What exactly is knowledge? Is it the ability to prove your point using statistics, or to be able to grow your own food and prepare your own meals? There is no right answer, because knowledge is both of these things and a whole lot more. Education does not just happen in a classroom, and knowledge comes from experiences both in and outside of an institution’s walls.

The documentary Schooling the World (STW) critiques the use of the Western education system around the world. [1.] Whether as a means to end poverty, empower people, or integrate them into a globalized economy, there is no doubt that this implementation of Western education has both positive and negative impacts on these societies.

Though education can present opportunities and equip people with skills they may need, “the right to education is often in opposition to the right to maintain one’s cultural, religious and linguistic tradition.”[2.] We (that is, the west) have created an international education system that does not take into account the surroundings, the opportunities for jobs (or lack thereof), the types of jobs, the socioeconomic status, the religious beliefs, or the cultures in general, of those that are being impacted by the system. This itself defeats the purpose of empowerment because it can lead to useless tools and information while also slowly deteriorating culture.

Along with these new schools comes the religions and language of the West. As shown in the documentary STW, students in Ladkh are being forced to pray “The Lord’s Prayer” though they are traditionally a Buddhist society. Why should they be forced to learn something that is not a part of their culture, and not necessarily something they believe? They shouldn’t, but because the West has the power and means to educate and influence, those on the receiving end are subject to the creator’s perspectives.

On the same subject, English has become the main language and in some cases the only language to be used in schools. This may not necessarily be a bad thing as English is one of the most common languages in the world. However, punishing a child with a fine because they are speaking their native tongue suggests that anything but English is wrong. This sends the disrespectful and untrue message that their culture and native tongue is not as admirable as those of the West.

As the new generation leaves home in order to go to school and find jobs that integrate them into this globalized society, it has created a generation of discredited elders who see themselves as undereducated and therefore inferior. As demonstrated in STW, the parents and grandparents argue that though their children are becoming educated at school, they can still “know nothing” (referring to the fact that many of them don’t know how to cultivate the land or use their natural resources). These skills may be just as valuable as what they are learning at school, and in some cases maybe they are more important.

It is crucial that we help inform others so long as we take their culture into consideration while doing so. We should be asking them to help us create the type of education system that will work well for their society and culture instead of basing the way we educate them off of ours. I think National Geographic Society’s Wade Davis explained it best during the film when he said, “There is a difference between sharing your ideas than going in and telling people, ‘your way of doing things is wrong.’”

[1.Black, Carol. Schooling the World:The White Man’s Last Burden. 2010. Film.]

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