The Myth of the Ivory Tower (Part One)
Colleges and universities aren't ivory towers. And it's a good thing.
What is the point is of this?
Editor's Note: This report has been peer reviewed.
About once a year I stand atop my supposed ivory tower and laugh.
Once upon a time I attended junior college because it was that or pay my mother rent. Four years later I transferred to a four year university because I had a crush on a young lady going to Stanford. Come to think of it, until I became a teacher I doubt I valued higher education as anything other than a means to something higher. Don't get me wrong. I liked most of my subjects; and I loved philosophy. But I didn't like school. I thought it impeded learning more than helped. And, as an undergraduate, I enjoyed reading unassigned books and watching thoughtful movies. But I struggled to start, let alone finish, required readings.
Looking back I suspect this had more to do with me than my classes. For it was relatively easy to watch La Cage aux Folles and proudly consider myself sensitive to gay rights. It was harder to accurately analyze arguments for and against gay rights. So much attention to being clear, concise, and comprehensive. What was it all for? What was the point?
Now it seems obvious. The point was to learn how to question my own beliefs rather than merely assume them. The point was to figure out which beliefs can be supported well and which ones can't. The point, at least in part, was to try as sincerely as I could to determine which beliefs I ought to continue believing. The point was to think critically.
And while I still don't consider the colleges and universities I attended flawless ivory towers, I no longer question their usefulness. Even if my classes were taught by instructors with varying abilities and interests, using readings with varying abilities and agendas, at schools with varying administrative abilities and aspirations, those imperfections ended up being good. They challenged me to think of resources as helpful without being definitive. They taught me that thinking for myself involved learning to use resources rather than ignore them, so long as I learned how to question them rather than blindly accept them.
But back when I was a student I was easily and often distracted by other concerns. Once I went to a concert, met some nice gents from Australia who promised to pay for my beers if I led a tour through San Francisco, and didn’t return to classes for three weeks. Another time a fellow student disclosed that she and her equally beautiful girlfriend enjoyed teasing heterosexual males. When they promised to make it worth my time I took the rest of the semester off.
Somehow I managed to get an education and become a college teacher. And I’m thankful I did. For I take part in a noble pursuit. But I also appreciate my long and strange trip here. Among other things it helps me be a better teacher. For it reminds me that, contrary to the myth of the ivory tower, the difference between a teacher and a student is merely time plus education.
Michael Aparicio teaches philosophy at Santa Rosa Junior College. He's a regular contributor to, and editor for, Empire Report. "Rojo Reports" is our collection of his news articles. "The Gadfly" is our collection of his news commentaries. Taken together, they are Michael's attempt to provide a balance of newsworthy reporting and thought-provoking questioning.
