In a world of Gucci, Louis Vuitton, and Hermès, most AISB students seem far less privileged than others. However, in a world of starvation, poverty and illiteracy, AISB students seem especially privileged, as if they have everything and couldn’t dream of having more.
As students at a private international school, we have access to many, many opportunities both academically and recreationally. But not everyone uses their privilege for the better.
In this article, I wish to take a look at how privileged we really are, and what we can do with our privilege to improve the world as we know it.
What Is Privilege?
The Oxford Learner’s Dictionary defines privilege as “a special right or advantage that a particular person or group of people has”. However, one’s definition of privilege is subject to one’s experiences.
Long-time substitute teacher Jenny Kohl says you are privileged if “you have people around you—doesn’t have to be blood—that love and support you.”
Kohl’s view of privilege began when she was in seventh grade, living in Côte d’Ivoire. Kohl explains, “oftentimes [the parents of children who begged would deform them on purpose, so they would break a leg as young children, or manipulate their limbs so that they would have deformities on their bodies to make them better beggars”.
This is why having a loving family is extremely important to Kohl, as she has seen how greed-driven parents exploit and abuse their children to acquire more money.
Romanian teacher Ana Boiangiu believes in fair and unfair privilege, which stems from her experience during Romanian communism, where a lot of people had unfair privileges.
Boiangiu says that “children of the communist leaders had privileges in school because they were the ones taking the leadership positions. Not necessarily because they were the best leaders, but because the teachers were afraid not to choose them. They were afraid of the consequences.”
Evidently, your view on privilege depends on your experiences, which may have broadened your perspective. Even then, having privilege could just be having your basic needs met.
This idea is perfectly captured by grade 9 student Vanessa C., who says, “Privilege means that you have an advantage over others in any aspect; it’s not just about money. For example, if you have a loving family or a good education, you are privileged over others who don’t have these things.”
Two Worlds, One Country: The Reality of Romanian Schools
I’m sure all AISB students have heard something about the quality of Romanian schools, but how different are they really?
Boiangiu says, “The main teaching method is that the teacher lectures or dictates, and students have to write down. Very, very rarely, if there is a passionate teacher, would they do teamwork or projects.”
She says the Romanian system makes the students feel very isolated and disconnected, as if the focus is not on their learning. Compared to our school, where community and learning are celebrated, there is a clear disparity.
Furthermore, counseling at Romanian schools is only available for major situations, and one counsellor is assigned to three schools. Boiangiu states, “the care for the wellbeing [of the child] doesn’t exist at all, and that’s why the relationship between teachers and students is very tense in many [other public and private] schools.”
Once again, here at AISB, students are offered check-ins four times a year and given an Anonymous Reporting System. Students are constantly reminded that there are people who are willing to listen and have advisories with a focus on the importance of SEL.
It seems as though these things we find annoying, like the counsellor check-ins, are the things that other schools need in order to build relationships between students and teachers that aren’t nearly as strong as ours. These things we take for granted and have the audacity to be irritated by are privileges that many students don’t have.
At AISB, the students are put first. The teachers put in a lot of work for them, and the school tries to provide a lot of experiences for the students to enjoy and learn from.
Grade 10 scholarship student Matei H. said that in his previous Romanian public school, only the core subjects were funded.
I try to be involved in as many projects and do as many things as possible because I think our school has a lot of things to offer, and for the four years I’m here, it would be a shame not to take advantage of what we have.
Grade 10 student Matei H.
Matei also describes how AISB has helped him pursue his passions, and one great example was his experience in the AMIS Honor Choir, where they traveled to Paris. “I got the chance to be with hundreds of other music-loving students under the hand of a brilliant conductor. And that was a trip which really made me see how much I love music.”
Reality Check: Privilege in Plain Sight
Having as many privileges as we do can unknowingly cloud judgment. For example, ordinary privilege.
The Harvard Business Review explains, “ordinary privilege is ordinary because it blends in with the norms and people around us, and thus, is easily forgotten.” For example, a Romanian student at AISB would generally “fit in” easily, and wouldn’t even think about it, because they’re Romanian, which is normal to them.
There are also the less prominent privileges, like buying things without looking at the price tag.
Kohl explained that “students at AISB don’t have to worry about [budgeting] so much, and that’s good for them, there’s no judgment there. I’m glad that they don’t have to worry about money.”
These privileges might seem small, but with the gradual accumulation of small privileges, we end up on top of the mountain, which is where our judgment could be distorted by the clouds that surround us.
According to a survey conducted by The Bite that received 19 responses from all different grade levels, 63.1% of respondents believe students at AISB take their privilege for granted mostly or always, but when asked to classify themselves, only 21.1% said mostly or always. These results suggest a fundamental attribution error, in which humans pin someone else’s behavior to their personality while excusing their own behavior.
63.1% of AISB students claimed in a survey that other students take their privilege for granted, but only only 21.1% of these respondents admitted to taking it for granted themselves.
Harvard Business School defines fundamental attribution error as when “you tend to cut yourself a break while holding others 100% accountable for their actions.” Although it is not definitive that this is what’s happening in the responses, it is very likely, especially considering people in general don’t want to believe that they don’t recognize their privileges enough.
But what behaviours reflect a lack of appreciation for our privilege?
The most common thing you will find anybody at AISB doing is complaining. A student, a teacher, a parent. Complaining is very, very common at AISB, and we usually take for granted our privilege to complain. The reality is, complaining is a luxury a lot of people don’t have.
A blog post written by Ruchikarana on Medium reasons that since all of our basic needs are met in Western societies, we have time to whine about minor inconveniences, while some people are out there trying to survive. The author suggests counting our blessings because our complaints pale in comparison to the harsh realities some people face.
Of course, there are other, more severe behaviors that are caused by excessive financial privilege.
One example given by an anonymous grade 11 student on our survey is when they have observed that AISB students “can fail classes and do the bare minimum in school and in life” and still have enough financial support to live a comfortable lifestyle. In this way, excessive financial privilege may even be considered a liability and limitation by some, depending on how you look at it.
“Thank You”
So, I have already listed a couple of ways we can practice gratitude and compassion, but why? Why do we need to recognize our privilege? Isn’t that selfish and inconsiderate?
Well, actually, not acknowledging privilege is selfish.
There is a misconception that being privileged means being spoiled, which is certainly not true for everyone. Queen’s Journal explains that all the little privileges we have (like being a certain skin tone) exist whether we want them to or not. The reality is, we benefit from the oppression that other people face.
We don’t have control over our skin tone, ethnicity, or what languages we speak. But we do have control over our actions and beliefs. Not acknowledging privilege is not acknowledging our ability to make use of our privilege to make change, and that is selfish.
Using our privilege doesn’t have to be making giant changes—we can start small by reflecting or re-assessing our values.
Matei H. believes “people should sit down and think of what they have, because each opportunity might not seem like a very big thing in the moment, but later on you might see they shaped the way you are and helped you become the person that you wanted to be.”
Kohl shares how, when she was subbing in Ms. Lawless’s drama class, the infamous Question of the Day took place. She recalled that in response to ‘What do you want for Christmas?’, “every single kid just about said ‘I want a million dollars’ or ‘I want all the money in the world’”.
It’s okay to want money—there’s nothing wrong with that. But when that becomes your main focus, then you’re just never going to be happy. It’s just never enough.
AISB substitute teacher Jenny Kohl
Just small shifts in perspective can help us see the world in a different way. It is a shame to waste the opportunities we have, and it’s a shame to want goods rather than memories. Like Kohl says, more material goods will not fulfil you; you’ll just want more.
Taking time to acknowledge the small things will help create a more positive environment and will help you stay happier. Instead of feeling angry or sad about something you have to do, be glad you get to do it. Be aware of your actions and how they may impact not only the people around you but also yourself.
If you want to do more, you could give service; fundraise for a cause; donate your time, expertise, or material goods; and socialize with those less fortunate than yourself (don’t ignore them). Just be kind and think about others, because everything you do adds up to who you are as a person.
So, who do you want to be?
Great article Maya: you manage to raise the issue without pointing a finger of blame. Hopefully we’ll have some people in our community reflecting a little once they read this.
This topic is so important all over the world, especially in international/private schools like this one. The different viewpoints are so interesting, especially from scholarship students. Thank you!