Did I do a de-rail? Sorry!
Veda, Candy and Lakey are off galavanting around the upper state having fun visiting and doing their counseling thing...she might not be back on this thread for awhile...if she ever feels the need to respond to any of the criticism of her. I'm not holding my breath. Remember, she didn't post these vids here for people to comment on. She doesn't owe any of us an explanation for anything she remembers, said about it, feels, does, etc. Reality check!
So we may as well keep talking...before Hatty breaks out her sock puppet!
Hey Dee Bee!
I largely agree with you! But then, one of my college textbooks was "Teaching as a Subversive Activity".
This is true!
However, in my case it really is a co-creation...not my just imposing my choices on them, including we come up with mutually agreed upon consequences, etc. It's o.k. if this is hard to imagine. Most classrooms are not run this way.
We always start out with the basic school rules that we all have to follow, legally, etc. as a basis ("because I want to keep my job"
I tell them) and build on that...it takes a long time, usually daily discussions and votes over two weeks or longer.
One good thing about doing this the first of the school year is you get to see the kids in action early on, learn who the natural leaders are, etc. All decisions are made after long discussions...based on their past experiences of what "worked" and what "didn't work" in other classes where they have been in the past.
We aim for consensus (which is mostly impossible), but go with majority rules. We make exceptions for extraordinary cases. For instance, the day one of my student's Dad, who was a cop, was shot on the job (he survived), we voted to temporarily suspend the rules about no cussing outloud, so he could go outside to the playground and pound a tether ball and cuss his head off with no repercussions, until we got the news from the hospital that his Dad was going to be o.k. That was one way he could vent his pain and frustration, without harming himself or anyone, and we all understood, even though that year was one where many of the girls were fierce about no cussing in their space!
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The kids are usually stunned and in awe at being given respect right off the bat, being listened to and asked to make thoughtful decisions. We revisit it throughout the year and adjust what needs to be changed.
We cover fun stuff too, a class motto, a mascot, class jobs, how we keep allocation of work fair, a "secret word" that when uttered by me gains their instant quietude and cooperation when it is REALLY important they focus on me because we have an emergency (California kids are used to earthquake and civil defense drills), how we organize the classroom seating...(I let kids initially choose who they want to be with and where they want their desks to be, within reason (No Stacking!
) and I let them sit with their friends until any distractions become a problem for the other students, we get to agreement on all kinds of stuff like that. The kids are usually in awe that a teacher trusts them enough to try out different experiments, but it's all grist for the mill of learning. It wasn't so much about following the rules as it was about creating safe space in our classroom, where everyone could learn and be heard. Hard to do when there is chaos or anarchy or bullying!
About this: "To put this in a very stark way, their cultural "brainwashing" is being used very artfully to get compliance by the teacher. Excellent classrooom management, yes, but manipulation nonetheless, as is a lot of good classroom management." Honey, much of education is all about socialization, but it doesn't have to be a gulag!
For much of my career I've worked with groups of kids and young people who are outside the "norm" (not that there is such a thing) in one way or another...English as a second language...multilingual/multicultural...gifted and talented...mainstreamed special needs, etc. I think I was chosen for these so-called "difficult"
assignments because I have a flexible mind that can go anywhere and am highly creative. I have always questioned authority myself.
It's a really good thing to create a sort of energetic tribal mentality within and about the group, instilled with a lot of fun and pride, a spirit of play. The best learning takes place when everyone is relaxed with each other but energized by working together. Teaching is an art, not a science. At it's best, it involves a lot of mutual trust, which must be both learned and earned. A classroom is nothing more than a lot of intersecting
relationships.
Maybe I should add I've taught all ages of students, from pre-school to University level, and I've been able to start off the school year on a good foot using some age appropriate variation of this general approach with great success. I've been teaching since the 70's.
P.S. I LOVE Ben Franklin's epitaph!
