Apologia Pro Vita Sua

Apologia Pro Vita Sua
 
It’s a sign of failure when one has to explain one’s self—like
telling the punch line of a joke that nobody got or saying  here’s
what I had in mind when what I had in mind made no never mind
to nobody.
 
Lest I sound pathetic as if asking for  sympathy: I’m not complaining
here, o contrary: I’m grateful for the apparent and at least surface
tolerance (suffrage) I’ve had in my dogged redundant efforts to 
supplement the dominant paradigm of rigorous syllabi-driven
aims, goals and measurable outcome institutional educating.
 
I acknowledge my failure but don’t want  failure  to eclipse what
I feel to be the legitimacy of a process—independent of results.
I’ll call it  the Stalwart  Pioneering Process.
 
SPP  guarantees no outcome, measurable or immeasurable. 
Outcome: sure—but  not necessarily as planned in accord with
aims and goals.   Frontiers yet and still unknown, damnit.
 
My pedagogical intention (because it is pedagogy which engages
me, and not any particular content or subject matter of which there
is always good  and  plenty):  to antagonize, diametrically oppose
and provide antithesis countering our evolving professionalism
with  what might be left of our amateur standing.
 
What ever you assume to be the relationship, there’s a radical and
incommensurate difference between the 2 value-sets:  
       
              amateur                &               professional
       (for the love of it:                      (delayed gratuity
       it’s own reward &                      external motivation:
      Immediate gratification)                  pay )
 
and, untended, unregulated, ungoverned: the values of
professionalism naturally  dominate and obscure if not prevent
the values of amateurism.
 
Need we argue?   I wish we could, would.
 
Note how amateurish my apology is. Not even close  to primetime
chronicling Higher Education.  You can hear the difference.
Among  other things, it’s a difference in sound, in voice.
 
“Liberal Education is an approach to learning that empowers
individuals and prepares them to deal with complexity, diversity,
and change. It provides students with broad knowledge of the
wider world (e.g. science, culture, and society) as well as in-
depth study in a specific area of interest. A liberal education
helps students develop a sense of social responsibility, as well
as strong and transferable intellectual and practical skills such
as communication, analytical and problem-solving skills, and
a demonstrated ability to apply knowledge and skills in
real-world settings.”  Professionalism
 
The sound of sighence.  Think critically: the military could make
the  same claim. And do IT as well or better. Working the Alaskan
fisheries during the summer, running a waterfront at a family resort
on Lake Champlain…empowering  experience with complexity,
diversity, and change and carrying all the professional buzz words:
social responsibility, communication, analytical and problem-solving
skills in real-world settings.   Emperor’s clothing.
 
Ok – say I’m overstating and reducing and generalizing and doing
injustice to professionalism and not sufficient justice to  amateurism.    
 
I agree.
 
Always a reduction. Always a rip-off of the WHOLE, always a
moving violation.   I welcome the accusations, the adversarial-ness.
Bring it on.  Nothing is worth much without it being argued-out,
don’t you agree?  Rolling our own holy smokes.
 
Otherwise its just off-the shelf, pre-shrunk cellophane wrapped,
store bought getRdone professionalism.
 
I could go on. But I can’t put IT in play unilaterally. 
Or even with  a grade gun. That would be forcing the issue.
The plays the thing. Play and be Played. School and be schooled
 
             School: from Latin:  “leisure time”

xxxooo, Sam