The Importance of Community
You talk about community a lot. What does community mean in education?
Community is critically important for health outcomes. In the Baltimore Sun article “Study: Suicides Hide in Overdoses” (January 12, 2020, p. 1, 19), a study from The Johns Hopkins School of Medicine finds that 30 to 40 percent of all overdoses were likely suicides. With both drug overdoses and suicides independently being on the rise, this intersection is an additional finding that is both troubling and confusing. What is going on?
Dr. Stewart Wolf, a physician who in the 1950’s studied the health and well-being of the people in the small town in Roseto, Pennsylvania[1], may best answer this question. In his work, Dr. Wolf discovered that the town had exceptionally low rates of heart attacks (half that of the U.S. population) and lower death rates by age in their community than might be expected (30–35% lower). There was no suicide, no alcoholism, no drug addiction, and very little crime. While the people immigrated to Pennsylvania from a particular community in Italy, he found after years of study that the secret of their good health could not be linked to diet (they ate a lot of lard and sugar) or exercise or genes or location. Dr. Wolf figured out that their genetic origins had nothing to do with their good health. The magical powers of good health had little to do with income, diet, or even genetics. The value of multiple generations eating their meals together, people walking up and down the street talking to each other, and neighbors sitting on porches greeting each other worked together to create a culture of community support and caring. The conclusion of Wolf’s research is that the world we inhabit and the people we surround ourselves with have a profound effect on who we are, our health, and our happiness.
Educators have long known that schools based in healthy, thriving communities tend to perform at a higher level. In turn, those schools attract people who can afford to live in wealthier communities, ensuring higher teacher salaries, better parent support, more attention from area businesses and politicians, and plenty of resources. Parents who have health care for their families and income that can afford healthier food choices are likely to have children that miss fewer school days. Adults who care for children and have flexible work schedules for childcare and teacher visits can improve communication to support children with academic or personal challenges. As students are able to benefit fully from the support of their teachers, family, and community, they can better participate in extracurricular activities that positively affect minds and bodies. When any of these supports break down, we see disparities in academic and social achievement by children. Unfortunately, too often we blame these disparate outcomes on the children or adult caregivers. It is only when the community comes together to take responsibility for its children and considers how best to ensure every child gets what he or she (or they) need can we see the benefit of that caring on our communities.
To connect community in education, we must begin by thinking about the whole child, not just addressing his, her, or their deficits. We must consider the child in the community of the classroom, the school, and the neighborhood. Health requires a safe place to sleep, healthy food to eat, and individualized love and care. For us, the term “relevance” (one of our four indicators of STEM Equity Initiative’s Equitable Learning Environment) goes beyond what is interesting to students. Relevance means allowing students to become part of the creation of and solution to the challenges of their own community. In doing so, they become empowered as part of that community.
Dr. Wolf had a hard time trying to convince his colleagues in the medical community that caring for one another was the best source of improved mental and physical health. As suicides, overdoses, and other health concerns overwhelm families and communities, we can look to science for answers. The science demonstrates that we should focus our energy on creating a community of care and support. Our schools are a great place to start.
[1] Malcolm Gladwell, the author of the book, The Outliers, the Story of Success, introduces his reader to unexpected outcomes or unusual circumstances. The first chapter in the book is about Roseto, PA.