Grade 9 social studies
This is an actual quote from a government issued primary social studies textbook issued to grade 9 students.
“Individualism is a theory that individual freedom is just as important as the welfare of the community or group as a whole. It often involves the absence of cooperation.” P.35 “Made in USA.” Reidmore books, 1990
Never mind the absurdity of the quote. I want to talk about education in general.
Canada’s drift toward socialism is not a coincidence. All agencies have an agenda. It is impossible not to—unless you are an entirely thoughtless being. Our government and the bureaucracies that run the country are no different. They have agendas and bias too. Their aim is to increase their power, their impact, and their prominence within society. Thus public education has an agenda as well— to promote socialized education. This is done logically twofold— first, propagate the importance of national programs and the government that administer them IE education, and secondly diminish the role of freedom and the private realm. IE limited government and private education. This quote is not on its own. There are many just like it.
Most people are afraid of private education. They worry radicals will co-opt education. But I ask them if they accept the fact that society is not done evolving and that ideas are still developing, and if you believe education is an important factor in this progression, then you should especially against any one group having a monopoly over the ideas taught to our future generations. It is ludicrous to leave a bureaucratic institution in charge of the intellectual development of our children. They decide what is taught, and how it is phrased. The competition of ideas is an important part of a free society. It is what leads to change and progress. It is how social theories develop—by challenging the status quo. A competition of ideas felled Communism. A competition of ideas is what abolished slavery. This point should not be understated.
Education is the one of the most important things in our children’s lives and we should question the fact that we unquestioningly leave text book writing to an unelected bureaucratic group with its own agenda to promote.
posted by angryroughneck @ 5:31 PM
2 comments
2 Comments:
Education is important. You are absolutely right about that. You are also correct when you indirectly suggest that most education is being done by secular schools. True they have not been able to completely sterilize the system yet (O'Canada is still played each morning at my son's public school even though it mentions God), but you are missing part of the story. You are missing the parents. They are the ones upon whom the responsibility to round out the child's education ultimately lies. The textbooks may have some absurd ideas, but it is the parents that must teach their kids to recognize such absurdities. Teaching critical thinking and exposing kids to a variety of ideas does not have to remain within the realm of the educational system. Once people start to take responsibility for their own actions and children by teaching kids to be upstanding members of society, then the school system will change. You are correct that it should change. It will change. It will evolve. Until it does, we need to educate the parents about their responsibilities that are not outlined in the Charter of Rights. They must go hand in hand.
You are absolutely correct. This is the same type of thing as governments providing subsidzed old age care-- now families regularily drop their elderly parents off at state wards. Socialism contorts perspectives and incentive at works
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