September 1, 2012
As this message goes live, it is exactly two months to election day – November 6, 2012. In a few hours, the second of our two major party nominating conventions will conclude. According to the pundits, this is the time when most Americans start to really pay attention to the contest. Those families fortunate enough to share meals together find politics becoming a regular topic of conversation. Carpool drivers listen in on lively student-to-student debates about candidates. So what is the place of politics in schools? Before all of the Republican primary debates of last year and the summer media blitzes, I shared these thoughts with the MPA community (with a few edits) in anticipation of the season to come.
If you’re
like me, you rely on half a dozen or more different media sources for
news of the day. As I wrote a few years back on the subject of our
fourth grade conflict managers, for all its benefits, our political
system is designed to anoint winners and losers, and there is a
political advantage to be gained by demonizing the other side. Our
elected officials are grownups and they know that, in running for
office, they are engaging in a blood sport.
But the effects on
the rest of us “on the ground” can be polarizing. You discover that
your next door neighbor is a staunch supporter of “the other side” and
it leads you to walk gingerly around a host of topics from that moment
on. You’re horrified to see your brother’s car sporting that
bumper sticker. Is he serious, you wonder? Or your child comes home
from school spouting ideas you certainly didn’t put in her head.
What
makes all of this worse is the fracturing of the media landscape into
ever more target-specific outlets. It is too easy and comfortable to
only dial into those outlets that reinforce our existing worldview. And
in today’s media environment, that increasingly means that our channel teaches us to be suspicious of the motives of anyone watching their channel?
MPA
is a place that works hard to welcome different perspectives. And
we are in the throes of a political season at a time of considerable
struggle in our society as a result of economic conditions and rapidly
evolving global political movements. It is challenging enough when
times are good to help students to “communicate effectively with
respect and integrity”, but when the public context is political
posturing and unsettling economics, the challenge increases
significantly.
When your ninth grade daughter’s best friend
makes a snide comment to her about the elected official of whom you are
ardent supporters, it’s hard enough. But if one of you lost your job or
took a pay cut because of policies you hold the other side responsible
for, the snide comment can permanently rupture a relationship. These
are times characterized by levels of worry and anxiety in most of the
adults in our students’ lives.
The key in schools is how we
communicate about deeply held views. How effective are we, for example,
at creating a safe place for differing views over deeply held beliefs.
At MPA, we talk often about the respect for different viewpoints that is
fundamental to our healthy community. We remind students that their
words are powerful tools and should be used with respect for the
beliefs and feelings of those around them. Conflict is a fundamental
part of the human experience. To disagree is to be human. It is the
manner in which we air our views that makes all the difference.
Last week I stopped in on the annual fourth grade conflict managers retreat. And after many years of these training sessions, a strong majority of MPA students from grades 5-12 have taken the training and
spent a year serving as playground conflict managers. Think about that:
more MPA students than not have hands-on experience as conflict
managers. It bodes well for their ability to shape the nature of
dialogue and debate on campus.
What parents can do to help is encourage your children
to speak their minds if they feel as though their particular viewpoint
is not being respected. When students feel like they are the
only one in class who holds a particular view, then that is the time to
speak up. In so doing, they will earn the respect of peers, even those
(and perhaps especially those) who disagree. Our arguments are made
stronger the more they are tested in the challenge of contrary opinion.
Perhaps you can even model that behavior by respectfully
disagreeing with your neighbor, talking with your brother about that
bumper sticker, and asking your child, gently and respectfully, to
support with facts the ideas she comes home from school with if you disagree with
her. You’ll both come away better off for the engagement.
So the place for politics in schools must be one in which it is safe to disagree, respectfully, in a spirit of openness to learning from others. And remember, exercise your civic duty and let your voice be heard on November 6. In so doing, you model good behavior for those around your dinner table or in your carpool whose first opportunity to vote lies in their future.
Mike Downs
Head of School
