I am going through the 'comprehensive exam' period of my graduate student career; which we are tested on everything we should know in our field, whether we know it or not... Therefore, I have piled up my books/notes and started to make 'note cards', as well as re-read previous materials. Well, the class I am essentially reviewing right now is "Contemporary political and social theory" (I think that was the title of the name)... Anyway, I want to discuss this aforementioned quote that I came across while reviewing my notes... and it's manifestation in today's society.
We are in a dilemma... I don't believe in Hegelian binaries of thesis/anti-thesis --> leading to an eventual synthesis of things, but rather multiplicity of interacting factors that may act against one another (positively/negatively/neutrally/none) which may cause an outcome of some sort. You know, how they say, go back in history and change one minute detail, such as missing a bus, and the future changes drastically. Anyway... Lyotard talks about the commodification of knowledge...
What does that mean? Well knowledge has turned into a product that is easily standardized and packaged, then distributed as though it was 6 pack of diet coke from Walmart. People do not seek an education anymore; but rather seek a degree..
I was talking to my friend A.J. (yes the anonymity persists), and she mentioned the lack of respect she witnesses from students to teachers, the level of effort she puts into the classroom, the skills and knowledge she would like to attain, and not once did she mention a degree... What I saw in her was the 'ideal student'. <3!!! What are we faced with today? Students in the classroom who tell us teachers things like "we pay you, so you can't fail us" ect. It is as though knowledge has been put on the shelf, and teachers have become slaves to the status quo. There is a saying in Arabic "The teacher could have been a prophet" but teachers, teaching, education, knowledge has been subject to standardization and automation... Student's don't give a crap about knowledge, and those who do- are exhausted by it. They watch their classmates pass with minimal effort and therefore begin to acclimate to those behaviors. They start to put in just a little less effort. Teachers, well they see that student's averages are decreasing and well the 'HIGH AND MIGHTY BELL CURVE' must prevail! -___________-
I'm going off on a tangent, but what the heck, right?
I am nostalgic for those who seek knowledge as an ends. The idea that knowledge is not instrumental, except as a secondary benefit. Why has knowledge been reduced into packages that you either get or you don't. Not only that, but people who have knowledge, but not the "degree" are considered fakes or non-credible. Today in class, my professor mentioned the Tom Hanks wanna-be a "historian" phenomenon and mocked him for it. He suggested that Tom Hanks get a degree in History, and then can become a legitimate authority in it. While I agree, that people who have "knowledge" without a degree, make us "knowledge via degree seeking people" depressed because it makes a mockery of our efforts, it also frustrated me. I mean, maybe Tom Hanks should have some "formal training in history" before he gets quoted on the news as a historian, but at the same time, how about all those people who know so much more about things than us in our field of study.
So, do I start an online tutorial on how to do a cartwheel because I have that knowledge? or do I become a locally/world renowned gymnast first? But as a seeker of knowledge, I prefer to teach whoever is willing what I know up until now, if a person is interested in learning it. However, as an future academic - well my career just fell down the crap-hole because someone else took away my occupation that I've been training for - education/teaching and research.
But maybe my prof is right. If you want to research something for the media/tv or in general, go to the expert (i.e. the person who formally studied the subject in question). However, does that mean one can only learn from a select few? Dilemma!!!
Okay, I got off topic again... commodification of knowledge....
In order to internalize information, one needs to relate to what they are learning. The knowledge pyramid looks as follows:
However, with making knowledge a neatly packed commodity it seems like we will forever remain a bundle of data or at most information. With that, a hyperreality (as Jean Baudrillard would put it) would emerge. Why? Because people imagine that they have knowledge, as displayed with the image of their degree, but the reality they do not. They have a bundle of data that they never internalize because of their passing through college with a sense of mediocrity and an expectation to pass because they paid for this degree... I know so many people who have stated they learned nothing in high school and nothing in college... So, what the heck does that mean???
Is it the college? Is it the students? Is it the education system at large? Are the teachers at fault? Is society at fault? Is it capitalism???? Ideally coupling a true desire to seek knowledge with a degree that reflects it comprehension would be great! But if people are obtaining degrees with minimal effort, doesn't that mean we should up the game a bit? Challenge our students a bit? Work with emerging technology and the wikipedia effect. I mean, information is available to anyone now through the advent of the internet. It democratizes knowledge (or more accurately: information) to some extent. However, shouldn't we turn that information/data pool that people collect and help them internalize it, to develop true skills, true knowledge, and true wisdom.
I'm at odds with myself. In the beginning I said I don't believe in complete binaries. I stand with that statement near the end of this post. I would like to posit that knowledge is still out there and needs to be attained by our degree holding population (myself included). What do you think???
Is there a way that the commodification of knowledge can be used to our advantage? Do we need to make adjustment to systems/societies/people? As a teacher (or a general member of the public who has something to impart upon us with your knowledge) what do you think needs to be done?
I'd love to hear your thoughts.
peace
-R
No comments:
Post a Comment