Today is September 1, and it is a good opportunity to talk about the worrying state of our science and education. The reasons, of course, are various. One of them is that most teachers and lecturers in the 1930s continued to work largely under Soviet stereotypes, trying to “instill” as much knowledge as possible in children and young people, instead of teaching them how to sift the flood of information with the right sieve. If we can not ignite the fire of knowledge in the souls of young people, the other efforts are futile.
But here I would like to address another issue, which, of course, is related to what was written above. The state of education and science has deteriorated in recent years. In order not to delve into politics, let me say that the reason is not the change of government in 2018. It would be more accurate to say that what has been happening over the last three years is part of a larger global process. It is the contempt for thought and knowledge, one of the main reasons for which is the elimination of the hierarchy of those who have knowledge due to the “social network” era.
Imagine that you are a specialist in, say, quantum physics (or any other science or craft). You have read 100 books in your field while having written two monographs and several articles in prestigious magazines. Suppose you decide to write a few sentences about your profession on Facebook. It is very possible that hundreds of users who do not even have a distant idea about quantum physics, will “reproach” you and “put you in your place” so that all your knowledge on that platform will have zero meaning. Moreover, these users can “mislead” you both as a professional and as a person and citizen, for example, to write that you are a bribe-taker, serve the previous regime, and have many other personal sins. Because they “beat” you, chances are you have no desire to interact with the public after that attack. And that, in my opinion, is the wrong decision; it means leaving the field to the ignorant.
What I said is directly related to education. If I can become a hero, a deputy, a ruler, a “liked” and “loved” person just by “reproaching” this or that person without gaining any knowledge, then why do I need that knowledge? Even without them, I am an “alpha” in the Facebook environment, and for many, it is the only unparalleled reality. If a person builds his whole life based only on how others will react to the pictures, videos, or texts they post on social networks, then all other interests fall into the background. Such people definitely do not burn with the desire to learn.
In Germany in the 1930s, the Nazis ostensibly burned “harmful” books in the streets. There is no need for that now. Books are just dusted on the shelves, and in those conditions it becomes very easy to brainwash people again, as in the case of the Nazis.
Aram Abrahamyan
