Engaging Youth as Learners

By Jenny Wright, July guest blogger

When I was a student in the Minneapolis Public Schools, I loved learning. I believed my teachers cared for me and knew I could do well. I felt safe at school and proud to belong to that community. I still remember actual lessons they taught us because learning was active, interesting, and social.

I can still sing the songs that we wrote for a fifth grade musical about global warming. We learned about Athens in the sixth grade while using our math, art, and language skills. When I was in school we learned the skills that I hear people now refer to as “Skills for the 21st Century Workplace” — critical thinking, problem solving, teamwork, and communication. I learned to make connections between my learning and the world outside the school walls.

I also grew up with access to learning and leadership opportunities outside of the school day. At home with my parents and other adults in my community. At the childcare program at the park. Swimming at the YMCA.  Summer Camp. Teaching dance classes for younger children.

Of course we know that many young people do not have access to the same opportunities that I had growing up. I believe the key justice issue of our generation has to do with this inequality of opportunity to achieve school and life success. This leads me to these questions:

• How can we ensure that all young people from every racial, ethnic, and economic background have the same access to successful school experiences that I did?
• How will we ensure that all young people have access to all of the opportunities, relationships, and supports that they need in order to become successful in school and life?

Please share your thoughts about these questions by clicking on "Comments" below.

Comments

[Linda Alton]

"Successful school experience" - wow, what in the world are the components of this for a young person? So complex. I remember being bored out of my mind (high school in the 50's) - and indeed school was pitiful, often like a scene from "Grease" - and 'success' meant degrees of social acceptance skills - which I excelled in. Lucky for me, traits of workaholism got me grades to chug onwards and upwards.

I guess I am hoping that school environments are cultivating/ allowing for multiple pathways of success -

[Rebecca Saito]

Combining what Jenni Wright says in terms of providing enriching supports and opportunities in and out of school for teenagers, with what the previous blog from Jon Pekel says about the root causes of the achievement gap being a youth mindset (attitudes, values, beliefs) and choices about behaviors, leads me to wonder whether our community is providing teens with enough enticing, enriching, positive opportunities that understand the youth "mindset" but allows them to choose meaningful outlets without squashing or discounting their experiences, beliefs, desires, anger, feelings of being misunderstood, etc.

Most discussions of cause and effect seem to me to always come down to some combination of individual, family and community variables. Consequently, I believe the solution must include all three as well. Therefore, even if you believe that the cause is within the individual as Pekel seems to argue, then where do you start to change those individual attitudes and choices? Wright argues that we can start in the institutions over which we have some control--school, and I would add, out-of-school youth programs. Further, to the extent that we can combine youth, family and community work in schools, parks, camps, youth programs, faith communities, etc., the further along and better off we'll be in terms of the achievement gap and many other indicators of strong, healthy youth and community.

[Jenny Wright]

Rebecca Saito wisely points out that solutions, just like issues, need to be looked at in terms of the individual, family, and community.

As individuals I believe we each have a role to play. We have to start from a place of hope and a belief that all young people CAN succeed in school and life. Then we have to find places where we believe we can have some impact. It might be through your voting decisions or policy work. It might be by volunteering in an afterschool program or at your own child's school. For me, my work with Beacons has given me a lot of hope because I see young people engaged in leadership, academic, and cultural activities in safe places with encouraging adults and I know that this is an important piece of a larger puzzle that will help them succeed in life.

Linda Alton suggests that as a community we have to create multiple pathways to success that meet the needs of different young people. Young people may engage with learning by becoming successful in a trade or technical field or by getting involved with improving their own communities. Many of us involved in youthwork have learned that if you start with an area where a young person has passion or talent, then you can build from that place of strength into other areas that may be more of a challenge. I believe this could be a key strategy in bringing about some of the individual change that Jon Pekel suggested needs to take place in order to address the achievement gap.