TaraElla’s Liberal Curriculum 2011
By TaraElla
Copyright 2011 TaraElla
Smashwords Edition
A Curriculum for Liberal Cultural Studies 2011
Copyright © TaraElla 2011. All rights reserved.
A Curriculum for Liberal Culture Studies 2011
Introduction
This is my draft curriculum to teach students about liberal culture, how liberal ideas came to be, and how they benefit society. Obviously it is not a program that can be implemented in all schools around the world. At this stage, the curriculum is mainly aimed at assisting liberal families in introducing liberal ideas to their children.
Obviously, what students study cannot be in a vacuum. It is my expectation that this curriculum will only work where there is an active liberal culture surrounding the student in their everyday lives. For example, their families who talk about things using a liberal worldview, and popular culture figures who work for liberal causes.
This curriculum is divided into two sections – Core Liberal Studies and Integrating Liberal Studies into Other Studies. The former is about teaching actual liberal ideas and the latter is about integrating liberal ideas with their other education.
Core Liberal Studies
Stage
One (Grades One to Six)
At this stage, students do not yet have a
grasp of how the world works, and cannot understand complex concepts
yet. It is best to introduce the idea of liberalism through everyday
examples. For example, children are often curious about why things
work the way they do in the world, and my mother used to just say the
government decides things. A better way is to introduce the idea of
democracy, and then lead into the discussion that different people in
a society have different beliefs and values and that government
policy is often the compromise of these diverse wishes. A new
question that will then arise would be why their family believe the
way they believe. A brief explanation that the family’s values are
about freedom for everyone may suffice. If it doesn’t, then it
could be explained that the family believes in freedom and justice
because that is the way everyone can get along peacefully because
everyone cannot always agree, or something along these lines. It
should also be pointed out that other people may prefer ideals like
returning to how things used to be or relying on interpretations of
scripture, however these are flawed in one way or another.
Everyday living examples can also be used. For example, children from liberal families may find that their parents are much more reasonable than children from conservative families who still use corporal punishment. As a parent you may explain that your liberal values mean that you treat everyone with respect, however, other parents may like to follow traditional parenting methods and that includes corporal punishment. You may even add that societies like Sweden and Norway have banned the use of corporal punishment in the home, but our society still has too many conservatives who wish to follow tradition. Another example would be that your children may ask why gay people cannot get married, having been taught that gay people are normal and should be treated with respect from when they are young. Once again, you can state your support for equality and explain that other people like to follow tradition at the expense of equality, and we can only try to change their minds. You can explain again the way a democracy works and why it is the best system, and yet everyone doesn’t always get what they want. You can explain that some other societies have already removed this obstacle, and we’ll just need to campaign hard for it in our democracy. If you yourself cannot get married or have joined the marriage boycott, you can explain that in modern societies there are lots of ways a couple can get committed, and marriage is only one way. You may point to other examples of unmarried but very committed couples (like Brangelina) or societies where marriage is not so dominant (like Scandinavia).
You may like to help the child define what freedom is, and what freedom is not. For example, children have to learn that they do not have the right of taking away other people’s belongings. You may elaborate on why that is consistent with freedom for everyone.
The idea that you can use action to make the world a fairer place can also be introduced, though with examples in our everyday life rather than examples in history. For example, the marriage equality rallies, the anti-war protests and the people who participate in marriage boycott can be used as examples.
The ‘textbooks’ to be used will mainly be storybook or children’s encyclopedia like. For example, there are lots of books about other cultures and religions, upon which the student can learn values of acceptance and tolerance. It may also be a good idea to get them to read books about people living in different situations, for example stories about children who are ethnic minorities, immigrants, or who live in gay families.
Stage Two (Grades Seven to Nine)
Students begin to be able to grasp some complex concepts at this age. They become very impressionable, and may rebel against their parents’ stance. They also like to dig deep into phenomenon, and they demand explanations for everything. It is very crucial at this stage to provide them with the reasons behind liberal ideals. A brief introduction to the historical development of liberal ideals may also be suitable at this stage, perhaps integrating with what they are learning at school about history.
A serious look at why liberalism is better than the alternatives can begin here. For example, the idea that tradition or even modern cultural fads may not always be right, and that liberalism gives every individual their right to their own moral compass, could be discussed. The fact that different traditions often clash and have produced disastrous results in history could be highlighted. A more global approach could be taken, and societies and communities with liberal vs illiberal views can be compared and contrasted. For example, you may highlight the plight of women or gay people in the middle east, and explain why the same doesn’t happen here. The student may be asked to imagine a world where a different ideology is dominant, for example some form of religious fundamentalism, and what would then happen to different people, for example what would happen to women, what would happen to gay people, what would happen to people with disabilities, what would happen to people of diverse ethnic backgrounds, what would happen to people whose religious faith is different to the mainstream, etc.
Stage Three (Grades Ten to Twelve)
By now students should be able to deal with and critically analyse complex concepts. For example, to analyse if what people claim is really true, and to learn to spot loopholes in thinking. Modern conservatives like to say that they support freedom too, and come up with all sorts of excuses when they fail to support freedom. Analysis of these flawed arguments can be a good lesson.
Attention can be put on how liberalism has been threatened in history, and how it can be protected. Studies can be made of how people react in situations of moral panic, and how some people lose their liberal priniciples whilst others can retain them. Discussions can also be made on how and why some conservative and religious groups do not like liberal priniciples and how we can refute them.
This is also the time when students’ reading ability has become sufficient for them to explore other liberal thinkers’ work.
Integrating Liberal Studies into Other Studies
History
History contains a long line of liberal idealists and their ideals have helped shape our world. The student can be drawn to these examples. History also contains a lot of lessons from which a liberal’s conviction is based. For example, the conflict of different religions in the middle ages and onwards, and how freedom of religion and separation of church and state came to be an important ideal written into constitutions around the world. Another great example would be the misery of workers in the industrial revolution and the social impact of the Great Depression, and how our welfare system prevents those horrible things from happening to people nowadays.
I believe understanding modern, post-1960s history is most important, even though schools do not do a good task of this. Understanding how equal rights for women and minorities came to be, how multiculturalism came to be, and how people became committed to peace are important themes that should be emphasized.
Science
It is self evident that liberals often think using a method very compatible with the scientific method. For example, whilst religious fundamentalists base their whole worldview on their interpretation of their Holy Book, we often rely on observations to make our ideas, and evidence to evaluate if something is working or not.
The inspirational stories of people like Charles Darwin could be introduced from an early age. A discussion could be had on how liberalism is compatible with scientific discovery whilst other ideologies can hinder science, for example how a refusal to believe in Darwinian theories of evolution can severely compromise understanding in the biological sciences.
Geography
This subject provides ample opportunity for understanding the diverse cultures and living conditions of people around the world. This is essential for all liberal students. After all, it is hard to be a sound liberal when you don’t know much about the world outside your own country.