Kid! Pull Yourself Up by Your Bootstraps and Get
Some True Grit!
by
H.D. Worth, Teacher in the Trenches
What’s the first thing that comes to mind
when you hear the word grit? Grit, as
in hard abrasive particles of
sand, stone or gravel? Grits, as in the
Southern breakfast delicacy? True Grit, as in John Wayne wearing an
eye patch? G.R.I.T., as in “God, Really, It’s Terrible”?
The educational buzzword and current fad of
the day is “grit.” According to
corporate reformers, grit is now the
most important indicator in determining academic success. In the
educational world, it’s the personality trait of students who don’t give up on
a task, whatever it may be, and are resilient in the face of failure over a
long period of time.
These reformers will tell you grit is more important than teachers motivating
students to love a subject and engaging them in a journey of life-long
learning. It’s more important than a kid’s innate intelligence or natural
ability. It’s more important than giving
kids room to experiment with a variety of subjects, including art and
music. It’s more important than the motivation
that comes from students finding pleasure in accomplishing a personal
goal. It’s more important than a safe, nurturing classroom environment.
Grit means that kids just need to learn how
to tough things out, no matter how miserable the task at hand. It means kids need plenty of opportunities to
fail and then attempt to rebound. Even if a student has a learning disability,
lack of background knowledge, or lack of basic skills, copious amounts of grit are
all that are needed.
If a kid is poor? He or she just needs
more grit. If poverty is a problem in the community? Grit is the solution.
Grit completely ignores the fact that poverty
leads to adverse effects on learning due to a higher rate of homelessness, poor
nutrition, lack of health care, substandard living conditions, inadequately
funded schools, abuse and neglect, behavioral and socio-emotional issues, and
developmental delays. I guess kids are
expected to grit their way through hunger and pain, no need to take care of
them.
Why is the grit fad spreading so
quickly? Common Core proponents, like Arnie Duncan and Bill Gates, know
that their business plan is in trouble. Now they can blame kids for
not having enough grit to conquer material that isn’t developmentally
appropriate. They can say kids just need to grit it out on standardized
tests, like the PARCC, which are tedious and poorly constructed. They will tell you kids need more grit to fit
into their one-size-fits-all box.
And by the way, the oligarchs couldn’t be happier
now that they have another excuse to completely dismantle the social safety
net. Pick yourself up by your
bootstraps, little Jimmy, and get yourself some grit.
____________________________________________________________________________________
Further reading:
http://www.npr.org/blogs/ed/2014/03/17/290089998/does-teaching-kids-to-get-gritty-help-them-get-ahead
http://dianeravitch.net/2014/02/17/alfie-kohn-on-grit-and-its-misuses/
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer-sheet/wp/2014/04/08/ten-concerns-about-the-lets-teach-them-grit-fad/
No comments:
Post a Comment