the capacity to be physically dangerous. Thus, we must learn how to navigate around them.
Maybe there is some sort of midrange approach between making peace and forgetting about the Trump supporters. The former method is already proving to be very difficult, while the latter may be impossible, as these individuals seem unlikely to fade away. Part of the response will have to do with how much oxygen Trump and his loyalists receive after January 20. If he and his closest allies are indicted, convicted or incarcerated on any of the federal or state charges that have been discussed, this may blunt or alter the way we deal with them collectively. This course of events may also enflame the support base. Part of the response also depends on how his enablers (e.g., Donald Trump, Jr., Ted Cruz, Mark Rubio, Lindsay Graham, Mike Pompeo, or any of the other less publicly visible sycophants) take up Trump’s torch, spinning conspiracy theories of their own.
With all this in mind, one last question remains: How do we prevent something like this from happening again?
My goal is not to convince those who don’t want their opinions to be changed. But I offer the following proposals in response to this question, the effect of which will hopefully be felt in the long term, if we are going to move forward and prevent something akin to a civil war:
To begin with, we should advocate for mandatory classes in critical thinking to be taught as early as elementary school. Some variety of this already takes place, but we need to redouble our efforts to create signature classes in this subject, including national standards and testing that is effective.
Another educational suggestion is to teach civics classes throughout the K-12 curriculum. Students making their way through the public school system should learn about the Constitution, not just by memorizing parts of it, but actually understanding its proper role in American society, what it is and is not, and how the Constitution continues to develop and evolve. Students should also be taught something beyond basic US geography and history, materials that would exceed the sanitized, standard public school version of our history currently being presented.
In order to accomplish both of these bold initiatives, all K-12 public education should be funded out of federal tax dollars, and not be based on property tax or taxes collected at the municipal or county level. We also need to establish a system to ensure that civics and critical thinking are properly taught. (Secondary schools are supposed to teach these skills, but so much of that educational framework is dogmatic in nature.)
Finally it’s time for the implementation of proportional representation (to which I add ranked order choice voting). A winner take all political system leads to too many people being angry at the outcome. It also incentivizes voter suppression in “key” battleground states.
We can talk later about how this approach can be best rolled out, but without these types of policies and practices we run the risk of remaining a country that seriously divided, one where a significant portion of its citizens are too willing to believe the musings of snake oil salesmen and hucksters.
Sure, we should address the bomb throwers and the dangers of the right-wing media, but there are other courses that could be pursued. Although the solutions I offer are not exclusive, they are places to start. They are options aimed to minimize and prevent polarization like we are experiencing now from happening again.
photo credit Mobilus In Mobili, “RVA Pro Gun Rally 2020-11”
Dancing with the bomb throwers amongst us
/by Jeffrey Ian RossNot the caricatured anarchists of a by-gone era, nor individuals who assume the role of the little boy who points out that the emperor has no clothes. Not even seasoned journalists asking tough questions, nor constituencies that demonstrate genuine backlash.
Instead, I’m talking about people both you and I have seen, heard, and maybe know; those individuals who exist in every organization and community: in our classrooms, boardrooms, and in our local, state and national politics.
The bomb throwers (call them contrarians or shit disturbers if you prefer), the ones who wait, primed for those in authority to say or do something even slightly controversial, and then pounce on them, pointing out flaws, real or imagined, when given the slightest opportunity.
These are also the trolls on the internet, spinning conspiracy theories, who constantly attack people.
“It won’t work,” “It never worked,” “The idea is silly,” or “You dropped the ball,” are the frequent lamentations of these fault finders. They often perform for an echo chamber of cheers.
Yesterday they argued for one position. Today they argue against themselves. It doesn’t matter. They are self-appointed, and their job is to confront, provoke, and maybe even humiliate leaders and managers.
Some of us may consider them to be brave members of our society that is typically passive or apathetic. We may be lulled into thinking that they are speaking truth to power, leading a resistance or counter movement with a better plan, but they seldom are.
I’m not saying that no one can criticize, nor am I dumping on people who have legitimate grievances and advance thoughtful counterarguments. Instead I have difficulties with people who only try to cause controversy and do so hypocritically.
But here is the thing about bomb throwers. When it comes time for them to manage or to lead, well they do a pretty shitty job.
Take for example our outgoing President. Every chance he gets, even before he assumed the office of POTUS, Donald J. Trump took the opportunity to bad mouth public figures who were not suitably fawning. This behavior in not simply reserved for his political opponents, but this treatment is also doled out to those he hand-picked to be part of his administration, who have ended up failing to support his policies. He performs for a cult-like army of followers, the core of whom believe he “tells is like it is.” They continue to support him, even as the masque falls away and the emperor is revealed to have no clothes.
Trump is not alone. There are numerous public figures, like many of the pundits (e.g., Lou Dobbs) who host shows on Fox News, or talk radio hosts (e.g., Rush Limbaugh) who appear to spend a disproportionate amount of their public career constantly complaining about the policies and plans of others, questioning their credibility, and offering nothing concrete at all to address the problem.
But instead of completely dismissing the bomb throwers and shit disturbers, to a certain extent we actually need these types of people.
Adversity and opposition keeps leaders on their toes. It prevents them from becoming complacent.
But, if you are in a leadership or management position, my advice to you is not to ignore the bomb throwers, but to dance with them. Acknowledge them, ask them to explain the data and rationale upon which they base their claims, and if warranted, publicly dismiss the absurdity or falseness of them. Point to the work you (and your organization) are doing to address the challenges. If the question is deserving of further study, suggest that they assemble a committee to examine the problem they raise, write a white or position paper for discussion, and offer to assist them in this endeavor. The sad truth is that it won’t happen. They are likely to respond with, “just saying.”
This kind of approach is not easy, but it is the mark of a good leader and manager to do so.