“No one is indoctrinating kids in schools.”
That’s something I never thought I’d have to explain to friends outside of education!
When I work with staff to uncover, discover, and sometimes recover school values, we often encounter words you might expect: respectful, responsible, safe, and kind.
Lately, however, I’m noticing that “open-minded” in a PBIS matrix is becoming more common:
Being open-minded promotes inclusion. We are open-minded when we expect and accept that people will think, act, believe, and live differently than we do.
Being open-minded leaves room for mistakes. Knowing that we’re not always right is a powerful antidote for perfectionism, and helps us approach our mistakes as gifts to unpack rather than a burden to avoid.
Open-mindedness is a soft, approachable energy. When we’re open-minded, we can show up for each other constructively and patiently. And we can live, learn, work, and play side by side with almost anyone because we know that we rarely have to agree on everything.
Teachers want children and youth to grow up capable of exploring a variety of perspectives, and it is my honor and privilege to walk with them to make this part of their PBIS framework. I’m concerned when words like “indoctrination” come up in conversations about educators, especially when it’s clear that teachers want to make “open-minded” an explicit expectation for learning.
If you’re thinking about updating your PBIS matrix (or if you’d like to, but think it’s going to be too much work), send me an email and I’ll send you a step-by-step guide!
But, Dr. Tim, that is precisely what some claims IS the indoctrination…. Teaching children to be open-minded means that what their parents believe is not what is being taught. Merriam Webster defines indoctrination as “to imbue with a usually partisan or sectarian opinion, point of view, or principle”. In a bipartisan society such as the United States, open mindedness is not a quality that extremists on either side any issue appreciate because it means that their teachings and their beliefs are wrong, whether it is about politics, religion, sexual identity, race, gender, or age. Parents on both sides of political spectrum feel openmindedness fails them – one because it goes too far and the other because it doesn’t go far enough. Sad, but such is the state of education in 2024. In the meantime, those of us who accept people for who they say they are, try to show grace and compassion to all, and work for equity and equality in classrooms and beyond find our work increasingly difficult and heart wrenching a lot of the time.
I just came back to this post and your comment, and I’m really glad I did—even if it’s more than a year later. What you wrote has stuck with me, especially as the conversation around values like “open-mindedness” in schools has only grown more complicated.
You’re right to point out how the word can land differently depending on who’s listening. For some, it feels like an invitation to consider new perspectives. For others, it can feel like a challenge—or even a threat—to what they’ve taught their children to believe. And when trust between schools and families is already under strain, even a well-intended word can feel like indoctrination rather than education.
When I see “open-minded” on a PBIS matrix, I believe the best version of that practice is about giving students space to think for themselves and to engage respectfully with people who see the world differently—not about telling them what to think. It’s not easy work, and it’s not neutral. But I still believe it’s possible to do it with integrity, compassion, and community.
Thank you again for naming this so directly. Even a year later, your words are a reminder of how urgent and human this work really is.