In 7th grade history class where we have just begun studying the Industrial Revolution. As we lay the ground work for the unit, the curriculum suggested we take a look at a few key terms: laissez faire economics, factories, stocks, corporations, communism, unions and capitalism.
Fair enough. This is my cup of tea. This is what I love to teach. I started with a very simple, what I thought was unbiased and objective look, at the basic principles of capitalism. We discussed, corporations, shareholders, profit margin, competition, etc… The kids seemed very interested.
Then we moved on to Communism. We discussed labor, unions, strikes, means of production, etc…
By the end of the class, I had a few kids yell out, “I want to be a communist!” Woah, what had just happened? All day, I have been thinking about how we teach. What had I done? Even though it was not my intention had I skewed their views to match mine? Or had they simply, at the age of twelve, been able to see the fundamental flaws in a system that is rarely questioned.
I explained that we had simply looked at very basic outlines of both economic systems and that we would be looking more closely at them both throughout the unit, as they were the major outcomes of the Industrial Revolution. But will looking at child labor, factory conditions, both then and now in the developing world, build a case of Capitalism? How do I do that? Should I do that? Isn’t the world we live in constantly bombarding them with cases for capitalism? From the media they consume, to the clothes they wear, to the food they eat, to the images of themselves they are forced to have? Who is making the case that maybe there is an alternative system? Not necessarily a communist one, but a system that doesn’t involve factories in China, a system that doesn’t generate wealth for 1% of the world’s population. A system that may be, what’s the word? Fair? Just? Sane?
While we often accuse young people of being unfeeling, materialistic, and shallow, (the very outcomes of life lived on the basis of possession and profit) they are often very kind, fair and egalitarian. They look out for people, this despite the fact that they have been marketed toward their entire lives. So what does that say about them that they recognize poor labor practices as not fair? That making money should not be the end all in the human story?
Despite the fact that nearly all international schools boast a litany of Values and Mission Statements which emphasize camaraderie, global citizenship, compassion, and honesty, I felt like I had done something wrong by encouraging them to question Capitalism. As if the ghost of Joseph McCarthy was somehow looming in the halls. It is 2010 and I was afraid I would get a parent email chastising me for spreading propaganda. When all I had done was try to lay out the two philosophies at their most basic level. One is designed to create profit and wealth for its shareholders at any cost. The other to empower the labor force to gain control of their own wealth. Is there more to it than that?
In an effort to make sure my students have as fair and balanced an experience as they possible, I have since sent out a Twitter notice asking for any ardent Capitalists to Skype into my classroom and make their case. I have also arranged a debate with a fellow teacher in which I will take the Capitalist view and channel Milton Friedman and Ronald Reagan.
But do I need to do all this? Should I feel guilty if I tried my best to be objective and the kids saw the flaws in a system that is at its core unjust? Anyway, would love your thoughts, ideas, or suggestions on where to go next.
Keep in mind that we have only briefly discussed Communism. We have not dealt with the regimes that came about, or the subsequent transformations of Marx’s simple philosophy. That is coming soon…
I first came across the Generation We video through my Twitter network. I think it was Alec Courous who posted it first. The video, while a bit overly produced and polished, seemed to have an urgent and authentic message. I followed the links to the website, and eventual I ordered the print copy of the book, although a PDF format is available from the website.
The book much like the video has its flaws, but over all the Generation We project appears to be a worthwhile endeavor. I will briefly highlight my criticisms, but I want to spend more energy on promoting the message, in hopes that more people will join the movement.
After reading the first few chapters, in which Eric Greenberg, identifies the make up of the Millennial generation, I found myself a bit insulted. The overly simplified generalizations, the slick use of stock photography, and the profusion of meaningless charts and graphs make the book appear to be more of a comic book than an important manifesto that will lead to any meaningful social change.
Greenberg spends too much time early on in his text, in my opinion, focusing on the importance of his project. The self-important tone early on in the book detracts from the powerful points he will later make. The overuse of colorful pull-quotes with words like “hopeful, optimistic, progressive, forward-thinking, and independent,” were a bit too much too handle for a cynical Gen X’er like myself.
I suppose that this sort of MTV-ifaction of his prose was meant to retain the attention span of a younger audience, but if Greenberg truly believes that this generation is as brilliant as he claims, then he should start by giving them a bit more credit, and simply deliver his message of hope and activism directly, rather than dilute it with shiny ornaments.
My second and final critique of this book is that we should always be skeptical of any one who so easily generalizes about large groups of people, making grandiose statements like:
Members of Generation We see their friend’s coming home from was with permanent injuries; they find themselves unable to afford healthcare, to save for retirement, or to fill up their tanks with gas. They blame the right for these problems, and they see the obstinacy and narrow-mindedness of conservatives as being antithetical to their own optimism and spirit of innovation. So they reject the failed solution of the right, even as they refuse to commit themselves wholeheartedly to any political party.
Chapter two of the book is riddled with oversimplifications like the statement above, but I suggest that readers simply skim the first chapter and get to the meat of the book. While Greenberg’s sophomoric style takes some getting used to, his message is a valuable one. This book would make an excellent text for any Global Issues class. Let us now explore its merits.
We are here to learn and evolve as souls, and this journey we call life is about having a higher purpose and meaning beyond satisfaction of our sense and accumulating possessions. Life is about working on behalf of others, taming our egos, and sharing our talents to make the planet a better place.
The book first outlines the pressing issues facing the world today:
Environmental Collapse
Health Catastrophe
A Failing Educational System
Economic Disaster
Creeping Totalitarianism
A World Ravaged by War
Each one of these bullet points is elucidated by sharp, concise prose like this:
Today’s mass media are effectively an instrument of mass consumerization. Commercials and editorial content both serve the same purpose: to brainwash viewers into choosing violent toys, processed food, fast food, and other poor lifestyle choices. They program us to spend our lives in front of a TV screen, video-game console, or computer monitor, where built-in tools for marketing, promotion, and habit influencing can work on us continually, making us sedentary, obese, diabetic, weak, and dependent on artificial stimulants. This then affects our cognitive ability and locks in spending, time, and consumption patterns. Before we know it, they own us. And if we are different and dissent, they marginalize us and ostracize us from society, abandoning us to lives of hopelessness, voicelessness, and poverty.
Suddenly Greenberg’s book is no longer a cute comic book, but a manifesto for a coming revolution. A handbook for a cultural lost in its own self-obsession and preservation. He goes on to say:
Simply put, Generation We inherits a planet in peril, in which plunderers who treat the world as their private property are exploiting institutions of government, society, and business to control resources, manipulate media and markets, and sell out the long-term interests of their nation and the world for personal short-term gain.
These hostile trends aren’t accidental, nor are they unconnected. They form a pattern by which plunderers and speculators seek to manipulate society so as to maintain and expand their own power and wealth. A former president and first lady used to speak about “a vast right-wing conspiracy.” Here, if anywhere, is the real conspiracy—collusion among business and governmental leaders, media moguls, educators, and religious leaders who have contrived national and international systems that serve to keep the people weak, fearful, helpless, and under control.
The goal of this conspiracy is not to impose ideological or political doctrine but simply to control the world’s power and wealth. These systems keep people sick and drained of energy through food that is non-nutritive, healthcare that is unaffordable, and an environment that is toxic. They keep people ignorant through an educational system that stifles dissent, stultifies creativity, and deadens the mind.
They keep people physically and psychologically dependent through reliance on illegal drugs, pharmaceuticals, other addictive substances such as nicotine, caffeine, and alcohol, and addictive behaviors such as gambling, electronic games, and mindless entertainment. They prosecute and convict record numbers of youth, especially minorities, to keep them from exercising the power of their numbers in the political system. They keep people frightened through constant drum-beating for war, exaggerated threats of terrorism, and media-created bogeymen (from Islamist extremists to illegal immigrants). And they keep people helpless through out-of-control debt, brainnumbing work, and financial dependency.
Their goal: to create a world in which the majority of the population are like high-paid serfs, unable or unwilling to organize, protest, or assert themselves and capable only of serving their corporate masters.
Greenberg goes on to outline the opportunities available to fight these perils:
The Power of Technology
The Global Spread of Knowledge
Environmental Awareness and Holistic Thinking
And a comprehensive agenda for what needs to be done. (This agenda can be found from the PDF book on pages 145-147)
Maybe you have a few other items you would like to add to this list. That’s great. Our goal here is to prime the pump—to start a national conversation, especially among Millennials themselves, about where we want to take our nation and the world. We are proposing an agenda—a list of items for discussion—not a plan. It is up to you, and every concerned citizen, to take part in shaping the strategy. Maybe you think some of the goals we’ve listed here are too ambitious—that we are being unrealistic in our dreams for the future. You may be right. But history shows that the human capacity to achieve great things is far greater than we normally realize.
The book ends with an impressive declaration and plan for action. You can find and sign it on the Gen We website. While I had qualms with the presentation of the content, I found this to be an important movement, and I recommend that teachers make the effort to connect our students to its message.
I plan on introduing this project to students on Intrepid Classroom. What do you think? How can your students get involved? Please leave comments with ideas about collaborarte, and let’s do some work on the ideas presented by Generation We.
I feel I am in a bit of a rut here at the Intrepid Teacher blog. Reading over my lastfew posts, I can see that I am sounding a bit repetitive and bitter. I think this is in part due to the fact that I am not interacting with students on a daily basis. I cannot emphasize how difficult this exile has been for me. I have done nothing but work with kids everyday for the last eight years, so to now sit alone in a coffee and stare at a screen is tough, but I wanted this post to be a breath of fresh air, not just me whining again, as it appears I have been doing.
I want to take this time to talk about and reflect on the Intrepid Classroom experiment I am working on. The mission statement of the class is:
Intrepid Classroom is a place where students of all ages from around the world visit, meet each other, share ideas, and decide what they want to learn from each other. The goal is to focus on the following topics: conflict resolution, global sustainability, peace activism, music and art as agent for social change, technology as a tool for social justice causes, but we are open to any other topics the readers of this blog suggest.We can discuss any topic we feel important here at the Intrepid Classroom. The hope is to create a fluid, organic curriculum that engages all participants.
What does that look like? So far we have 28 members from all over the world. We are using a variety of web tools to help create and maintain a natural network of students determined to investigate and pursue their own interests. I am fighting every urge to micro-manage the daily functions of our Ning, which seems to be the actual classroom where students come almost daily to talk about books, the war on terror, best forms of governments, music, or technology.
It has been fascinating for me, because I have taught some of these students first hand, while others I have never met. I am watching students from Doha discuss books with students I had in Malaysia, only to have a complete strangers join them from Costa Rica. I am allowing the students the freedom to explore and investigate not only what they want to learn, but how they will synthesis any new knowledge or skills they acquire. I often find them participating late on a Friday night or discouraged because tools are blocked at their schools. I am hoping that they will discover and share which of these tools are best for each task that they choose to pursue.
The point, I suppose, is for kids to realize that their learning is more than a grade. Seeking truth and knowledge is a natural and exciting human action. Furthermore, I hope they will realize that the search for this new knowledge need not be scripted or found in “approved” sources only. I want them to work with strangers to find meaning in their individual investigations. I cannot think of a more student centered way of teaching. I am not the expert, but another member of the network. I use the blog as a platform to share my thoughts and knowledge. It is becoming a great resource for political conscious music and film. I look forward to seeing it grow, so that the members of the class can share it with others.
I am always amazed by how much we underestimate students. When given the freedom to produce innovative work based on their own interests most of them will often surprise us. I am very pleased with our progress at this stage in the game. We are working with very few rules or guidelines, but there seems to be a synergy building that I am looking forward to exploiting.
Kids today do care about the world in which they live and are looking for ways to have a say in its administration. If you haven’t already been to the Intrepid Classroom please come by and snoop around. Join the Ning, we could use a few more teacher voices in our growing network, or use our resources to talk to your students about instilling a sense of creative activism. Invite them to join us. This is a great post to get them started. You may have to loosen the leash, but you will be surprised by how far they can run.
