The above words, so eloquently spoken by Thomas Jefferson, the opening to the Declaration of Independence, are synonymous with freedom and the bedrock of America’s democracy. For the intent of this essay, I will focus on the right to the pursuit of happiness and contend that the liberty beholden by the above statement threatens a democratic education. In order to this, I will answer the following questions: What is a democratic education? How can a democratic education be achieved in a school? How does capitalism and neoliberalism threaten to destroy a democratic education? For the purpose of defining a democratic education, I now turn to Matthew Knoester who states, “in order to educate democratic citizens it is important to create a
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The purpose of the habits of mind is to develop habits useful for “effective democratic participation and deliberation” (Knoester, p. 72). For Brighouse, the ability to engage in political debates in a “spirit of respect and a willingness to engage in public reasoning” is an element of good citizenship (2006, p. 67). Brighouse (2102) refers to this as the norm of reciprocity, which requires one to take on other forms of knowledge, to take on someone else’s idea. The five habits of mind was communicated in question form: What is the evidence? What is the relevance? How is this connected with other structures, forces, or facts? From whose viewpoint am I looking? And how could it be different? Responding to the habits of mind throughout the curriculum forced students to employ skepticism, thoughtfulness, synthesis, perception, and speculation in constructing knowledge and in developing skills necessary for deliberating politically in a democratic …show more content…
In order to reply, I first need to return to the unalienable right to the pursuit of happiness, a right supported by the Declaration of Independence. The democracy guaranteed by this right makes possible for a free-market economy through capitalism that allows for individual owners to have the right to choose what to produce, how to produce, and what price to sell their products or services for. The decision for what to produce and how much to sell it for is based on the law of supply and demand, thus creating producers (service providers), employees (workers) and consumers (buyers), the higher the demand, the more profit and the lower demand, the less
The purpose of the habits of mind is to develop habits useful for “effective democratic participation and deliberation” (Knoester, p. 72). For Brighouse, the ability to engage in political debates in a “spirit of respect and a willingness to engage in public reasoning” is an element of good citizenship (2006, p. 67). Brighouse (2102) refers to this as the norm of reciprocity, which requires one to take on other forms of knowledge, to take on someone else’s idea. The five habits of mind was communicated in question form: What is the evidence? What is the relevance? How is this connected with other structures, forces, or facts? From whose viewpoint am I looking? And how could it be different? Responding to the habits of mind throughout the curriculum forced students to employ skepticism, thoughtfulness, synthesis, perception, and speculation in constructing knowledge and in developing skills necessary for deliberating politically in a democratic …show more content…
In order to reply, I first need to return to the unalienable right to the pursuit of happiness, a right supported by the Declaration of Independence. The democracy guaranteed by this right makes possible for a free-market economy through capitalism that allows for individual owners to have the right to choose what to produce, how to produce, and what price to sell their products or services for. The decision for what to produce and how much to sell it for is based on the law of supply and demand, thus creating producers (service providers), employees (workers) and consumers (buyers), the higher the demand, the more profit and the lower demand, the less