I was teaching the Mayan number system. I was outlining how they wrote their numbers in column form and how it was a base-20 system. I showed them how each symbol meant something and how to add them together to get the final number. It was confusing, it was different, and for many students, it was hard to grasp.
After a short while, a student raised his hand. “Why are we learning this? What does this have to do with Spanish?” Another student chipped in. “Yeah, this isn’t Math class.”
I had an answer (a good teacher always does – whether or not it is satisfactory to the student). I had been teaching them the entire process in Spanish. The Mayans had (and continue to have) a large presence in the cultures of Mexico and Central America, which we were studying at the time. But rather than remind them of those simple facts, I said something different.
“Enseño más que el español.” (I teach more than Spanish). My class looked at me quizzically. I continued on (in Spanish, of course).
“Do you think that you are at school just to learn facts and information?” Lots of head nodding. “Well, you’re not. You are here to learn how to open your mind up to different ways of thinking. You are here to experience different perspectives so that later you can form your own. You are here to constantly re-wire your brain.”
There was a brief pause as students absorbed this and then we moved on with out lesson. But the question and the moment caused me to reflect on what exactly my role is as a high school teacher.
Yes, of course, I teach the Spanish language through stories and culture. But what else?
I do teach more than Spanish. I am required to help students prepare for the SAT/PSAT, so I teach study and test taking skills. I require papers to be written so I teach sentence, paragraph and essay structure. I ask students to figure out their own grades so I teach division and percentages. We use computers and I teach how to use different programs. I present artwork and teach art analysis. I play songs and teach music appreciation. I teach history and geography . I teach reading and listening comprehension. I teach communication skills.
I am under no illusions with my students. I know that many of them will not go on to study Spanish or even use it past my class. As a community college teacher I often heard: “Yeah, I took (1-4) years of Spanish in high school. I don’t understand any of it, though.” (Trust me, I work hard to combat that, but I know my own students say it too.)
So, perhaps the real lessons that occur in class are the not strictly content related. Perhaps they are the lessons that get kids who “don’t like to read” excited to read a book. The lessons that reinforce basic math skills. The lessons about how to be understanding of those around them. The lessons about looking at the world through different eyes. The lessons that force us to rethink our own patterns and norms. Perhaps even the lessons about another culture’s number system.
