A former student and I recently discussed the science behind how the brain connects memory to specific stimuli. He asked great questions and we worked through a variety of ideas. Oddly enough, I have always been fascinated by how a song, a food smell, etc. can transport a person back in time to a specific moment that replays in vivid detail.
This happens to me a lot. A guy wearing a Hoodoo Gurus t-shirt and I’m back in Haughty’s attic listening to Mars Needs Guitars surrounded by band posters after we came home from the Music Staff. Mist in LA on a run suddenly transports me back to riding my Surly along the Burke Gilman Trail coming home from work contemplating the differences between Fall, Winter, and Spring rain by how it hits my face. Oregano in tomato sauce takes me to YaYa’s kitchen when I get busted using my fingers to taste the tomato sauce that’s simmered on the stove the entire weekend. Odd things trigger memory and get me thinking.
Whenever I hear Synchronicity II by The Police, I think about Kevin Houlihan and the importance of feeling like you matter in school.
For a period of time in high school Kevin would often at random moments blurt out, “PACKED LIKE LEMMINGS INTO SHINY METAL BOXES!” This line from the Police song never failed to both catch me off guard and get me thinking. Wtf? Why? What do you mean?
The memory I have attached to this song, these instances (correctly or not) involves pool hopping at Memorial Pool in the summer. It goes like this… It is a typical Jersey summer evening (still warm, still humid), Kevin stands on the high dive in his boxers wearing these ratty white Bucks carrying on a conversation in between sips from the can in his hand. Out of nowhere as he looks out across the roofs of the houses that surround the pool… “PACKED LIKE LEMMINGS INTO SHINY METAL BOXES!”
If you don’t know the song, it describes the meaningless of corporate work and the vacant nature of suburban life for many people. It pairs well with The Monkees Pleasant Valley Sunday, or RUSH’s Subdivisions (maybe also Bad Religion’s 21st Century (Digital Boy)). Since we grew up in a suburban stereotype, tunes like this hit home more often than not. At the random moments Kevin busted out these lyrics I always had questions...was it the song? The section of the lyrics? Or, was he commenting or warning people not to get sucked into the void like the family in the song? I want to say we discussed it at some point, but I can’t remember.
This many years later, whenever I hear it, that song and those lines transport me back and the same questions reverberate in my head. Maybe it is only me, but the song reminds me how the need to matter drives a sizable chunk of human behavior. Whether at school, at work, or in some recreational pursuit many people do not want to lead lives of quiet desperation. To me this need to matter represents one of the driving forces underlying the Great Resignation. Also, it may be why so many students dislike school… What does it matter? I don’t matter…
We can discuss whether or how school matters, but I think an issue that educators often ignore is that a good chunk of students feel like they don’t matter (in school and/or out of school). Myriad students transition from middle school to high school questioning if they matter or if what they do matters. This is not unlike social promotion. The burden of these questions snowballs as a student progresses through school. Eventually most stop trying to matter (some become one of the parents in this Police song, while others become Pink from The Wall). To me this reflects one of the biggest areas for improving education.
To matter or have a purpose drives the behavior of many people. Not having/finding that or worse giving up this search frames the experiences of a good number of students or adults. How can schools, specifically in the upper grades, ensure that each student graduates knowing they matter?
I used to think that increasing Social Emotional Learning (SEL) in the upper grades would do the trick. And while I still think that would help, the upcoming conservative hysteria around SEL might make this an unnecessary problem. Plus, I worked for a school that claimed to do this and really their efforts just took up 12 pages of each narrative. Really I think the issue is at once complicated and simple. To matter involves social and emotional components, as well as, a web of psychological support systems. Structural vulnerabilities in school also factor into this as do various societal issues (race, gender, identity, etc.), family issues and the influence of parents.
So where do we start? I start with the idea that all learning stands on a foundation of relationships and trust. Research suggests that if a student feels seen by one teacher that is enough to prevent dropping out. What if teachers could greet, say hello or knew about their students wants or needs? In the upper grades activities towards this goal could take place on multiple levels. It could start in advisory or homeroom. It can happen in the hallways with a quick nod. To make it so each high school student graduated knowing they matter requires a multitude of ideas and strategies to meet the needs of so many individuals. I don’t have all the answers, but I keep looking and listening for ideas.
Educators- if we want to matter, we have to do something more to make sure our students know they matter.
Unfortunately, the politics of hysteria and ignorance continue to gain strength. As a result of these forces teachers are being further reduced in many places to something akin to educational side notes. To say it a different a way
Educators - if we don’t matter, school doesn’t matter. If school doesn’t matter students will figure that out pretty quick and get the message that they don’t matter.