Stacey Harker
\nRoyal Roads University
\nEDLM 540
\nLisa Read
\nFebruary 3, 2013<\/p>\n
Reflections on School-Community Partnerships and Change
\nIn a school, there are many kinds of communities to consider. On a basic level, there is the classroom community, the school community, the teacher community, and the student community. But these communities have almost endless permutations: the extra curricular activities communities, the student council community, the Parent Advisory Community, the Professional Development community, the science community, the humanities community, the lunch in the cafeteria community, the lunch on the lawn community, the no lunch at all community. The list goes on, and it does not fit neatly into a graphic organizer.
\nSchool communities extend beyond the students, parents\/guardians, and teachers because no community exists in isolation. A school is part of the village\/town\/city\/metropolis within which it is situated. Schools are connected to the businesses they patronize and the social services they access. But the fluid connectivity of communities does not stop at formal interactions.
\nThe wellness of a school affects the wellness of its community. If students display a weak aptitude for social responsibility, their interactions with people on the street will be negative and this will affect the tenor of the social environment and vice versa. At my school site, there is a community of students and drop-outs who spend a lot of time hanging around in a public area adjacent to the school. They are loud, obnoxious, and often under the influence of drugs and alcohol. Recently, they set fire to the outside of the library. These young people are running wild, seemingly without recourse. Most of this activity occurs outside of regular school hours, out of easy sight of the police, and obviously without due care from their guardians.
\nThis community of teenagers and young adults has found a space to express itself by installing itself between communities instead of within them. Their anti-social behavior adversely affects the greater community. It would be easy to say that they should be locked up or otherwise penalized, but I\u2019m not convinced that doing so would effectively address the problems associated with dis-enfranchised youth living in poverty, especially when we consider that they have created a community that brings them obvious joy and a strong sense of belonging. Is it possible to change the behavior without causing harm? Not likely. There is a reason humans have a natural aversion to change despite an innate sense of curiosity. In the case of the local hoodlums, I suggest following Margaret Wheatley\u2019s \u201cCreating Healthy Community Change\u201d (2007), as interpreted by Robert Siegfried (1999):<\/p>\n
\u2022 People support what they create\u2028Are we engaging all those who have a stake in this issue?
\n\u2022 People act responsibly when they care\u2028Are we working on an issue that people truly care about?\u2028How do we know they care?
\n\u2022 Through conversation we discover shared meaning\u2028How often do we use conversation rather than a more technical problem solving process? Where do our conversations occur?
\n\u2022 To change the conversation, change who is in it\u2028Are we stuck in this conversation?\u2028Do our conversations go ’round and ’round and lead nowhere?\u2028What new people could we invite into the conversation?
\n\u2022 Expect leadership to come from anywhere\u2028When have you been surprised about who stepped forward as an informal leader?”
\n\u2022 Focus on what\u2019s working and it releases energy\u2028When have we been most energised for our work? Why did we have so much energy? What is possible here, and who cares?”
\n\u2022 The wisdom resides within us\u2028Do we look inside our community expecting to find the answers there?\u2028Or do we look outside for best practice?”
\n\u2022 Everything is a failure in the middle\u2028How do we react to times of failure when we see our progress suddenly disappear?
\n\u2022 People can handle anything as long as we are together\u2028Are we paying attention to our relationships?\u2028Are we supporting each other?\u2028How often do we gossip, judge or scapegoat?”
\n\u2022 Generosity, forgiveness and love are the most important\u2028If someone would observe our community, would they see generosity, forgiveness and love in us? \u2028When all is said and done, can we say this: “We were together. I forget the rest.” ?<\/p>\n
If charged with leading change, then it is best to make it meaningful. Meaningful change requires the investment of the people who are making the change. Including the local hoodlums\u2019 values, skills, needs, and interests in finding a way for them to contribute in a positive way is a deeply democratic act. Change can be made more efficiently through dictatorial acts, but if the people don\u2019t want the change, the acts of change will be empty. Worse than a marriage of convenience, it is a forced union.
\nThe example of the local hoodlums does not have an easy answer, but to lesser degrees, neither do any other acts of change. The \u201cwin-win situation\u201d is a laudable intention, but there will always be dissenting voices. Effective leadership guides people through useful and relevant change that outweighs the drawbacks. School-community partnerships are an effective tool for informing this type of change.
\nReferences<\/p>\n
Siegfried, Robert. J. (1999) \u201c10 Keys to Healthy Community Change: Margaret Wheatley\u201d
\nLearning 2 Connect. Retrieved January 31, 2013 from http:\/\/learning2connect.com\/content\/10-keys-healthy-community-change-margaret-wheatley
\nWheatley, M. (Nov. 1, 2007) Margaret Wheatley: Creating Healthy Community Change.
\nChanged Minds. Retrieved January 31, 2013 from http:\/\/www.youtube.com\/playlist?list=PL57D3F5FDE5856188<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
In a school, there are many kinds of communities to consider. On a basic level, there is the classroom community, the school community, the teacher community, and the student community. But these communities have almost endless permutations. Continue reading