Carla Shalaby: "Troublemakers"

When reading Carla Shalaby’s preface to Troublemakers, I couldn’t help but reflect on not just my own experiences in school growing up, but also in my experiences observing various classrooms across different grade levels. To think about what these kids go through every day of their lives while trying to enjoy what they have left of their childhood is heartbreaking to think about. Shalaby distinctly writes about the experiences of four elementary-school students to show a new vision, one that highlights life through the eyes of children that are considered troublemakers or challenges. This is a different approach to how most researchers aim to view educational settings. Whereas most will follow those who fall into the criteria of “leaders,” Shalaby shows how these students are continuously marginalized and isolated from their peers. To quote her directly, “the patterns of their experiences, especially those of older children, are well documented in what we know about the school-to-prison pipeline” (xix). She cites the notably higher percentage of preschool expulsion and suspension rates in children of color in comparison to white children, and writes that these children are the ones from whom we can learn the most about freedom. 

I can’t help but think about how important it is to view life through the eyes of the students that Shalaby has chosen for this book. We’re always reading stories about “who can behave the best?” “who can sit the quietest for the longest amount of time?” and even being subjected to such ruses as “anyone who follows the rules the most this week wins a cool eraser!!” but these stories inadvertently paint those who speak out against this conformity as “issues” that need to be solved. But are these “issues” really solved? Or are they simply removed? 

While reading Kazandra’s blog, her recollection of her experience witnessing a student be called out for their behavior in front of the entire class stood out to me in particular, especially when the student would isolate himself from the rest of the class and there was never any questioning on why the student never wanted to be a part of the rest of the class. The student simply accepted that he was placed in an environment that decided to “label” him instead of “listen” to him.

 

Removing issues does not solve the issues, just as throwing away a broken toy does not fix it. We have to acknowledge our internal biases, fix our system, and work with these “troublemaking children,” not against them.