by BRIGHT LIGHT Paul Dwyer
Teaching Students to Be Genuine in Disingenuous Times
Students’ Lens on Reality
I am fascinated by how much information we are exposed to each day. Studies say it averages 100GB every day which is the equivalent of watching the entire series of Stranger Things. By contrast, teachers grew up consuming a TV show over months or even years if they missed an episode until the following year.
Lack of social media or wider digital exposure meant that we were also insulated from what was going on in the world. Rightly or wrongly, at the age of 11 I had no idea Kosovo was going on and wasn’t impacted on a daily basis by the images or stories coming from the area. By contrast, the situation in Gaza highlights the intensity and complexity of what students are tuned into each day. We can only imagine the sense of powerlessness they must feel. There are endless conflicts going on overseas and at home, environmental concerns, and a plethora of social issues at play alongside all that. All of this is played out in front of their faces as they engage with the world through the online lens. Each generation is called on to rise up and solve the problems of the day but today students feel like they are firing BB guns at a freight train.
We had time and space to feel our experience of things and to examine what it meant for us and our place in the world. We interacted and connected with others around these shared experiences and generally had more opportunity to experience what our place in it all was. Today, the unspoken question of “What does this mean for me?” leaves students to figure that out for themselves. Without time and space to process students are left dealing with a barrage of information and events, and the emotions and challenges to their identity that go with that.
What This Means for the Classroom
In a world of busyness, we are doing more but are often less deliberate in what we do. The world is less genuine than it could be. When we put this lens on our students’ modern-day experience of education, we realize quickly that we as teachers do not have the luxury of picking the moments that will resonate with students or what they will remember, for better or worse. We are part of the barrage of inputs and should bear this privilege wisely.
These conditions in classrooms illuminate the fact that it is not about you as the teacher anymore. Rather than being a lecturer or even a conductor of learning, you are the conduit and not the means for learning. It’s not about you. It’s about unlocking learning for each student and helping them to be seen and to find themselves in the tidal wave of reality.
One of the challenges of motivating students today is the fact that they are not easily able to be passionate. There is less optimism amongst students than even a decade ago and that’s a great shame. We too often diminish one another when someone displays unbridled idealism, meaning it is more uncomfortable to share and express this side of ourselves. There is more risk of second-hand judgments and students worry how they will be received if they put themselves out there. There is a collective sense of cynicism they bring to bear; the overriding sentiment that it is not possible to create positive change; it simply won’t happen.
As educators, we need to let young people know that it’s okay to be passionate. It’s okay to be an idealist – big or small. The world they shape could be their family, or it could be the global stage. We need to help them see past the divisiveness and cynicism to allow themselves to be aspirational and to follow their genuine passions.
What We Can Do as Leaders
As leaders in schools, we need to keep it top of mind that every young person deserves to be inspired. While we might not personally be the source of inspiration for a student or a colleague, we have a duty to help guide them to that which will be.
As a school, we work to create a space for students to identify that and to give them permission to be passionate. The voice of students is at the heart of this, whether through the running of writing workshops or discussion groups where students can find and express their voice in myriad ways, or through student bodies such as the Equity Commission or Student Council who help us as teachers to maintain a true connection with those we serve.
This extends to our teachers as well. It’s about not being afraid to be a source of inspiration; it’s about exciting curiosity. I have not always been as bold as I might have been when it comes to inviting discussion and debate, or space for colleagues to share their own aspirations and worries. This is something that I am working on changing, whether through topical discussion groups, reading circles or being present over coffee and hearing what someone wants to share.
Next time you are in assembly, ask students to raise their hand if in the last week they felt genuinely listened to. Follow up by asking them if they did this for someone else. This was a powerful statement in my own community when I tried it recently. We feel that we are great listeners and yet do not feel that we are heard or listened to. What would it take to change this?
Student voice has long been a key tenet of teaching. Today, it is a huge responsibility of schools as it demands more robust and nuanced treatment to hold space for meaningful discussion and critical thinking. In You’re Not Listening, Kate Murphy reminds us that the “world is easier to navigate if you remember that people are governed by emotions, acting more often out of jealousy, pride, shame, desire, fear, or vanity than dispassionate logic. We act and react because we feel something. To discount this and listen superficially—or not at all—is to operate at a serious disadvantage.”
How to Support Meaningful Dialogue
There is much to learn from a pedagogical perspective on this topic. There was a time we could debate topics and turn positions inside out and explore the nuance of things in our world. Today’s issues are arguably more complex than ever, and our response has been to shut down. When someone doesn’t like our opinion, we get upset and often take it as an assault on our very being. Students could benefit from learning to express their opinions with less attachment to approval and with an openness to listening. In order for students to feel they can be genuine in the world, they need to be able to operate from and accept candor.
Social media and contemporary politics have taught us to talk past each other rather than respond. It is harder to form genuine opinions when I am automatically attuning to my audience because I want validation. This prevents us from using dialogue to bridge across differences by getting access to what human values people stand for. People are voting and judging in the world the way they are because they don’t feel heard. Young people need to be given space to inquire more deeply into their values to learn to listen more deeply to themselves and others.
We are taking a whole-school focus next year on creating a culture of candour and active listening. They have to go hand in hand. We all want to be acknowledged but we find it hard to acknowledge others. This is where the sense of connection and engagement breaks down.
The opportunity at hand is to help students feel grounded amidst the tidal wave of reality and to be motivated to achieve great things for themselves and the world. The enemy today is not the demands of curriculum, it is the risk of students feeling fundamentally overwhelmed by a world that asks so much and doesn’t always give back as it might. Our role as educators is to ensure they feel empowered to shape reality in more meaningful terms and to be brave enough in their convictions to shape the paths they will create and take on their own terms.
One of the ways I try to do this each year is to give each graduating student a book that relates to their passion and interests simply to say “I see you and believe in you. I hope it helps you take the next small step.”
We are all a part of everyone else’s journey. Most of the time the inspiration lies within and not without. Teaching is about showcasing that. And the more genuine we can be in supporting people to bring their best selves forward the more we can create a better world.
Paul Dwyer is Head at Redmaids’ High School in Bristol, UK. Paul is an exoerienced ad well-rounded educator that has a particular passion for all-girls’ education and the impact it can have on the world.