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IntroductionI first heard Caribbean Proverbs, conversationally, as a child. Distinct from the biblical Book of Proverbs but nevertheless connected to the sharing of wisdom, these sayings peppered the language of Caribbean elders like my Antiguan grandmother. Sayings such as “Plantain sucker follow de root” (Children follow examples set by their parents) and “Wha’ na kill, fatten” (If it does not kill you, it makes you stronger), were used for emphasis. Recently, I have turned my attention to reflecting on the relevance of these sayings in my teaching practice in a religious studies department, including curriculum design, pedagogy and classroom teaching. This examination is part of a larger project. What I offer below is a brief summary of some central ideas which consider Caribbean Proverbs as a part of a larger oral wisdom tradition. I use the term “Caribbean Proverbs,” rather than “Jamaican Proverbs,” or “Antiguan Proverbs,” because while there are published sources, these expressions, or their corollaries, also exist in other anglophone Caribbean contexts.Proverbs as Oral Repository of WisdomThe Book of Proverbs is a part of wisdom literature in biblical tradition containing the teachings of King Solomon. “Proverbs” is also a term used to refer to Anglophone Caribbean sayings expressed orally in patois (also referred to as creole or Caribbean nation language) which offer teachings about how to negotiate challenging social interactions and life situations and achieve prosperity. They include practical advice on topics such as how to work towards a larger goal and sage philosophical reflections on the dynamics of “privilege,” understood as unequal access to necessary economic, physical and cultural resources. In the Caribbean, oral Proverbs emerged from the lifeworld of the enslaved and their descendants as they navigated the colonial contexts in which they lived and struggled. I regard Caribbean Proverbs as an oral repository containing the collective distillation of life experience, and hard lessons learned, passed down through multiple generations. The trimmings are left aside while the central source of sustenance remains. One gets a sense of the urgency of the communication of the lesson structured, in part, by the historical and social context in which they emerged.Expressing complex emotional lives, political and personal desires, and developing strategies to deal with the predicament of bondage were urgent matters for enslaved African people and their descendants in the aftermath of slavery.  Because of prohibitions by law and custom from literacy and the guilds of the courts, the colonial church as state religion, the vast majority of enslaved Africans had to rely on oral traditions to construct their reflections on their life experiences and to pass down what they knew to their kinfolk and others in their communities. What emerged as creole religious and cultural expressions in oral traditions, music and dance, combined elements from Traditional African religions, Christianity and spiritual traditions encountered in the Americas to create rich repositories of knowledge.From Anansi and trickster stories to calypso, reggae and son, to the spirituals, blues and gospel, Jazz, R&B and Hip Hop—to name a few—narrative and musical expressions created by enslaved Africans and their descendants are still with us today. As such, memory and orality in all of their voiced expressions, including somatic such as dance, became the modes through which solutions to practical problems, as well as engagements with larger philosophical and political issues, were addressed.Examples of Proverbs1. Rockstone a riva battam nuh know sun hot:Translation: The stone at the bottom of the river does not feel the sun’s heat. Interpretation: Situation and context matter in understanding an issue. Sometimes, a privileged position at the bottom of a cool river, for instance, would make it very difficult to understand the circumstances of someone who has no shelter from the hot rays of the sun.Teaching Practice: This proverb has guided pedagogy on teaching about social hierarchies.2. Every mickle mek a muckle: Translation: This is a Jamaican version of a Scottish saying, “Mony a mickle maks a muckle.”Interpretation: Small contributions can add up to substantial savings or incremental gains contribute towards larger goals.Teaching Practice: I have used this strategy in designing smaller, linked assignments to encourage students’ growth and skills acquisition. 3. Who cyaan hear, mus feel:Translation: Those who refuse to listen, will feel. Interpretation: If you do not listen to sound advice and warnings, then you will go through a difficult time and suffer the consequences. The lesson will be learned but with suffering.Teaching Practice: I have often referenced this proverb when reflecting on the value of mentorship.4. When trouble tek yu, pickney shut fit yu:Translation: when you are in trouble, a child’s shirt will fit you. Interpretation: When times are difficult you will make do and make necessary adjustments. You will appreciate whatever help you can get even if under normal circumstances, such help would be deemed inappropriate.Teaching Practice: This proverb affirms resilience in the face of challenges.5. Wanti want cyaan getti, and getti getti noh wanti:Translation: He who wants it desperately cannot get it; he who gets it easily does not want it or appreciate it. Interpretation: Give thanks for blessings that come your way and realize that there are many things that we take for granted which may be luxuries for others. The Bob Marley and the Wailers songs based on this Jamaican Proverb used this comment on the plight of a post-colonial Jamaica. 5. New broom sweep clean, but owl broom noe dem cahna.Translation: A new broom sweeps clean, but the old broom knows all the corners. Interpretation: It is useful to seek a balance between the old and the new. Throwing away experience over expedience is unwise Combining a fresh approach with valuable experience of the old is a better path.Teaching Practice: Bringing newer and older perspectives together in planning course designs, or instance, can yield innovative and proven strategies for teaching and learning. Suggested Reading:Brathwaite, Kamau. History of the Voice: The Development of Nation Language in Anglophone Caribbean Poetry. London: New Beacon Books, 1984.Antigua and Barbudan Sayings Archives - Antigua and BarbudaJamaican Proverbs | The National Library of Jamaica

On a recent visit to the faculty breakroom to heat up my lunch, I ran into a colleague who asked, “Richelle, how is the semester going?” We had not seen each other very much during the semester. We were at the midpoint—administering exams and collecting assignments. Among the faculty, there was an awareness that the consistent use of AI was presenting problems. We felt anxious because we were uneasy about moving forward regarding campus policies and the use of AI. We were skeptical and questioned whether students were even interested in learning anymore.My colleague’s question prompted me to move beyond the default response, “The semester is going well,” but I took a few seconds to answer. “I am experiencing some sharpening this semester.” With a puzzled look, he followed up with, “What do you mean?” “I am being challenged relationally by students, and vocationally I am being stretched.” Our brief conversation ended with him telling me to hang in there, and with me returning to my office to take some time to reflect on my response.Proverbs 27:17—“As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another.” One Bible commentator offers: “Iron cutting tools are made sharp, bright, and useful by rubbing them against another form of iron. A person without the company and conversation of a friend is alone, dull, and inactive; but with the fellowship and communication of a friend, they are refreshed, revived, and fitted for—and incited to—action.”The experiences of sharpening that I encountered were not directly connected to friendship, but to the teacher-student relationship. I recalled the two intentions I set at the beginning of the semester:As a teacher, I would strive to be the best version of myself. As a teacher, I would help students read, write, and think better. The first intention caused me to remember my teacher, mentor, and dissertation advisor—Dr. Katie Geneva Cannon. She often shared the legacy of Black women educators in the Jim Crow South who taught in overcrowded, one-teacher schools with scarce funding and out-of-date resources. This lack did not prevent them from proclaiming to Black children, “I will give you the best that I’ve got, and I want you to be even better.” This mantra was my guiding star throughout the semester. I created, prepared, rearranged, revised, added, subtracted, engaged, and explored content and teaching strategies for student-centered learning.The second intention called for a complete overhaul of the first because I was confronting the reality that some students do not want to be better readers, writers, or thinkers. There was resistance and, oftentimes, a refusal to engage in those foundational educational tasks. My self-dialogue centered on the following questions:Why do they resist reading and writing? It seems like using ChatGPT is always their first choice—why do they refuse to think on their own? Have they been taught to think critically? Beyond offering objective answers, many students would not respond to questions in class. Students used ChatGPT to complete reflection questions and other learning assignments. Using AI is not a big deal for students—everybody does it. Students often avoid doing hard things. Facing consequences and/or being held accountable for actions, good or bad, has not been consistent.As I became more intentional about engaging in prayer and reading scripture, and paid attention to what I was seeing and experiencing among my students, I resonated with Matthew 9:36: “When he (Jesus) saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were confused and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.” This verse helped me to identify the students’ need for character development, critical thinking, accountability, and facing consequences for their actions. They were confused and helplessly attached to cultural norms, social media, and subject to poor decision-making.These revelations helped change my perspective and navigate more effective ways of being my best self, while incorporating character development, accountability, critical thinking, and consequences within the foundational activities of reading, writing, and thinking. God was calling me to be a shepherd for this group of sheep, guiding them beyond confusion and poor decisions. This experience of sharpening is a continuous process. Progressing through the semester with these new changes was not easy, but it introduced all of us to becoming better—if not the best—versions of ourselves. Challenging, refining, and improving one another, the sparks and friction that ensued were difficult but necessary, and will hopefully produce lifelong learners who benefit from the sharpening.