Reconnecting with past learning experiences

I find myself looking back at past learning environments and wondering how much of the learning was my responsibility and how much of it was the institutions. As I re-read my post on blacks failing, I wonder about patterns of delusion that may have been prearranged by the institution.

As I continue gathering information for my dissertation and manuscript "Misguided: The Black Identity Crisis in America", I am confronted with several themes that may play a large role in the direction in which the writing may take.

Research, Education, Economics, and Community are themes that seem to keep coming up in my readings. My thoughts on each have been challenged and I wonder how often we leave these challenges without seeking as much value out of them as possible. I believe that the black in America has been miss-educated. Not in just the terms of racism, but in the terms of lax preparation. We are responsible for our own communities and therefore it is senseless to think that anyone else would have much to gain from educating the Negro in America other than the Negro himself. Education remains a key component of survival for all persons.

It is improper to speak of education without bringing in the terms economy and community. Each has a very direct impact on the type of education received and then are in turn impacted by that education received. There is a reciprocal affect. The community trains its members to go out into the world to secure resources, that member then returns with those resources which can be distributed in common. The local economy is then predicated on those resources that have been secured. If those resources are ample, then the community thrives, if not, it withers. The sad reality is that the black community has suffered mostly from the latter. We suffocate from a lack of secured resources. I am sure that this is not just due to poor education, but rather insufficient or in some cases miss education.

How have I come to this conclusion? Simple. Research. I now believe that research is the key component missing in the extension of good education. If a group is not given the basic tools for understanding research and how it ties into every area, then the educational process is incomplete. The goal of education is to train individuals how to learn. This learning process never ends. Each nugget of information leads to other discoveries which then further the need to "research". Good research involves observation, idea or argument development, systematic outlining, and a slew of other concepts that will bring a greater understanding of subject matter. If blacks have not developed a love for learning, they cannot develop. Learning is life-long and must be continually sought after.

There is no room for mindlessness in a global world that is ever changing and ever rediscovering itself.