I am not a 'Sponge'

On innumerable occasions have I heard the phrase "be a sponge" uttered to students, by teachers or professors alike. Not only do students have to 'absorb' everything that is thrown at them, but are also required to 'unlearn' everything they've learned till date. Such words and phrases inflicted upon students at schools or universities reflect a very poor and unfortunately widespread misunderstanding of education and pedagogy. In this view, students are containers of knowledge who are obliged to deposit into their ‘vessel’ what the instructor says. The Brazilian educationist Paolo Friere termed this phenomena as "banking". Just as one deposits money into a bank account to 'save' it for future requirements and in hope of higher 'returns', the student is expected to do the same. But the student is neither not a bank nor a sponge. Knowledge is not merely data that can be recalled on demand and applied mechanically or contextually to yield meaningful results.

When the student is treated as a sponge, they are robbed of their future by reinforcing a hierarchical relationship in which questioning is not encouraged. Attitudes of the home enter the classroom. Critical thinking demands critical questioning. This does not necessarily mean that the student will incessantly question, without reason, what they are being taught. But perhaps this is the question that petrifies educators the most. I have found this to be a very fundamental question, that, when examined with an open mind, can lead to a very enriching reflective exercise, ultimately leading to the design of a better curriculum or syllabus. Tutors have to pivot to a worldview where questioning is not seen as an act of rebellion but a natural response of an inquisitive mind.

Education has to nurture curiosity. The classroom can either function as the site of suppression of ideals, ideas, feelings and questions; or, liberate students from shackles of the mind that hold them back. To do this, the educator has to confront their insecurities, get to grips with the subject at hand and let conversations flow. Teaching is not instruction but a dialogue. In this process, various kinds of questions emerge - not just the why’s, but also the how’s, what’s, where’s, when’s and who’s. Perhaps one of the biggest contributions of a tutor is to facilitate the student in asking the right questions.

Perhaps the wrong analogy (of a sponge) is applied to personality traits such as ‘receptiveness’ or ‘openness to experience’. An open or ‘absorbent mind’ is not devoid of criticality. Instead of treating students as a vessel which stuff has to be poured into, students ought to be treated as beings with their own agency. Treating them as a sponge entrenches passivity and conformity. The tutor should try to mould no one. Certainly not in their image.