As a neuroscientist and educational psychologist, I think that the quote from Clifton is dead on. That the positive valuation in what is to be learned is worth the effort, the other side of that is the agency and efficacy (perceived competence) of the learner in engaging in this effort (it's classic Expectancy-Value Theory). The competency piece cannot be understated. It also follows that the lack of agency (we can do nothing about it) and the lack of resiliency from sheltering students from "struggle and discomfort" is also an issue. But that is where your argument is self-contradictory. To build resilience, we should not cower from discussing the "ills of the world" but provide agency in that they, through learning, can be a force for change.
Thus, I will push back on the narrative or assumption that "doom and gloom" particularly in the classroom is the problem. There is no clear evidence that there is more doom and gloom now then when students were conducting duck and cover drills because of an impending nuclear war throughout the development of the "boomers" through Gen X. The sense that there are problems to be fixed is a core motivator in education whether its because of the impending "red scare" or "climate change". Historically, we taught that all forms of authoritarianism are things to fear and fight against ranging from monarchy (King George) to fascism (WWII) and communism (Cold War). The problem is the "lack of agency", which may be stemming more from the overwhelming amount of negative information that is engendered in our algorithm driven culture (leading to learned helplessness). I know that you are likely in alignment with Jonathan Haidt's arguments in "The Anxious Generation". It is now the water that we swim in coming from all fronts of our culture (yes, school may be just one, but it is not a direct result of the teachers and curriculum). The culture and media would have you believe that poverty and crime are worse now than "ever" despite the actual historical evidence to the contrary.
What can be argued is that a need for changing the narrative to one of problem solving and agency, and yes, that likely means framing the national narrative and the human narrative (as Steven Pinker has done) as one of overcoming historical ills not just engaging in them endlessly.
Great comment (which I agree with, based on personal experience - because I read well and early, I was allowed to “run free” in the library and was exposed, at a young age, to a lot of dystopian literature - for example, having also always been methodical, I started at “A” in the library and ended up reading all of Asimov’s sci-fi stories by the time I was 8 - but, whether through my home environment or reading, or both, I have always had a strong sense of agency, the belief that all odds can be overcome - a value embedded in the Raold Dahl, Tolkien, etc, books).
“What stops great quests to discover buried treasure is not the snakes and the pirates—it is the expectation that there’s probably little or nothing of value buried out there in the sand.”
I've been finding your writing on this (along with Dan Willingham's piece yesterday on a similar note) quite persuasive perhaps because of my own philosophical orientation on these matters. I'm curious if there's research that tracks the changes in curriculum around these matters over time? An analysis of publishers materials, the growth of some of this pedagogy and lesson plans, perhaps an analysis of teachers pay teachers or some such thing that gets used too much as a proxy, etc etc? I think we have a sense of when it began growing but it would be good to document it seems to me with data if it can be built.
Curriculum research is unreliable because we simply don't know what gets taught (I've started using the phrase "curriculum purchases" instead of "curriculum adoption" because we know that nearly every teacher in America uses materials they create, adapt, or scavenge to supplement or substitute for purchased materials (cf. RAND). But we can certainly make sensible guesses based on the PD, assigned novels, the rise of SEL, trauma-informed practice, etc. Given the large number of people in the profession, I think it's sensible to assume teachers' attitudes and beliefs mirror parents--the other group that spends a disproportionate amount of time thinking about children's well-being and how best to protect them.
Robert, is there any research that you know of that points to the primals of the K12 system and what its cultural memos are to us as teachers? Thank you for this reminder about what we are bringing to our students.
It would be interesting to get a large number of teachers to take Clifton's "primals inventory" to see the results. It would also be interesting to do a pre- and post- service analysis on the primals of, say, Teach For America corps members who are often assigned to some of the most challenging school settings, to see if this causes a change in their primal beliefs -- or their students'
As a neuroscientist and educational psychologist, I think that the quote from Clifton is dead on. That the positive valuation in what is to be learned is worth the effort, the other side of that is the agency and efficacy (perceived competence) of the learner in engaging in this effort (it's classic Expectancy-Value Theory). The competency piece cannot be understated. It also follows that the lack of agency (we can do nothing about it) and the lack of resiliency from sheltering students from "struggle and discomfort" is also an issue. But that is where your argument is self-contradictory. To build resilience, we should not cower from discussing the "ills of the world" but provide agency in that they, through learning, can be a force for change.
Thus, I will push back on the narrative or assumption that "doom and gloom" particularly in the classroom is the problem. There is no clear evidence that there is more doom and gloom now then when students were conducting duck and cover drills because of an impending nuclear war throughout the development of the "boomers" through Gen X. The sense that there are problems to be fixed is a core motivator in education whether its because of the impending "red scare" or "climate change". Historically, we taught that all forms of authoritarianism are things to fear and fight against ranging from monarchy (King George) to fascism (WWII) and communism (Cold War). The problem is the "lack of agency", which may be stemming more from the overwhelming amount of negative information that is engendered in our algorithm driven culture (leading to learned helplessness). I know that you are likely in alignment with Jonathan Haidt's arguments in "The Anxious Generation". It is now the water that we swim in coming from all fronts of our culture (yes, school may be just one, but it is not a direct result of the teachers and curriculum). The culture and media would have you believe that poverty and crime are worse now than "ever" despite the actual historical evidence to the contrary.
What can be argued is that a need for changing the narrative to one of problem solving and agency, and yes, that likely means framing the national narrative and the human narrative (as Steven Pinker has done) as one of overcoming historical ills not just engaging in them endlessly.
Great comment (which I agree with, based on personal experience - because I read well and early, I was allowed to “run free” in the library and was exposed, at a young age, to a lot of dystopian literature - for example, having also always been methodical, I started at “A” in the library and ended up reading all of Asimov’s sci-fi stories by the time I was 8 - but, whether through my home environment or reading, or both, I have always had a strong sense of agency, the belief that all odds can be overcome - a value embedded in the Raold Dahl, Tolkien, etc, books).
Thank you for revisiting such an important topic. This week's post The Banality of Being Wrong (https://harriettjanetos.substack.com/p/the-banality-of-being-wrong-truth?r=5spuf) is related to this wonderful quote:
“What stops great quests to discover buried treasure is not the snakes and the pirates—it is the expectation that there’s probably little or nothing of value buried out there in the sand.”
On target once again RP. Reminds me of this essay an Uncommon student wrote in the NYT. https://uncommonschools.org/news/nyt-op-ed-college-application-sell-my-pain/
I've been finding your writing on this (along with Dan Willingham's piece yesterday on a similar note) quite persuasive perhaps because of my own philosophical orientation on these matters. I'm curious if there's research that tracks the changes in curriculum around these matters over time? An analysis of publishers materials, the growth of some of this pedagogy and lesson plans, perhaps an analysis of teachers pay teachers or some such thing that gets used too much as a proxy, etc etc? I think we have a sense of when it began growing but it would be good to document it seems to me with data if it can be built.
Curriculum research is unreliable because we simply don't know what gets taught (I've started using the phrase "curriculum purchases" instead of "curriculum adoption" because we know that nearly every teacher in America uses materials they create, adapt, or scavenge to supplement or substitute for purchased materials (cf. RAND). But we can certainly make sensible guesses based on the PD, assigned novels, the rise of SEL, trauma-informed practice, etc. Given the large number of people in the profession, I think it's sensible to assume teachers' attitudes and beliefs mirror parents--the other group that spends a disproportionate amount of time thinking about children's well-being and how best to protect them.
This essay about the rise of nihilism in young people is also useful to discussion of this topic.
https://thespectator.com/topic/nihilism-destroying-young-minds/
The insights are so new and important that digesting them and the implications will take time.
Well said. You know better than most the Sisyphean work of changing education practice and thought.
Robert, is there any research that you know of that points to the primals of the K12 system and what its cultural memos are to us as teachers? Thank you for this reminder about what we are bringing to our students.
It would be interesting to get a large number of teachers to take Clifton's "primals inventory" to see the results. It would also be interesting to do a pre- and post- service analysis on the primals of, say, Teach For America corps members who are often assigned to some of the most challenging school settings, to see if this causes a change in their primal beliefs -- or their students'
It would indeed. As I think about my “primals” I would definitely say that the surrounding teaching environment had an effect on mine.
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