Educational Colonialism

Who I am: Chris Lehmann

What I do: Principal of the Science Leadership Academy in Philadelphia, PA (Opening 9/06).

What I did: Technology Coordinator / English Teacher / Girls Basketball Coach / Ultimate Coach at the Beacon School, a fantastic progressive public high school in Manhattan.

Email: chris [at] practicaltheory [dot] org.

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Matt Skurnick about Sustaining the Teaching Life
Mon, 25.03.2013 14:05
Jon Goldman was both my
English Teacher in 9th
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for my four years at
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Karen Greenberg about Saving Lives v. Changing Lives
Tue, 14.08.2012 11:13
Perhaps a more apt term
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trajectories". Think
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Amethyst about Saving Lives v. Changing Lives
Mon, 13.08.2012 22:51
I really appreciate this
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Chris, thanks. Pete is my
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Mon, 13.08.2012 22:15
Chris,

No need to worry about
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Others all around us are
debasing our [...]

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< A Debt of Gratitude | Deep Knowing and Knowing About >

Monday, July 23. 2012

It is my hope that Jakob and Theo would want to go to SLA or a school like SLA that has an inquiry-driven, project-based, modern-schooling approach to learning.

I admit - much of the vision of SLA, both in how we originally conceived of the idea and in how we continue to evolve today is, for me, based on what I want for my own children.

I say this because there are a lot of powerful folks right now who are advocating for a pedagogy that they do not want for their own children. Some of these powerful people are running networks of schools that have a pedagogical approach that is directly counter to the educational approach they pay for for their own children. Moreover, these same powerful people tend to get upset when asked about the disconnect, saying that that question is off limits.

I don't think it is.

I think we should ask why people of power advocate for one thing for their own children and something else for other people's children, especially when those other children come from a lower rung on the socio-economic scale or when those children come from traditionally disenfranchised members of our society. I think that's a very dangerous thing not to question.

Because we've done this before in America, and when we did that to the Native Americans, it did damage that has effects today.

To me, when you ensure your own child has an arts-enriched, small-class size, deeply humanistic education and you advocate that those families who have fewer economic resources than you have should sit straight in their chairs and do what they are told while doubling and tripling up on rote memorization and test prep, you are guilty of educational colonialism.

And it's time we start calling that what it is.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Posted by Chris Lehmann in Blog News at 16:00 | Comments (8) | Trackbacks (0)

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steps on soapbox

I've often noticed that the schools in the suburbs have more freedoms than the urban public school where I teach. Slick politicians come in and talk about "students first" and the results are almost always more tests.

Oh, don't get me wrong, the gifted kids get some project-based, inquiry-based education. But those who are lower-achieving or who are ELL or in special education get more of the worksheets.

Pearson nearly owns my school. They own the tutoring companies, the textbook resources, the consulting we have to purchase, etc. They have colonized it in the most transnational way possible.

And yet . . .

the colonial attitude happens with teachers who use phrases like "these kids" and who talk about every family as if it were a broken home and who lock their doors the minute they drive into the neighborhood.

Scared teachers have no place in urban schools. Neither do the textbook companies or the politicians. They need to be of the community and to the community. Anything less will be the perpetuation of colonialism.

steps off soapbox

#1 John T. Spencer (Link) on 2012-07-23 16:23 (Reply)

I just posted your wise words to my facebook page. I also plan to ask this same question in my discussion boards in both the sociology and education classes I teach. Thank you for giving me something to contemplate on today.

#2 Diane Gusa on 2012-07-24 06:14 (Reply)

In case anyone needs the clip of NJ Governor Chris Christie validating this blog post, here it is:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-FvP6-_6pkU

#3 Kevin Jarrett (Link) on 2012-07-24 08:10 (Reply)

One my many "aha!" moments came when I ran across this article, on the difference between doing education reform "to" communities, versus doing education reform "with" communities.

I've been having a good time recently. Anytime someone asks me "what we need to fix education" I just say we need to bring to our poor kids what we have long provided to our rich kids (rich, well-rounded curriculum, good libraries, knowledgeable, experienced teachers, trusting school communities, etc.). Then I wait for the extended "Welllllllllll . . ." and hand-waving about how "we aren't there yet" with "these kids."

Blithe, hubristic assumptions about what other peoples kids "need" are causing immense amounts of damage.

#4 Eric Lundblade on 2012-07-24 11:07 (Reply)

I've been letting my response to this post marinate in my brain for the past 24 hours but my gut reaction is "Amen!"

Back in May I wrote a very similar post on my blog -- http://ed421.com/?p=2140

One of the statements that I made in that blog post is this:

"I am involved in a project right now that, hopefully, will result in the development of a school from scratch. As I participate in the research and planning on this project, I have one thought that continues to come up in my mind on every single aspect of the work: Would I want this for my own children?..."

In May I wasn't thinking of the term "colonialism" but as I read your post and re-read my own post -- the term fits completely.

As far as I am concerned, no one is really serious about really improving or reforming schools unless they are thinking in terms of "our kids" rather than "those kids."

#5 Stephanie Sandifer (Link) on 2012-07-24 19:24 (Reply)

Brilliantly said, Chris. What is too often called reform is really tinkering around the edges most of the time, and the tinkering mainly involves accountability and testing.

And although some leaders would say this is about having low expectations for certain groups of students, the so -called solutions show equally low expectations.

Thanks for highlighting this issue.

#6 Carolyn Foote (Link) on 2012-07-27 07:00 (Reply)

Agreed. But may I push you to think about the ways in which new forms of educational colonialism make their way into narratives like these, especially regarding 'other people's children'? (see Lisa Delpit's book by the same name if you haven't already).

As an educational leader, thinker, and Principal, what might be the possible consequences of creating a schooling vision for your kids (who, I'd venture to say, don't have the same social, cultural or economic trajectories) on working class and students of color? In other words, are there possible problems creating such a vision 'from without' so to speak, especially in a school system full of youth who have vastly different life experiences than you and yours?

#7 Laura Krystal Porterfield on 2012-07-27 11:28 (Reply)

Yup. I think there are always possible problems with everything. It's why we always try to remember to ask ourselves, "What is the worst consequence of your best idea?" because no idea is perfect, and often times, it is in the seeds of the best thing we are about that we find the most harm. It's why it is always important to listen, to evolve, to invite examination, and to grow.

Delpit's work shook me hard when I first read it in grad school, and I have found something new for me every time I've re-read it since then. For me, especially in a system of choice like Philadelphia, it reminds me to be as transparent as I can about what I believe - about the philosophical and pedagogical underpinnings of our school - to prospective students and families so that they can make as informed a choice as possible. To me, empowering students and families to make that kind of informed choice honors the agency of all families, especially those who come from different backgrounds than mine.

#7.1 Chris Lehmann on 2012-08-13 22:00 (Reply)

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