An intensely cultural and political divide continues to threaten once thriving communities. This is not a debatable fact but, instead, a reality both here in the United States and globally. Many cultural leaders have expressed concerns that we live in one of the most divided times in recent history, especially among democratic nations.
Far-ranging and heavily publicized issues from racial injustice, oppression of women, accessibility of quality education and healthcare, among many others, color nearly every interaction that people may have with each other. Technology algorithms influence our thoughts and behavior, predictably feeding us our own preferred news and, therefore, our own view of the world, further dividing communities. We are divided. I am less concerned about how we got here, but how we move forward. And, how certain institutions actually contribute to this growing divide.
This is the current status of American life. And, many other democracies. But, I am not naive. I realize, at some level, it has always been this way, but not this loud. Not this divisive. And, I wonder today what the role of education might be as a catalyst for division. As I ponder, I remember my favorite quote from Francis Parker, the progressive educator.
The work of the school is determined by the needs of society.
—Francis Parker
Well, if the work of the school is indeed determined by the needs of our collective cultures, then our current challenge of cultural division must be the work of the school. It is a strange challenge, from my perspective, because the core stakeholders at most of our client schools and colleges have told us through research for 20 years that “community” is one most intangible assets that an education institution curates. In other words, the creation of community is among the reasons that consumers choose them. So, community creation might just be their core business. Hold that thought for just a moment.
But, I also wonder if many schools and colleges, based upon their educational philosophy, price point, location, and commitment to important social issues, are actually accelerating the cultural divide. They attract certain consumers from segments of a population based upon political, ideological, and socioeconomic factors, based upon attributes of the institution. So, rather than serving to unite people from different communities and perspectives, fostering dialogue and understanding among diverse individuals, they actually play an active role in dividing communities. I am afraid that this is our current reality.
Look, education is at the point of redesign. We tend to think about redesign from a price point, delivery, and assessment lens. We need to reconsider what the role of educational institutions will be in the future with regards to community-building. Cultural division is our current greatest threat to building safe, thriving, sustainable living communities in the world. We need to be thinking about how we thoughtfully reconstruct and redesign our educational institutions - private and public - to reflect this enormous need. Our futures literally depend upon it.