Australia is introducing a nation wide curriculum for our schools. A nation of only 23 million people it makes perfect sense that our children should all be learning the same subjects at the same stage. In our mobile society it means that students can move from state to state with more ease.
As a teacher I am encouraged to not educate with old models. I try to teach in a way that will reach students who have been born in the 21st century. They have never known a time without mobile phones, laptops, Xboxes and the internet. To use what is in serious danger of becoming a tired cliché, they are indeed digital natives. Their every day life is lived multitasking in a digital online environment. It is natural to them as breathing.
Why then are our politicians continually serving up to their constituents old model politics of conflict and hate? Why is our media so happy to work within this position? I use the word our, because we have a role to play in this, and many of us are abdicating our role.
That role is to communicate to the institutions of our various societies, that we will no longer tolerate this abuse of the power we give them. I am of the opinion that the place to start is with the media. Media magnates the likes of the Murdoch Family (family taking on a new meaning since the accusation of “mafia boss” made against James Murdoch this week), are motivated by money and in particular profits. If we hit those profits, they will listen.
If we don’t buy or subscribe to their biased and conflict ridden media, for example in Australia the very biased Australian or Courier Mail newspapers, then they will soon listen. Falling profits and unhappy investors are what they listen too. I think far too many investors are morally bankrupt. The hysteria in the stock markets is proof that they too are concerned about profits, and easily spooked. It is up to the consumer to spook them.
Send them, the media and their investors, the message that we will no longer tolerate this abuse of our good will. When the media changes its tune, the political whores will follow. If politicians want our attention, and our vote, they will have to play to our rules, and that rule is no bullying, no conflicts. Communicate, negotiate and produce some positive results.
We can’t blame the politicians or the media, if we don’t tell them what we need and what we want. And we want it now, don’t we? It means that we are going to have to communicate, negotiate and produce some positive results too. We can lead by example, model the behaviour that we want, just as a committed teacher does; as an effective parent does. Don’t subscribe to their behaviour, attitudes and values.
Think about, and try it; we might just like it!
Faith is taking the first step, even when you don’t see the whole staircase.
Martin Luther King Jr.
