Week 9: On Teaching as if Life Matters

I must admit, my initial response to this reading was not 100% full buy-in to the author's point of view.  That being said, I do recognize that there is a great deal of truth and value presented here as well.  This is not my first introduction to the theory of non-violent communication and over the years I have tried to incorporate certain aspects of it into my own ways of being and communicating.  Using "I" statements rather than accusatory "you" statements can be very effective in disarming conflict, and just generally practicing empathy and trying to understand the other person with a genuine heart is invaluable to the self and to relationships.  However, I do start to take issue at the point where the theory almost seems to insinuate that we should have no expectations of one another.  At least, it seems like some might interpret it that way and have known those who have.  The author offers the example of the student who continually dozes off in his classes.  Now, I can agree that as reflective teachers, as reflective humans, it is worthwhile to ask ourselves what role we play in this scenario.  Is there anything we can learn from this?  None of us wants to be a boring lecturer.  However, I cannot agree that falling asleep in class is an admirable (or even acceptable for a college student) behavior.  Someday, when this student's boss is delivering a "boring" report and he's tired because his sick kid was keeping him up all night, it may be understandable that he is tempted to doze off, but it will not likely be considered acceptable.  This is an inconsiderate and disrespectful behavior for an adult and is not likely to be well received in a professional environment or any other relational situation he may find himself in.  If his physical condition of fatigue had reached such severity, the mature and respectful thing to do would simply be to politely excuse oneself from the situation.  The compassionate and empathetic response on the part of the teacher or boss would be to relate to this person and grant them the excuse.  It seems to me that when it comes to what students get out of school, the curriculum content is just the tip of the iceberg.  Just as important are the life-skills one acquires such as how to cooperate with others, how to manage your time and personal materials responsibly, and, not least of all, how to persevere when something becomes challenging, tedious, or even boring.  To lend another example, no one likes standing in line at the license bureau.  It's boring.  Yet, that will not hold up as an excuse for not getting your vehicle registered.  And don't expect the clerk behind the counter to take responsibility for making your experience more entertaining.  That being said, I would ABSOLUTELY and ALWAYS encourage my students, or anyone else for that matter, to ask why we do things this way and might there be a better way of obtaining our driver's license renewals and vehicle registrations.  By no means do I suggest that we have to accept the status quo, but in life, in fact, we will have to do things that are hard, tedious, and/or uninteresting.  While I believe that giving students some autonomy and the power of choice in their education can help them to feel ownership and investment in the learning process, if we don't create any boundaries and behave as if any choice is acceptable, we risk enabling our students to simply choose the path of least resistance.  I'm sure I'm kind-of ranting by now, and I think I feel more strongly about this at the moment because I currently have a group of homeschool students who haven't been exposed to the structure of a more traditional school environment (or have experienced something like it to varying degrees).  I'm beginning to develop strong opinions around the concept of home schooling, in general, and frankly, I'm not convinced it's the best option for most families.  One of my students, in particular, has real issues with self efficacy and discipline.  He told me last week, in the course of casual conversation, that he basically spent an entire year sleeping and playing video games.  I was rather taken aback by this statement and I think I replied by asking, "Well aren't your parents teaching you?  What kinds of things do you do?"  To which he replied, "No. Not really.  If something is too hard and I just don't want to do it I just become really annoying until eventually they give up."  I mean, wow.  Now I realize this is not really his fault.  But what am I supposed to do with a kid who is intentionally disruptive in class, frequently rude to me and the other students, and shows very little enthusiasm or interest in anything we attempt to do (despite the fact that I've tried to tailor my plans according to his interests in an attempt to engage him), who has learned that any time something feels remotely challenging to him he can just get away with not trying.  As a reflective teacher, how do I enter into this scenario?  What is my role?

Getting back to the reading...some of the the author's strategies felt a little hokey to me and I just think I wouldn't feel authentic using some of them, thought I can identify the value at their core.  The "declaring presence" exercise, for example, wouldn't really feel natural or comfortable for me, but I do like the idea of some kind of ritual which calls the group to presence, perhaps in not such a literal or direct way.  For example, in the Waldorf classroom the teacher will often light a candle to signify an important moment.  I could see something like this working for me.  I also really latched on to the idea of "council" and the Bohmian Dialogue.  I will definitely be researching these a little more thoroughly. 

To entertain the question of what lies beyond teacher...what might I call myself instead?  Seeker?  Provocateur?  Ringleader?  Sparkplug?  Really, we're just people.  People who get excited about things and hope others will too.

I love the mission statement, "Namaste", that was mentioned in the text for two reasons....one, it encompasses so much in just one word, and two, most of the students would have to ask about it in order to understand what it means.  Lately my mantra has been "learning through, not about".  I'm not sure if this is a mission statement, but it pretty well sums up my teaching philosophy. 

I know that in order for there to me more truth speaking in my classroom I have to make myself more vulnerable.  I think this is perhaps harder for a young teacher.  You are just trying to get things right, hoping everything will go smoothly.  You already feel vulnerable as it is.  I suppose this is something you do in little windows.  You see an opening and you take it rather than blowing the doors wide open.