Within the common sense narrative, a good student would meet academic goals, sit nicely, be obedient to instruction, function to academic standards, and also be white.  The idea of common sense segregates the students that do not fit into these expectations. In Kumashiro’s article “Against Common Sense” he says, “[I]t almost seemed as if the student that the school and I wanted M to be was not a student that M could be.”(p.20) This quote resonated with me because I feel that it perfectly depicts what following common sense beliefs can lead to. Kumashiro’s article describes how educators following common sense may feel failure when a student doesn’t meet their expectations of what student success should look like, but often students may just learn in different ways that aren’t standardized in education. It is the neurotypical wealthy white students who benefit from the common sense expectations in education. They benefit because the education system historically and presently is created to support those students over others.

It is mentioned in A History of Education that the good student was influenced by “social, religious, and political conditions”(Painter, 1886, p.7) as they influenced the education that was made available. Different students were either offered or denied education depending on different aspects. Even today we see different education offered to different classes or groups of people i.e. public, private, or public schools. The underlying beliefs that came from the history of education are still present today as education expectation are still rooted in similar goals for student success.

Sources Referenced

Kumashiro, K. K. (2010). Against Common Sense. Teaching and Learning Toward Social Justice.

Painter, F. V. N. (1886). A History of Education. New York : D. Appleton.