Public Message:
The individual’s power to imagine and the acuity of his or her senses
are essential to the learning process. Therefore, all teaching methods
that nourish associative thought-potential and provoke awareness
can be considered valid. Physical aggression and psychological harassment,
however, are of questionable pedagogical value. Besides
the obvious ethical considerations, these methods tend to provoke
inhibition via a state of anxiety and extraneous tension levels in muscles
that would otherwise be relaxed and ready to play. Coercion
means to bully or harass. I would include in this category: psychoterror,
gratuitous critique, physical abuse and the egotistical use of
the student’s good will or resources for selfish aims. Further, if we
consider recent research into the relationship between stress and
impaired immune system function, it is more than likely that strongarm
tactics are counterproductive if the teacher’s true intention is to
engender skill-building and independent competence in the student.
