#MediaMonday: Let the Kids Fight it Out
Good Morning Everyone,
Many of us begin the journey as media teachers alone, figuring out the job in isolation. I, due to an unspeakably fortunate series of event, did not. I had the incredible, infamous, (and now quite old) Dave Davis to help me find my footing during my early years of media teaching and has now become a good friend and mentor. Dave once taught me a valuable lesson that has kept me out of lawsuits and trips to my superintendent's office over the years that I will now share with all of you: let students fight their own battles.
This week, I had to let my kids fight alone. My district, despite concerns surrounding the pandemic, made the announcement that we will be going back to basically a full-time schedule with the students. I was confused and enraged and terrified. I wanted to hop in my car and beat a path directly to the school board and scream, "how can you do this?!?". However, as my students began to shuffle into my classroom, I realized that they too were feeling the effects of this decision. They were so scared and upset. "What do we do?" They asked.
The rebel in my heart wanted to lead the charge, rally the troops and demand change. Instead, I took a deep breath, remembered Dave's advice, and said "you need to do what you think is right". What followed was extraordinary.
"What is the phone number for the superintendent's office?" they asked.
I directed them to the public website with the phone number listed and said, "here you go".
By that afternoon, the district phone lines were swamped and an online petition had been started by the students to reverse the decision that, as we speak, has close to 3000 names on it. Students arranged interviews with local news crews and that night, stories ran in homes all across our community, ringing out with the voices of concerned teenagers, pleading for their perspectives to be heard. Social media campaigns and extensive efforts are being undertaken by students advocating for their own safety.
What they have accomplished is nothing short of remarkable. While they may not change the right minds, they have learned a valuable lesson of self-advocacy that, if I had handled the initial question differently, would have been taken from their hands.
If we encourage our students to take control of their own world more often, I think that we are going to see some amazing things. Let them learn one of life's greatest lessons: when to comply and when to fight. They will never learn this lesson if we fight in their place. So, when these sorts of things come up, let the kids fight it out.
Talk to you soon,
Josh Cantrell