A case for open academic spaces

A case for open academic spaces: – C.S. Lewis The severest exposition of this syndrome was the banning of student politics from some colleges and universities based on the naive argument that universities and colleges are spaces for...



ATTITUDE...
Excerpts:

“Attitudes change
These practices also directly curtail the scope of academic discourse and diversity of opinions, which should ideally enrich our classrooms. Thus, the mechanism only serves to make a bunch of compliant and conformist beings who would think twice before seeking to stand for themselves, and forget about others. Those times when the pain was felt by everyone when one of us is hurt, is fast disappearing. The prevalent attitude of students in universities today is safe play — if something does not directly affect us, why bother? Why should we unnecessarily get into trouble? That is the lost spirit of the universities: the spirit of togetherness, humaneness and righteousness.”
Perhaps a very relevant point is being made here. But this problem has been there in varying measures, in all walks of life-i.e. the attitude issue is not just confined to campuses or educational institutions- and as media was not as ‘efficient’ or technology was yet to provide the kind of support nowavailable, to media there were no ‘breaking news’ or prime time debates till a decade ago.
M G Warrier












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