Our society has many issues, all of which come from a dysfunctional root—one that is built from the narrative that we are separate from the world.
The education system is the foundation from which our culture is constructed and maintained. Over time the system, through fear and coercion, perpetuates the belief that we are separate from one another and nature. Because of this, most of us live in conflict and dysfunction within ourselves, in our relationships and collectively with the world at large.
Generally speaking, children don’t have a say in their learning and are taught that their voices don’t really matter. Instead, we have been taught to follow what we are told and to push down our voices and sense of wonder. We are essentially coerced by fear through rewards and punishments to follow the prescribed curriculum in school. John Holt, a long-time educator, shared, “For many years I have been asking myself why intelligent children act unintelligently at school. The simple answer is, ‘Because they're scared.’"
© Garin Samuelsen, 2022
The World Needs Dialogue!
Four: Putting Dialogue to Work
ISBN: 978-1739991159
Context
Our society has many issues, all of which come from a dysfunctional root—one that is built from the narrative that we are separate from the world. The education system is the foundation from which our culture is constructed and maintained. Over time the system, through fear and coercion, perpetuates the belief that we are separate from one another and nature. Because of this, most of us live in conflict and dysfunction within ourselves, in our relationships, and collectively with the world at large. Generally speaking, children don’t have a say in their learning and are taught that their voices don’t really matter. Instead, we have been taught to follow what we are told and to push down our voices and sense of wonder. We are essentially coerced by fear through rewards and punishments to follow the prescribed curriculum in school. John Holt, a longtime educator, shared, “For many years I have been asking myself why intelligent children act unintelligently at school. The simple answer is, ‘Because they’re scared.’”
Aim
I used to suspect that children’s defeatism had something to do with their bad work in school, but I thought I could clear it away with my hearty cries of “Onward! You can do it!” What I now see is the mechanism by which fear destroys intelligence and the way it affects a child’s whole way of looking at, thinking about, and dealing with life. Instead of fear and a forced curriculum, what would happen if we were to give space and opportunities for our children to keep their voice and wonder and, at the same time, we were to model and build dialogic skills to help facilitate open, direct, safe, honest conversations? I had the opportunity to teach nine- to- 12-year-olds at a small, holistic school in Vermont for over 18 years. All student voices were important at this school. From almost the beginning, I created space each day for dialogue practice. Over the years, I began to recognize the deep importance of dialogue in not only creating a healthy classroom environment, but also for the world at large.