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Write this 100 times: Education is
ignoring the big picture
By Marion Brady
*April 15, 2003
'American education," said the late Buckminster Fuller, "has developed in such a
way it will be the undoing of the society."
Reading those words, many may nod in agreement. Few, however, are likely to give
the same reason as did he for the bleak prediction.
Fuller is probably most frequently remembered as the inventor of the geodesic
dome -- the lightest, strongest, most cost-effective enclosing structure ever
devised. He was an inventive genius, but he was also a college professor,
cartographer, philosopher, naval officer, mathematician, poet, researcher,
cosmologist, industrialist, engineer, environmentalist, adviser to business and
government, the holder of 25 patents, the author of 28 books, and the recipient
of 47 honorary degrees.
He aired his view to a group of college presidents in the late 1980s. "What you
fellows in the universities do," he said, "is make all the bright students into
experts in something. That has some usefulness, but the trouble is it leaves the
ones with mediocre minds and the dunderheads to become generalists who must
serve as college presidents . . . and presidents of the United States."
Generalists -- people who can see the "big picture" -- don't get much respect in
today's world. There is no "Generalists" listing in the Yellow Pages; they are
not on the faculties of high schools and colleges, and no employment ads request
applications from them.
What's the big picture right now? Intensifying clashes on the "fault lines"
between religions, societies and civilizations; an ever-increasing threat of
terrorism; a shrinking middle class and a widening gap between rich and poor;
the confusing of national power with national greatness; boardroom dishonesty;
violence accepted as entertainment; unresponsive, lobbyist-dominated
legislatures; great confidence in the world-improving ability of force;
tax-evasion and other evidences of a decline in a sense of community and social
responsibility; an education system in disarray from ideologically driven
policies.
Those are related, big-picture issues. They're parts of an integrated whole, but
what we bring to bear on them are our various specializations -- expertise in
technology, banking, politics, medicine, law, biology, advertising and so on.
And the problems get worse. We stake our fate on the ability of specialists in
one field or another to manage crises as they pop up ("Better living through
chemistry"), but the old problems just intensify and are joined by new ones.
That our increasingly specialized educations might actually be a cause of
problems doesn't occur to us. We don't seem to appreciate the potential for
chaos resulting from millions of experts doing their thing with little or no
understanding of how their actions interact.
Here's how the education system Buckminster Fuller criticized was shaped, and
how it usually works:
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More than a century ago, when
educators were impressed by the benefits of division of labor and of
specialization in industry, a system for educating the young was set up that
emphasized specialized subjects and courses. Today's fragmented curriculum --
the ultra-departmentalization of educational institutions, the popularity of
magnet schools, the growth of school-to-work programs, and the impatience of
most students with courses outside their major fields of interest--reflect our
narrow view of the purpose of education. |
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The products of our educational
system -- highly trained specialists -- engage in activity that constantly
increases the complexity of our way of life. |
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This ever-increasing complexity
contributes to the ignorance-quotient of citizens in matters outside their
specializations. |
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Fear, suspicion, escapism,
other-worldliness, conspiracy theories, demagoguery and scapegoating grow and
feed on each other. |
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Lacking a shared body of general
knowledge, it becomes increasingly difficult for us to talk reasonably and
productively about public policy. We adopt a narrow perspective -- a
perspective often pre-shaped by partisan politics or some special interest
with a hidden agenda -- and throw slogans at each other. |
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The foundations of democracy grow
ever weaker. |
We've created -- and are maintaining
and reinforcing -- a system of education that confuses knowledge and wisdom.
That system's preoccupation with narrow expertise turns out citizens poorly
equipped to think about -- and therefore little interested in -- the moral and
ethical consequences of their actions.
*Originally published in the Orlando Sentinel. Published here by
permission of the author.
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