Cold War Era – Music - Words

Political Economy

• 1929-Stock Market Crash; onset of the worst depression in American history
• Increased disparity between rich and poor. 1945-New prosperity (increased demand for single family housing, cars and household appliances) following the end of W.W.II
• Americans showed little sympathy for the poor or the dispossessed in the form of popular press attention to poverty or in government legislation. Threat of the spread of Communism led to policy of containment-US declared to take what ever economic and military means necessary to stop the spread of communism
• Created a near hysteria by the late 40's and 50's with hearings led by Joseph McCarthy accusing people of belonging to the Communist Party. In addition to the Soviet threat, issue of race discrimination confronted Americans
• Truman desegregated the services and the Supreme Court declared segregated schools inherently unequal in 1954 decision Brown vs. Board of Education

Ideology

• Classic liberalism had given way in the progressive era to faith in scientific methods
• Progress was considered achievable through science and technology which enabled Americans to attain a higher standard of living
• Experts and centralized decision making were linked to progress. Workers managed by a few elite
• Democracy had come to be regarded as a form of government that was properly administered by experts with only the perfunctory consent of the governed
• Leaders from all walks of life assumed that only a few individuals had superior intellects and that the welfare of the country depended on locating these superior minds and placing them in positions of authority

Schooling
Support for social efficiency: Social stability, employable skills, meritrocracy and equal educaitonal opportunities.

• James Conant, president of Harvard, saw the need to develop a valid measure of academic aptitude to ensure objectivity in determining scholarship eligibility
• Decided on the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT)
• Preached the gospel of meritocracy--advancement based on talent, seen as the most efficient, only then would the best and brightest secure the top positions
• Favored vocational education
• Believed that the primary purpose of schooling should be not the growth of every individual as Dewey had believed, but instead the national interest, where that interest was defined by those in leadership positions

Modern comprehensive high school brought together all students (vocational and academic) under one roof.  The system of tracking ensured that students took courses "best suited to their needs."

Education must match talent to occupations. Through testing, must select and sort students, to prepare students for different occupational roles.  (Meritocracy - advancement based on talent seen as the most efficient.  Only then would the best and brightest secure the top positions.)  Liberal education suited only for a few.

In 1957, Soviets launched Sputnik alarming the American public. Fear of further communist expansion. Schools were viewed as neglecting gifted students. Nation at Risk, 1983, equated a failure to teach Math and Science as equivalent to unilateral disarmament.

Classical versus New Liberal Conceptions of Freedom

Classical Liberal	New Liberal
1. Negative freedom: freedom from government	1. Positive freedom: government responsibilty-    restraint.    To act in public interest.
2. Government must stay out of individuals lives except where safety of society is at  stake.	2. Government may intervene in individual   lives to promote their happiness and    well-being.
3: The individual is free to pursue own interests.	3. Individuals' activities are always connected with those of others.
4. Faith in individual to act with rational self-interest.	4. Faith in decisions of experts to decide    the interests of society and individuals.
Examples	Examples
a. State may provide schools but not require attendance.	a.  Compulsory attendance is considered to be in the public interest.
b. Education for individual freedom.	b.. Education for social responsibility.
c. The state should not mandate personal  behavior, unless that behavior threatens others or public safety.	c. The state may require the individual to     wear seat belts or motorcycle helmets     both to protect the individual and to protect      public interests.