The Problem of Common Sense

In the reading, Kumashiro has opened our eyes to realize that the aspect of “commonsense”, may look different to all. Kumashiro speaks from personal experience, sharing that it was mandatory to learn these new ways of “commonsense”, after moving to the eastern region. These things that everyone should know, Kumashiro had to be taught. Without a doubt, there was lots to learn when entering this form of a cultural reset for Kumashiro. While being open and honest, Kumashiro shares that a great amount of knowledge was learnt from individuals around in the village, “my neighbors taught me much about the facets of life in the village” (Kumashiro, page 1). Daily tasks that Kumashiro used to practice were now very different, and it was important for Kumashiro to learn these ways in order to “fit in”. “Without knowing how people generally lived their lives, and without being a part of this village, it took time to change how I thought about meals, water, time, privacy, and other aspects of daily life in Nepal” (Kumashiro, page 2).

Kumashiro found the aspect of teaching to be very different. In fact, this completely changed many aspects of Kumashiro job and role as an educator. Many factors such as the way to teach, what to teach, and forms of common punishments. Often comparing the “American way” to the “Nepali way”, Kumashiro was able to see the many flaws in the system. Officially concluding that “good teaching was not something that we needed to learn; rather, it was something we had already learned” (Kumashiro, page 4). If Kumashiro didn’t take the time to further educate, these new roles and expectations of “commonsense” would still be very unfamiliar. Kumashiro states that seeking out to understand new forms of “commonsense” is crucial, “learning different methods is essential to improving as a teacher” (Kumashiro, page 4).

This reading allowed me to see that all my commonsense understandings of curriculum and pedagogy all come from the “American way”. This text taught me that there is no harm in expanding your knowledge. In fact, once Kumashiro started to compare the two, flaws were found in both systems. When you are able to take a step back from your “normal” ways, or what feels comfortable to you, you are able to make connections, and changes from a completely different point of view.

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