Module 3 post 3
We all are told on a regular basis that the education paradigm of this country and more specifically needs to change. Most of this need for change is credited to austerity measures deemed necessary to cut debt etc. and is often sold as a way to revolutionize and update the education system. The question of the necessity of austerity often devolves into a debate between neo-liberals who believe the government needs to function more like a corporation, and Keynes devotees who believe that the myth of growth is dysfunctional and in times of recession and debt, government spending is more necessary than before to stimulate and sustain the economy.
Andre Gorz writes about the disappearing working class:
Proponents of Globalization, Hirst and Thompsons projection never mention the possibility of austerity measures etc. yet examine the possibility of states being “hollowed out” by the new economy:
http://eatonak.org/IPE501S2013/downloads/files/Hirst_and_Thompson.pdf
But the new paradigm requires What if Neo-liberal education policy affects first nations most of all. The current reserve existence is mostly one of abject poverty, substance abuse and general apathy and a lack of basic education. Nelson Mandela once said: “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world”. Similarly, Michael Mendelson believes that the first step in influencing a positive change in reserve culture should start with education:
http://caid.ca/IndStuFirNatEduRes2008.pdf
Is education supposed to be based in classism and elitist culture? As a nation, since we supposedly value multiculturalism and individual rights, how can we stand by and allow one student to receive a more enlightened education simply due to elements such as their social status, wealth etc.? This article speaks about how the recession created a situation where Canadian university administrators were forced to modify their business models to more closely reflect the industrial capitalist one in order to survive:
However there is a minority (I say minority because austerity is widely thought as the only current solution to nationalized fiscal problems with regards to the World Bank etc.) that believe that austerity, and the measures therein are extremely damaging to both the economy and subsequent recovery:
http://www.forbes.com/sites/johntharvey/2013/01/30/the-coming-recession/
Again, we are left with the question of “Why?” If education, and government involvement/spending is the crutch that we can use to lift our most desperate citizens from a systemic and destructive quagmire of exploitation, why can’t this benefit everyone?