Thinking, feeling and being in schools...

 

 flickr image via peasap

  

We talk about personal space in schools all the time. We try to teach kids that invading one's personal space is a not-so-good thing to do. As with many things we say to kids, I'm not sure they understand what we're asking them not to do. Perhaps we don't even understand what we're asking them not to do. 

How well do we understand what we're referring to as "space" in schools? I'm not sure.
Via @ebDish on Twitter...

Since Descartes we thought C waves were the independent variable. But in fact E and P create Authentic Constraints. Thougts? 

Some translation will help make sense of this post that landed in my stream a couple of weeks ago. I've been mulling it over ever since.

C waves connote cognitive interactions; E waves are emotional and P waves are physical. This is the evolving language of Nemetics being used to contextualize the dynamic environment of a school. To simplify, in a school context, cognitive waves can be described as any form of learning, while E and P waves are variables that affect our ability to learn. In other words, how we feel about our learning, and the environment we learn within, are pivotal elements that determine largely how well we actually learn in the cognitive domain. As I follow the conversation surrounding contemporary education and education reform, I notice that I'm not alone in thinking about this range of variables that contribute to learning in either positive or negative ways.

A thought... Perhaps instead of telling kids they should avoid getting in others' personal space, we should be telling them to absolutely get in the personal space of others, and perhaps we should be doing the same as teachers.

In an EduKare school context, it is imperative that kids learn in an emotionally and physically safe environment. In an EduKare school, emotional safety means very simply that feelings are respected, acknowledged and supported, and physical safety means that the school building itself is directly associated with the types of supports that people need while inside the school. In order for EduKare schools to be emotionally and physically safe havens of respect, acknowledgment, and support, they ground their practice in a foundation of empathy.

Empathy is often confused with sympathy... but rest assured, an EduKare school is grounded more in the value of empathy as it relates to the stories that every member of the school brings to school everyday. In EduKare schools in fact, it is a primary objective of teachers and other school personnel to help kids write their personal learning stories. To do this effectively, they need to be empathic.

Empathy is often described as the ability to walk in the shoes of another, and this is precisely what needs to happen in an EduKare school if the learning story of each student is to be understood explicitly. EduKare teachers need to know their students' stories if they are to support learning first in the emotional and physical domains leading to success in the cognitive domain. Unhappy, unmotivated, scared and distracted kids will not learn effectively until these learning detractors are mitigated. Teachers who are empathic, and who teach their students how to display empathy are those who understand this paradigm. Understanding the nuances of empathy (the alpha missing link in conflict and misunderstanding) makes schools better, more effective teaching and learning places, and in turn, (one student and one teacher at a time) the world a better place.

I would like to recommend reading The Science of Evil, by Simon Baron-Cohen. This book is an engaging perspective on empathy and the origins of cruelty. Don't let the title mislead you, however. By reaching into the extremes of evil from an analytical perspective, Baron-Cohen is able to present readers a very broad, but clear position on why empathy is critically important to humanity. He uncovers the science behind empathy providing us with much to mull as we navigate the complex people and systems we encounter every day. This book is important for educators who are seeking a different and authentic path to more effective teaching and learning. The author posits that we need to look through a more empathic lens in attempting to understand not how people (kids) feel, but rather why what they feel (or not feel) makes them do the debilitating things they do. When teachers look through this altered lens they stop blaming the child for the problem and start looking for other social and environmental factors that can erode empathy, including neglect and abuse.

I sense a prevailing anxiety washing over many educators across North America who collectively believe that our education system is imbalanced. Perhaps these are the ones who are more attuned to their empathic nature and believe, as do I, that until the social-emotional (Ewaves) and physical needs (Pwaves) of kids are addressed in effective ways, their cognitive needs (Cwaves) will remain unsatisfied, and their cognitive potential will be unrealized in a school context. Educators who make the effort to walk a mile in their student's shoes will get a glimpse of the lives they lead outside of school; the challenges they face and the detractors they battle on their learning journey. Knowing this, they can begin to help students accept what cannot be changed, and consider what can be learned from these challenges and detractors in the context of their hopeful futures.

I never knew anyone who became successful by dwelling on an unfortunate past. Alas, those among us who are reflective of their past, but always glaring toward the future appear to do alright.

Teachers as philosophical romanticists... stay tuned.