Compliance vs. Engagement: What Are We Really Teaching?

Sometimes I wonder if part of the struggle in schools right now is that we are asking children to navigate two very different messages at the same time.

We say we want children to think critically, ask questions, be creative, have opinions, solve problems, and think outside the box.

But many parts of school still rely heavily on compliance: sit still, stop talking, be quiet, follow directions immediately, do it because I said so.

Children need structure, boundaries, guidance, and adults helping hold the group together. A classroom full of six-year-olds cannot function without those things.

But structure is different from unquestioning compliance.

And I wonder what happens when schools ask children to become creative, independent thinkers while also rewarding them primarily for quiet performance, conformity, and efficiency. Especially for children who are naturally active, curious, impulsive, imaginative, or simply not developing at the exact pace school expects.

I believe deeply in structure, routines, explicit teaching, and helping children learn how to function in a community. I just think children are human beings before they are students.

Sometimes I wonder what school could look like if we spent a little less energy focused on compliance and a little more energy helping children grow into thoughtful, capable, connected humans.

I think looking at schools through this lens changes the way we see children, too.

It becomes harder to reduce every struggle to "bad behavior," "lack of self-control," or "poor parenting." Instead of immediately asking, "What is wrong with kids these days?" maybe we should spend more time asking:

How can schools better support the children in front of us each day?