this post was submitted on 16 Jul 2023
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what is too far? what places? i hear this point alot, but do you have examples? real schools that are really going "too far" in some specific sense? where are they? what are they teaching?
The difference between *teaching about* an ideology and *presenting* an ideology as *true* or *correct* or *better*
Like, we should teach ideology -- all of them. We should teach religion -- all of them. Not in the way parochial schools do (as the truth) but holistically, as things that exist.
to be honest i'm not sure i agree with that. but that doesn't seem like the position drdiemz is defending. they seem to want less ideology in schools, or none at all, which is... both impossible and undesirable.
pedagogy is ideological. the way we teach children, the things we teach them, the things we don't, all that requires a specific ideological framework. free access to knowledge, freedom to choose what to believe, teaching diverse perspectives, those are ideological imperatives not shared by all ideologies. i think we should impress upon our children the value of free access to knowledge, of liberation, of the social forces which have led to them having access to schooling and literacy when before only the wealthy did. and to be honest, from the behavior of a large quantity of the ideological right wing, they seem to think that's an active threat.
the fact is that ideologies which prioritize the well being of other human beings, their liberties as individuals and as communities, are better, and their ability to learn about any ideology unrestricted is facilitated by the implementation of socially progressive values in their schooling environment. its why i'm always wary of people who seek to minimize politics in the classroom. everything is political. the way in which students are taught is political, the organization of classrooms is political, the certification of teachers is political, the funding for schools is political. every single part of every person's life is shaped by politics, and if you aren't engaging students with politics, you are withholding information from them that they should be given.
Too far is telling my sisters they should be vegans, too far is promoting body dysmorphia as something that should be celebrated and not treated. I have 3 sisters, none of which escaped the public school system without psychological harm. Two of which battle and were in hospice for anorexia.
your public school promoted body dysmorphia?? that's wild. did the school have a policy about telling kids they were fat or something? i really am having a hard time envisioning an ideological position that's explicitly in favor of inducing eating disorders in schoolchildren. i'm also just kinda confused at to how veganism plays into this. how does a school tell somebody to be vegan? diet is a pretty personal choice, and tends to involve a lot of effortful change. was there like a program for encouraging vegan diets specifically?
what ideological position is this school using? because... i don't really know what kind of ideology leads to anorexia. anorexia is a complex mental health issue caused by interactions between cultural notions of beauty and health and the psychology of individual humans. the closest ideological cause i can think of is like... sexism, or fatphobia, or patriarchal standards of beauty as imposed by the advertising industry.