How does Kumashiro define ‘common sense’?
Kumashiro defines common sense as the facets of life that are specific to a place or group. Common sense is subjective and varies from culture to culture. For him, it was common sense that one could use water throughout the day for any need, whether it be for dishes, bathing, or laundry. However, in the Nepali village he taught in, it was common sense that particular times of day called for particular water usage. For example, the village would not be doing laundry at sunrise, because that is when the people bathe.
This localized common sense continued in Nepal’s education system. When Kumashiro attempted to engage in fun, collaborative lessons which would be common sense in North American schools, he was met with a lot of resistance from students and faculty who thought he ‘didn’t know how to teach’. This is interesting as many people would view the Canadian or American educational system as superior to the ‘outdated’ Nepali educational system.
Why is it so important to pay attention to the ‘common sense’?
It’s important to pay attention to the ‘common sense’ around you because it is not neutral. What is common in the Saskatchewan educational curriculum differs from the common sense of the Ontario curriculum. And both of these differ even more with the common sense education in Sweden or in Japan. Common sense is localized.
Common sense does not tell us what we could be doing better, it tells us only what we should be doing. It’s difficult to challenge the common sense ideas in our education system for two reasons:
- It’s difficult to challenge ‘tradition’. This is the mentality of “We have always taught it this way” — or — “The curriculum has always included this”
- Common sense is comfortable! It is comfortable to know that school is Monday – Friday, September – June, etc. Common sense means fitting in with the status quo, and it is comfortable to be socially accepted.
Through common sense, “it has become normal for us to experience oppression without realizing it”. Being part of the status quo is often quite oppressive. However, we do not generally view our common sense as oppressive because it is how we have traditionally thought and will continue to think. It’s important to note that longevity and tradition of common sense does not mean an appropriate or flawless way of thinking.
“Common sense is not what should shape educational reform or curriculum design; it is what needs to be examined and challenged.” So, only through challenging our societal common sense ideas will educators be able to address and therefore challenge the issues of oppression.
What we decide to teach and learn can either reinforce or challenge oppressive common sense ideas.
Miss McCrimmon 