Look into the bowl in the picture above and what do you see? Would you say “tomatoes” or would you say “vegetables?” Maybe a red spatula. I see Erica von Trapp’s amazing handiwork as she’s preparing yet another wonderful meal back in 2010. All of those answers are technically correct. The ingredients were just part of the whole, however. The end result was more beautiful than any single element or the combined ingredients of this bowl.
Imagine how absurd it would be if the person growing the tomatoes had gone out to the plants while they were blossoming and told them, “You are such beautiful tomatoes! Keep growing and remember that you are to be part of a great salad someday. Salad tomatoes are the best tomatoes, and I know you want to be the best tomato you can be. Grow well, little ones, because you don’t want to be that tomato that ends up in a sauce or, worse yet, on top of a hamburger. No! You are destined for more because you are chosen tomatoes!”
Sounds a bit crazy, doesn’t it? After all, who’s to say what will become of a single tomato when there are hundreds, maybe even thousands in the field? There are so many things a tomato can be. The farmer would be limiting his crop if he only wanted salad tomatoes. And while some variations of tomato may indeed serve better for salads, every tomato has the potential for multiple uses. Attempting to influence tomatoes’ ultimate outcome while they’re still on the vine is (pardon the pun) fruitless.
Using tomatoes as a metaphor is a strain because, as far as we’ve determined, tomatoes are incapable of critical thought. To some degree, though, the absurdity of trying to influence the outcome of a tomato is not much different than attempting to indoctrinate children toward a specific belief system. Each child comes preloaded with endless outcomes, possibilities, and experiences, taking them down different paths of thought and belief. Teaching them involves helping them to explore the possibilities, why some things are easily accomplished and others more difficult, how to discern facts from fiction, and how to stretch the boundaries of what we know. Indoctrination may look like teaching, but instead, it shuts down all but one predetermined answer, an answer that may be wholly inappropriate.
A meme I see posted often during political seasons asks an interesting question:
Agree or Disagree: teachers should be allowed to tell the kids in their class about Jesus Christ.
At first glance, I think many Americans would agree with the premise on the grounds that teachers should be allowed to teach anything appropriate to the age of the child. Is Jesus Christ a factor in American life? Yes, rather dominantly. However, so are Muhammed, Yahweh, Buddha, Krishna, and some 3,000 other deities. If one is actually teaching, then the tenets of education demand that all relative deities should be covered in an equal manner. What if we asked the following question:
Agree or Disagree: teachers should be allowed to tell the kids in their class about Asu-shu-namir.
Would your answer still be the same? For the record, Asu-shu-namir is the first nonbinary person/deity, blessed by Ishtar. The number of people who adhere to the ancient Babylonian religion may be less than a thousand, so finding someone who could teach that lesson is unlikely. Still, if we’re talking about teaching, then one’s answer should be yes. Otherwise, you’re not talking about teaching, but indoctrination.
Standing inside a classroom, it can be difficult to tell the difference between teaching and indoctrination. The primary difference between teaching and indoctrination lies in the intent and methods used. Teaching typically involves presenting information, guiding students to think critically, and encouraging open discussion to help them develop their understanding and perspectives. It aims to impart knowledge and skills while fostering independent thinking.
By contrast, indoctrination involves instilling a specific set of beliefs or ideas without encouraging critical thought or questioning. Indoctrination names to influence students to adopt a particular ideology without consideration for alternative viewpoints. It aims to shape attitudes and behaviors according to a predetermined agenda.
Indoctrination is dangerous. It limits critical thinking, suppresses individuality, and leads to being closed off to any belief system that might conflict. People who have been indoctrinated may struggle to consider alternative perspectives, which can hinder personal growth and social interaction. Indoctrination also fosters intolerance toward people who believe differently, leading to conflict and division.
Indoctrination keeps the Earth flat, the weather controlled by deities, the universe revolving around Earth, and stars nothing more than little specs of light in the night sky. Indoctrination denies the existence of black holes, dark matter, spacetime, and all of quantum physics. We’ve been here before, often, and people who would move society forward end up dying.
Encouraging education is wonderful. Every person should be exposed to learning and have the opportunity to have their questions about life, the world, and the cosmos answered with the most accurate information available. Students should be taught that few answers are absolute and learn how to ask questions in a manner that leads to a greater understanding of any topic.
Endorsing indoctrination is a path toward sure disaster and social decimation. How do we know? We look at the example of what happened to society, science, and mathematics from the fall of the Roman Empire (72 AD) to the beginning of the Italian Renaissance (1500 AD). We frequently refer to this period as the Dark Ages for a very good reason. To obtain, secure, and enforce control, both religious and political leaders participated in a program of severe indoctrination. The penalty for thinking, speaking, or acting outside these narrowly defined boxes was typically either exile or a painful public death. Returning to that horrible period is a lot easier than one might think and Western Civilization has flirted with doing so numerous times.
We should fear the powers that would drag us backward, that would tell us to let authorities do all the thinking for us, that would deny facts that don’t fit with their worldview, or seek to punish anyone who thinks differently from them. We should be very vocal in proclaiming the dangers of one-sided philosophies that leave no room for questioning. We must be on guard against anyone who regards explorers as evil.
For the record, there is no law against teaching about Jesus Christ in appropriate ways. There is no (enforceable) law against teaching differing opinions around a historical event. There are, however, laws against indoctrination and those should be heeded.
Imagine a farmer standing at their produce stand insisting that anyone who buys his tomatoes must use them only in salads. Some would simply lie about their intent and then do what they want. Others would drive off in search of unrestricted tomatoes. Many tomatoes would end up rotting.
Education opens us to many marvelous things including some incredible food recipes. Indoctrination leaves us hungry (and in need of protein).
Which would you choose?