Oh... they're real people?

With the passage of the current spending bills from the Minnesota legislature, it's far too easy to reduce education issues and concerns down to nameless "students" being taught by "teachers." Doing so is convenient and intoxicating, but often de-humanizes the process so badly that we forget that there are real people encapsulated in those common nouns.

That said, I encourage you to go and read some recent commentary from actual students offering some keen insights about technology in the Minneapolis schools. While their ideas and insights are excellent, what I really think is paramount is hearing the voices of students in an authentic manner. Somehow, these voices don't sound troubled or dysfunctional or failing, do they?

Funny things happen when we stop debating and start listening.