“Let’s Take This…Online?”

There’s a lot of debate about how much or how little one should say online. Do you really need to post that picture? Should you really say that?

Should we be taking stances on social justice issues?

This question becomes even more important for educators: are we responsible for modelling “active citizenship and anti-oppressive education in digital spaces”? Or is that better left for at home?

Then, saying we do choose to take an active stance, what are the risks involved? Do they outweigh the benefits of speaking out? 

Or, could I lose my job, or my potential for getting hired?

All of these questions are important to answer. However, the answers are also constantly changing. Just a few years ago, teachers would have been applauded for staying neutral on these issues and were likely required to or risk losing their job. Moreover, most of these issues would be covered strictly by the media, with little to no options for “regular people” to have a say, making these discussions rather one-sided. The only way you could see both sides was to actually be there physically. You couldn’t fight for a cause without actually being there.

Today, however, when everyone is hyper-connected with multiple platforms to share their thoughts with more people than ever before, people are speaking out against people not using their social-media standing to support these crucial causes. Where just a few years ago silence was the status quo, now speaking up is. Some refuse, however, even after multiple attempts to reach out at them, and continue as if nothing has changed, leading to outraged followers and a lost chance to make a difference.

I think this situation could be used as an example of one of the risks of staying silent and the issue of not being willing to learn from those around you. As an educator, one must constantly be evaluating and re-evaluating our stance on issues like this one, taking constructive criticism from others and using it to help shape our views and practices moving forward. We cannot choose to ignore these issues, nor can we take a “neutral” stance – doing so takes the side of the oppressor and shows our students that “these issues are not important.”

“In preparing democratic citizens, teachers play a key role in facilitating classroom discussions of social and ethical issues. In the many minute and seemingly mundane choices that teachers make when they facilitate such discussions (e.g., deciding which issues to recognize as social or ethical and worthy of class time), they enact at least a partial vision of social justice (or injustice)…Learning how to discuss and debate these emotionally charged and messy issues is a crucial first step toward working with others to solve collective problems. The tensions and dilemmas that this facilitation role can produce for even the most experienced educator are felt even more keenly by beginning teachers…Because they are continuously observed and evaluated as student teachers, they often can find it particularly stressful to facilitate open-ended discussions of social and ethical issues. They may come, mistakenly in our view, to think that they can remain above the fray and either be neutral purveyors of “facts” or referees of competing perspectives — or at least strive for what we will call “teacher neutrality” as an ideal.”

    –         Deirdre M. Kelly and Grabriella Minnes Brandes

The fact of the matter is, our students will be exposed to these issues whether we discuss them with them or not. It is our responsibility as teachers to make sure that students have all the facts so that they can make informed decisions. With all the fake news and hate speech that is so easily accessible, we need to help our students sift through this overload of information so that they can learn to find the facts and what is real. But we also need to facilitate discussions with them, so that they can talk through their concerns and ideas in a safe place – which doesn’t just have to be in the classroom.

“As teachers, we know that if misbehaviour isn’t addressed, students will quickly learn that the behaviour is acceptable. The same goes for the false or hateful content that kids find in the digital world. If no one speaks up, children will have no reason to question the hurtful things that they see – and no reason not to join in. When it comes to social justice issues, silence is complicity.”

–         Katia Hildebrandt and Dr. Alec Couros

Posting information about important social issues online makes them more accessible to our students so that even when we are not physically with them, we can still be providing them with quality information.

Sometimes there’s the fear of saying something wrong, which is why we choose to stay silent. But how can we learn if we don’t make mistakes? Isn’t that what we tell our students? This is where I say be actively silent. Take a day or two to educate yourself. Read articles by people who are prominent leaders in the issue. Talk to people – again, prominent people fighting for the cause, as well as other educators. Gather the information you need, but don’t stay silent forever. Use what you have learned to join in or start your own discussions. Will you mess up? Possibly. But you will learn from those mistakes and can also make a difference. You can be a voice for those who may not be able to get online and share their thoughts. Being brave is important in every aspect of teaching.

That said, it can be scary to think of getting involved in some of these discussions, especially as pre-service teachers who are starting to look for potential jobs, where getting involved could mean losing a job opportunity. But do we really want to work in a school where complacency is the norm and silence is expected? What message does that send to our students? Instead, we should be engaging with these issues as much as possible, not allowing ourselves to remain silent. A job is not more important than a life. And the right job will come along where you don’t have to be complacent or silent, where you can teach students how to be responsible, social justice advocates by first setting the example.

Image taken from: Why Social Justice in School Matters
BY BRENDA ÁLVAREZ