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Professional Worldview (was 7th IHPST Newsletter 1)



In his PhysLrnR/Phys-L/math-learn/math-teach/DEWEY-L post of 15 Nov
2002 00:36:36-0700, Lou Talman wrote:

"Why is it always so?" . . . [that most academics turn to education
only late in their careers (if at all)]. . . Maybe it's because human
beings are famously, even notoriously, slow to mature, and interest
in *effectively* passing on what is known trumps the narrow
specialist's interest in creating new knowledge only after one has
begun to mature - at, say, 50 or so for the precocious."

In response Sanjoy Mahajan in his post of 15 Nov 2002 10:47:31+0000 wrote:

"A related explanation is given in "Disciplined Minds" by Jeff
Schmidt (Rowman & Littlefield, 2000). . .
<http://disciplined-minds.com> . . ., who was fired by the AIP. .
.(American Institute of Physics). . . for his perceptive analysis.
He shows how professional training is like cult indoctrination. To
show how to resist the indoctrination, he quotes from the US Army's
manual on resisting brainwashing. Without active, informed
resistance, a la Schmidt, exorcising the specialist, professional
worldview can take decades. Many die before it happens."

As indicated in Hake (2002), a good portrayal of the "professional
worldview" of university mathematics faculty as regards education was
given by Herbert Clemens (1998):

"Why don't mathematicians from universities and industry belong in
math education? THE FIRST REASON IS THAT IT IS SELF-DESTRUCTIVE. The
quickest way to be relegated to the intellectual dustbin in the
mathematics departments of most research universities today is to
demonstrate a continuing interest in secondary . . .(or, Clemens
might have added, undergraduate). . . mathematics education.
COLLEAGUES SMILE TOLERANTLY TO ONE ANOTHER IN THE SAME WAY FAMILY
MEMBERS DO WHEN GRANDPA DRIBBLES HIS SOUP DOWN HIS SHIRT. Math
education is certainly an acceptable form of retiring as a
mathematician, like university administration [unacceptable forms
being the stock market, EST. . .(Erhard Seminar Training?
<http://www.working-minds.com/werner.htm>). . ., or a mid-life love
affair]. BUT YOU DON'T DO GOOD RESEARCH AND THINK SERIOUSLY ABOUT
EDUCATION."

(My CAPS, the same could be said of most - but not all - physics
faculty and departments.)

Richard Hake, Emeritus Professor of Physics, Indiana University
24245 Hatteras Street, Woodland Hills, CA 91367
<rrhake@earthlink.net>
<http://www.physics.indiana.edu/~hake>
<http://www.physics.indiana.edu/~sdi>


"...a new scientific truth does not triumph by convincing its opponents and
making them see the light, but rather because its opponents eventually die,
and a new generation grows up that is familiar with it."
- Max Planck




REFERENCES
Clemens, H. 1998. "Is There a Role for Mathematicians in Math
Education?" "Notices of the American Mathematical Society" 36(5):
542-544.

Hake, R.R. 2002. "Whence Do We Get the Teachers (Response to
Madison)". PKAL Roundtable on the Future: "Assessment in the Service
of Student Learning," Duke University, March 1-3; updated on 6/17/02;
online at <http://www.pkal.org/events/roundtable2002/papers.html> (in
rare moments when the PKAL sever is functioning) and as ref. 16 at
<http://www.physics.indiana.edu/~hake/>.

This posting is the position of the writer, not that of SUNY-BSC, NAU or the AAPT.