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Friday 29 May 2015

DO WE NEED UNIVERSITIES AND SCHOOLS?

Categorized research-works of Debaprasad-26


DO WE NEED UNIVERSITIES AND SCHOOLS? 

 

Debaprasad Bandyopadhyay *

^ দেবপ্রসাদ বন্দ্যোপাধ্যায় ^


 ABSTRACT
In fact, by posting this document, containing Bangla documents on academiocracy, I am digging my own grave as I, a cog in the academic machinery, am condemning streamlined education system and institutionalized organized funded academic institutes and propagating “Life-Long-Learning”(as it is practiced by La Filológica Por La Causa )  and “open access to knowledge” (as it is found in academia.edu and other open access repository and are highly condemned by the doyens of print capitalism). Is it not a paradox or a severe hypocrisy on my part? Despite the fact that I am earning my bread and butter form an educational institute, I am against the authoritarian ritualization of education in institutional framework  that makes human being "A well-trained dog than a harmoniously developed person” (Einstein, Ideas And Opinions, pg. 195.). I, wish to withdraw myself from the glorious data collection team; the patron-client relationship with the dominant political party (in most of the cases, in our locality, the recruitments and promotions are determined by such relationship); conformist attitude towards dominant academic fashion; the conditioning system of educational institutes that indoctrinates and manufactures ideology… Therefore, I have started a non-violent non-cooperation with such ideological state apparatuses (a la Althusser). I, highly influenced by Rousseau, Tagore, Russell, Gandhi and Ivan Illich, do not want to be either a trained dog or  a watchdog ( I am a watchdog, when I am surveying) of a corporate-sponsored state-controlled apparatus.                                                                                                                                                              It is understood that I am alienated from the socially necessary labor as well as supposed nature—I cannot make my own garments or my food and that is due to the conditioning camps I had attended in my early  stage of life. If I do not have such skills (farming, animal husbandry, weaving, gathering etc.), what shall I do at this moment (anthropocene) of disaster due to the anthropogenic global heating? If my educational training cut a sorry figure to engage myself with supposed nature and culture (that include both my human and non-human neighbor), what is the meaning of my education?

The monograph, Contemporary Academics in West Bengal: A Collection এখ(৷)নকার আকাদেমিক্স সংহতি-মার্গও আমি-বিষয়ী,  is an edited collection of papers on the condition of academiocracy in West Bengal, India under the pseudo-communist regime of 34 years (the situation is as same as before or even worst after the change [?] of the ruling party in West Bengal). The editor of this collection, in the prologue, from his subjective position as a  glocal sub-altern research-activist (a) described the long colonial legacy of Scientific Imperialism by reiterating Galtung’s arguments; (b) criticized Model Theoretic Approach with the analogy of fashion models, who are suffering from anorexia nervosa or bulimia (c) in connection with that, he emphasized on the intellectual anorexia of the local academiocracy, the model followers in the ramp of academics; (d) pointed out the patron-client relationship among the then existing corporate-sponsored ruling party, academic mafias sponsored by the ruling party, so-called educated unemployed or party-cadres and the sponsored- ‘scholars’; (e) depicted the embedded inferiority complex of the indigenous educators, who believed that the “West is best”; indigenous knowledge and mother tongue were (un)officially ignored due to lack of self-confidence (f) the proliferation of technical intelligentsia/inorganic intellectuals that caused the endangerment of thinking person/ philosopher with social engagement.
 The collection consists of excerpts from the writings of Isvarchandra Vidyasagar (on the homogenous molding within academic tribe under the Raj, which is still being observed as the governmentality leads to mediocrity –the top of the Gaussian bell is enhanced by marginalizing ‘other’!), Kalidas Bhattacharya (He also criticized Model Theoretic Approach and the hegemony of political parties in the realm of academics), Subhendu Dasgupta (who described the non-neutrality of institutionalized academics that carried the filthy politicalization), Sourin Bhattacharya (He explained the problem of institutionalized organized merchant-sponsored academics, problems of funded research, lack of knowledge in philosophy and history of science and Model Theoretic Approach), Tapan Roychoudhuri (He vehemently criticized the print capitalistic “publish or perish [and publish rubbish]” –policy of international academiocracy. ), Mihir Chakroborti ( He elaborated the role of imagination in case of Mathematics, which is disrupted by the power politics within the academic sphere), Partha Chatterji ( He pointed out the enhancement of mediocrity by the political society of West Bengal) and Ajit Choudhuri ( He found an apparent solution in many academic terrorist spaces that could be established as a symptom[in Lacanian sense of the term] against the existing local front politics).  In the epilogue, the collector of these excerpts, though mentioned many collaborative and non-collaborative options, ultimately selected non-violent non-cooperation with the existing system of academics. Before that he discussed the lives of some thinking persons, viz., Socrates, Spinoza, Wittgenstein et al. so that one could learn the ‘art ‘of such resistance.
In the paper, Narrative of না-ইস্কুল বা/or Nice School, a biographical story is presented with some theoretical inputs. Being unnecessarily disturbed by the schooling system of the West Bengal, India and consulting the statistical reports of National Crime Bureau on the bleak scenario of schooling, a father, deeply influenced by Rousseau, Rabindranath, Gandhi and Ivan Illich, withdrew his son from the Ideological state Apparatus (a la Althusser) and followed the Illichian methods of deschooling.


Keywords: academiocracy, academic-mafia, academic-tribe, Scientific Imperialism, Model Theoretic Approach and Fashion Models, academic-ramp, patron-client relationship, technical intelligentsia/inorganic intellectuals, institutionalized organized merchant-sponsored academics, political society, ideological state apparatuses.

For detailed discussion, kindly follow hyperlinks (blue-colored titles)
   
·         2014. “৬৮- ছাত্র আন্দোলন: আমার যাপনে-জীবনেNiladri DashSharma ed. ছাত্রআন্দোলন: ফ্রান্স. (pp. 12-13). Maphasvali Prakashan. Barasat.  Download (.pdf)
·         2008. সংস্কৃতি বিদ্যাচর্চা :সংকট মোচন [Culture Studies: Crisis and Solutions]”Sumahan Bandyopadhyay ed. Loukik. II:1 (pp.99-107). Kolkata.  Download (.pdf)
·         2007. “ভাষা আন্দোলন নিয়ে কিছু দুঃখের কথা ,” [Lamenting Language Movement]. Kalodhvani. 13:3. (pp. 6-8)         Download (.pdf)
·         2007.“এখ()নকার আকাদেমিক্স সংহতি-মার্গ আমি-বিষয়ী (Contemporary Academics in West Bengal: A Collection)Tepantar. Vol. V. (pp.1-41).  Download (.pdf)
·         2007. "বয়ান পাঠের মার্কসীয় তরিকা: বঙ্গীয় সংস্করণ একটি সেন্সরড বয়ানের পুন:পাঠ".[Marxist Literary Theory: Bangla Edition-An Uncensored Version]Asvamedh. I:1 (pp. 72-95) With an introduction by Sandip Dutta. Censored version published in Chattopadhyay, Debabrata ed. 2006. Parikatha.VIII: 2. Special issue on Market Economy & Changes in Human-relations. May'06( pp. 82-105)24 Paraganas (S).  Download (.pdf)
·         2006. পরীক্ষা পরীক্ষা [Exam, Exams]”. Chiranjib ed. Alochana Chakro, XXIII. (pp.37-55) R.N. 69543/87.  Download (.pdf)
·         2005.  বিজ্ঞান-বাজার-রাষ্ট্র ”. Onno SOr/Other Voice.(Imperialism: A Feudo-Capitalist regime). Jan’05 (pp. 143-49)  Download (.pdf)
·         2004. "প্রতীচ্যের বেগানারা: এক হিপক্রিটের নজরে". [Flaneurs/Absurd Men Of The West: From A Hypocrite's Gaze]. Shrayan.[SOHoj jiboner path](pp.35-50) 2nd ed. 2009. pp. (413-28)     Download (.pdf)
·         2003. “Other ব্যাপারি: মহাশ্বেতা ভায়া গায়ত্রী [Others’ Business or Business of Others : Mahasweta Via Gayatri]”. Sil, B. ed. KuRal uTThaw. [A collection of Bangla Articles on Mahasweta Devi] ChuchRa, W.B: Janapadprayas. (pp. 18-27) Reprinted from: 2003. Janapadprayas. (pp. 18-27)  Download (.pdf)
·         2002. "বহুশাখী বট মৃত কৃষ্ণচূড়া" lekhan. Kolkata: Indian Statistical Institute Club. (pp. 160-168)  Download (.pdf)
·         1999. “Why Do I Forsake Historical Linguistics?”.International Journal of Dravidian Linguistics. Vol. XXVIII, No.2. (pp.1-10). Thiruvanthapuram.  Download (.pdf)
·         1994. Re-reading Holub’s Anti-Poetry: ‘A Textbook on Dead Language’.”  R.K. Singh & U.S. Bahri ed. Creative Forum. VII:3-4 (pp.4-6)  Download (.pdf)




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