Richard Dawkins and "authoritarian schools"

[MrBogosity]

Check out the part of this video starting around 20 minutes in:

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What do they mean, these schools don't exist? How many children in America start their day by reciting the Pledge of Allegiance? How many DO have "portraits of political leaders" (Presidents) "beaming down from classroom walls"? Many of them are even NAMED after presidents!

Maybe it's different in Britain, but Dawkins has spoken about American education all the time. Oh, what a blind eye we turn when it's OUR ideology being pushed on children!

[Ibrahim90]

"but there isn't a political equivalent"

there are....OK, they're not called political schools, but they instill specific political beliefs. look at the schools Shane mentioned. And yes, they exist in Britain: they're called Public schools. because in a way, they instill certain political values: broad ones yes, but they do so, and do it deliberately.

And in a sense, yes, religious schools are political: by instilling some doctrine or other, they imprint not only religious values (be they catholic, protestant, Jewish, Muslim, or what have you), but political values, tied to the religious ones (attitude on sex education/abortion is one example, among many actually).

So no matter what, Dawkins is just...wrong. there are definitely political schools in Britain, as there are in Kuwait, the US, or anywhere else I can think of.

either way, most government schools, politically oriented or "not", all have the same flaw: they teach even basic facts by way of indoctrination and rote--the worst forms of teaching or instilling facts (or values) upon people, as al-kindi pointed out in the 13th century. (seriously, it's been 7-800 years: you'd think that would be universally understood these days). This continues beyond primary and secondary school: some university departments take a similar attitude and method.