“The Problem of Common Sense” January 6th/2023

ECS 203: Curriculum and Pedagogy – Reading #1

For the first reflection this semester, we were tasked to read an article titled “The Problem of Common Sense” by Kevin Kumashiro, found in the text Against Common Sense: Teaching and Learning Towards Social Justice. I found this article incredibly interesting and insightful as an introduction to the course material.

Kumashiro begins his thoughts on commonsense by sharing a past experience of teaching abroad. His methods and timelines of teaching did not align with the “common sense” educational practices of the culture he was recently introduced to. I feel like this situation described a teacher prioritizing making connections with students by socializing more during class, and maybe playing educational games, because, in North American culture, this is an important aspect of our education system; connecting with and gaining the trust of students. From this situation, Kumashiro explained that common sense refers to practices, expectations, and standards of knowledge that are ingrained in systems and cultures, formed by individuals and the environment they occupy. He explained that “[he] brought different assumptions, expectations and values to the school” and that “[it] was easy for [him] … to raise questions about the purpose or effectiveness of … practices.” (Kumashiro, 2004).

Though there was success in building connections with students and being the “fun” teacher, Kumashiros’ method and pedagogy of teaching did not fully prepare students for the specific academic testing, resulting in complaints and general dissatisfaction. This story of experience helped me conceptualize how social and cultural factors impact learning in such a systematic way. Beyond different styles of teaching, this story also highlighted the inherent assertion of North-American or western styles of teaching, labeling it as “a form of cultural imperialism, teaching “them” to value and become more like “us”.” (Kumashiro, 2004). This aspect of the reading touched on big topics of interest for me, mainly the impact of perception. Often, I have conversations with my father about how important it is to reflect on personal perceptions in life and analyze what may be impacting those perceptions. Our world is full of different people with different motivations, which can be positive or negative, and it is important to cultivate thoughts and opinions independently in order to avoid potential manipulation. Analyzing common sense is crucial because it encourages critical thinking and refines our perceptions and opinions of the world to be as rational as possible.

As emerging teachers, we must remain cognizant of what factors have contributed to creating our personal worldview, different influences that could impact our opinions or decisions, and whether our perceptions truly reflect reality. For my common sense understanding of curriculum and pedagogy, I think my main understanding so far is that the curriculum is a framework with specific information that was chosen by specific people, and it is a system that is objectively flawed. Students may not progress as the curriculum suggests they should, and does not include all of the relevant information students should know, it contains information that a specific organization has deemed important for students to learn. Prior to attending class and completing this reading, I had very different expectations for this class, but after this introduction to the course, I am eager to learn and reflect on the different factors that influence our curriculum as well as factors that encourage the teaching pedagogies present within our cultures.