The Psychology of Community

I have wrestled with how to address this piece of writing and have decided that I don't want to separate the various components. I will try to integrate my thoughts regarding Community along with addressing the articles on Technology & the Postmodern University, and the material abstracted from the greater Expectations-Report of Association of American Colleges & Universities. I felt that treating them as separate would dilute my assessment and the strong response I felt.

Most of my life I have experienced education as a corralling phenomenon, corralling meaning forcing me into categorically thinking, isolating me from the "the whole of Reality and all its intricate pieces." Education from my perspective has constructed artificial boundaries. Making borders that do not benefit my full awareness of the realities of the world I live in. Projecting a world designed to keep me out of touch with both others and myself. Creating a Psycho- Social- Void. (A phrase a learner I advised, I think originated.)

I felt stifled, actually deadened and dumb and sort of numb. My curiosity, my desire to ask questions, almost disappeared. My school life was kept separate from my sense of community life. I lived in fragmented worlds, bordered lines dividing home, school, neighborhood. Separating me from being aware of local & world issues. Each of these realms seemed to operate with different languages, even though they were in English; they felt very separate and often foreign to me. I never learned about the possibilities of a common language. School was suppose to be part of my community, yet it never quite established a coherence and relational existence with the community I lived in.

I now believe that education must contribute to the development of a Common Ground. Education that enables learning that promotes self-reliance as well as a sense of how to cooperate and participate in the design of one's community. An education that recognizes the components of learning that will enhances healthy, sustainable living communities. Society is composed of many communities. That the school could be the hub, the center of each living community seems vital for learning to become integrated with work, recreation, socialization, health, and every thing that composes being able to live a "good life".

What I have come to see and understand about the majority of educational institutions, is that education has become a "training facility" for supporting the corporate capitalistic interests. This I think began when cities became urban industrial areas. When the rural farming communities began dissolving, and forcing people into the urban industrial complex. Schools became a conduit for corporations, industry to receive trained, cooperative automatons for production line production. Now there is technology and the information age; I don't think much has changed, people are still being trained for the Corporate model of slavery. Plus education has functioned forever so long on an elitist model. The grading system becomes a strange meritocracy designed to perpetuate elitism Eliminating many through the competitive use of grades and consistent testing. Rather than stimulate critical thought and a passion for learning, schooling has dumbed many peoples down and created an addiction toward forced consumerism. Thus creating the Psycho-Social -Void.

Technology certainly can and has enhanced many of our lives, yet the new age has also helped to numb and condition many peoples thinking processes. I wonder if the computer age has not severely contributed to the decline of educating people to ask critically important questions?

I have written that education and the corporation have merged. The institution of education is run like a corporation, disproportionate salaries, and a marked discrepancy between the line educator and the administrator. Included in this are textbooks, testing material and probably many other aspects that incline the "institution of education to mimic corporations. Like maintaining a physical plant, rather than ideas put forth in the New Colleges section. College/University campuses become artificial communities separate from the community and or common ground. Plus economically burdensome.

So much of the educational system, either avoids the learning about money nor affords learners to ask critical questions about economics in relation to their lives and instead under educate people regarding the myriad philosophy's regarding social economic designs other than the existing model of capitalism, and the global economy. How money in this context becomes a controlling factor of people's lives seems to exclude sensitive and important distinctions between capitalism, socialism and communism. Reinforcing "a not enough attitude which can escalate to a level of greediness, or corralling many people into an economic state of slavery. For example, I don't think that there has been as much homelessness in this country since the depression era?

Technology has some thing to do with this I believe, because many jobs that once existed in the country, known as blue collar workers, factory, farm, small business, etc have almost disappeared. Some of this is due to technological advances, as well as the shipping of manufacturing out of this country on the basis of attaining cheaper ways of production. Which is merely economic enslavement of already impoverished peoples. All of this is inter-twined with the educational system. Yet, people are either so conditioned by messages of seeking the good life, which is translated " school will provide a higher income; therefore provide people with more access towards greater consumption". Which gets into people living on and off interest paid on credit card existence. .

Technology may have already become a Technopoly, a conglomeration of ways to manipulate learning, economy, and life style. Yes, the Internet may offer a boarding of ways for peoples to connect, interact, maybe even effect the social political take over of their lives; yet I question the veracity of its over all capacity to educate.

I know I am being critical of education and this is because of the complicity by the institution of higher learning with the corporate mentality. Even with its diligent and dedicated educators, like I am experiencing in this developing of this learning community laboratory. Unfortunately the over all controlling mechanisms of the entire educational establishments engender unhealthy relationships with governmental controls and a continual erosion of the common ground/community aspects of our lives. There is less and less unity among people. I am very appreciative to be experiencing this vital learning contribution; this feels like an important experiment, as well as a contribution towards revitalizing education and learning.

Society is composed of a myriad assortment of "communities". As complex as the definition has become, I think there are guiding voices that have contributed constructive ideas and practices that can educate civil society towards a healthier way of designing and developing communities. I will list some of these resources separate at the end of this explosion I have allowed myself.

I want to return to my earlier introduction of wanting to address these articles/essays by integrating my thoughts and ideas, as well as raising some questions regarding communities, educational institutions, and technology. Along time ago; I was introduced to thinking about communities in way I had not considered. I was attending a local chamber of commerce meeting in a Los Angeles "community". Several architects were attempting to introduce the idea of a Gestalt way of conceiving of how to design and develop community. They raised questions like; was it necessary in this community to have 4 gas stations on four corners, to have several other types of commerce competing with each other? Why couldn't the nursery business, a park, an animal shelter, a school, all be with in a utilized green area that was integrated? Why couldn't the school become an intregal hub, offering 24-hour services? Such as medical, family guidance services some where in this demographic space, places of inclusive local art venues. Including drama, music, etc. A space for local community gatherings to discuss and explore issues of importance to the people whom lived in this "community". Again, suggesting that the local school could be use for many of these social events. I had never heard this concept presented before. It ignited much imaginative excitement in me, but did not seem to have much impact on the way the community continued to develop. These architects were offering up a language for creating & developing healthy community.

I want to say something about how I think Education in its old format, which still to a large extent dominates and continues to keep people dumbed down and in a perpetual trance state, by creating a class of "professionals who are really the new Mandarin Order. Carrying out Social manipulations set up by the "ruling order". I think the institutions of higher education function as training grounds for this new Mandarin Order. The old college system reflects much of what I have been addressing. "This way" of educating does not help learners to experience empathy, nor understand the importance of human compassion. Nor the leaning how to participate and grow a politics of Trust.

New Colleges offer some hope, although I challenge the need for even the use of credit or none credit. Or for that matter the certification process. These seem to be in contradiction to self directed self-awareness, as well as the whole persons concept. I link these concepts to the evolution of the "Politics of Trust". Some time ago I read an Indian thinkers words regarding education, I want to quote him now regarding the above thoughts.

His name was Vinoba Bhave.

"Education must be of such quality that it will afford learners entry to intellectual self-reliance and enable them to become independent thinkers. If this were to be the chief aim of learning, the whole process of learning would be transformed. The present school syllabus contains a multiplicity of languages and subject and the student feel that in every one of these he/she needs the teacher's help for years together. But a student should be so taught that they are capable of going forward & acquiring knowledge for themselves. "There is an infinite sum of knowledge in the world, and each one needs some finite portion of it for the conduct of their affairs. But it is a mistake to think that this life-knowledge can only be had in any school. Life-knowledge can only be had from life. The task of the school is to awaken in its learners the wish to learn from life." This quote in part supports the New College design. I say in part because of some of my previous concerns about economics, and the misuse of the technopoly approach to education.

Community more and more feels and appears to look like a Collage composed of components contained within reasonably disseminated micro geographical areas. Size and shape helping to define this community. These components can assist the peoples in this micro region to develop constructive healthy social relations; Relations inclusive of a common language.

A Pattern Language-Town*Building*Construction,
By Chistopher Alexander, Sara Ishikawa, Murray Silverstein,
Max Jacbson, Ingrid Fiksdahl-King Shomo Angel
Oxford University Press, 1977
Second of 3 volumes

Carl Rogers book regarding his views of Teaching

The UnderGround History of American Education,
A School Teacher's Intimate Investigation Into the
Problem of Modern Schooling.
By John Taylor Gatto
Oxford Village Press, 2000/2001

The Reign of Quantity & the Sign of the Times
By Rene Guenon
Penguin Books, Inc. 1972 English language edition, first published in France in 1945

Prison NoteBooks of Antonio Gramsci
International Publishers, New York 1971

Education for the Corporate State
Joel Spring, Published around 1970
He also wrote, A Primer of Libertarian Education, 1975
Free Life Editions.

The True and Only Heaven, Progress and its Critics
Christopher Lasch, 1991 Norton & Co.

Coming to Our Senses
Body and Spirit in the Hidden History of the West.
Morris Berman, Simon & Schuster, 1989

Technopoly, by Neil Postman, around 1999 or so.

Powers In The Highest Degree, Professionals and the Rise of a New Mandarin Order
Charles Derber, William A. Schwartz, Yale Magrass, Oxford University Press, 1990

Arthur Wamoth, his many writings, and exchange of ideas.