Alinsky Leader May Struggle Toward

Alinsky leader may struggle toward a decision and weigh the merits and demerits of a situation which is 52 per cent positive and 48 per cent negative, but once the decision is reached he must assume that his cause is 100 per cent positive and the opposition 100 per cent negative." Discuss a time when you have had to support or oppose something that you weren't 100% convinced of, either in your personal situation, or within an organization in which you are a participant. Alinksy admits to his negative reactions to students who do not meet his own standards. In what ways can the attitude of the learner (adult) impact the attitude of the teacher? Discuss if you believe that it is appropriate for a teacher of adult students to display this attitude to the learners.

Alinksy speaks of respecting the dignity of the individual with whom you are working. He states: "It is difficult for people to believe that you really respect their dignity." Thus, as an educator, I ask myself: how do I respect the dignity of others and how do I know I am successful as a teacher? Someone once said to me that being a grownup means doing things you do not want to do. From my experiences as a teacher, I often think that being a teacher means doing things you do not want to do -- that is, being in conflict with administrators, and being committed to enforcing policies you do not agree with, 100% of the time! This is especially frustrating when policies seem to violate student dignity and the teacher's authority to establish discipline and effective learning practices within the classroom.

My first experience of this was when I was very young, working with children as a camp counselor. The camp had very strict policies about when the children were supposed to have 'lights out,' show up for breakfast, and what they had to wear. I personally thought it would be better for the children to have to 'find out for themselves' that staying up all night just left them too tired and cranky to enjoy the activities the next day, that going hungry in the morning made their blood sugar crash half-way through their first activity of the day, and that not wearing a sweater during evening recreation made them cold. However, I was responsible as part of my job to protect the camp from liabilities. I was responsible for enforcing these rules, so enforce them I did. Similarly, as an instructor I must hold true to the pre-set principles of the course in terms of grading and evaluating students, even if I did not design the syllabus or course requirements myself.

One of the challenges of assuring adult learners that you respect them is that there is an inherent tension between any two individuals, especially two adults, when one assumes the superior role. What right, thinks the adult learner, does the teacher have to tell me what to do? This is why a teacher must seem committed to class policies, even if he or she does not feel committed to them in his or her own secret heart and mind. It is essential that an adult teacher have authority over the classroom, because it can be so difficult to establish over other adults. If the adult learner has a high sense of self-esteem, he or she may be more willing to accept the teacher's authority in a classroom context, knowing that the teacher's authority is indeed contextual, and he or she will reassume being a 'grown-up' in other parts of life. However, for other adult learners, the teacher's assumed superiority of knowledge appears threatening.

A teacher of adult students, because of the greater sense of equality between the two parties in the classroom, may also be inclined to expect more of adult learners. It is my nature in general to assume those whom I teach are adults, and capable of a similar level of responsibility, commitment, and reasoning as myself, even if they do not have my same knowledge base. I think that showing respect to one's students encourages them to rise to the challenge, and usually it does -- however, when it does not, I do have to be careful that my disappointment is not reflected in my demeanor to my students.