Ok, so I am old. I finished my undergraduate work in the 20th century. That being said, I finished a master's degree in teaching with a concentration in ESL at the top of my class only weeks ago. And, the University of Southern California Rossier School of Education is nothing to sneeze at. I began an Ed.D. program several weeks ago and, though I anticipate that I will learn a lot about transformative leadership eventually, it has seemed like an unending cycle of writing assignments with no feedback beyond a perfect score and "Great ideas!" or "Excellent point!"
When I applied to the doctoral program, I was told that my essay of intent was the best that the committee had ever seen for the doctoral program, but that I would be required to take THREE TERMS of scholarly writing. I do not mind writing. I actually LOVE writing, but that seems TOTAL waste of the professor's and my time. I understand that they cannot gauge my writing from several application essays and a 35 page writing sample, but as of yet, I have not had one single point deducted for content, style, APA format nor any other criteria. The writing of many of my colleagues in the program gives me pause, but their writing quality does not affect me.
I need to give a little background information before embarking on my next plane of resistance. I went to a very very conservative, strict all-girls private Catholic high school in Washington, DC. This was a 180 degree change from my parish church which was presided over by Jesuit priests, who have long been touted as the most liberal of all Catholic orders. Upon entering high school, I went into culture shock, but I was 14 and at that age, I was very malleable and eager to learn anything and everything in any context. Even considering the stiflingly religious tone of everything and the BEYOND repressive uniforms and social agenda, I know for a fact that I got an education far surpassing anyone that I have ever met. Now, that is not to say that all of my classmates received the same. A vessel can only be filled when it is at the ready. I was starving for knowledge and I filled up every day. I can still recall the information that I learned in my high school so many years ago. I adapted wholly into the religious climate and social agenda of the school, I took four years of Latin and remained after school to take AP classes which were not offered during the school day. this is all to say that i am not anti-religious, blasphemic nor anti-Christian.
I am in doctoral program for transformative leadership in education at a Christian-principled university. Having n undergraduate degree in philosophy, I know that a study of ethics requires a foray into Christian thought on the matter. However, writings which usurp the basic human dignity and moral clarity of non-Christians for the sake of making a point are not inherently Christian. Christianity is not a label synonymous with hateful, bigoted, oppressive or narrow-minded. In fact, from what I have read, Christ Himself exhorted acceptance of those with ideas different from one's own.
I do not take issue with the original works, as many are rather dated and one must consider the historical and social contexts in which they were written (Kant, Bonhoeffer, Rawls, Mills), but with the narrow-minded, selective interpretations of the writings which are so common. Not only is it academically unsound to remove a selection from its and its author's context in order to reword it as a racist, sexist or religious rant, but it is wholly unethical. In the context of a doctoral course on ethics, it should be cause for alarm.
One takes a doctorate in education, especially in leadership, for many reasons, none of which should be to force-feed one's own religious fervor down someone else's throat until he or she gags. I, for one, want to see a grand pedagogical shift toward showing our students their worth and capabilities rather than their lack of ability (the current focus via Common Core, mandated testing, etc.). I want to show teachers how to do it and I want to show kids how to believe it. I also want to pursue research in educational equity and access, along with the preservation of the home cultures of language minority students. That will require a Ph.D. at some point, but the end is so valuable to future generations that it seems well worth the effort.
No comments:
Post a Comment