Comments on: That dumb argument http://mediacology.com/2008/02/20/that-dumb-argument/ putting the 'eco' into media ecosystems (and other tangential meditations) Fri, 18 May 2012 05:25:48 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.2 By: Antonio http://mediacology.com/2008/02/20/that-dumb-argument/comment-page-1/#comment-4505 Antonio Sat, 30 May 2009 07:05:49 +0000 http://mediacology.com/2008/02/20/that-dumb-argument/#comment-4505 I think you misunderstand my point. I'm not anti-education. I was talking about literacy, which is a specific kind of method and approach to teaching how the world is. After all, Nazi Germany was a very literate society, but did it lead to rational subjects? My main argument is that we need to rethink "intelligence" and realize that it is not tied to literacy, though it helps. We need a more balanced curriculum that also encourages "non-literate" form of communication, such as the arts-- visual, digital, environmental. As far as I can tell, a society based on books is exactly what we have. Let's not kid ourselves. By the way, I don't believe your point is naive, even if I disagree with it. Likewise, I hope you would give me the benefit of the doubt and acknowledge that I don't think and write about things because I'm naive. I think you misunderstand my point. I’m not anti-education. I was talking about literacy, which is a specific kind of method and approach to teaching how the world is. After all, Nazi Germany was a very literate society, but did it lead to rational subjects? My main argument is that we need to rethink “intelligence” and realize that it is not tied to literacy, though it helps. We need a more balanced curriculum that also encourages “non-literate” form of communication, such as the arts– visual, digital, environmental. As far as I can tell, a society based on books is exactly what we have. Let’s not kid ourselves.

By the way, I don’t believe your point is naive, even if I disagree with it. Likewise, I hope you would give me the benefit of the doubt and acknowledge that I don’t think and write about things because I’m naive.

]]> By: Zeke Wheeler http://mediacology.com/2008/02/20/that-dumb-argument/comment-page-1/#comment-4503 Zeke Wheeler Sat, 30 May 2009 00:58:20 +0000 http://mediacology.com/2008/02/20/that-dumb-argument/#comment-4503 "if early educators in the US believed that universal literacy would produce a rational society, what happened? It appears to me that everything that the “dumbing down” crowd rails against is the product of highly rational, extremely well-educated people. From my vantage, rationality seems to be the problem, not the other way around." A totally naive point of view in light of circumstances obviously evident by 2008. The policies of the bush administration benefited corporatism to the extreme where jobs were outsourced and goods were imported. Less wages for hours worked caused the resulting effect of ‘Middle Classism’ to almost disappear while ‘dumbing down’ was encouraged. You make a succinct mistake by ignoring the fact that education requires time and money. Most “highly rational, extremely well-educated people’ never had a chance. “if early educators in the US believed that universal literacy would produce a rational society, what happened? It appears to me that everything that the “dumbing down” crowd rails against is the product of highly rational, extremely well-educated people. From my vantage, rationality seems to be the problem, not the other way around.”

A totally naive point of view in light of circumstances obviously evident by 2008.

The policies of the bush administration benefited corporatism to the extreme where jobs were outsourced and goods were imported. Less wages for hours worked caused the resulting effect of ‘Middle Classism’ to almost disappear while ‘dumbing down’ was encouraged.

You make a succinct mistake by ignoring the fact that education requires time and money.

Most “highly rational, extremely well-educated people’ never had a chance.

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