shuggy's blog
"Jargon is not language that describes a technical process but something that is akin to the codes, rituals and secrecy used by the medieval guilds - a mechanism to preserve status and wage differentials within a profession. Hierarchy, in other words."
*Exclusionary* also -- granted -- you do imply as such in the above but that shit needs making explicit in addition.
As well as jargon, and analogous to it, religion also, is an end in itself, and as such, both are valued simply because they are *held* and not because they are true.
For example, “one needs only to be a believer – no
matter what he believes in”(Adorno).
Jargon usurps even disgusting pigfucker religions in the process of legitimising itself, as religion’s real content becomes a matter of indifference. i.e. Belief is fine, so long as the believer is sincere and tolerant (religion).
With jargon, what remains is religious customs and habits of thought without religious content.
Since content doesn’t matter, affirmation is valued for itself regardless of content, negativity, negation, or critique. All are impolitic, even distasteful.
Agreed Shuggy - or certainly mostly agreed.
Only quibble is the suggestion/mild passing implication that the managers are generally "Tory" in contrast to the trendy-lefty teachers. I strongly suspect - but have no evidence to support - that the managers are just as trendy-lefty if not more so: they are secure in their trendy-leftiness because it doesn't have to make contact with the real world.
I would also dispute that Gove is trying to tell you how to arrange your classroom. I think he is using this an example of the kind of trendy-lefty rejection of stuff that works.
My understanding is that Gove and the Conservatives generally want to return power to teachers.
But if he does start sending out directives on how to arrange your classroom, then yes, I'll be right behind you in telling him to piss off.
"done precisely nothing to reverse...": that's just a wee bit bullshitty itself, isn't it?
You are being a little unfair on Gove.
He doesn't actually care much about the furniture, whether qualified by f-words or otherwise.
He is making a rather more general point about traditional teaching styles vs. the currently-fashionable noisy chaos.
Of course, I am sure your lessons are neither noisy nor chaotic, but that is probably due to strength of personality; the underlying setup is still wrong, in Gove's opinion and in mine.
Fuck me Shuggy -- you are getting a lot of comments here by thick rightoid scum these days.
The smell that emanates thusly is V unpleasant forsooth.
Just. Saying. Like.
Ah Will,
Such an elegant rebuttal of our - ok I admit it - vicious and utterly deluded comments.
Or maybe not.
And maybe that's why Shuggy has a broader readership and a more civil and constructive comment thread than DSTPFW...
I find that the amount of jargon and bullshit used is inversly proportional to the skill, knowledge and competence of the person using it.
As to how teachers teach and their classroom arrangements: we spend a lot of money training teachers, I would like to think this covers the various methods that can be used for getting across information including how to arrange the desks and chairs. Classroom management should therefore be based on the teachers' own personality and style of teaching, the class they are teaching and the subject. The only person capable of making that decision is the teacher.
The only thing that matters is whether or not it works, for them. If it doesn't and they are continually shown to be failing then its time for another job.
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