[MD] philosophy and philosophology

[gav]

maybe the difference (tween philosophology and philosophy) is primarily one of orientation. that is the philosopher, or philosophy teacher, is akin to an explorer. he/she realises that everytime they set sail with a question they know not where they will end up (or if the journey will be fruitful or frustrating etc), whereas a philosophology teacher is sorta supposed to know where he is going before he sets off: he is a tour guide shepherding tourists; a philosopher is more like a fellow traveller, and a seasoned one at that.

 bureaucracies (of which university is an example) like to know everything before it happens, in triplicate....but good teachers have a way of circumventing bureaucratic banality.

 uni, as it stands, does not like philosophers (and i use this term here to describe any true teacher, regardless of specific discipline), but this is due primarily, i believe, to this bureaucratic impediment: inertia, very static.  

i do not see the need for administrative staff, at least most of them. the university could be run by the teachers and the students.... without the need for a ridiculously expensive executive and administration. UQ here in brisbane nearly went that way on 1968, but the premier stepped in (joh bjelke petersen - basically a nazi dictator for nearly 30 years) and annulled the union election results.

cuba, i believe, out of economic necessity, decentralised its tertiary education system (see 'power of community' for more info here) so that they now have a micro-university in every municipality. this model lends itself even more readily to local autonomy, ie democratic control by teachers and students. these micro-unis are then federated in order to decide macro issues.

i think 'an expansion of rationality' ain't enough, or is only a start. we need to bring uni down to human dimensions...god knows i felt a tad dwarfed by the monolithic institutions i attended. one could attend there -  and get a degree - without ever making a ripple, without ever feeling like they were truly part of the place.

community....is it a dirty word?




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