Consensus in the Classroom

by L. Sartor, M. Y. Brown

As a way to implement progressive, humanistic and holistic ideas, consensus decision-making helps build collaborative learning communities, and empowers students to take responsibility for decisions affecting their ever-changing world. (p 61)

• Why something like consensus?  need for experiential learning, questioning assumptions, meeting folx where they’re at, blending action & reflection
• relevancy, what is relevant to the students, community & our time NOW.
• Dewey (1938) source of knowing, the learner in both defining the purposes of learning activities and selecting the activities that best serve those purposes. The authority for learning then resides in the learner in collaboration with the teacher, rather than in the teacher-as expert alone.
• Alfie Kohn (1993) remarks, “A teacher that makes unilateral decisions, regardless of their merit, is in effect saying that the classroom does not belong to the students but only to her[/him]; their preferences do not matter. People do not usually cheer when things are done to them. That is why teachers contemplating a new way of doing things ought to bring the children in on the process” (p. 199). Edward Cell (1984) describes what he calls “response learning” as a rudimentary form of education in which an outside authority determines what is best for his/her students, rewarding them when they are performing according to the standard, and punishing them when they are not. Jack Mezirow (1991) would describe this sort of learning as “mindlessness” which “leads to self-induced dependence on external authority, diminished self-image, and reduced growth potential” (p. 115)
• so then desde chiquit@s they start to learn & internalize that they in fact cannot do anything for themselves, when it comes to life decisions they should always be asking or looking for approval for other people. DIMINISHING AUTONOMY, CREATIVITY
• a undemocratic learning environment does exactly what it has to do. is to crate a space of domination where folx learn to obey, internalize & create the same pattern they are taught.
• Freire, “Translated into practice, this concept is well suited to the purposes of the oppressors, whose tranquility rests on how well people fit the world the oppressors have created, and how little they question it” (p. 57).
• What exactly is said here?  Parker Palmer (1998) writes: “…we often confuse authority with power, but the two are not the same. Power works from the outside in, but authority works from the inside out…. Authority is granted to people who are perceived as authoring their own words, their own actions, their own lives, rather than playing a scripted role at great remove from their own hearts” (pp. 32-33).
• Ruth Charney (1991) stresses the importance of the teacher seeing his/her own authority within: … Authenticity is not about getting children to love or obey us, or even to admire our talents.  Authenticity is about knowing oneself well enough to allow others to know themselves… 
• A theme that came up through the community mural project, authenticity is also found through vulnerability, and dropping the ego & prejudgement.
• Democracy, choice
• three reasons for giving children choice: 1) it is intrinsically desirable because it is a more respectful way of relating; 2) it offers benefits for teachers such as making the curriculum more interesting to them and freeing them of the chore of constantly monitoring and supervising; and 3) it works better. (although should we really be thinking “efficiency”?)