In Against Common Sense: Teaching and Learning Toward Social Justice, Kumashiro addresses common sense in connection to education as something that “does not tell us that this is what schools could be doing; it tells us that this and only this is what schools should be doing.”(Kumashiro, 2009, p. XXXV). The role of common sense in education outlines what is expected to be taught and how an educator should go about it. Overall the idea of common sense is created from social pressure and societal expectations of what is right. Kumashiro defines common sense by sharing his experiences in navigating the role of commonsense in Nepal as his point of view falls separate from the expectations of society. His experiences in Nepal show just how a society’s idea of commonsense is directly formed by expectations. For example, when the students expect a lecture, homework, and exam format within their education they feel that this specific sequence of teaching is simply correct.

Commonsense requires acknowledgment of what it is and how it directly affects our opinions and perspectives on different aspects of society. In the past, I have personally felt that many things in life simply fell under the realm of common sense, but with analysis, I can see how close-minded those beliefs were. Growing up I feel I majorly experienced a teacher-centered education that was rooted in lectures, assignments, and examinations. To me and in my education this sequence of teaching was simply how it was and therefore it was correct. Through my furthering knowledge and education, I see how closed off this approach may be; it does not embrace diversity in different learning styles or support students with diverse needs. By understanding different pedagogies and moving past the concept of common sense an educator can further grow within both teaching and learning among their students. The education curriculum is something that will never look a specific way, despite the commonsense beliefs that curriculum is simply what needs to be taught. This belief of the education curriculum outlines content but what it fails to do is explain how students are going to take and assess the content presented to them. The simplicity that commonsense places on curriculum does not encompass the diversity in the way things are taught and furthermore how they are learned.

 

Sources Referenced

The problem of common sense (From Kumashiro. (2009). Against Common Sense: Teaching and Learning Toward Social Justice, pp. XXIX – XLI).