tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4323202250325013491.post-38728037392957562522008-03-28T16:20:00.000-05:002008-03-28T16:20:00.000-05:00In his brilliant 1970 treatise <A HREF="http://reactor-core.org/deschooling.html" REL="nofollow">Deschooling Society</A> (entire work online), Ivan Illich advanced a nuanced argument for disestablishing the institution of school altogether to promote freedom of learning, teaching, and working, as well as social justice and gender equity.<BR/><BR/>Illich advocated doing away with mandatory, aged-graded schools and passing laws that would forbid prospective employers from requiring job applicants (or applicants for promotion)to have degrees or other credentials. (He encouraged tests of competence.)<BR/><BR/>[snip]<BR/><I>Neither learning nor justice is promoted by schooling because educators insist on packaging instruction with certification. Learning and the assignment of social roles are melted into schooling. Yet to learn means to acquire a new skill or insight, while promotion depends on an opinion which others have formed. Learning frequently is the result of instruction, but selection for a role or category in the job market increasingly depends on mere length of attendance.</I><BR/><BR/>Illich's work feels stunningly contemporary, particularly on the topic of the "hidden curriculum" of school. <BR/><BR/>Perhaps the entity that "considers itself and is perceived by all others to be" most valuable is the institution of higher education itself. <BR/><BR/>Perhaps the only fix is disestablishment.Peghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14161350241459517207noreply@blogger.com