Blog Post #1

Kumoshiro (2009) defines common sense as an approach that everyone should know about; what they are ‘supposed’ to be doing or know how to do. It is a collective assumption that a society unconsciously knows what do at a given time. If someone attempts to something outside of these norms or ‘status quo’ per say, then they would be deemed as having no common sense. An example given in the reading was that society eats three times a day – breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

It is important to pay attention to the ‘common sense’ because we do not want to close ourselves off to other world views or ways of ‘doing’. We do not want our future students to feel that they are not seen in the classroom or that we are trying to change them into something they are not. New teachers struggle to deal with ‘common sense’ approaches when beginning their teaching journeys. They often want to explore new and refreshing concepts learned in university; however, they soon come to realize that change is not easy in this ‘common sense’ setting. People who are in power, such as the school board, have a sense of control over these approaches. It is crucial to begin to adapt to their ‘common sense’ philosophy.

There are various ‘common sense’ understandings of curriculum and pedagogy that I will bring with me into this course. Curriculum is an outline of what needs to be taught throughout the school year. It provides outcomes of material that students need to know before they move on to the next grade level. My teacher pedagogy demonstrates ‘common sense’ understandings such as respecting all students and staff, being aware of all diversity within the classroom, and showing patience and kindness when dealing with conflict.