Education's clever way at keeping tabs on individuals

So right now, in my "Language Arts" class, we are doing an "Identity" unit. I'm sitting there thinking "and what the hell does this have to do with crafting our skills in literature?" We write down who we think we are, etc. We also periodically write journal entries about our emotions, beliefs, ideas, etc., which is not tied in with the unit. Aren't journals supposed to be private, more for you than for other people? Why would your teachers or administrators need to know that stuff in order to "educate" you better?
I feel like a lab rat being run on an exercise wheel, like myself as an individual is being pried into and scrutinized. Could this be the government's clever way of obtaining information about individuals?

I would like to hear any teacher's point of view on this.

[edit on 18-9-2005 by the_individualist]

[edit on 18-9-2005 by the_individualist]

A bit of a paranoid idea, but a good one none the less, however I think that writing things like that down is a normal part of that kind of class, and fi you dont want people to know things about you, just make up stuff and puty it in the journal.

Aren't journals supposed to be private, more for you than for other people?

That all depends, traditionally yes, but than, consider all the BLOGS people have, and a origonally a BLOG was an online journal.

[edit on 9/18/2005 by iori_komei]

I feel that it is mainly used to help you curb your writing skills more than anything. If they wanted to keep tabs on you, they would be more in your face about it; like weekly trips to the school councilers and daily locker/back pack searches from the SRO, etc. or maybe that just happened to me.

I'm inclined to agree with mrdimmle on this one. However, if you think that the 'wrong people' will be looking at your assignment, just make some innocent stuff up. As long as it sounds realistic, how is your teacher going to know?

I say give them what their psychodynamics are looking for...go for pure shock. Talk about eating babies and burning the hairs on your arms because it smells neat.

Originally posted by magnito_student
I say give them what their psychodynamics are looking for...go for pure shock. Talk about eating babies and burning the hairs on your arms because it smells neat.

Then see how fast you are expelled as a threat to school security. My nephew wrote about me teaching him how to target shoot this last summer and my sister just had a visit from the Children and Youth authorities on Friday. They wanted to see how the guns in her house were stored. A fifteen year old high school student down the road here in Beaver County Pennsylvania was just readmitted back to school after being expelled for the lyrics in rap songs that he posted on his website. Took a descision by the Federal District Court to get him re-admitted. Ever think that these assignments might be part of a Psych Eval to see which students might be a threat?

One of the prime functions of public education is to identify the potential of certain students. Identify them as to their potential for industry , government service ..etc etc or just plain wharehousing. By wharehousing I mean thier non usage to these political/economic corridors. If they are of little use they need to be wharehoused behind thier television sets....et al.
Those with real potential are cultivated in various means. Grants, scholarships, select jobs etc etc.
What is also not told to the public is that public schooling is also a means to keep tabs on the thier parents. Partucilarly any thought processes that will pollute and challange the thinking lines authorized by the public education system.
Years ago...my friend had a water distiller installed in his home to make pure drinking water. He educated his children on how it worked and what was in city water..verses this distilled water. During health classes his child raised these issues and announced that he didnt drink city water because of the additives put in it and that long term it was not good for one ...man made pollutants and poisons in the water.....he drank distilled water instead.
Next thing you know...my friend got a visit at his home from the school psychologist. When he told me about this I was astonished. I told him that he didnt get a visit because of the kid..they can analyze him at school anytime..the visit was for the purpose of filing a report on him and how he was affecting the indoctrination/education of his children.
If it is not already happening they want to use the children to know what one owns in thier homes..particularly guns etc etc...the schools are a avenue for this information collecting. This is known because this turned up in a questionaire given to kids in their ROTC class in the local high school. The teacher told the students to fill in the blank for no weapons kept at home. It was no ones buisness. Smart teacher. I salute him.
Just a different line of thought for those who can think outside the box with which public education is moving to control the public.

Thanks,
Orangetom

Besides just finding out about you, essay writing can be a very effective indoctrination technique. If you write that you believe something, you're likely to start believing it. People have a natural need for consistency, which is satisfied when they believe they've wrote.

The technique is most effective when you believe you aren't being coerced to say certain things. The case would Chinese POW camps. They would hold essay contests, and offer prizes for the best essay. People would then tilt their essays towards being more pro-communist, becuase they knew who would be judging. Gradually, they would start writing more and more pro-communist essays. The technique was most effective when winners were given a small prize so participants felt less coerced.

At the time I never realized it, but I think my English teachers were doing the same thing. They present their views in class. Next, they ask you to write an essay on some BS topic about identity or some such nonesense. If they know what they're doing, they will insist on not grading based on your views, blah, blah blah. However, you are pressured by grades, social pressure, etc. to conform to the expectations.

There are various approaches you can take. One approach is to just say total nonesense or meaningless junk. "I see myself as a person. I am just a person, but I am a person. In being a person, I am a person. I identify with these qualities. I am. I am who I am...." Another thing, would be just to not do the paper. Although, the problems with doing these is that you can get into the habit of doing bull#. It may not be easy to break this habit.

The most interesting and most difficult approach is to write with hidden meanings or with satire. Suppose you were assigned an essay on why you like the class. For example, carefully read this passage "I truly loved the discussions whose innate character moves one to tears. Although, I marvel at discovering honesty after deeply searching beyond the constraints of what one might term ordinary discourse. I hate to think how I used to be before my more recent insights."

I suppose identity can be more tricky. I might write something more like "When watching the television set, I see many things come to life. Many parts of things of a world come from there. I could see myself inside of it, but that is only a portion of my world. I greatly like the greatest and absolute best of the most amazing sports. Thes sports games are truly so great they blow my mind, and many others. What would the world be like without them? I look and answer this question to my pleasing everday."

They just don't teach real writing at school.