Schools should be teaching kindness, make children immerse themselves
Dr. Albert Schweitzer, medical missionary, theologian and philosopher, once said, “The purpose of human life is to serve and to show compassion and the will to help others.” We wonder if being kind to one another has become more the exception than the rule.
“Experiential learning” is a relatively new concept in education circles. It is exactly what the term implies: People learn by doing, by immersing themselves in an activity that is important to them. So we’re wondering if the school curricula, perhaps at all levels, should require children to go out of the classroom and get involved in activities where they can practice kindness toward others.
Too often, school can be one of those environments where unkindness proliferates. We’ve all seen examples of bullying, intimidation, prejudice and just outright meanness. Perhaps school, second only to the home, is where the healing can begin.
This kind of educational approach requires the dedication of teachers and school administrators. These people must be role models of kindness in order for student experiential learning to make sense. No one said it would be easy.
We know that school personnel today are faced with incredible obstacles, some of which are systemic, others of which are due to the human condition. Teachers and administrators must be saints. They must rise above low expectations of themselves and their young charges and raise the bar. They must revive antiquated language such as “manners” and “politeness” and “respect,” and demand those behaviors from the students and each other.
Too, before students are sent out into the field, so to speak, to perform hands-on kindness, there needs to be a frank discussion in the classroom, setting the foundation for their venture. The question must be addressed: Why are people unkind? With the exception of some kind of mental or emotional impairment that may influence behavior, we believe strongly that a bully or some other kind of antagonist isn’t born that way. More than likely, someone who is mean has been treated with meanness. Someone who is a bully is insecure in his skin; he must attack someone else first in order to maintain an upper hand and a façade of toughness.
Someone who is unkind to others is most likely unhappy with life and may feel cheated in some way or that he or she has no purpose. If that discussion is honest, it may serve as a mirror to several students in the class. We don’t subscribe to the idea of “the bad seed,” the child who is born with meanness in his heart. What we have been taught and what we have experienced make us who we are.
Reading, writing and arithmetic are important. But we think it’s time to introduce courses in kindness and civility into the curricula at all levels. The home is the first institution of learning, but it’s not the only one. These ideals need to be taught, practiced in school and tested through experiential learning out there in the world.
Tom Tozer and Bill Black are authors of “Dads2Dads: Tools for Raising Teenagers.” Like them on Facebook and follow them on Twitter at Dads2Dadsllc. Contact them at tomandbill@Dads2Dadsllc.com.