The Open Mind

Sometimes teaching can feel like the most noble profession in the world. At others, the most frustrating. As a teacher of literature and psychology, I feel a constant need, almost a sense of urgency, to share with teenagers what little wisdom I have gained over the years. Unfortunately, it seems as though being close-minded, even small-minded, is plaguing youngsters the world over. I gave my psychology students an assignment to research one of the four presidential candidates, read their histories, and analyze their childhood experiences from a Freudian point of view. Then they were asked to decide which of their decisions or actions as a leader may be results of an unconscious motivation. I distributed candidates to groups of students I thought may actually be against that particular person, in hopes that they might gain some insight into a life they knew little about, and form an unbiased, intelligent opinion about that candidate's decisions.
So did it work? Well, sort of...except when it came to one particular candidate. Snide remarks, such as, "He's a Muslim" and "he hangs out with terrorists" and "he's going to be assassinated" inevitably arose. This angered me so much - are we really still that uninformed as a people? Is it because I teach in a conservative community? Or is it just because kids just don't care enough to stay informed? Probably all of the above. Why do I even let it bother me? Only about four of my students will be able to vote in November anyway. But it's just the idea that disturbs me - that these kids are probably hearing these fallacies at home, that there probably is still a lot of latent racism out there, even in the younger segment of the population. It's outrageous to me that people can be so uninformed, so small-minded to not understand the difference between a peaceful religion and a small sect of extremists, so backwards as to even entertain the idea that an assassination of a man endorsing progress should be expected.
Or maybe it's because I plan to vote for this candidate. I'll admit, there was a part of me that laughed inside when they discovered the weaknesses of the other party. So, I say all that to say this...maybe I'm not as open-minded as I feel I am. As much I as push for changing our way of thinking, of seeing an issue from both sides and respecting the other opinion, maybe it was my unconscious motivation to have these students research the candidate I'm for, and possibly learn to admire him as I do.
Change has its enemies.