Dilemmas of Openness - Competition
This is the third in a series of posts that detail some of the moral, ethical, and other dilemmas of openness in education. I look forward to your feedback and participation!
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While there exists a wide array of motives behind sharing, both inside and outside of educational settings, the reasons behind not sharing are often (near?) equally compelling. The fierceness of competition in a now-global learning economy illustrates one weighty cause for sheer resistance against openness.
Why share - when competition can be so extreme?
For example, if they have more honors students than we have students (whomever they and we might be), are we really safe to freely give? With merit pay, school choice, publishing or perishing, and clawing to the top, the hesitancy to share is often seen as normal.
Many in history have been trusted with valuable information only to turn on those who once unsuspectingly provided the data.
Do the reasons, benefits, and motives behind sharing always outweigh its dangers? What other dangers exist in sharing that stem from competition, and what can be done to protect against such?
Do the reasons, benefits, and motives behind sharing always outweigh its dangers? What other dangers exist in sharing that stem from competition, and what can be done to protect against such?
