Informal & Non-Formal Education as an Opportunity for Nationalists

2,049 words

Most people, including nationalists, focus on schools and, to a lesser extent, universities when discussing education. Both of these are classic examples of formal education. In this essay I will argue that while formal education is important, it is not so much so as most people believe, and that non-formal and informal education are much more important. Furthermore, I think that while nationalists have only a small influence on formal education (so far), they have quite a lot of opportunities when it comes to non-formal and informal education.

What is (in-/non-)formal education?

Let us begin with some definitions. First of all, education in the general sense is any action, whether intentional or unintentional, that causes a change in an individual or a group of individuals. This change can occur in terms of knowledge, skills, or values.

I divide education into three categories based on its level of formality. Formal education is organized by institutions, follows a planned curriculum, and ends with the awarding of an officially-recognized diploma or certificate. Classic examples are school education and university education. Non-formal education is also organized by institutions (although usually not state institutions) and follows a curriculum, but does not end with an officially-recognized diploma or certificate, such as sports clubs or religious education that is organized by churches. Informal education, however, does not follow a curriculum and does not end with certification. Examples of this include families and peer groups. The more formal education is, the more organized, official, intentional, and hierarchical it is; the less formal education is, the more voluntary, fun, and unintentional.

Formal education matters — but not that much

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The two types of education which are discussed the most are mandatory school education and voluntary academic education, both of which are examples of formal education. While both are important, as I already mentioned they are not as important as most people believe. Formal education is far less effective in all three areas: knowledge, skills, and values.

Let us examine this statement. In most advanced countries, school education follows an officially-designed curriculum. Now, think about how much of that curriculum is actually learned during mandatory school education. How many of the people who graduate from state-run schools can actually do basic math, understand basic science, and speak, read, and write in their native language? This proves that formal education is not entirely effective when it comes to passing on knowledge. Likewise, physical education is mandatory in most schools in most countries, yet we see a steady decrease in physical activity and an increase in obesity rates. Another example is foreign languages. How many of the people who graduate from state-mandated schools after having taken obligatory foreign-language courses can actually speak a foreign language at a decent level?

Finally, formal education is not effective when it comes to teaching values. Eastern Europe is a great example: Under Communism the schools were pumping Communist propaganda into the minds of the young for at least five days a week for at least ten years. Yet, the vast majority of people in Eastern Europe were not communists; school education was ineffective in turning them red. One of the largest surprises during the fall of the Communist system at the end of the 1980s was that even those who had spent their whole lives under the Communist system voted against Communism the first chance they got. In my case, although I began my education after Communism had ended in Poland the schools at the time had turned to liberal propaganda — yet many of my peers and I have not become liberals. I assume that most Counter-Currents readers went to schools that could be described as liberal, but have also not ended up as liberals.

Another interesting case study of the ineffectiveness of formal education in the area of values is the reintroduction of religion lessons in Polish schools, under the auspices of the Roman Catholic Church, in the 1990s, which resulted in a dramatic decrease of religiosity in Poland. Nevertheless, the generations that have been subjected to the full religious curriculum in school have ended up as the least religious generation of Poles ever, including those that lived under Communism. When it comes to liberalism, we have sex education — which has proven ineffective in its stated goal of reducing the number of sexually-transmitted diseases or unwanted pregnancies in developed countries.

Does this mean that formal education is completely ineffective and should not be a point of our concern? Of course not. But its impact on the whole of society is complex, because it is a macro-social phenomenon, directly and indirectly connected with all the other macro-social issues in each society. My issue is especially with those nationalists who seem to be overly concerned with formal education — which is not that effective, and over which we currently have little control and influence. At the same time, they are neglecting an area which is more effective and over which we have quite a lot of control and influence: non-formal and informal education.

Non-formal and informal education matter

We might say that informal education happens by way of doing something else. Non-formal education is an attempt to take informal education to the next level — or is an attempt at creating a kind of formal education outside the state-run institutions.

The reason that most people underestimate the importance of non-formal and informal education is that it is associated in the minds of most with activities that are considered as leisure and as voluntary. This is of course true. To state it even more straightforwardly, both of them are associated with having fun. But since when is having fun — in this case, the right kind of fun — bad? I remember reading The Lord of the Rings as a child for the first time: at night, under the blanket with a flashlight since it was way past bedtime, or under my desk at class. I was so immersed in Middle Earth that nothing else mattered. How was this worse than the compulsory reading assignments on third-wave feminism in my university classes many years later? It is much better to have fun doing good things than to suffer while doing wrong things. When you think about the things that really matter — the books that have had a positive effect, the events and people whose influence has lasted a lifetime, the knowledge and skills that you use in your everyday life, the wisdom you turn to when making your most important decisions — you will realize that much of this happened outside of the classroom, was not compulsory, and did not have much to do with formal education. You do not get a diploma or certificate for the most important decisions you make or the most important steps you take in life.

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Now, I believe that nationalists are doing quite a good job when it comes to informal education. Just think about your own discovery of nationalism. I am quite sure this did not happen as a part of any official school or university curriculum. Most of it likely happened during meetings and discussions with friends or mentors, reading and talking about certain unpopular books, stumbling upon interesting podcasts or discussions online, or by going to certain events and meeting the right people. This was all informal education — and it is exactly this informal education that shaped the new generation of nationalists, despite official education’s best efforts.

While I believe that informal education is well cultivated by nationalists, in most nationalist organizations non-formal education is a field that has yet to be explored. Non-formal education means going a step further — taking the informal nationalist education that one has already received to the next level. An example of this is occasionally meeting with friends to discuss books you have recently read. If you pick ten books to read and meet once a month to discuss them, this represents a stage between informal and non-formal education. If you then create a group with a name — perhaps officially registered — and continue to create reading lists and organize discussion groups, this is non-formal education.

Taking the step from informal education to non-formal education might be easier for nationalists in some countries than in others. For example, if you are interested in local history in Germany, you can become a member of the Thuringian Local History Enthusiasts’ Association, pay a membership fee, and perhaps display the organization’s banner at home. In Poland, if you have been going to the meetings of the Masovian Local History Enthusiasts’ Association for the past 20 years and even support them financially, you are probably still not an official member. It is simply a cultural difference between our two nations: Germans need to be a part of an organization, while Poles do not feel this need. On the other hand, if you try to set up a Right-wing-oriented local history association in Germany, you can be sure that the authorities will keep an eye on you, while in Poland such groups are under much less control. At the same time, in Germany a Right-oriented association is more likely to receive support from larger organizations and wealthier individuals than in Poland. It all boils down to the circumstances where you are operating. You need to take into consideration the national culture, the local nationalist culture, and the legal situation when deciding on how to best organize nationalist non-formal education.

What should you do next?

Nationalists should not abandon their interest in formal education completely, but they shouldn’t worry about it much, either. Formal education is not as important as everyone thinks, and we do not have much influence on. We should work on a nationalist vision of formal education that can be implemented once we are in power. We should also do everything we can in our own community to counter the Leftist and liberal anti-white agenda. The situation is different in each country, but in many cases you can actually stand your ground and win as a parent, student, or teacher.

The area of greatest opportunity for us for the time being is informal and non-formal education. Both are more effective than most people believe, and we have greater influence on it than we realize. I encourage everyone to take a look around and see what can you can achieve in this area right now. If you do not know any like-minded people in real life, look for them. The Internet is a great tool for this. If you already know like-minded people who are nearby, start meeting with them. If you are already meeting, think about how can you make such meetings better-organized and regular. If your meetings are already well-organized and regular, think of a brand, a name, a logo, and start a website or profile on social media to get more people interested and involved. And if you already have an informal group, and if the situation in your country allows it, consider becoming a registered organization.

When thinking about what your group can do, consider anything that is beneficial to the nationalist body, mind, and spirit. You can read and discuss books, learn foreign languages, practice public speeches, hike, climb, practice martial arts, lift weights, run, swim, bike, camp, fish, hunt, paint, draw — these are all beneficial to our cause and are all forms of informal and non-formal education. We are also in possession of a great tool: the Internet. One of the few positives of the COVID pandemic was that it made people realize that online meetings can actually work. Thus, even if you don’t know any like-minded people nearby, you can hold some of these activities, such as book clubs or toastmasters clubs, online. But keep in mind that given the growing loneliness and alienation in our contemporary world, people crave real interactions and real communities with real people. Thus, the ultimate goal should always be the establishment of real-world groups. Filling this need is also a great opportunity for our movement.

As a final note, I would like to point out that the flag project of establishing “White Nationalism 3.0”’s active clubs is a perfect embodiment of nationalist informal and non-formal education. And last but not least, remember that a good idea is one that you have conceived, but the best idea is the one that you realize.