Chapter 7: A New Paradigm for Global Schooling

When I first got interested in the education business, I defined education, or “schooling, Western-style,” as a form of ideological management. An examination of the nineteenth century records of schooling in the Western world suggests that, among other aims, schooling was used primarily as a mechanism to control the population, to form citizens who would be better prepared to serve the state, and could be used to benefit their society. From my perspective, then, Western-style schooling is, as I mentioned, a form of ideological management. Certainly, my perspective is not surprising given my indigenous background and my knowledge of the history of what school has done to indigenous tribes not only in the United States but in Central America, South America, and throughout the world. My ideas about the education business stem from my background as well as my research into the history of the education business. Therefore, for these reasons, I propose a new paradigm for global education, and, should any of you doubt it, there is a global education, something I will explain later in this chapter.