21st Century Three “R’s”: Rules, Roles and Responsibilities
21st Century Three “R’s”: Rules, Roles and Responsibilities
By Michele Schuler
In 46 years, one could conclude that attitudes, frustrations and challenges have not improved since Anne Stein posed the question, “How does it come about that the one institution that is said to be the gateway of opportunity, the school, is the very one that is most effective in perpetuating an oppressed and impoverished status in society?” (Nieto p.119) Historically, the United States, produces innovators, is the home of great critical thinkers and America put men on the moon. During the rise The Great Society, one can trace the decline of schools and the rise of “...the ‘banking system’ of education.” (Freire, p.58) Education lost its way, roles, rules and responsibilities became vague and confusing, a paradigm shift occurred. Both Nieto and Freire, suggest that the school system without change will continue to produce a marginalized student body, that is unable to contribute to the wealth of the global world.
Schools are a window into the larger cultural schema. Under a microscope, one can observe and investigate culture as contested, culture as dynamic and power relations. Students, parents and teachers do not know the rules, understand their roles and largely do not take personal responsibility for their education. A new set of Three R’s would reshape the educational landscape, and reduce the frustration of students and teachers, change the attitudes of society and meet the challenges of globalization.
“Young people face innumerable personal, social and political challenges, not to mention massive economic structural changes not even dreamed about by other generations of youth in previous centuries.” (Nieto, p.120) Still they are crippled by a failing school systems that values only a score on a standardized test. Standardized testing consumes on average 20 instructional days. High stakes testing is feeding the “banking system” where teachers attempt to deposit as much information into the students as possible so that scores meet prescribed proficiency levels. Teachers are then evaluated on student score outcomes, leading to poor pedagogy. Teachers are tasked with meeting the needs of diverse students, linguistically, culturally, socio-economically, and meeting the needs of students with IEPs and 504s. The daunting task is nearly impossible. The solution it would seem is to continue to “throw money at educational problems” (Nieto, p.20), however, with millions having been spent the desired outcomes are not met. Students, teachers, and parents need to change the Rules. “School characteristics that have been found to make a positive difference...include an enriched and more demanding curriculum, respect for students’ languages and cultures, high expectations for all students, and encouragement for parental involvement in their children's’ education.” (Nieto, p.122) Rules of engagement need to change. Teachers need the authority, time and resources to bridge cultural and linguistic barriers. Teachers need time and resources, to meet the needs of socio-economic challenged students. Most teachers “...are hardworking, supportive of their students, and talented…” but mandates make it difficult to eliminate the achievement gap. Students, parents and teachers must work within academic and legislative rules, even when the rules seem to be oppressive. Still, rules are a part of any civilization, and through education rules can be challenged and changed. Parents often do not know or understand the rules of education. Hofestede says, “Culture is ‘the unwritten rules of the social game.’” if schools are to become a place of intercultural space, teachers, students and parents will need to change the game.
Relationship building is a cornerstone for a positive learning environment, however, relationships cannot be built until the actors understand their roles; the rules and responsibilities of each party in the relationship. “Power relations are arguably part of every communicative event or practice, and every social relations…” (Jackson, p.69) including schools. Power from the School Board to the students. Those who should have the most power over their learning environment, have the least heard voices. The 21st century classroom, especially feels the “contested zone” being bombarded from the top down, education is in flux, causing instability to the fragile culture of the schoolhouse. Educators should exercise what control they have in delivery of content, to produce a classroom culture where students can be empowered. In a S.T.E.M. classroom, the teacher assumes a role as facilitator and not a narrator. When framed for student understanding, students of all cultural, linguistic and socio-economic backgrounds can demonstrate growth and proficiency in a content area. When the power shift transfers from the teacher, back to the students “Authentic thinking and thinking that is concerned about reality…”(Freire, p. 61) begins to occur. The transformative process allows students to own their learning and understanding, to be a part of the world with which they interact. Problem based learning, or “problem-posing education” allows students to take a role in the learning process, that is beyond the static and memorization process. However, this model cannot work in a school when students cannot understand that there are rules that man and nature work within. Without rules, there would be anarchy and chaos. Teachers need to be willing to surrender to the students and not impose their will or knowledge upon them. In releasing students, students attain some freedom. They find a role that is less oppressive, and learn critical thinking skills. Allowing students to use native language for expression in content or in context, also allows cognitive development, supports bilingual literacy and develops the critical thinking skills educators want students to develop.
“With great power comes great responsibility.” - Spiderman’s Uncle Ben
Students do not live in a vacuum, they do not leave the school house and sequester themselves from current events. Even if students are not tuned into the news, they are certainly experiencing current events through the lens of the adults that they live with. Students are not oblivious to the world attitude, view, cultures and languages that they interact with. It is the responsibility of the school to have courage to talk about conflicting points of view or contradictions in the human experience of history as presented in standard curriculum. It is the responsibility of an educator to listen, question and engage students in civil discourse; and encourage & develop students growth mindset. Responsible citizens, must be able to agree to disagree, to listen with intent, to resolve conflicts peaceably. Citizenship can begin in the school and should, with teachers who can help students navigate “cognitive empowerment” (Nieto, p.133) - an educated and responsible citizen will change the global landscape in time. Children have legitimate ideas and concerns should be addressed, then framed as a learning opportunity. S.T.E.M. pedagogy practices employ this shift of real world problem solving to students.
Students should be told from a very young age that they are responsible for their education. Students should understand, that whatever they learn, becomes their own, and learning cannot be taken away. What a person learns and thinks is proprietary and valuable. Students who become intrinsically motivated are more likely to have a positive school experience and ultimately have success after graduation.
Affirming students autonomy, language, culture or other differences will grow their confidence and allow them to engage in collaboration and show value for their experience. As a human race, worldview, geography, socio- economic status, religion, ideology, and other influences will determine who we become.
A new set of Three R’s would reshape the educational landscape, reduce the frustration of students and teachers, change the attitudes of society, and meet the challenges of globalization. Teachers, parents and students must work towards changing the rules in education and remove constraints that limit a teacher's ability to meet each student's needs and measure student success with something more than a number on a standardized test. Teachers, students and parents must understand their roles in successful student outcomes. Teachers do not bear the sole responsibility for the transmission of information, 21st century students have an app for that! Instead teachers must release students to learn and own their understanding through problem solving. Parents encourage and support students. Collaborative relationships are the cornerstone for success regardless of language, cultural or socio-economic backgrounds. All students can achieve at a high level. Finally, responsibility, is on each individual. Education is a personal responsibility. In order to ensure that all actors understand their rules, roles and responsibility, there must be a movement to communicate with all cultures. An understanding that cultures can be diverse from neighborhood to neighborhood,, as well as across the globe.
The best way to change culture, is one classroom at a time.
Works Cited
Freire, Paulo. Pedagogy of the Oppressed. Bloomsbury, 2015.
Nieto, Sonia. Language, Culture, and Teaching: Critical Perspectives for a New Century. Lawrence Erlbaum Assoc., 2002.
