Schultz, B. D. (in press).
Spectacular things happen along the way. In J. A. Beane, A Reason to teach: Creating dignity and hope in
the classroom.
Spectacular Things Happen Along the Way
Brian D. Schultz
The noise level amplified in Room 405. The students were shouting out ideas as I quickly tried to keep up with their growing list. The intensity was beyond measurement as students called out problems that affected them: “teenage pregnancy,” “litter in the park,” even “stopping Michael Jackson!” A lot of the problems had to do with the school: “foggy windows pocked with bullet holes,” “no lunchroom, gym or auditorium,” “clogged toilets” and “broken heaters in the classroom.” Before it was all said and done, these fifth graders had identified 89 different problems that affected them and their community, a challenge I had posed to them just an hour prior.
As the list grew and I hurriedly marked up the chalkboard with their ideas, some students began arguing with one another that a problem they proposed had already been mentioned. Insightfully, Shaniqua cut through the ensuing debate and stated, “Most of the problems on that list have to do with our school building bein’ messed up. Our school is a dump! That’s the problem.” With this profound analysis there was a sense of affirmation in the room, and the students unanimously agreed the most pressing issue was the poor condition and inadequacy of their school building. The irony confronted me as I looked out at the group of students gathered together on that cold December morning. Most were wearing hats, gloves and coats in the classroom, personifying the real problem they were living. They were very perceptive in citing the numerous problems having to do with the school. These students knew them well; they had lived this injustice their entire school-aged lives.
In short order, these fifth graders listed major problems in need of fixing. In posing the question, I had anticipated the students might decide on simpler tasks like “wanting fruit punch at lunch” or trying to “get recess everyday.” Instead they went for a more challenging issue, one that had been in the community for years: a new school had been promised but was never built. I wondered to myself, were these students really willing to take this problem head-on? Before I could even ask, they were already coming up with ways they could possibly remedy some of the problems with the school structure and constructing plans to get a new school built. Given the opportunity and challenge to prioritize a problem in their community, the children were not only willing to itemize the issues, but were already strategizing ways to act and make change. And so this emergent curriculum began.
Framing
the Situation
As I teach and learn
with my students who reside in
In
The Chicago Housing Authority’s plan to redevelop the area and make it available for mixed-income families has created a hotbed of controversy as gentrification efforts and the displacement of poor black children and their families occurs. A critical problem with this plan is that instead of making the new development accessible to its current residents, the city and housing authority are uprooting the African American residents out of this high profile, largely sought after land, which sits in the shadows of the luxurious buildings of the affluent Gold Coast neighborhood.
Almost every account I
have read about
Because of the challenging conditions associated with the Cabrini Green ghetto, coupled with societal issues and constraints, the perennial question of what is worth knowing is raised constantly for my students. An understanding of how students from this neighborhood learn is imperative, as they continually adapt in a practical, pragmatic sense. Prior to our time together, they told me, there was little nurturing of the strengths or abilities learned out-of-school, but rather a devaluing of their adaptive and street intelligences. Many could not endure life in the projects without “bein’ street smart or learnin’ how to survive…because there are a lot of people who are gonna test you.” At the same time they are seldom recognized in the school setting for their achievements outside of the classroom. If education was measured by the students’ successes in their neighborhood via their own lived experiences, many would out-perform their more affluent peers. As I pondered this situation, I wondered how I might best be able to use their adaptability and street savvy in school. Could an emergent, authentic and integrated curriculum that focused on students’ interests and concerns be successful in the “traditional” classroom?
We began by documenting the problems in the school by taking photographs and writing expository text about it’s shortfalls. The students produced compositions that were astonishing. I could not believe the level of sophistication in their writing. When asked how they were able to construct such amazing work on a rough draft, Tyrone responded, “This stuff is really important and I need to get the word out if I want something done.” These rough drafts became the starting point, and getting the word out is exactly what they did. Quickly realizing that their drafts needed to be transformed into persuasive statements, the students compiled their individual work to create a powerful letter that was sent to school board and city officials, newspaper reporters and concerned citizens. In this letter the students documented “the big problems,” about their school that were “not fixable” and promptly stated, “We would like to invite you to see our school for yourself. We do not think you would let your kids come to a school that is falling apart.” And with this provocative invitation, the stage was set for an adventure none of us will soon forget.
Responses came pouring in immediately. Phone inquires, letters, emails, and visits from legislators as wells newspaper and TV reporters kept the students’ project flowing with questions, suggestions, and encouragement. In reaching out beyond the four walls of the classroom, the students became quickly engaged in real life curricula. As the class made their concerns known, many people offered insight, assistance, donations and the much-needed publicity. Taking into account advice from these outsiders, the students put together a comprehensive action plan that they believed would “help us get our perfect solution…a whole new school.”
The students’ action plan became
the epicenter of the entire curriculum for the remainder of the school year.
Every subject lost its compartmentalization and became integrated and integral
in solving the problem of getting an “equal” school.
Room 405 became the headquarters to “make important decisions about who we should bring in to help” and was a think-tank for investigating ways “we can better get others involved.” The classroom transformed into a campaign office. The students assumed roles of leadership in their quest and as Kamala commented in his journal, “Being an interviewer…makes me feel like a business manager…. It makes me feel real important and other kids look up to me. This has never happened to me in school before.” The eager students were so involved in the development of their curriculum they often came early and left late and even came in on their days off to “get the job done.”
Their initiative and perseverance
paid off. Although there was some disappointment and frustration in not getting
an immediate response from “the decision makers at the board of education and
the city,” other people certainly responded, hearing the cries for equity in
schooling. From local legislators visiting and lobbying on the students behalf,
to inquiries and cases studies of university professors interested in writing
about the project, to concerned citizens like Ralph Nader paying visits, the
students were applauded and awarded for their fine work. At times, though, I was accused of
“being behind this” because, as a
The students’ efforts did get results. In a classroom that had vastly diverse abilities and aptitudes, students worked at their own pace and took on various roles so as have the most impact on the outcome of their plans. They were not affected by peers’ progress or limitations, but rather sought out opportunities that allowed them to feel comfortable working together while at the same time also stepping out of their individual comfort zones when ready. Prior to engaging in the project, few students valued their learning as typified by many failing to participate in classroom activities, not completing homework, and being frequently absent from school.
Over the many months of the project, the standardized test scores of most students increased over the previous year, several significantly, without direct time spent on test prep. Discipline problems simply did not exist, and attendance was at a sky-high 98%. In addition to their high achievement and although they never directly received any response from the decision makers, some of their listed problems within the school were remedied. Items that the school engineer had been asking to have fixed for years were all of the sudden getting the attention they had lacked. Lights were replaced, doors were fixed, and soap dispensers were even put into the bathrooms!
But, “Not satisfied with stupid
band-aids,” as Reggie put it, the students continued
their fight and also continued being recognized. Letters of support kept on
coming, a case was established with the U.S. Department of Education, the
Illinois State Board of Education invited the students to
Now awakened, the young peoples’ intelligence and inspiration, interest and imagination certainly drove their learning. Instead of relying on me to create lesson plans that tailored and contrived different activities, the students had the responsibility to figure out what was most important to solving this problem. They were discovering the most worthwhile knowledge and it was coming from within them. Instead of focusing on memorization and rote learning, the students were naturally meeting standards of excellence because it was necessary for solving the authentic problem at hand. Their action plan forced them to interact with each other and with a system that could potentially help them solve the problem identified. As each student self-selected various roles in order to enact the parts of the plan, their efforts came to life and the public’s reaction became more intense. In order to make progress and get the attention they needed, the students’ rigor naturally met the standards and objectives expected by the city and state. In fact, their efforts went well beyond any standards or prescriptions because they wanted and needed to learn the skills necessary in order to actively participate in their project.
Frustrated by a hidden
curriculum based on social class, I was looking for a compromise that would
keep my students motivated and engaged in their learning, while at the same
time teaching them the necessary skill-base to progress in school. Challenging
the accepted notion of teaching socioeconomic classes differently, I sought the
equity in teaching and learning that I so strongly felt my students deserved.
My initial wondering led me to revisit the perennial questions with my
students: “What knowledge is most worthwhile? Why is it worthwhile? How is it
acquired or created?” (Schubert, 1986, p. 1). What
would happen if, in Room 405 at
Using these questions as a framework for a democratic curriculum, and inspired by a Project Citizen workshop (Center for Civic Education), the students embarked on an experience in learning how the government works and ways they might “be active agents in bringing about social change” (Cobb, 1991). As I now look back, I remember a conversation with several students in which one, Sharnell, summarized our work in the classroom as a “way to learn how the government works and ways to work the government.” By embracing a meaningful problem, the curriculum became a catalyst for authentic, natural, and integrated learning to occur.
Through the project, the students were given the opportunity and responsibility to be active participants in the development and design of their own learning. The comments of Tavon, who was a chronic truant prior to participating in this classroom resonate strongly: “I did not feel school was a place for me. I didn’t think it would help me in my life, but this project made me like coming to school…. It did not feel like the boring school I was used to.” His turnaround and newfound dedication to schoolwork and attendance demonstrates the power of a democratic classroom where all students are critical members and are allowed to embrace their own ideas of what is worthwhile.
As their teacher, I learned that content can come from the students rather than be driven into them by forcibly preparing concrete objectives in an artificial manner. Just as students in the more affluent schools are encouraged and rewarded for their insight and creativity, these urban, African American students now could have their voices heard through purposeful action and determination. And in this particular case, their voices were no longer silenced.
There are certainly risks involved in trying to solve authentic curriculum problems and create democratic ideals in a classroom. Students are no longer protected by contrived lesson plans and people will cast doubt as to whether students, especially inner city African Americans, are capable of taking on a real problem. Even the school’s extremely supportive principal initially had reservations about the lessons they might learn from the project. In a National Public Radio interview he said, “If they don’t see things happening, I am afraid that they are going to say, voice all you want, but your voice is a small voice and doesn’t matter.” Today, though, everyone, including the principal, would argue the lessons that were taken away from the project are immeasurable. Tamika succinctly summed up this idea in a journal entry, “We would love to get our perfect solution of getting a new school built, but we have figured out that great things can happen when you fight for what is right…Even though we are not getting a new school we have done great things… like it said in one of the letters supporting us, ‘Spectacular things happen along the way!’ ”
As I write this a year later, I am still in contact with many of my former students. The curriculum the students and I developed together has had a lasting impact on all of us. Opportunities to tell our story continue to emerge. While putting this account together, I thought it was essential and appropriate to involve students in some dialogue about how the piece sounded and to give me feedback about the writing. As I went through the text with one boy, Tywon, I asked him, “Who am I as a white, middle-class teacher to write about you guys?” Tywon looked me directly in the eye and said, “To me you ain’t speaking outta turn because you not talkin’ bad or nothin’ about black people…you taking they side and feelin’ what they feelin.”
Pseudonyms have been used to protect the identity and confidentiality of the students involved in this account.
References
Brady, M. (2004, May 22). Priceless lesson:
Teacher, students put learning into action, show what can be done.
Cobb, C. (1991).
Schubert, W. (1986). Curriculum: Perspectives,
paradigm, and possibility.
This
account was prepared with the help of several former