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I saw Professor Bonevac on TV last night. He said for all intents and purposes debate has been shut down because of political correctness. Kids no longer are exposed to contrary views, classical moral thought, and their ability to debate or even defend their own positions has almost completely atrophied. What a complete disservice these educators are doing to our young people.
UT Austin professor says political correctness killed his moral ethics course
The art of debate and discourse on campus has largely been lost due to students who no longer feel comfortable openly deliberating ideas that might get them labeled a racist or misogynist or some other name.
That according to University of Texas at Austin philosphy Professor Daniel Bonevac, who has experienced first hand the impact of this trend.
In 2011, seeing signs of this phenomenon, he stopped teaching an extremely popular course examining contemporary moral problems — a class he offered for more than 20 years — because today’s students are unwilling to debate controversial, politicized issues.
Political correctness has frozen debate to the point that the trouble and backlash he might receive by offering such a course it not worth it, he said. At this point, he’s not willing to resume teaching the class.
“Students clam up as soon as conversation veers close to anything controversial and one side might be viewed as politically incorrect,” he told The College Fix via email. “The open exchange of ideas that used to make courses such as Contemporary Moral Problems exciting doesn’t happen.”
“It’s not possible to teach the course the way I used to teach it.”
Historically, Bonevac’s “Contemporary Moral Problems” focused on four issues fundamental to moral and political philosophy: liberty, first principles, rights and justice.
Bonevac discussed these issues by connecting them to contemporary moral issues such as drug legalization, sexual behavior, the environment, abortion, capital punishment, war, economic equality, affirmative action and immigration.
His students read both the classical philosophical texts of Aristotle, Hobbes, Locke, Rousseau, Burke, Kant, Mill, Rawls and others, as well as contemporary articles tackling various sides of modern moral issues.
http://www.thecollegefix.com/post/30168/
The art of debate and discourse on campus has largely been lost due to students who no longer feel comfortable openly deliberating ideas that might get them labeled a racist or misogynist or some other name.
That according to University of Texas at Austin philosphy Professor Daniel Bonevac, who has experienced first hand the impact of this trend.
In 2011, seeing signs of this phenomenon, he stopped teaching an extremely popular course examining contemporary moral problems — a class he offered for more than 20 years — because today’s students are unwilling to debate controversial, politicized issues.
Political correctness has frozen debate to the point that the trouble and backlash he might receive by offering such a course it not worth it, he said. At this point, he’s not willing to resume teaching the class.
“Students clam up as soon as conversation veers close to anything controversial and one side might be viewed as politically incorrect,” he told The College Fix via email. “The open exchange of ideas that used to make courses such as Contemporary Moral Problems exciting doesn’t happen.”
“It’s not possible to teach the course the way I used to teach it.”
Historically, Bonevac’s “Contemporary Moral Problems” focused on four issues fundamental to moral and political philosophy: liberty, first principles, rights and justice.
Bonevac discussed these issues by connecting them to contemporary moral issues such as drug legalization, sexual behavior, the environment, abortion, capital punishment, war, economic equality, affirmative action and immigration.
His students read both the classical philosophical texts of Aristotle, Hobbes, Locke, Rousseau, Burke, Kant, Mill, Rawls and others, as well as contemporary articles tackling various sides of modern moral issues.
http://www.thecollegefix.com/post/30168/
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