Dumbing Down Education

Dumbing Down Education

Dumbing Down is a wikipedia category. It even states that itself can be accused of contributing to the slide of dumbing down society. 'Dumbing down' by Dr Kevin Donnelly approaches the proposed Dumbing down phenomenon and states quite clearly that it is presently experienced across all Australian education systems.

The key issue is that education is now based on 'the process of learning' being promoted above 'content'. This concept 'Content free instruction' is where students are active participants. Teachers are facilitators. Students learn by doing. Donnelly claims that the 'process based learning method' has resulted in students unable to read, write and think. Donnelly implies that if this methodology continues the future is a continual lowering of knowledge standards within Australia.

Donnelly presents a situation of a covert operation of the socialist left aimed to derail the privileged. His claim is that this is a managed operation that attacks the pursuit of academic excellence. Donnelly claims that Left wing progressivists oppose selective schools, unambiguous academic standards and distinct disciplines such as history, geography, science, mathematics and English. The education situation is painted as a mirth of child centered relativism where no pillars certainties exist.


This is a post modernist issue where relativism deconstructs specialist knowledge areas. Relativism is presented as an evil against certainty. It is interesting that relativism is also attacked by two recent Popes. Pope Benedict XVI views relativism as a dictatorship and Pope John Paul II views relativism as path to lose way.

Donnelly has drafted an argument based on two systems that cannot be measure against each other. His description of Outcomes Based Education as edubabble, fuzzy logic and low efficiency may have some merit. Donnelly states Outcomes Based Education stands on the shoulders of Progressivism. If this is so it is now some 40 years old. The alternative of Teacher based instruction governed by tests belongs in the 1950s. Perhaps Australian education needs to look towards consolidation rather than rollback. Perhaps the roll of deconstructionist based Outcome Based Education and Post Modernism has come to an end. Perhaps the left guard has lost its relevance. Perhaps a liberal humanist philosophy will emerge. The present dogmatic debate between left and right may actually find common good ground where agreements within a system of education can be made.

The question is whether a common good can be agreed on. If this dogmatic debate continues to be fought within our education system our youth are definitely the losers. Both left and right are claiming the common good at the expense of the common good. Perhaps this is even the cynical cyclic situation that many experienced teachers exhaustively state as 'been there done that'.

Meanwhile each Australian state/territory has a different form of Outcomes Based Education, a movement of students moving from public to private and a growing shortage of Teachers within an aging workforce. 2008 is a time when all should be debating the role and expectations of education within Australia. Australia has a new Federal Government which has a mandate to revolutionize education. Donnelly would profess that this is a left wing government and that the revolution will be a continuation of the progressive left reform started in the 1960's. If this is so I would agree with Donnelly that education will be the loser. Education needs to be depoliticized if the revolution is to keep our place in the sun.