Globalization

This was written mainly to an audience of my professional peers.  So it's not along my usual lines for this blog, but I think it's worth cross posting.

I am reading "The New Chicago", a series of essays from 2006 describing the changes in the city from a social and economic perspective.  I find more and more that this is extremely relevant for any educator that wants to understand how education should work.  So perhaps an executive summary of the essay I just read about Chicago in a global context is not directly related to instruction.  But let's see if I can't find the meaning here that does impact what we do in the classroom and in the administrative offices of higher ed.

The author, Fassil Demissie, identifies five things that define Chicago in a global context.  Businesses in Chicago can expect two-way access to international markets, including labor and financial investments.  The local government is extremely pro-business and will bend over backwards to stimulate economic development.  Chicago-based firms are capable of delivering extremely high levels of business service, especially state of the art technology services that are globally in short supply.  Chicago is maintained aesthetically to look and feel like an attractive modern urban center.  Finally, Chicago is still experiencing hyper-segregation by race and social class as a result of gentrification.

The author essentially argues that these were deliberate developments (save the fifth, which was a result of the deliberate developments) in response to the de-industrialization of the American economy. Starting in the 70's Chicago, like much of America, saw manufacturing plants close and/or move overseas.  A new service-based economy emerged in its wake, redefining American life and social reality.  I think it might be relevant to mention that this period also saw the decline and near total disappearance of civic engagement, interest in politics, and faith in the government.

This de-industrialization and de-politicization itself is extremely relevant to the college educator.  New knowledge and skills are necessary for economic advantage.  It is undeniable that curriculum and program offerings need to constantly change to reflect the changing needs of our society, with which come a changing definition of a 'well-educated', 'well-rounded' person.  But if the education system is also a mechanism by which citizens become capable of participating in self-government, then we are fighting an uphill battle and losing miserably.

The content of "The New Chicago" is what I would consider 'need-to-know' as part of any undergraduate curriculum.  It's a new millennium.  Kids need to know what globalization is.  Kids need to know what neo-liberal policies look like.  F*#% 'Classic' learning.  Kids need to understand that the roots of the western intellectual tradition were grounded in paradigms that have since been rejected.  They need to see what our modern world-view is and how it shapes our modern world.  And for god's sake they need to be critical of it.  Are we happy with our world order?  Do we agree with the assumptions that underlie how we think about every aspect of our world daily?

I did not have a conclusion in mind when I sat down to write about how Chicago's global identity affects instruction, but now it is clear.  The main points, more importantly the main *points of view*, presented in Demissie's essay, need to be brought down to earth.  I have a Ph.D. and I could barely read the thing without over and over again wondering just what exactly the author might mean by an 'accumulation regime' or 'functional repositioning' or some similar smartspeak.  Seriously guys, we all get it, you're smart, now speak English.

Back in the day, someone (say, Plato, or Machiavelli, for example) would come along and break it down for people with a large vested interest in understanding the material but who lack strong intellectual or academic backgrounds (politicians, for example).  Let's break it down for the next generation.  The information currently buried in academic journals needs to be accessible, and not in the form of condescending pre-packaged corporate textbooks, but in high quality, short, lucid academic texts.  If we idolize Locke, Smith, Rouseau and the like so dearly, why not take a play out of their playbook?