Speak, Students! by: Leila Mohajer

Student advocacy is a major topic that all students should become familiar with. Without it, teachers can’t understand what their students are thinking or what they want. Student voices need to be heard and it is entirely in their hands to make it happen.

            In 8^th grade Civics class, we had a whole unit that covered student advocacy. Our teacher had us choose from a list of current conflicts in our school, come up with a solution for the conflict, and then present it to the class. Somewhere in the mix, we would be advocating for these issues. I’m going to share with you a real life example of student advocacy that should inspire students to do the same for themselves and others around them.

My cousin Victoria Sander, a 6^th grader from North Carolina, had a major conflict with the work she was given and the amount of time she had to do it. In her English class, she was given three writing assignments and only one week to complete them. She said, “I didn’t know what to do. I had no time to do all three because of dance and my homework from other classes.” She decided to take matters into her own hands and contacted her teacher.

            She explained to her teacher in a respectful manner that she, along with her other classmates, felt that they didn’t have enough time to complete their assignments. She asked, on behalf of the whole class, if the deadline for one the longer assignments could be pushed back. Her teacher was very interested in this request. She made a bargain. If all of the students received a passing grade on the first two assignments, then the third assignment’s deadline would be pushed back. If any of the students didn’t receive a passing grade, then the third assignment (which would take about three days to complete) would be due the next class as it was from the beginning. The students thought that this was fair and after a class vote, agreed to the incentive.

            The next class came and the two assignments were completed by the whole class. The teacher had announced that all of the students had received a passing grade so the longer assignment was not due until the end of the next week. Victoria mentioned that all of her friends were thankful for her actions and appreciated her desire to help out the class. Victoria used her voice to advocate not only for herself but her entire class and it was a great success for everyone.  

Students should never be afraid to advocate for themselves or speak up if they feel that something being done can be improved. It is a very important skill to have now, and will continue to be as you grow older.