M4T4: Response Paper #2 1

M4T4: Response Paper #2

Taylor Dietmeier

Kansas University

CT 709
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Abstract

Arts education programs around the world are being reduced or eliminated in an effort

to focus more funding, time, and energy into the subjects that “truly” matter. For those who

consider themselves critical pedagogues, this movement towards rote memorization, testing,

and a strong hierarchy of subjects is alarming. As a result, our students are not receiving

opportunities to express themselves or critique ideas, which are higher-order thinking skills that

ultimately lead to a student’s mastery and success. In this paper, I will be explaining curriculum

issues in Kenya, my response with reference to theorists like Paulo Freire and Maxine Greene,

and the perspective that others hold with respect to this curriculum issue. Finally, I will conclude

with recommendations to implement at the school that I believe will equip students for success

and dramatically influence the trajectory of their lives.

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M4T4: Response Paper #2

Between June and July 2016, over 100 secondary schools in Kenya were set fire by

students (p.1, Mabel, 2016). Meetings were held across the country to discuss ideas about what

might be fueling these fires. At the meetings, parents blamed the schools, schools blamed the

government, and together everyone vehemently blamed the students. In late July, I was eager

to attend a special forum where all stakeholders – even students – were invited to voice their

concerns. Displayed on an elevated stage at the front of the room, government officials robustly

introduced themselves one by one, explaining their qualifications and demanding discipline to

the highest degree. Three and a half hours later, we all left without time for even one student to

share her perspective.

As a self-proclaimed critical pedagogue, I was deeply disturbed by this event. In response,

I interviewed as many students as possible to discover their thoughts on the issue of school fires

in Kenya. The most common response was something like this, “No one is listening to us. The

exams are overwhelming. We don’t get time to eat, socialize, or to be ourselves.”

Fast forward a few months to our opening assembly this January where our principal

announced to the teachers that we are cutting art classes in order to improve math scores. In

addition, we were going to be shortening the lunch period and using that time to proctor daily

math and science exams. I looked around the room expecting to see mouths dropped to the
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floor in disbelief, only to find that I am once again stranded on an island of critical pedagogy trying

to survive the suffocating waves of testing, rote memorization, and behavior conditioning.

For students in Kenya, curriculum is a “floating Laputa, insulated from life and essential

human concerns” (p. 164, Flinders & Thornton, 2009). As young adults, my students are tired of

spending their days sitting straight and regurgitating meaningless information from the teacher,

and they are ashamed to be receiving physical slashes on the hand for mistakes in academics or

behavior. They want the opportunity to express themselves, to disagree, to make mistakes

without fear, to simply be respected enough to have a voice. My students know the value of

testing, arguably more than those from first world countries, yet curriculum has become an alien

and is no longer a search for meaning (p. 161, Flinders & Thornton, 2009).

Quite obviously stated in the fire outbreaks, students are lacking safe and meaningful

avenues to express themselves and voice concerns. Like Paulo Freire, I believe Kenyan

classrooms have oppressed students and silenced their need for curiosity, creativity, and

individuality. I am confident that our students, if given a voice, would transform the world.

Unfortunately, when they aren’t given a chance to speak or express themselves, they feel like

their rights as individuals have been betrayed. When discussing the relationship between

students and adults at the school, one student said, “It’s like we aren’t even human.” Freire

wrote, “Without this faith in man, dialogue is a farce which inevitably degenerates into

paternalistic manipulation” (p. 149, Flinders & Thornton, 2009). Many schools in Kenya, including
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Uhuru Academy, stifle students in the name of curriculum, ultimately muzzling an entire

generation.

I am convinced that Uhuru Academy was making beautiful strides towards empowering

and equipping learners with critical and creative thinking skills by providing arts education.

Uhuru was one of the only national schools in the country that offered art, music, and drama

courses included in the daily schedule. Perhaps the greatest way for students to express

themselves is through the arts. Tyler wrote that “through art one is able to see things more

clearly, to see them through the eyes of the artist, and thus to get a type of perception he is not

likely to obtain in any other way.” (p. 76, Flinders & Thornton, 2009).

Despite findings that suggest arts education improves creativity, empathy, and economic

opportunities, arts education is often overlooked when developing countries plan curriculums (p.

2, Glenn, 2011). Indeed, arts education is not a priority in the Kenyan curriculum where, in the

hierarchy of subjects, the arts are at the bottom. This disregard for the arts starts at home, where

parents highly discourage children from pursuing careers in visual arts, music, dancing, etc. It is

reinforced in schools, where arts are not given a time in the weekly schedule. Lastly, this belief

is reflected in the national examination, which stresses maths and sciences. In fact, the emphasis

on the exam is the greatest argument for those in favor of eliminating the arts program.

Undoubtedly, the national exam is a mighty key to success. I might be on an island with

regards to critical pedagogy, but I am not alone when it comes to wanting success for my

students. Every teacher at Uhuru Academy fights vigorously for excellent outcomes for our
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students. In Kenya, success is going to university and making money in a highly respected career,

preferably in the sciences. How does one achieve success? By passing the national exams. The

outcomes of students from poverty receiving education are phenomenal. Passing the national

exams dramatically changes the trajectory of their lives, their current family, and the future

generations.

It is my hope that Uhuru Academy and the Ministry of Education in Kenya will realize that

student voice, freedom of expression, and creativity in the arts is crucial for every students’

success. My recommendation is that we make one of the values at Uhuru Academy, “Student

Empowerment,” because I genuinely believe that their success depends on it. By making

“Student Empowerment” a value, we would require every decision to be filtered through the

question, “Does this decision empower our students to speak their truth and express their

individuality in a way that is safe and ultimately brings success to him or her?” Practically, I

propose the following: 1) art/music courses offered one period per week for all students during

normal class hours, 2) weekly afterschool art/music/dance clubs, 3) forums for students to voice

complaints and considerations.

I believe we are in a critical time where we have two options. The first is to hold fast to

this strict way of thinking that only has time for irrelevant curriculum to be transferred from one

person to another (also known as naïve thinking by Freire, p. 149, Flinders & Thornton, 2009).

The second is to continue to support our students for the exam, while at the same time giving

them space and opportunities to be conscious, intentional, outward-thinking and creative world-
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changers (Greene, p. 158, Flinders & Thornton, 2009). I believe we need to dive into the

problems, talk about the taboo topics, give space for creativity, and to drench our students in

opportunities that give them voice, identity, and meaning. We need to ignite our students’

background knowledge and experiences, to give them openings that help them weave a web of

connection which births meaning and mastery. I want to empower them with confidence,

expression, voice, and ultimately, great success.

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References

Freire, P. (2009). Pedagogy of the Oppressed. In: D. J. Flinders & S. J. Thornton

(eds.), Curriculum Studies Reader (3rd ed.), pp. 15-22. New York, NY: Routledge.

Glenn, B. (2011). The Impact of Arts Education in the Developing World (Master’s Dissertation).

Greene, M. (2009). Curriculum and Consciousness. In: D. J. Flinders & S. J. Thornton (eds.),

Curriculum Studies Reader (3rd ed.), pp. 78-93. New York, NY: Routledge.

Mabel, W. (2016). List: Over 100 Schools Burned in Kenya in Two Months. Retrieved from

https://www.tuko.co.ke/160676-list-school-fires-reported-in-kenya-in-2016-per-county.html.

Tyler, R. W. (2009). Basic Principles of Curriculum and Instruction. In: D. J. Flinders & S. J.

Thornton (eds.), Curriculum Studies Reader (3rd ed.), pp. 69-78. New York, NY:

Routledge.