COLLABORATIVE LEADERSHIP

Collaborative Learning and Democratic Context

Redefining American Culture

The founding fathers of American Democracy worked hard to lay the foundation for an American Culture and society built around the democratic values of equality, critical thinking and citizen participation. In the early days of American history it was clear that to be an American you believed very strongly in the values of fairness, equality and service to others. Men like Benjamin Franklin, John Adams and Thomas Jefferson incorporated these values into the Declaration of Independence and Constitution of the United States. These values clearly defined what it meant to be an American for all of the world to see. Today, in the twenty-first century, we seem to have lost the clarity and meaning of their words that were so obvious to most Americans over two hundred years ago. What has happened to change how we as Americans see ourselves and how the rest of the world sees us? And, what can we do to redefine once and for all what it means to be an American?

Over the past several years after the tragedy of the terrorist attack on 9/11, our government has spied on American citizens in violation of the fourth amendment, taken away fundamental rights of citizens and tortured prisoners all for the so-called purpose of national security. In addition, our national obsession with Wall Street combined with the lack of leadership and proper oversight has undermined our economic system at the expense of the majority of our citizens on Main Street. However, our security was never so threatened as it is now that we are giving away those essential democratic rights that help to define us as Americans and as a nation. Abraham Lincoln said, “America will never be destroyed from the outside. If we falter and lose our freedoms, it will be because we destroyed ourselves." These self-inflicted infringements on the freedoms, privacy and rights of individuals are more dangerous and potentially devastating than any attack by terrorists because they represent an erosion of the principles of democracy and freedom that have defined us in the past. If this erosion of rights and freedoms is allowed to continue we will be moving farther away from the essential principles of democracy that best define American Culture.

However, this deterioration of American and democratic values did not just begin in recent years with insecure leadership overreacting to threats to national security or even with the greed on Wall Street. It began in our schools and even our places of business where democratic values have been ignored for so long that they no longer are understood or are recognizable in the contexts of business or educational concepts and principles. In business classes we teach vacuous economic principles without really considering their relationship to democracy or even how capitalism relates to the more fundamental concepts of freedom. For example, do we really have “free enterprise” when we allow the most dominant businesses and the rich to control markets and push small companies out of business? And, in our quest to pursue so-called “objectivity” in education we have forgotten the essential foundational values that give every concept and aspect of business its meaning in a democratic society. Business does not exist for the sake of business anymore than education exists just for the sake of education. There needs to be a clearer connection made in every subject area to benefits for society and humanity. And, in a democratic society this means making subjects in school more connected and relevant to the values of fairness and service to others. Objectivity alone is just a cover for all of the biases that exist everywhere without the clarity of purpose and meaning inherent in our fundamental democratic values. These values of equality, critical thinking and service to others are essential to keeping our nation strong and defining American Culture for ourselves and the rest of the world.

This is not to say that our schools and institutions of higher learning have no values. Many of our schools have been founded on high values and principles just as noble as those of our founding fathers. However, the problem lies in the fact that this is where it has stopped with the high sounding words and mission statements of our schools. Without incorporating our democratic values into the teaching of every subject from science to communications to education and business, we are really saying that democracy is fine, but we will leave it to the government to worry about. What is the responsibility of our educational system in a democratic society? Clearly, it must be to teach these essential values as cultural context in every subject area if we truly believe in our democracy. Otherwise, democracy is just an excuse for invading other countries while money, oil, power and greed are the underlying reasons for everything we do. And, Wall Street will continue to rule even though seventy percent of the economy is based upon the consumer spending and confidence on Main Street. We really do not have much of a choice if we want to preserve our most cherished values and democratic way of life. Either we begin to teach our democratic values as essential parts of educational curriculum or we allow our vacuous policies and hidden biases to destroy our great American society. And, this means developing the rich democratic contexts for every course in our curriculum – not just civics classes. We have an opportunity here to redefine ourselves through our educational system and even in our places of work by returning to the democratic values of our forefathers that made America great and will once again. But, we must start the collaborative and democratic dialogue and the policy efforts that will put these values in the forefront of everything we do and provide the essential context for learning in every subject we study.

Science will begin to take on new meaning in the context of democratic values as we strive to make new discoveries that will create cures for disease and alleviate suffering instead of building pharmaceutical empires for the rich. Economics will have new meaning as students study how to build wealth for the poor and disadvantaged and lift up third world countries instead of feeding the greed on Wall Street. Communications will become more than just teaching some new trendy idea or concept and finding new ways to manipulate public opinion as students learn how to use this knowledge to educate and inform the masses effectively, fairly and democratically. History classes will become much more than just memorizing events and timelines and so-called objective assessments of cultures and societies as students will learn the difference between those societies that built democratic legacies and contributed to human development and those that only sought to dominate and destroy. Most importantly, by including democratic values as the cultural context for learning we will be creating the essential context for collaborative learning and critical thinking that is necessary to sustain democracy. Every subject in school can be taught within some democratic context and provide a deeper and more valuable learning experience for the students while helping them to become better citizens and future leaders. These are the collaborative learning experiences that will help to redefine American Culture, allow us to preserve the democratic vision of our forefathers and take the next step toward a better world.

Note: The above example is based upon the concepts and principles found in the book, Collaborative Leadership and Global Transformation by Timothy Stagich, Ph.D.

Discussion Questions

What are the foundational values in a democratic society? Why do they need to be taught in our schools and even in our places of work in American society?
Why are values often ignored in teaching various subjects in schools? How can democratic values motivate and connect students to provide benefits for humanity?
Since our founding fathers established a strong foundation in our Constitution and Declaration of Independence for the values of equality, fairness and service to others, how can we begin to include them in every subject that is taught?
What is Cultural Context and why is it important for learning? Give some examples of how Democratic Context can be used as Cultural Context in Business, Communications and History classes. Provide some rich examples.
What are some of the consequences of losing the understanding and practical applications of democratic values in American society?
How does Collaborative Learning facilitate the teaching of democratic values and the use of Cultural Context in learning environments?
How can Collaborative Learning and Democratic Context provide a richer, more practical and meaningful learning experience in every subject area of education?