I'm not sure but I think Chris fell out of the wrong side of the bed this morning. His comments below seem somewhat relevant to the content of the article that Beth provides a link to but without more information about the students the article writer is talking about, it is unclear whether Chris' criticism's apply to all American students of a certain race and class or to some fraction of them (the author of the article is unlikely to have such data as she self-identifies as a teacher of rhetoric and history and not a researcher).
I think Chris' rant is somewhat misplaced. The general issue that he is referring to is that of "American exceptionalism", a concept that is easy to recognize but difficult to pin down. For some background on this "idea" see the Wikipedia entry (standard disclaimers apply): http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_exceptionalism The "idea" appears to be first developed by Alexis de Tocqueville in his "Democracy in America" and here's a website that provides a little more on how Tocqueville conceived it: http://www.gseis.ucla.edu/courses/ed253a/american-exceptionalism.htm American exceptionalism has been an idea that has been recently promoted by U.S. conservatives and downplayed by moderates and liberals. Consider the following comments by Dick Cheney about President Obama being "weak" on American exceptionalism: |I think most of us believe, and most presidents believe and talk |about, the truly exceptional nature of America--our history, |where we come from, our belief in our constitutional values |and principles, our advocacy for freedom and democracy, the |fact that we've provided it for millions of people all over the globe |and done so unselfishly. There's never been a nation like the |United States of America in world history. And yet, when you |have a president who goes around and bows to his host and |then proceeds to apologize profusely for the United States, |I find that deeply disturbing. That says to me this is a guy who |doesn't fully understand or share that view of American exceptionalism |that I think most of us believe in. http://politics.theatlantic.com/2009/12/is_dick_cheney_living_in_a_pre-2008_world.php For other conservative viewpoints on American Exceptionalism, see: http://www.american.com/archive/2008/april-04-08/understanding-american-exceptionalism Now, whether or not U.S. citizens have a sense of American Exceptionalism and whether this is the basis for bad behavior among certain groups of students is an interesting empirical hypothesis. However, Kara Miller's article is an opinion piece and not an empirical study. How many problems could a student in research methods find in the assertions she makes about "her American students"? Perhaps she is a magnet for lazy American students or her courses or her school or...whatever. Miller is entitled to her opinions about her students as is Chris is entitled to his opinions about U.S. citizens. But opinions are still opinions. It is better to have opinions consistent with empirical facts but everyone is well aware that this not a requirement. Sometimes an opinion is just a rant. Happy Solstice, Y'all! -Mike Palij New York University m...@nyu.edu On Mon, 21 Dec 2009 09:14:21 -0800, Christopher D. Green wrote: >Beth Benoit wrote: >> Wow. >> http://www.boston.com/bostonglobe/editorial_opinion/oped/articles/2009/12/21/my_lazy_american_students/?p1=Well_MostPop_Emailed1 > >So, what does your "wow" mean, Beth? Does this strike you as surprising? >Outrageous? Offensive? It seems pretty much "common knowledge" to me. >(And despite what the article says, I wouldn't suggest that [white, >anglo-scottish-irish, long-standing] Canadians are much better than >American kids on this score.) And I think I know where it comes from >too. US (North American?, Western?) culture is crammed full of the >message that we are superior, we are special, and it is something that >is essential to us, not the product of some particular effort that we >have expended (though perhaps our ancestors did). One sees this message >everywhere from politics, to religion, to entertainment, to educational >practice (virtually no one "fails," everyone must be "retained" and >eventually "graduated," the slightest quiver of anxiety is immediately >declared a "disability" and "accommodated"). The message is: you are a >success virtually in virtue of just being you (think the "self-esteem" >movement). Little (but loyalty) is required of you. You were born into >the greatest, richest, free-est, most Godly, and, when necessary, most >powerful nation/culture/civilization that has ever graced the face of >the earth. Anyone who says otherwise is just hateful, jealous, and >anti-(insert your country's name here). Can you imagine any US >politician getting much electoral traction by announcing "We have become >self-indulgent and have fallen behind many other countries in education >and productivity. The only way to retrieve some portion of our former >international stature is for us to cut back in our personal lives >(smaller, more efficient cars, houses, etc), work harder (both at work >and school), pay off our debts (both as individuals and as a nation), >and show a willingness to cooperate with other countries in dealing the >major international challenges that face us"? Never. > >This is not to say that India, China, and everywhere else doesn't have >its share of ugly nationalistic, jingoistic, ethnocentric, >overly-prideful rhetoric. They all do. (And to be entirely fair, the >ones who travel to the US to get educated are not average for their >culture. They are eager to get ahead, whereas a lot of the "locals" we >face as teachers virtually "fell" into our classrooms). It is, rather, >that people from developing countries just don't mistake political >posturing for being knowledgeable and working hard to become so. They >can't afford to. What they are proud of is what they -- as Indians, >Chinese, etc. -- can *accomplish*. Americans, all too often, are proud >of being, well, American. (Mutatis mutandis for many other Western >countries.) It used to be called "decadence." It has brought down many >another (every?) empire. And it is a very difficult whirlpool to escape >from. > >Happy solstice! --- To make changes to your subscription contact: Bill Southerly (bsouthe...@frostburg.edu)
