Does The Left Need A New Educational Se ciety.
The following memorandum has been circulated by Ken Coates and Tony Topham for discussion among the leading circles of the New Left the Worker's Control Movement, the Trade Unions, Constituency Labour Parties, and Young Socialist branches. We think it will interest readers of 'The Week', and would welcome any comments which they may have.
On Socialist Education,
"The left badly needs its own means of educating itself as well as educating others. The time has surely come for it to create its own organisation for that purpose, which will do for socialism what the Fabian Society has done for social reform. "
-John Saville and Ralph Milliband.
The Socialist Register, page 156. 1, This crucially important prescription of Saville and Milliband
has already caused some discussion among socialists. We think the timeh as come to extend this discussion, give it focus, and take the necessary steps to form such a body as they advocate. 2. The demise to the N.C.L.C. and its replacement by a centralised
agency of the T.U.C., highlights both the need and the opportunity to create such an educational organisation, which would become the only specifically socialist educational body in the field. The need for such a body is underlined by the surprising initial success of the new movement for workers control, and by the declared intention of some N.C.L.C. colleges to continue their work, even though their parent body has heen wound up. 3 The problem faced by the left in creating such an organisation is
not primarily one of lack of means or personnel, but one of disorientation of purpose, lack of focus, and fragmentation. In terms of its general educational role, this presents itself as a problem of which socialism to teach: in terms of its role as a forum and research centre in which socialists can clarify their ideas, it presents itself as a problem of who its educational efforts are ultimately directed at. 4. None of these difficulties can be met by the establishment of a
purely absterct socialist educational society, because if the fragmentation ot the left camnot be solved in the day to day struggles of the socialist moverint, it simply will not solve itself in terms of discussion, which outside practig@l committments producing common problems, can only produce further @ivision. 5- But a society which did not teach abstract ideas would not be a
socialist ones and what the Labour Movement needs today is certainly not another laboratory for the perfection of short range, empirical reforming projects.
Continued.see
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6. ‘the solution to this dilemma must be sought oy attenptin:, to centre both the broad educational activities aad the internal discussions of the nev body around the inc of issues that have bdot.1 an immediate relevance to tue Labour lovenent and strong impl+cations for ocialist theory. orenost among these,in the present context is tuat nosed by Clause 4 of tlic Labour Farty's Constitution:waich is basic for a number of ¢ reasons.-irst it provices such focus as there is for all the explicitly socialist argument in the labour i:o Second,since the depate of a few years a’o,it has become a renewed doctrinal obligation on the Labour Farty,wnien eagnot with ease be set aside.Jhird,and perhaps most inportaut that part of it which speaks of" the best possible system of popular administration", much neglectei though it is,
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privit.es a connection with a growing mood of active trade unionisits,who are increasingly disposed to cualsenge 1 perozatives of management on a wnole nuvber of cirferent but connoectec roints. 7. Shese things point to the necd for a bocy founded on a fairly simrle cinarter bas on Clause 4, anc emphasisins the need for the traininz of Woriers in those practical si:ills and theoretical insights wiiech would prenare tuem for Seif- Mana:enent. 8.Such a body(called,perhaps, the vor ers Universiiy...?) could set ur a.colleciate system based on a number of large towns or enterprises,in which the kind of structure.” > Urly establisue:: by the HULG could be Gevelorec and expanded. It could train students and active trade unionists to tal:e classes of shop stewards,preferably short courses of five or six meetings ,both on problems of socialist theory,anc on tue tec iques of communication,stucent and orzanisascion wich ave rot tausit from a socialist stancpoint by otner bocies. 9.8uch a body wouvl.i necessarily be organised wocer democratic lay control. 40. number of alresdy existing publications might be placed
£ at the service of suca a body. Other existing publications
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coulé al.o mesh into its work most profitably 41.8uch a body couid,if it were abic to perform a useful service to trade mionists,also convene more general foruns of discussion waich could considerably extend previous socialist discussion circles. es £ 142.Fart of the duties of such a body would include v..c pecprre & ation of model syllabuses on such matters as the conduct of meetings;speaxing and writing (oriented to Union lectings and ¥ the socialist press respectively) ; wor':shop or anisation; tie concuct ‘of disputes;and the theory of trade union ana political action.in time,out co such work it may be possible to gather resources to promote a programme of correspom.cne’ courses and publication. 13./'unds for this work could be raised by individual and group aifiliacions.
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