Kumashiro defines ‘commonsense’ as being a form of knowledge that is left unquestioned by those residing in a specific society or culture. Pieces of commonsense become engrained in societal function, and are viewed as models that establish good behaviours, beliefs, and values in society. It is quite often that commonsense is traditional, making it even harder to question the legitimacy of the societal views and opinions of ‘commonsense’. Some examples of commonsense, as seen in the majority of schools in Canada, include singing the national anthem every morning, having school holidays that coincide with religious events occurring in the Christian faith, and having desks arranged in straight rows in classrooms. All three of the examples listed above remain pertinent in Canada and are rarely challenged or spoken against, as they all fall under the umbrella of commonsense in Canada’s educational institutions.

There are several reasons as to why it is so important to pay attention to ‘commonsense’. One of the best reasons supporting this was stated in this week’s reading, The Problem of Common Sense, by Kumashiro. In Kumashiro’s writing, it is explicitly noted in detail that commensense is not something that “should shape education reform or curriculum design; it is what needs to be examined and challenged”. It is clear through this quote in particular that educators must use commonsense as tool to create change in the curriculum at hand. As something that has remained a cornerstone in education, commonsense must be examined in order to decide the true efficacy of commonsense altogether. Further, it is quite clear that the majority of commonsense within Canadian schools and school systems alike enforce a particular narrative that limit certain perspectives and views regarding education. What is intended to be a guideline acts as a wall in a sense, as commonsense prevents educators from pursuing new methods of learning and teaching.

In terms of myself, there are several commonsense understandings of curriculum and pedagogy that I bring into this course. For example, I understand that the curriculum is curated by the government as a means of educating students in a way that agrees with the grand narratives of society. It acts as a foundation for the development of important beliefs and values that are vital to the production of preferred outcomes of students. for example, kindergarten curriculums in Canada are based around the idea of understanding social interactions. it creates the basis for producing citizens that are accustomed to helping one another, as well as being kind and knowing how to treat others in a respectful manner. In terms of pedagogy, all of my understanding comes from my education. I understand pedagogy as a means of learning from textbooks and doing the questions regarding portions of said textbooks. Activities such as note taking were also incredibly important in high school, accompanied by essays or written responses. In addition, quizzes, tests, and exams were incredibly common, specifically done in the fashion of being memory based. Open-book exams were frowned upon, as they were deemed as being against the traditional commonsense that was so engrained in the educational system. However, this commonsense regarding both curriculum and pedagogy was greatly challenged during my exchange in Sweden. It was here that I became accustomed to open-book exams, lack of textbooks, and a more verbal and hands-on approach regarding education. Classrooms were no longer classrooms but shared study rooms, in which every student had their own cubby with their own blanket and mug for their tea. Class periods were no longer in a consistent schedule that revolved around five, sixty-four minute periods with the same schedule every day. classes were now two-three hours long, with the lecture covering half of the class period and either solo or group work in study rooms spanning over the time of the remaining duration of the class. Teachers ate with students at lunch, which was completely free and provided several variations of food in order to provide healthy, nutritious, and allergen-aware meals to all of the students and teachers. The pedagogy in Sweden was significantly more communal and was significantly better than the Canadian pedagogy in my opinion, and I hope to shape my classroom in a way that follows the pedagogy and commonsense I experienced in Sweden.

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