In the opening scene of The Grapes of Wrath, author John Steinbeck teaches us everything we need to know about generational leadership in a crisis. He wrote about the Dust Bowl, the Great Depression. As the families stared at catastrophe, children looked to elders to see if they had broken. In a vivid description of tragedy, Steinbeck guides us to a universal truth: If our children sense that we as adults have broken, all hope is lost. That scene closes with the notion that the adults had not broken. Instead, as they gazed at a dusty blood-red sky, “the men sat in the doorways of their houses; their hands were busy with sticks and little rocks. The men sat still - thinking - figuring.”
In the pages that follow, it’s not clear if our people ultimately broke. It is clear that Steinbeck wanted us to think about the immediate fate of those in need, the systems of a nation that continually failed to care for those in need, and how hate and violence were orchestrated between ordinary people. Aside from the violence of wars, this pandemic is the most significant crisis our nation has faced since Steinbeck wrote that book.
In this pandemic, our children are staring at us to see if we break. They are also looking to see what we will teach. As with the characters in The Grapes of Wrath, we have two choices. We can offer a vision of a society that bears false witness to truth, sows division, and encourages people to act only out of self-interest. Or we can do what is right. Doing what is right requires immediate sacrifice by all, significant sacrifice by some, and a bold vision for the future. Because I am a high school educator and schools are the primary link children have with our civil society, let’s examine this institution in the face of crisis.
Immediate sacrifice. Schools are closed, and they need to be reopened. Pretty straightforward, or is it? The actions of some don’t seem to indicate they want to be a part of any solution. What isn’t clear is why we are still arguing as a nation about masks. Or why individuals still don’t seem to care about social distancing. If you want schools to reopen, do what is obvious and necessary. Wear a mask, stop gathering. Failure to do this will allow this virus to continue to wander unfettered. As significantly, this failure will teach the next generation that there is no need to sacrifice anything - not even simple things.
Significant sacrifice. Schools are closed. Or they are open. The conversation seems blindly binary. All open, or all closed. This makes no sense. The resources of schools are finite. In normal times the system is uniform - all kids, every day, same hours. That’s not possible in a pandemic. We should look at what children most need to be physically present at school right now. Others may have to make a significant sacrifice and continue engaging in distance learning. In a crisis, resources need to work diligently to serve those most in need. The math pencils out on this. Applying reasonable assumptions to staffing and student groupings that meet health standards, the majority of students could safely access a half-day of school every day. It would not look like the school we left in March. Proper leadership at all levels of society would guide people to proudly sacrifice so that those needier could receive. In the case of schools, if a student or family can sustain distance learning and that helps serve others - we thank you for your service. Your sacrifice will ensure others can access on-site academic and social-emotional support. Our mission should include teaching our children that when you can make a greater sacrifice, you do. Our nation would then be committed to the notion that if you can give, give. And if you are in need, you will receive.
We also need to boldly alter the future. This pandemic is exposing much about what doesn’t work in our institutions. We know that schools have long needed significant redesign. Crisis provides the opportunity for improvement. In distance learning we have a clear vision of what we are truly missing. Primarily, we miss human contact that doesn’t involve technology and screens. This sounds simple, but committing to quality live interaction is a complex mission. There are things we are not missing. We should stop doing these things. Traditionally schools are very inflexible, from schedules to options in how students learn. It’s time to change school schedules and the calendar. Students may not need to attend school more hours in a day, but schools need to operate more hours in the day and thus provide greater options. We may not need to increase the number of days, but schools need to operate eleven months a year with shorter breaks spread throughout the year. This makes learning a full time job - it truly places value on being at school. It also uses our resources more fully.
Instructionally, this pandemic has reinforced what we already knew - not all students learn the same way. We need to redesign the system to allow students flexible options of learning. They should be able to have a mixture of classes - at school, online, through independent study and in college classes. The false barriers between these programs need to be removed. This crisis has demanded flexibility, let us retain this value. As we haggle over masks and submerge ourselves into all or nothing scenarios, we risk losing the visionary opportunity in front of us. If we model courageous thinking, our young will learn that in the face of tragedy, as we honor sacrifice, we can also create a better world.
Simple sacrifice. Significant sacrifice. Courageous action. I think that’s what Steinbeck was hoping we would be doing as we busied our hands and set our minds to thinking and figuring. Game on elders, time to lead.