Back in the early 70's, I took a H.S. Civics class from a man named Wayne Brown. It was at the height of the civic unrest regarding the Viet Nam Conflict, civil rights movement, 'Women's Lib,' the beginnings of the gay pride movement, etc. Tumultuous times, they was. Huntley/Brinkley (NBC in our house, yo) news was displaying riots and unrest on the daily tip. Kids were seeing much, feeling much, thinking much. Luckily for us, at least one year of Civics was a State requirement. We all groaned when we saw it on our schedules, but I'll tell you this, Dawgs: it was one of the best, most beneficial classes I ever took in 19 years of Organized Education.
This was a year-long course. On Day One, Mr. B (a youngish, 'hip' teacher with longer hair, a Frank Zappa moustache, and loud, unbuttoned shirts) told us that we'd learn the back-story of America's history, and find parallels to modern times for perspective....and he was true to his word. He humanized the old "powdered wig guys," fleshed out historical figures in modern-day language that we could realte to, and turned dry historical facts and numbers into relevance for us all. I remember many things about that class even today: the endless spirited debates, the realization (at the tender age of 15-16) that America has been wrestling with some of the same concepts since its inception, that my P.O.V. however heartfelt and sincere, would be subject to inense scrutiny and disagreement.
The thing I remeber best about that class was
how Wayne Brown ran the classroom. He was a lecturer during the informative section of class, then acted as moderator as the intra-class discussion took off. If a kid had salient points to make but was being ganged up upon, Wayne would calmly take control of the class, re-frame the outnumbered kid's points to challenge the pack's assertions, give the kid a second chance to expand upon his points, then invite new voices to offer their POV's.
As I think back, I realize how lucky I was to have him as a teacher. He encouraged independant thought, exercizing one's right to express an opinion, and he challenged each of us to back our opinions with data that supported it. Many was the time he'd say: "That's what you THINK... but is it something you can DEFEND? You still have the floor- but make your point- fast!" He forced us to think before speaking, lay out a reasoned argument, and support it with data... or you'd be left to the wolves after your time ran out.
Many was the time I weighed in with gusto... but just as often, I'd stay my hand in mid-raise... because I know I couldn't support my argument if the heat got turned up. (To this day, that training is why you only see my posts in a handful of the more controversial politically-charged subjects that arise in this forum. Wayne trained me well.)
Our class may have been spirited, but it was always orderly. Wayne never asserted his own beliefs on us, but never shied away from a question when he was 'put to the question.' Over that year, we learned that a person could simultaneously carry Liberal AND Conservative views, depending upon the issue at hand... and not be in a state of internal conflict about it. We learned that Centrists were not 'sellouts to both causes,' but thoughtful citizens who took their rights to self-determination seriously. We discovered from his teaching, in fact most people swing on a pendulum from left to right... and that a nuanced intellect of openness, self-awareness and reason could at once hold forth an assertion, while allwoing for an equally well-reasoned dissenting voice to have equal validity.
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This teacher seems to be
the absolute antithesis of Wayne Brown... and it's a real shame that this school district's kids have been subjected to (at the very least) this particular scene. On this day, those kids deserved much better than what they got. I have no history with this school system, this woman or her class, so I can't automatically assume that she's this bad every day. BUT having said that... this was pretty freakkin' lame.
As I listened to this, I couldn't help but wonder how Mr. B would have handled it. Most likely, he'd have answered the kid's question honestly, regarding Obama's bullying of a classmate, then started up a class conversation like: "Bullying- and Super Pac's... Does The Biggest, Loudest Voice Always Win?" -or some such thought-provoking tangent. It's just how his mind seemed to work.
For certain, the ensuing discussion would have occupied a higher plane of discourse than this travesty.
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With all the talk about bad teachers, abuse of tenure, and the failings of Public Education, I can resolutely say this: My first stint in college was in the Ed field, and we were
not trained to 'hold court' like this. I'm in DC's camp regarding teachers... for every one of these, there are hundreds, if not thousands who passionately give what they can to their profession... and manage to educate, inspire, challenge and uplift our next generation of citizens. Examples such as these are the exception that proves the rule. You know them- The Good Ones, like:
Alice Sortland
Elizabeth Neely
Peter Howard
Bert Blair
Bob Reese
Alice Jenkins
Bob Mix
R. Lee Friese...
[this list is tragically incomplete. Insert your own here... and if you're too old to remember their names, consult my good friend
Deep Threat for his... his memories are much fresher-]
And then, there are teachers like
Wayne Brown... who not only satisfy the requirements of my previous list, but also teach a budding citizen not only the joys and responsibilities of citizenship, but also tie them together with the mandate that they remain plugged-in, informed.... and always thinking for themselves.
THAT'S a Real Education.
.02,
Clemdawg