"The 400 year time span cited in Stone's article and the almost medieval tone
of righteous disapproval strongly suggests that "developmentalism" is being
constructed as a synonym
for secular humanism (SH) -- the main "out group" to those of the
foundationalist persuasion."
--- In reading the comments on xmca from Stone's text, and based on my own occasional prejudices (contextual understanding?) against my own home region and state (Tennessee, the South), I suspect this _is_ an underlying motivation for the text.Here in Tennessee, as many of you may know, the discourse of _secular humanism_ as threat, as "institutionalized religion of the schools" is alive and well. It was recently used as an argument in favor of the recent bill here to outlaw the teaching of evolution as anything other than "theory."
It's an important one to address, and I know in other states and other regions this takes place as well. The debates are not just over traditional forms of pedagogy versus whole language or progressivism, but represent a struggle against ideals of civic pluralism and public education itself. I run into this quite a bit more than I'd like here in Nashville, and though I'm a native, I'm always surprised at its powerful hold on many social practices and "disciplining" of subjectivities.
Bill Penuel ___________________________ PreventionInventions PO Box 40692 Nashville TN 37204 (615) 297-5923