The Parameters of the Liberal-Communitarian Debate.

This essay presents components of the debate between liberals and communitarians, discusses how this debate centers around policies affecting market economies and the role of government, and points out implications for school reform. The chief criticism communitarians aim at liberalism is that it promotes obsessive individualism, and in this process any meaningful sense of communal obligation, responsibility, and tradition has been lost or greatly diminished. Liberalism can be traced back to the 17th century when Christianity introduced the idea that human fulfillment could be achieved through an internal connection with God. This was a dramatic shift away from the once predominant notion that defined selfhood by one's contribution to or fit within society. Eventually, liberal philosophy evolved into the belief that self-identity required rational decision making and any allegiance to community (or to God, or to nature, etc.) was not essential. From a communitarian perspective, such a definition is fundamentally shortsighted because humans only come to make sense of their world, and their place in it, through social interaction. Furthermore, liberalism with its emphasis on individual choice has failed to account for moral reasoning, or the importance placed on making the "right" choice. Liberalism has encouraged the development of powerful multinational corporations that, in their quest for a bigger place in the market, have neglected the environment, disregarded the welfare and safety of workers, and defined success in terms of material accumulation. And liberalism has also promoted a system of government that protects the rights of these corporations. Communitarians call for instilling social values that stress judging what is morally right as opposed to always considering individual rights; giving the locus of policy-making power back to the community and ensuring that all members of that community be given a voice in shaping policies affecting their lives; and returning to the democratic idea of civic participation. Implications for schools include dropping standards that base school-related decision making on economic values, and cultivating civic virtues that stress the importance of family and community. (LP)