“One good teacher in a lifetime may sometimes change a delinquent into a solid citizen”.      

Phillip Wylie

 

    On December 13^th, 2018 I visited Pierre Elliott Trudeau Elementary School to continue my investigation of global citizenship in action. In my last post I painted a picture of how environmental awareness was one of the main distinctions of the school and it was especially apparent in the grade 4 classroom in which I volunteered.

       For this visit I had several critical inquiry questions that aligned with my research goals. Firstly, I wanted to know how the school prepared students for their role as engaged citizens. Researchers Maurissen, Claes and Barber (2017) use the phrase “engaged citizenship” to describe the role that schools play in preparing students for positive political attitudes and behavior Maurrisen et al. (pp. 951, 2017). They characterize these attitudes as “democratic capacity building” which occurs through discussion. Their research measures how students perceive the classroom climate as open or closed to respectful and fair discussions, which reflects the degree to which they are likely to demonstrate their participation as engaged citizens. The researchers present their work through a political lens and describe how students experience democracy in the classroom with a focus on the value of student engagement signified by a positive discussion climate. With this as a starting point, it was also important for me to know the level of open discussion that existed among students in the grade 4 class. How did the school context lend itself to student participation in dialogue and action, and in what other ways did it promote an awareness of engaged citizenship? I also wondered what approach teachers used to ensure a school and classroom “characterized by fairness and responsiveness” Maurrisen et al. (pp. 981, 2017) where “adolescents feel respected and fairly treated by their teachers” Maurrisen et al. (pp. 952, 2017) and any best practices for this.

 

The teacher-student connection and modelling right behaviour

       The Maurrisen et al. article discusses how a positive school climate is nourished within schools by attending to values such as respect, fairness, care and appreciating student participation. In my observations of discussions with in the classroom at Pierre Elliott Trudeau, I witnessed students respectfully disagreeing with one another and waiting their turn to speak during presentations. Despite this I was still curious about the philosophy behind teacher-student interactions and how it connected to the theme of global citizenship and being an engaged citizen. In order to learn more I decided to speak to two teachers to get more insight into the school context and its philosophy.

The main discussion points that were consistent for both teachers were the language they used to describe the student-teacher connection and participation. Some of the patterns that emerged in our conversations were the need for high standards in subject-matter achievement, expressed by one teacher as creating “a successful team” (translation); and the importance of student participation through teacher modelling of positive behavior. She was quoted as saying “teacher involvement has a big impact on the students” (translation). The other teacher I spoke with plays indoor soccer with students during lunchtime so that they have an opportunity to participate in an extra-curricular activity during the school day.

Both teachers agreed that the level of participation is high among staff and that their efforts to model this for students was an important part of their contribution to the school. One teacher mentioned that in so doing students learn to appreciate and ‘pay it forward’. Indeed, in my own discussion with the students in the 4^thgrade class, one boy said that he volunteered his time at the library during lunch to help stack the shelves, further emphasizing the positive results of teachers efforts.

 

 

 

The importance of making valuable connections

The efforts by teachers to connect with students outside of the allotted classroom time and the focus on modelling participation in the school context is important for global citizenship in action. At Pierre Elliott Trudeau students are exposed to teachers who willingly and conscientiously engage with them and encourage them to respect each other during and outside of regular classroom sessions, thereby forming positive teacher-student connections. While this is not new or unique in the school system, it is important to pinpoint areas of action where themes of engaged citizenship, social justice and eco-awareness intersect. The identity of the school and its distinct characteristics as a minority group of French speakers in Toronto presents an even richer and multi-dimensional approach to the theme of global citizenship at schools in Toronto.