When I first assessed my class schedule and what classes I
need to take in the next two years, I remember pausing to stare at this
particular one. “What,” I wondered, “does democracy have to do with the
classroom? I can understand in Social Studies, but this does not seem to have a
direct application to what I have to teach.” Classes, at least as far as I can
remember, seemed to consist of the teacher…and then the students. The teacher
generally dominated the class while the students hurriedly took notes or
otherwise proved subservient to the teacher. (Forgive me if I appear to be
misremembering: a few years have passed since I attended high school).
I recall being taught the presidents in elementary school
and receiving a ruler with each president in the order he worked. I also
remember watching Animaniacs and learning how to memorize my presidents from
that…a method that worked far better than anything the school taught. I vaguely
recall class decisions on who would take the class pet home for the night (I
wanted to but my parents reminded me Ariel the cat would enjoy it as a meal).
However, I also remember that classes seldom took my viewpoint into account.
If democracy supposedly listens to everyone and takes
multiple perspectives, my schooling experience stated otherwise. I wound up in
remedial classes due to feeling poorly the day of assessments and even after I
proved my worth in reading, they still held me back in math (despite possessing
good math skills) and attempted to enroll me in remedial gym. My parents had to
intercede. Surely, a democratic society would have enabled me to prove my merit
and be able to advance forth on my negotiated terms. Or, perhaps, this still
counts as a democracy, in that my parents served as my representatives?
I often complained of oppression in elementary school and
middle school. Even though my parents repeatedly visited the principal’s office
to complain about the abuse (at times physical—during one gym class boys threw
basketballs at my head), nothing was done. Too often, my parents heard a
variation of “boys will be boys”. Unless democratic representation means that
everyone is heard, but not everyone matters, this fails to impress upon me
schooling establishing democracy. However, it seems to state the point that our
democracy pays more attention to the elite and to the privileged few than to
others.
I begged my parents to have me homeschooled or, in lieu of
that, transfer me to another school. They refused, my father stating that I
needed the social interaction. My family did not function like a democracy
either: I pleaded my case and my father, most often, ignored my suggestions and
proceeded as he thought best. This, too, reflected the school and teachers I
encountered.
The teachers I had who exercised democracy within the
classroom seemed few. My English classes tried for group discussion and a few
of them succeeded, but anything beyond Honors had the teacher dictating
everything. I remember, on occasion, being able to shift the due date of a test
or an assignment because it conflicted with another class. We took a vote on it
and the teacher moved it back. This is as close to the idea of a democracy as I
can think of right now.
Yes, we had school elections. We elected to rename our
mascot once the Parsippany Redskins were deemed offensive…but the entire eighth
grade class knew someone had rigged the results to mirror Montclair State’s
then renamed Red Hawks. We had elections for class president and the like, as
well as prom and homecoming people, but those were always popularity contests.
Besides, despite all their promises, I cannot really remember those students functioning
as more than figureheads, offering the pretense of democracy without fulfilling
it.
Perhaps that explains my initial reluctance to deal with
this subject matter. When it comes to democracy in school, I cannot say I have
encountered a lot. I might be too cynical, but school to me has always
consisted of the teacher issuing instructions and the students following them.
There are few exceptions, though, judging by how much trouble Mr. Kyle got into
when holding the trial of George W. Bush in class…the exception might prove the
rule.
http://www.foxnews.com/story/2006/03/03/nj-high-schoolers-try-bush-for-war-crimes/
(Included because I seriously cannot believe this actually reached FOX News)
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