1.) "Despite my own attempts at establishing a strong relationship with the students I nevertheless remained at some level one of "them"- "the other".
In this quote Mclaren is talking about being white and middle class while working in a school that is predominantly minority. I just now came from my placement and so the feeling is fresh on my mind. I feel funny being white- they deserve a Latino or Black role model. Something other than me- I'm more of the same and more of what the students are not. I don't want them to think only white people are teachers, nurses, or cops. Every authority member I see is white. Okay, not everyone- but the vast majority. These poor students. they need their role models. Though 75% of the time I feel them wanting my attention, to affirm who they are, and respecting me, the other 25% is filled with a feeling of indifference. I feel like I have to try that much harder to let them know that I want to understand them and that I care about each student.
2.) " A moderate level of depression, an absence of political awareness, the presence of self blame, low assertiveness, and high conformity may tragically have constituted evidence of the good urban student."
I've taken care of kids. This one boy was always nervous to join in anything. He watches his big brother's soccer practice from the side lines. He'll sit on my lap at the playground and ask me before he does things if it is okay. He is a very easy child to take care of but that doesn't mean that these characteristics will fare him well in life. Here is a difficult conundrum. We want engaged, intelligent, autonomous students who sit quietly and follow the rules. I'm pretty sure that child doesn't exist. If we, as teachers, must choose between the student that is a hard control firecracker or meek lamb many would maybe want the lamb. But the firecracker is the one with gusto. The firecracker is the one who will affect change and who will be control of their destiny. The smarter a student is the harder it is to control them. Look at Einstein and John Stewart. Great minds are seldom easy to contain.
3.)"murder being the second leading cause of death in young women"
What! What!!! Oh my goodness- I had no idea. I'm almost made speechless by this statistic- what a tragedy! I don't know how accurate this information is but the idea that this is the way women may often find themselves the victims in violence really shows how dangerous deeply embedded oppression can be. It is even more upsetting when you tend to think about people who are involved in daily violence are more likely to get killed due to homicide. But women are not engaged in these gang, drug, or other high risk activities as men.So these women getting killed are dieing from domestic domination. What's even sadder is a person with more economic options can get out of an abusive relationship much easier than someone who is limited financially. Many of the victims may have been able to leave had they had the monetary resources to do so.
I think this was one of the more thought provoking articles we have read. Talk about education reform. We are essentially pushing a system of learning that is not applicable, desirable, or obtainable on many of these students. We have vocational technical school but do not encompass the students larger and broader needs. What is it that the students might need to know that they do not know. What type of jobs will they get and what skills and knowledge will lend themselves to that? Will they be graphic designers, business managers, cooks, small business owners, builders, etc.? Why Shakespeare when it just isn't applicable? I found it fascinating that sometimes- students are just better off without school- or at least the form of school we currently offer and endorse. Why go along with an oppressive system that wastes you time? It is okay to say these things because education shouldn't be wasting a students time. If it is then that education is failing. Pushing a student through high school when he/she doesn't know the language is a waste of a resource. Whereas, seeing their first language as a resource in this changing economy and working hard to develop their English gives them a reason to come to school. It graduates them with a useful skill too. Computer programing, IT, coaching, etc. are all useful skills. Lower performing schools often are unable to motivate their students because their students cannot benefit from the curriculum. Serve the population you serve and the world will be a better place!!
Tuesday, April 5, 2011
In service of what? by Kahne and Westheimer: A talking point
1.) Ms. Adams students, by contrast, began their work with a systematic and critical analysis of the causes of homeless and of the strategies employed to prevent it."
I really believe so much of our social construct is perception. If a student perceives him/herself as uneducated, powerless, or in a lower status then another than it will be so. Usually students do well in a task if they believe they can. Someone is more likely to get a job if they believe they will be good at that job. A student that lives below the poverty line may feel defeated by the system. If you take that same student and break down the definitions of poverty, the causes of it, and the ways to combat it through reformation of that system you unfold the myth. When issues like poverty are no longer a mystery but a clearly understood enemy then students are more adept to fight against and not feel that it is inevitable for them to be in it's cycle for life. It also shows the student that they can change they cycle and that they can change the world. They are meaningful individuals that can make a difference. The entire point of education is empowerment and service learning is VERY empowering.
2.) "In contrast, much of the current discussion regarding service learning emphasizes charity, not change."
I wonder if this is still true. I feel like the general populous has grasped this theory and agrees. Perhaps, I wonder, if it is simply easier to organize a charitable event than a changing event. It is easier to hand out sandwiches to hungry folks than to address fair housing laws. Maybe this is why groups would choose charity work instead of changing work. If that is the case than I think it is better to think charity than change. Better the lesser of the two powers than nothing at all. Even charity is empowering and educational. It isn't nearly as empowering and educational as changing a system would be but it is a step in the right direction.
3.) "... that all students take part in volunteer activities in either their schools or community as a condition for graduation from high school."
I love this idea whole-heartedly. I don't think Mount Pleasant High, where my placement is, has anything like this. Especially in a school where language development may often hinder the educational level of the programs, dropout rates are high, and students often feel silenced, a program like this would hold high merit. I wonder what the graduating seniors are going to do after high school. With most of them being below level for math, reading, and writing and not coming from affluent families it is hard to imagine many of these students in college. By students having the opportunity to expand their experiences into tutoring, coaching, building, organizing, assisting, etc. they can feel both empowered and get a glimpse into a field where they can possibly continue to help. There is no reason a student at couldn't go onto be a teacher's aide or a city year volunteer.
I think this article was a good, concrete marriage of everything we talk about in class and everything we can do with our students. How can we overcome racism, gender ism, classicism, etc. but learning about how other communities are affected by world issues. One of my favorite song lyrics is in a ditty bop song where they say "It ain't bothering me if you're stomping your feet but you're always killing something- just by living on the earth." This to say- we are a part of the system we live in whether we help create the stereotypes or just follow the rules. We cannot exclude ourselves from the successes and the injustices of our society. We are all responsible for this world- not all of it at once- but at least some part of it. What is it that YOU are going to affect and change? We have the power to help our students find this answer for themselves. I do think if you live a life where you are helping nothing then you are not living.
I really believe so much of our social construct is perception. If a student perceives him/herself as uneducated, powerless, or in a lower status then another than it will be so. Usually students do well in a task if they believe they can. Someone is more likely to get a job if they believe they will be good at that job. A student that lives below the poverty line may feel defeated by the system. If you take that same student and break down the definitions of poverty, the causes of it, and the ways to combat it through reformation of that system you unfold the myth. When issues like poverty are no longer a mystery but a clearly understood enemy then students are more adept to fight against and not feel that it is inevitable for them to be in it's cycle for life. It also shows the student that they can change they cycle and that they can change the world. They are meaningful individuals that can make a difference. The entire point of education is empowerment and service learning is VERY empowering.
2.) "In contrast, much of the current discussion regarding service learning emphasizes charity, not change."
I wonder if this is still true. I feel like the general populous has grasped this theory and agrees. Perhaps, I wonder, if it is simply easier to organize a charitable event than a changing event. It is easier to hand out sandwiches to hungry folks than to address fair housing laws. Maybe this is why groups would choose charity work instead of changing work. If that is the case than I think it is better to think charity than change. Better the lesser of the two powers than nothing at all. Even charity is empowering and educational. It isn't nearly as empowering and educational as changing a system would be but it is a step in the right direction.
3.) "... that all students take part in volunteer activities in either their schools or community as a condition for graduation from high school."
I love this idea whole-heartedly. I don't think Mount Pleasant High, where my placement is, has anything like this. Especially in a school where language development may often hinder the educational level of the programs, dropout rates are high, and students often feel silenced, a program like this would hold high merit. I wonder what the graduating seniors are going to do after high school. With most of them being below level for math, reading, and writing and not coming from affluent families it is hard to imagine many of these students in college. By students having the opportunity to expand their experiences into tutoring, coaching, building, organizing, assisting, etc. they can feel both empowered and get a glimpse into a field where they can possibly continue to help. There is no reason a student at couldn't go onto be a teacher's aide or a city year volunteer.
I think this article was a good, concrete marriage of everything we talk about in class and everything we can do with our students. How can we overcome racism, gender ism, classicism, etc. but learning about how other communities are affected by world issues. One of my favorite song lyrics is in a ditty bop song where they say "It ain't bothering me if you're stomping your feet but you're always killing something- just by living on the earth." This to say- we are a part of the system we live in whether we help create the stereotypes or just follow the rules. We cannot exclude ourselves from the successes and the injustices of our society. We are all responsible for this world- not all of it at once- but at least some part of it. What is it that YOU are going to affect and change? We have the power to help our students find this answer for themselves. I do think if you live a life where you are helping nothing then you are not living.
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