Episode 116: More than Cliches?

Welcome to the Counter Narrative Podcast, a show designed to change the way we talk, and think, about education. By sharing stories of successes and triumphs, we aim to challenge the dominant narrative that often negatively portrays our disenfranchised populations.

I’m your host, Charles Williams. An urban educator for more than 15 years, a current school principal in Chicago, an educational consultant, an equity advocate, and the co-host of Inside The Principal’s Office.

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We use some phrases in educational conversations so often that they have become almost cliche. Why they are still important to maximizing learning for our students, I fear that they have been reduced to little more than lip service. This is evident as those same conversations, while recognizing the need for such practices, also relies heavily on Discourse I conversation in which the students, their families, and even society is blamed for the lack of progress that we are making. My challenge to those who partake in such discussions is to consider shifting to Discourse II and examining the roles that we play in both the problems and the solutions. Using our recent Back 2 School Bash, I point out how we are attempting to actually move beyond conversation in order to support not just our students but their families and the surrounding community as well. I recognize that no approach will be fool proof but doing something is better than doing nothing. 

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