The role of relationships play an integral part in our needs as humans. Although, we have become accustomed to think of human needs in a hierarchical order through Maslows's Hierarcy of Needs; Manfred Max-Neef's Fundamental Human Needs wheel demonstrates how our needs as humans are not hierarchical. ( as cited in Environmental Justice, n.d.) Max-Neef's model emphasizes the social aspects of our human needs and how these are just as important as our physiological needs. Needs such as the need for identity and understanding are present in people from all cultures, and at their core have to do with human interactions and relationships. As we aim to teach and impact the children we work with, we must be cognizant of these needs and act to address them simultaneously.
The practice of teaching the whole child, not just the academics, through the intentional lens of the relationships that we form, benefits all children, yet none more than children that we see performing at the lowest academic levels- minority children and children from low socio-economic households. Children from these marginalized communities struggle to become self actualized when their culture and their life experiences are devalued by the larger community. There are many factors which play a part in the current achievement gap that we see among our children of color. As an educator, I look at Max-Neef's wheel of needs and look for ways to fulfill those needs in my students while I teach the curriculum.
The practice of teaching the whole child, not just the academics, through the intentional lens of the relationships that we form, benefits all children, yet none more than children that we see performing at the lowest academic levels- minority children and children from low socio-economic households. Children from these marginalized communities struggle to become self actualized when their culture and their life experiences are devalued by the larger community. There are many factors which play a part in the current achievement gap that we see among our children of color. As an educator, I look at Max-Neef's wheel of needs and look for ways to fulfill those needs in my students while I teach the curriculum.
In Maslow's model, self actualization could only be met after all those beneath it are satisfied. In Max-Neef's model needs can be met independent of each other.
In our classrooms we could meet many of the human needs of Max-Neef's wheel. Identity, understanding and participation are just some of the needs that we could address for all students through carefully selected literacy activities. |
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