In traditional classroom settings, the most basic structure involves teachers assigning work, students completing it and teachers evaluating it. While teachers have the opportunity to track and grade students’ learning, students have little say in how they are taught or whether they are being set up to succeed. What if certain teaching methods don’t apply well to all students? What if students are not given the resources they need to better understand the content? As long as letter grades remain the way students’ academic ability is judged, students deserve a voice in shaping how they are taught, creating an environment that promotes their learning.
Throughout our high school careers, we have experienced firsthand the power imbalance between teachers and students. Many teachers, sincerely or not, encourage students to speak up and provide feedback in class. While this may sound like a solution, in reality, criticizing a teacher can make them view you differently. While not all teachers take feedback personally, students may fear that any negative response could harm their relationship with the teacher in the long run. Additionally, intimidation from a figure of authority is a real, silencing factor for students seeking to have a say in how their classrooms are run. If every grade we receive is feedback on our learning, then students should have a safe space to give feedback on how they are taught and what can be done to support their learning, without worrying about damaging their image in the teacher’s view.
One reason students feel silenced in the classroom is the frequent emphasis on compliance rather than collaboration. A Child Trends focus group found that when students are allowed to participate in class, it is usually the same few who get called on and feel comfortable sharing. Furthermore, these students typically understand the content well, while other students who may be behind feel disillusioned and excluded from the conversation. We feel this is because the classroom creates too strong a stigma around always being “right,” and both teachers and the student body need to allow for more room to grow and acknowledge that learning takes time. While some students may succeed in a given subject, others may require more support to reach the same understanding, and this can be recognized by creating a collaborative culture where students can learn from each other, not just the smartest, and feed off the teachers, with the rest feeling like they have to play catch-up.
We appreciate the teachers who take time to listen to students’ concerns and make changes to accommodate them. This creates a classroom where students feel heard and like they have some control over their learning experience. However, one student from the focus group said, “They ask what we think, but nothing changes. It’s like they just want to say they listened.” Ultimately, classrooms are not democracies, and teachers have full control over how they structure their classes, leaving it up to students to adjust. We do not ask that teachers give up power to let their students run their classroom; we just ask that they listen to our ideas to enhance our learning. If we say a certain type of assignment isn’t helping us, why assign it? Together, we can make the classroom a learning haven, not just a competition for a letter grade.
