Joanna Williams writes particularly perceptive essays for the Brit 'Spiked.com.' In the following, she reveals exactly what a sham Liberal-lead higher education has become....and it applies to America as well as Britain.
1." Teaching students not to think- Conformist and cowardly, contemporary academic culture actively inhibits critical thinking.
2. When calls to censor academics come not from heavy-handed managers but from feminist colleagues seeking to curtail debate, academic freedom is not as clear-cut an issue as it may have been in the past.
3. There are few formal restrictions preventing academics saying or writing whatever they want...
4. More problematic, particularly in the social sciences, is a growing sense that there are some views that just cannot be expressed. On the one hand, the pseudo-radical, broadly left-wing consensus that pervades universities means that castigating neoliberalism, the influence of the popular media, and the desire to consume, will automatically garner the support of the peers who will review your work for publication and you for promotion.
5. On the other hand, not paying lip-service to the importance of feminism, the welfare state, and protecting the environment, is more likely to see your work rejected.
6. Holding, and expressing, controversial ideas that will test the limits of academic freedom requires an ability to think critically. Too often it seems that universities today actually seek to prevent criticality and instead try to coerce groupthink ....
7. ... through the enculturation of particular collective values....an individuals values and principles are no longer a private affair... theyre to be given to you, which means you can be explicitly told which opinions to hold.
8. That the [ body that claims to champion excellent learning and teaching in higher education] expects lecturers to demonstrate collective values, and that universities have gone along with this, suggests criticality is no longer considered a fundamental part of the academic enterprise.
9. .... encourages the teaching and assessing of pre-determined outcomes which may include personal behaviour and individually held principles rather than knowledge. Such lists of values curtail free speech by creating a moral orthodoxy of what it is acceptable to say.
a. ... the promotion of values has replaced the teaching of knowledge is seen in the titles of some university courses...'students can study for a Masters degree in advancing equality, rights and inclusion...
10. ... titles of such courses suggest not so much pre-determined knowledge outcomes as pre-determined values upon which students will be assessed. It is virtually impossible for students to question, let alone challenge, the fundamental concepts of sustainability, inclusion or feminism and still successfully complete their studies."
Teaching students not to think | Education | spiked
The result of such non-education can be clearly and constantly seen in the post from our Left-wing brethren.
Challenge the Progressive orthodoxy and the attack is exactly what they have "learned" in college.
1." Teaching students not to think- Conformist and cowardly, contemporary academic culture actively inhibits critical thinking.
2. When calls to censor academics come not from heavy-handed managers but from feminist colleagues seeking to curtail debate, academic freedom is not as clear-cut an issue as it may have been in the past.
3. There are few formal restrictions preventing academics saying or writing whatever they want...
4. More problematic, particularly in the social sciences, is a growing sense that there are some views that just cannot be expressed. On the one hand, the pseudo-radical, broadly left-wing consensus that pervades universities means that castigating neoliberalism, the influence of the popular media, and the desire to consume, will automatically garner the support of the peers who will review your work for publication and you for promotion.
5. On the other hand, not paying lip-service to the importance of feminism, the welfare state, and protecting the environment, is more likely to see your work rejected.
6. Holding, and expressing, controversial ideas that will test the limits of academic freedom requires an ability to think critically. Too often it seems that universities today actually seek to prevent criticality and instead try to coerce groupthink ....
7. ... through the enculturation of particular collective values....an individuals values and principles are no longer a private affair... theyre to be given to you, which means you can be explicitly told which opinions to hold.
8. That the [ body that claims to champion excellent learning and teaching in higher education] expects lecturers to demonstrate collective values, and that universities have gone along with this, suggests criticality is no longer considered a fundamental part of the academic enterprise.
9. .... encourages the teaching and assessing of pre-determined outcomes which may include personal behaviour and individually held principles rather than knowledge. Such lists of values curtail free speech by creating a moral orthodoxy of what it is acceptable to say.
a. ... the promotion of values has replaced the teaching of knowledge is seen in the titles of some university courses...'students can study for a Masters degree in advancing equality, rights and inclusion...
10. ... titles of such courses suggest not so much pre-determined knowledge outcomes as pre-determined values upon which students will be assessed. It is virtually impossible for students to question, let alone challenge, the fundamental concepts of sustainability, inclusion or feminism and still successfully complete their studies."
Teaching students not to think | Education | spiked
The result of such non-education can be clearly and constantly seen in the post from our Left-wing brethren.
Challenge the Progressive orthodoxy and the attack is exactly what they have "learned" in college.