Education+policies+Mao+and+Stalin

 I. Explanation of this criterion for a single party state leader  a. In order to consolidate and maintain power, single party state leaders will often use education to reach the younger generation. This way, the effect of propaganda is more effective and will last the longest.  b. Because the state controls the materials viewed by children in school, a single party state leader can instill values such as patriotism, discipline, and support for the values of the state. The object of using education is to breed an obedient and loyal public that identifies with the values and ideology of the state.  c. Single party state leaders often attempt to eliminate teachers that do not effectively teach the curriculum laid out by the state.  d. Schools not only establish the expectations for political ideology, but also utilize social conditioning, such as an emphasis on physical fitness, establishing gender roles, and promoting the party over the family.  e. The propaganda of extra curricular activities is often as effective as education.

 II. Mao  a. Education  i. Mao believed education must serve proletarian politics and be combined with productive labor.  ii. In the spirit of Communism, colleges were designed to combine education, production, and scientific research. Often, classes would be held in factories.  iii. Curriculums were revolutionized, with the arts suffering particularly.  iv. Education was used as a propaganda tool, not only within the curriculum, but also on the actual campus. Propaganda posters were often posted in dormitories and around campus.  v. Another type of school was the “May 7” school, so named because on May 7, 1966, Mao declared the Chinese army must “be a great school.” These ‘schools’ emphasized physical labor and utilized self-criticism sessions.  b. Red Guards and the Cultural Revolution  i. Mao’s student supporters, the Red Guards, toured the country arguing Mao’s case. The guards used propaganda to renew a spirit of revolution.  ii. Often, the students would physically attack any opponent of Mao, including authority figures, teachers, and professionals. Those who were not attacked physically would be humiliated publicly.

<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; msobidifontfamily: Cambria; msobidithemefont: minor-latin; msolist: Ignore;"> III. Stalin <span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; msobidifontfamily: Cambria; msobidithemefont: minor-latin; msolist: Ignore;"> a. Education <span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; msobidifontfamily: Cambria; msobidithemefont: minor-latin; msolist: Ignore;"> i. Stalin made education compulsory and free, but also made sure the party’s ideals were being taught correctly. <span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; msobidifontfamily: Cambria; msobidithemefont: minor-latin; msolist: Ignore;"> ii. Literacy increased and social services improved, but classrooms were closely watched by secret police and schools became more of an indoctrination service rather than a learning environment. <span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; msobidifontfamily: Cambria; msobidithemefont: minor-latin; msolist: Ignore;"> iii. Education was seen as a pathway for creating obedient Soviet citizens. <span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; msobidifontfamily: Cambria; msobidithemefont: minor-latin; msolist: Ignore;"> iv. A large emphasis was put on math and science.

<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; msobidifontfamily: Cambria; msobidithemefont: minor-latin; msolist: Ignore;"> IV. Comparison <span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; msobidifontfamily: Cambria; msobidithemefont: minor-latin; msolist: Ignore;"> a. Both Mao and Stalin used education to promote their ideologies. <span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; msobidifontfamily: Cambria; msobidithemefont: minor-latin; msolist: Ignore;"> b. Mao allowed more freedom to students. Stalin utilized secret police as a way to monitor teachers and the curriculum. Mao, on the other hand, gave the illusion of more freedom, inspiring more fanatical student followers (as seen in the Red Guards). <span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; msobidifontfamily: Cambria; msobidithemefont: minor-latin; msolist: Ignore;"> c. Stalin’s educational reforms promoted literacy and made large strides in the area of math and science. Mao strongly pushed education as a way to increase labor and therefore did not further education to any large degree.