3.1 The Weaponization of Neutrality

Public Good · Sep 10, 2026 · 1h 15m · transcript

Episode Abstract:

This episode considers the weaponization of neutrality in education. Neutrality has the air of common sense, gaining power through repetition, yet it does not withstand deeper questioning: What does it mean to be neutral? Can you describe a neutral classroom? Is the provincial curriculum neutral? Are school policies neutral? Are there not topics that require teachers to take an ethical stand? Despite decades of pointed critiques of neutrality, education reformers continue to invoke the term to advance status quo politics under the guise of neutrality, and to discourage…