Creating a classroom culture for learning: Breaking Bad Habits Part 2 - The power of pronouns

 YOU

You need to improve your…….

When will you learn that……

This is your fault. You did this………

Such statements appear regularly both in our personal and professional lives. Language which has been with us since our early childhood. Language which has become habitual and to some degree helps frame our perceptions of the world. But our language also communicates both intended and unintended messages to those around us. In particular the pronouns You or Your can potentially create a sense of segregation - an us and them mentality. We should not underestimate the power of a single word or phrase. As Ron Ritchhart states in Creating Cultures of Thinking:

“And that is the thing about language, it is at once ubiquitous, surrounding us constantly, yet we hardly take note of its subtleties and power. And due to its constant presence, it is shaping our behaviour, interactions, thinking, attention, and feelings in ways that we might not be consciously aware of." 

In any given classroom at any given time of the day how many times will the word you be spoken by a teacher? And what does this say about the relationship between the teacher and students?  Don’t get me wrong there are situations where perhaps the use of you and your are necessary, but there are many other times when we would be better served using inclusive pronouns: We and Our. Over time they will hopefully help create a climate of safety and trust between teacher and student. So in the spirit of creating a sense of community and togetherness in our classrooms below are some possible alternative statements:

We need to ensure that our classroom is left tidy after each lesson.

We have high expectations regarding our conduct. Can you remind us how we should enter the classroom?

Today we are reading the prologue to Romeo & Juliet. 

I know it is a struggle but using our collective minds I am confident we can do this.