Robert Long

Indoctrination, Risk and Learning with Childhood in Mind

ByProf. Robert Long

Indoctrination is anti-education, anti-learning and limits the purpose of risk.

Just think of that for a bit. What is the purpose of risk?

I have seen these alarming pieces on Linkedin lately that are of great concern to the Social Psychology of Risk. They involve the delusions of indoctrination and the unethical use of children for an ulterior motive. Neither respects the nature of childhood, personhood or the nature of developmental learning. The links are here:

These stories demonstrate how unethical practice and lack of respect for personhood can be disguised by a discourse of safety and betterment. I see this so often in safety where the word ‘care’ is used but involves no care. Indeed, some of the books on safety that I see use the word care, never describe or articulate what care is. Many in safety confuse the ethic of duty to safety as an ethic of care.

These stories above are often about hidden agenda. Hidden agenda and undeclared intent is unethical. Why do you want to ram safety into little children??? Isn’t the key to childhood in learning about discovery, play and learning?

The last thing I would want taught in schools is safety.

The safety worldview (https://safetyrisk.net/the-safety-world-view-and-the-worldview-of-safety/) is warped and conditioned by a collection of mistruths we can observe in the likes of Heinrich, Reason, Conklin, Sharman etc. Children don’t need to be fed any of that stuff.

The suppression of risk and learning is bad for children. The suppression of open enquiry is bad for children. There is no learning without risk.

The last thing children need is some naïve mis-representation of life and being.

These three stories are founded on a basic disrespect for children. For example, wanting pre-school teachers to wear cameras and use AI using the naïve language of safety ignores all that we know that is good for children. It is also significant, that people who suggest these stories have no expertise in childhood development, learning or ethics.

I would suggest anyone in safety wishing to indoctrinate children in safety to read any of the following:

This is why understanding The Ethics of Risk (https://www.humandymensions.com/product/the-ethics-of-risk/) should be foundational for anyone in safety.

To read more on indoctrination see here:

The best thing to do in safety is to NOT indoctrinate others with the silly biases of Heinrich, Swiss-cheese, Pyramids, Curves and dominoes. Even adults don’t need any of this silly stuff. None of it is even remotely connected to real life or being in risk.

Prof. Robert Long

Prof. Robert Long

Expert in Social Psychology, Principal & Trainer at Human Dymensions
Prof. Robert Long
PhD., MEd., MOH., BEd., BTh., Dip T., Dip Min., Cert IV TAA, MRMIA Rob is the founder of Human Dymensions and has extensive experience, qualifications and expertise across a range of sectors including government, education, corporate, industry and community sectors over 30 years. Rob has worked at all levels of the education and training sector including serving on various post graduate executive, post graduate supervision, post graduate course design and implementation programs.

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