Questions About Institutional Knowledge

Answers to the following questions need to be provided by the reader.

Institution is used instead of organization when referring to the learning process that takes place across the organization. While institutional knowledge is generally considered a benefit to organizations, is it beneficial to the individual members of the organizational church?

Is knowledge in the Church institutionalized?

 

What does institutionalized knowledge actually mean?

Does institutionalized knowledge limit the ability of the members of the institution to learn?

Does authority limit and/or control the ways and in what settings institutionalized knowledge is disseminated?

Is a member of the organization more likely to believe someone in authority in the organization over someone who is not in authority? 

 

Does institutional learning cause learners to rely more on the source than the substance?

 

Is an institution equipped to evaluate its own system which has contributed to knowledge becoming institutionalized?

 

Does institutionalized knowledge allow someone to objectively evaluate what is taught by the teacher or speaker?

Does the institution criticize someone who objectively evaluates what is taught by the institution? 

In an institution what is the basis for evaluating a teacher's or speaker's performance? 

If someone becomes institutionalized, do they gradually become less able to think and act independently?

If so, could this be because of having lived for so long under the rules of an institution?

Does the institution encourage learning outside of the classroom without the forced influence of the system?

With too much institutionalized learning, is individual creativity stifled?

Is forcing people to learn and discuss institutional leaders' material an efficient way to learn, especially while the 'instructor' solicits institutionalized responses?

Now let's summarize the learning process of the organizational Church.

Top down

Authority trumps knowledge

Teach very young several slogans and tenets.

Correlation sets down learning curriculum.

Curriculum developed by institution without regard to individual gifts of the Spirit of those in local congregations, so that gifts of the spirit are not even recognized or acknowledged.

Institutional idea that teacher must follow the manual and teach lessons and cover material rather than teach people the word of God.

Lesson curriculum trumps word of God.

Pulpit narrative is favored over the scripture narrative.  

Discussions based on opinions are encouraged.

We feed downstream rather than from the spring head (Word of God).

We are definition oriented rather than experience oriented. For example a teacher is more likely to ask what is unconditional love rather than to ask if you have ever loved or been loved unconditionally. 

No thought for the meaning of words, but all the same we are captured by the words we use.

We will not search knowledge. Search has been replaced with the term 'daily scripture study' or 'reading' the scriptures.

Ignorance is encouraged.

Lessons and talks are boring.

Prefer devotion over concept.

Talks and lessons are shallow and objectified.

Cliches and truism are our main diet.

Spiritual gift of knowledge is ignored as are those with the gift of prophecy.

Regurgitate what others have said, often repeating false ideas and wrong interpretations.

Rote method of learning, repeating back parrot style what we have heard.

Institutional learning vs. direct revelation and results of institutional learning:

• people will not search knowledge
• prefer devotion to knowledge
• tools like manuals become an end instead of a means
• veil of stupidity--JS
• missing the mark
• buy into the mantras and tenets and will not go beyond them
• discount the value of knowledge (even though JS says knowledge is key to salvation)
• content with what they have (we need no more bible)

Cultural learning

"Culture is a way of working together toward common goals that have been followed so frequently and so successfully that people don't even think about tryng to do things another way. If a culture has formed, people will autonomously do what they need to do to be successful" (Clayton Christensen).

 

It also works the other way--culture is a way of working together toward common goals (even when the goals are not the proper goals) that have been followed so frequently (and without question) that people do not even think about trying to do things another way. If such a culture has formed, people will autonomously do what they think others (the institution) wants them to do to be successful.

As MLK said: "Nothing in all the world is more dangerous than sincere ignorance and concientious stupidity."

What is the priority of our learning culture in the Church? Problem is that we have accepted a culture that does not have as its priority--receiving direct revelation, from God and through the word of God, even though this is God's and Christ's priority as evidence by the Book of Mormon and other scriptures.

The key aspect of culture is not passed on biologically from parents to the offspring, but rather learned through experience and participation. The scriptures refer to this as the 'traditions of the fathers,' or as the Lord said 'the mainspring of all corruption' (D&C 123:7).

Traditional Learning

Traditionally, people have been learning by absorbing and soaking up information that is presented by people who are known (or just believed) to be more scholarly, educated or in authority, even though they may be without knowledge in the specific subject matter. 

Based on the writing of Paulo Freine in Pedagogy of the Oppressed, education has been limited to just narrating of materials on the part of the 'narrating subject' (the teacher) so that what is presented is lifeless or irrelevant to the 'listening objects' (students). Exactly as Isaiah describes the Ephraimite Gentiles. 

We prefer horizontal learning or conversing among ourselves rather than being taught vertically by our Heavenly Father, and as a result we have lost the ability to hear His voice.

Traditional learning is also referred to as the 'rote method of learning' or just parroting back what the teacher has said.  (Isaiah 28 refers to this rote method of learning as the primary method among Ephriamite Gentiles in the last days.)

Persons who feel compelled to subordinate their wills to the dictates of an institution or ecclesiastical leader can never know the empowerment that comes from answering solely to God.

As teachers in an institution do we make our students victims of our meager expectations?

What Do You Teach?