We had to make a major shift in our schools because of COVID. That majorly affected our society, so our schools had to change. Everyone had to learn how to teach online and how to manage their online classroom as well. Because of everyone being stuck at home, a lot of kids don’t have the social skills to make friends or to interact with others, just in general. Students struggle to give respect to their teachers because they ended up being the teachers for their parents during the pandemic, because when they would ask for help, their parents would not be able to understand their work. That upset a lot of power dynamics at home and in turn, gave the kids the thought that they were superior and know everything. So, they may struggle to find motivation or interest or even respect for their teacher and admin because they see themselves as higher up and they also may not understand the need for education. Building one-on-one relationships with students could be a way to get past this, because it’s very helpful to show that you are human as well and not just the rulemaker or the overseer.
Sir Ken Robinson discusses the reform movements that include standards, curriculum, and state testing. He explains that because of the standards that the government sets, it keeps our education narrow and pushes students into boxes and doesn’t let them flourish, learn, and grow in their own ways. Our new form of education has killed a lot of student’s desire to learn with the narrowness of our education. Everyone’s standards should be different because everyone wants to learn something different and may need to grow in some areas more than others.
I really enjoyed Sir Ken Robison’s explanation that “a learning community works best when students and teachers are working together collaboratively”. This has opened my eyes to see that there are advantages to being an adult and a kid, and because of the diversity of ages as well as gender, race, ethnicity, ability, and other parts of intersectionality, I should be learning about things from my students while they should also be learning things from me. Teaching is a two-way street, and you should never become a teacher that looks down on kids. We should embrace who they are and learn from things they do and experience as well.
