Assignment for December 5, 2013
Welcome to our first Blog Discussion!
Your assignment is....
1. Send me your Reflection 1 by 5:00pm on 12/5.
last name______Reflection1
2. Post your Reflection 1.
Review – What did you learn? key concepts/vocabulary? ½ page Reflect – What did it mean to you? ½
pageRefine – How will you use the
information in your classroom? 1 page
4. Thoughts about the video? Write about 200 words about your impressions. You may consider writing about....
What stood out to you from this video? What is your single story? What is your frame of reference? Any other impressions.
5. Respond to 2 colleagues by December 12th @ 5:00pm. Keep it simple yet thoughtful. No min or max.
Reflection 1 Review and Reflect
ReplyDeleteReview
Jana Noel defines culture as, “a way of seeing, perceiving, and believing” (Noel, 2008, p.11). This definition describes culture in terms of a deep structure or the roots of people’s beliefs, perceptions, and values, rather than by outward, more observable elements. Language is also part of the roots of a culture. She also describes culture as, “a historically developed and developing way for a group of people to deal with the natural and social world” (Noel, 2008, p.12). This includes practices, behaviors, ways of communicating organizing, and thinking, and traditions of a group. The functions of culture include meeting basic needs for survival, giving one a sense of belonging, and helping one reach self-actualization. One of the most significant sources of learning the dominant culture of an area is the local school. Schools teach students the skills they need to be successful in this culture and take on the jobs necessary for the culture to function. Some see this as reproducing the dominant society to further social inequalities.
Reflect
I always feel conflicted when discussing this subject. I have traveled to many other countries and have always felt it was my responsibility to adapt to the customs of the country I was visiting. I study ahead of time to make sure I know how to act as much like a native as possible, so I can blend in. For some reason, many in the United States feel guilty if we even have cultural attributes, such as the celebration of Christmas, let alone expect others to respect our values. On the other hand, I work with precious children from very different backgrounds who may look or act different because of their culture. I feel very protective of them, and will not tolerate any other student making fun of them or disrespecting their culture or beliefs. I have also learned that many students abandon their first language and even refuse to speak it with their parents as they get older and more fluent in English. This is very sad. I would like to see every EL achieve bilingual fluency and a bi-cultural identity.
The way the author used the word “privileged” (p. 22) to describe the skills necessary for success in our schools, made me feel defensive. Being constantly late is not a “style”. It is a practice that is considered rude and thoughtless in our culture. Americans need to be more patient when they experience “island time” in another country, and those coming to our country need to learn to watch the clock to respect our expectations. I do believe that these customs should not be considered “wrong” but instead, “different”.
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ReplyDeleteReflection 1 Refine
ReplyDeleteRefine
In my ESOL classroom, I need to teach my students about the culture in which they now live as well as give them opportunity to share and celebrate the cultures of their families. We do not have a large ESOL population at my school, but it is very diverse. Less than half are Spanish speaking. Many were born in the United States, but struggle with English because they spoke another language before starting school. These students have no experience with living in another country. It is important for me to give these students an opportunity to share their cultural as they experienced it or research their cultural heritage. They can share their holiday traditions, foods, or customs. Hopefully, by sharing and celebrating these customs and traditions, the students will continue to value them. Practically speaking, this will make them much more valuable in the workplace when they grow up. It will also help them to value their family and cultural heritage. It is important for me to teach these students in a way that shows appreciation for their differences as well as how to be successful in this culture. They need to feel a sense of belonging at school without losing that feeling of belonging in their home culture.
In class, I learned about a fantastic website called Culture Grams.com. This will be so useful to use for projects. Students can find all the information they need to create a presentation or research paper about their country of origin. I definitely plan to use this. I also like the 222 strategy. Students read a passage and come up with 2 quotes, 2 connections, and 2 questions to share. I can use this in many different ways. Lastly, I learned about the great videos to be found on YouTube by searching, “culturally responsive teaching”. I plan to use some of these for the ESOL Committee meetings that I chair.
Pam, I definitely agree with your idea of the importance of teaching our students to show appreciation for their differences, while teaching them how to be successful in our culture. I plan to use the Culture Grams to help gain information for myself in order to help teach my students about cultures. I also want to search YouTube for "culturally responsive teaching" - thanks for the reminder!
DeleteThoughts about "Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie: The Danger of a Single Story"
ReplyDeleteChimamanda Ngozi Adichie spoke so eloquently about the danger of a single story, of stereotyping, and of power.
As I watched this video, several things stood out to me. Firstly, it made we aware of how much EVERYONE in this world is guilty of buying in to the single story. Whether it be a single story of a particular region, culture, profession, or way of life, single stories force people of become one thing. When people buy in to the single story, they think what they hear and do not go beyond that thought.
When we base our entire concept of a culture based on a single vision, we create stereotypes. As Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie pointed out, stereotypes are based on truths... however they are incomplete. They rob people of dignity.
I think that everyone has a single story... even if it is something very simple. For me, I sometimes feel that people believe what they see and make assumptions based on that. I am overweight. And I sometimes feel that when people see that they immediately think that I am lazy or unmotivated and make judgement based on that. The truth is that I cycle 3-4 times a week, usually 15 miles at a time. I eat healthy. I work non-stop. I am not lazy and I am not unmotivated. I have been judged based on my appearance. My weight is a single story that people have of me.
Corey, I like what you said about the danger of stereotyping and power. I believe that more often than not, the sole purpose people create stereotypes is to gain power over a certain population. Sadly I think that's like the gang mentality.
DeleteLeslie, I like how you were able to reflect on how we only hear the single story. As teachers we have the opportunity to make a students educational experience great, small acts of kindness count everyday in the classroom. I agree, we must teach them about respect and values while we teach the curriculum. All is a great balancing act.
DeleteReflection on video of Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s Danger of a Single Story:
ReplyDeleteI really liked this video. I think what I liked the most was how she shared that she saw people as single stories as well, instead of simply pointing fingers at others. Everyone stereotypes other groups of people and reduces them to a single story. That doesn’t make it acceptable but is, instead, a starting point for all of us. As Ms. Adichie stated, this robs people of their dignity.
We need to help our students be better than we are about reducing groups of people to a single story. We need to expose our students to a variety of literature that includes authors from other cultures. The concept of the single story would be an excellent topic for a class discussion, writing prompt, and/or small group discussion. If children can learn now how to avoid this kind of thinking, the impact on our society would be significant.
I have recently experienced a “single story” attitude as I get closer to retirement. The single story for older teachers is that they are no longer innovative or interested in trying new things, they can’t do anything technology related, and they are simply coasting and ready to leave. Like any stereotype, this is based on fact; many older teachers are like that. But I am not, and it is annoying to be treated as though I am incompetent and irrelevant because of my age.
My Dearest Pam, First of all thank you for the legacy and wealth of knowledge that your journey as an educator has afforded and modeled for our new younger generation of educators. You know what happens in the circle of education, sometimes we look for innovation and end up renaming or going back to the basics! It is our new generation of learners that challenges the assumptions of our teaching styles. I agree with you this is an excellent topic for a class discussion or writing prompt. This would indeed provide an opportunity for our friends to see examples and nonexamples of a single story and what this thinking process could lead to. You also have provided an excellent platform for helping our teachers develop a multicultural perspective in teaching too. Your example of your persoanl experience will help others connect and relate to how our ELLs feel in some cases of the single story.
DeleteReview: In her book, Developing Multicultural Educators, Jana Noel uses the illustration of a tree to help us understand that a person’s culture has deep roots that extend far below the surface characteristics of their culture. (Noel, p. 12) There are many components of culture that determine the ways people communicate, organize their lives, think, and learn. Within each culture, there are many different ways of life that help shape the identities of people. Schools in the United States play an important role in shaping students’ lives. In addition to teaching academic content, we must be aware of cultural socialization of students. As educators, we must be sensitive to the effects of cultural socialization on our students’ identities and determine the steps to take in order to provide educational and social experiences for our students that are considerate of their socially constructed identities. While it is important to teach our students what is socially acceptable in our culture, we do not want to imply that their cultural roots are inferior.
ReplyDeleteReflect: As I think about what I have already learned about culture, I realize how important it is to celebrate our own cultures, as well as those of our students. The activity in class, where we had to write down five things that shape us as a person and then cross them out one by one until we only had one left, was an excellent way to represent how important our cultural beliefs are to each of us. Even though it was just a class activity, I really did not want to take anything away and, when I was left with only one, I felt like a big part of me was missing. We can’t expect everyone to have the same ideas or values, so we must be sensitive to each other’s cultures. After reading the pages in Chapter 2 of the Fundamentals book in class, I identified with several of the situations in the scenarios. I have seen how easy it is to overlook the fact that students from other cultures have ways of doing things that may often be different from our culture – not wrong. While I feel it is important to teach students what is right and wrong in our culture, I also understand that they do not want to lose the culture that is important to them and their families.
Refine: I will definitely use the information I have learned to become more sensitive to my students’ cultural styles. As a result of our class discussion, I realize that I have made the mistake of “looking through blinders” in many instances. I want my students to do what is “right” and I know how important it is to teach them. I see now that what I see as “right” may not be what their culture views as “right”. I still believe that we need to teach our students the ways of our culture because, as they go through life, they will have difficulties if they do not adapt to the ways of our society. They will likely have trouble with daily living, including relationships and employment. As strongly as I feel about teaching students “our way”, I do see how important it is to be sensitive to other cultures and styles at the same time. Again, I think about the activity where some of my “culture” was taken away. I do not want to take anything away from my students – I only want to add to them.
Students in my classroom come from six different countries. Each of them has their own set of values and deep rooted culture. I will work on learning the various cultures of my students and studying the basic ideas and beliefs of each one. I want to embrace and celebrate the cultures of each of my students. My students should be comfortable with who they are, as well as with each other.
I plan to use some of the websites provided in class, to look up and study the cultures of students in my classroom. I have subscribed to Teaching Tolerance Magazine and have ordered the free kits. I plan to share information with my colleagues, as well. I am eager to learn more about each of my students!
Cathy one of my favorite character traits in an educator is empathy and you indeed model this trait in your response! The diagram of the tree in the textbook served as a great visual for understanding culture for me also. You are right, we need to show appreciation for all cultures and celebrate our own. I am planning to use many of the resources for the web sites that were shared in class too. I am going to look for a lesson plan that I used last year with my first graders on Tolerance to share with you. Please let me know what comes in the free tolerance kits.
DeleteThanks for all you do!
Partners in Education,
Sonya :)
Cathy, I loved what you said about our class activity. I also hated crossing anything out. It leaves us with a single story, doesn't it? It also made me think about how similar many of our responses were and wonder if people from other cultures would have similar or different responses. I wonder, too, how my adult children and parents would respond. I may have to do this activity this Christmas when we are all together.
DeleteHate that I missed that activity, sounds very eye-opening!
DeleteI also thought the activity from class was very powerful when we had to choose between so many things that meant so much to us to narrow it down to just one. When I was left with my one thing, I wanted to justify the other things when conversating with my partner. I would definitly not be "me" if I did not have all of the things one my card a part of my life.
DeleteBruce - Reflection 1
ReplyDelete12/05/2013
Review – What did you learn?
My mother immigrated to the United States from Vienna, Austria. She spoke very little English and read and wrote literally none. Prior to taking this class I believed that one’s personal culture was synonymous with their religious beliefs and the language of their country of origin. As we participated in the activities in class, I had to reassess my definition for personal culture.
I am learning to see how a child’s culture influences what kind of student they are. This is especially interesting to me working with special education students who have emotional and behavioral difficulties in addition to coming from different cultural backgrounds. I’m beginning to reassess how I interact with those students who are also from a different cultural background. As we discussed the meaning of ethnocentrism, I began to think of those students in our program who are ESOL and special education and how some of their reactions to different situations may very well be driven by this feeling. I especially liked the use of the tree to illustrate the different components of culture. I think that sometimes educators focus more on the branches of the tree when we need to be looking deeper to the roots to find what values are “growing” out of that culture.
Reflect – What does it mean to you?
The 2,2,2 activity sparked more questions than connections. I started to question if what I had always assumed were learned behaviors may very well be culturally based. Was I forcing my students to “change their culture” by trying to get them to do things like maintaining eye contact when speaking to an adult? Or maybe their “hyperactivity” was also a response to what my expectations were for their behavior in my classroom and not something chemical within their body. Was I adding to their conflict of cultural discontinuity? Was I telling them that what they had always been taught at home was wrong? How could a six year old understand that?
Refine – How will you use the information in your classroom? It is the responsibility of all teachers’s to integrate the culture of their students into a positive classroom experience. When we discussed how learning styles are directly related to cultural values, I tried to look at it from the perspective of a special education teacher. I can see how teaching students from different cultural backgrounds in a general education classroom can be just as challenging as finding the right learning style for a special education student. I know now that one’s culture is a continuous process. I need to find some way to keep and respect these students culture while helping them to integrate the social expectations and acceptable behavior for a classroom in this country. I need to become a more culturally responsible teacher.
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie: The Danger of a Single Story
ReplyDeleteThe first time I watched the video, I was impressed by how articulate Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie was. Then I realized I was reading a single story based on my own assumptions and I had unknowingly created a stereotype regarding people from Nigeria. So I turned on the video again. This time I listened to her story rather than watched and I started to realize that what she said was so true. We are all guilty of only hearing the single story. Ms. Adichie said that when we “show a people as one thing then that is what they become”. Sadly, I believe this happens more often than not. We are telling the single story and creating stereotypes. We tend to describe how we are different not how we are alike. This is one of the consequences of the single story and I can see how it takes away ones dignity and can disrespect an entire culture.
We must start educating our students on how we are all alike. We must use this as an opportunity to teach them about values and respect. We need to teach our students not to make assumptions about a person based solely on their appearance or how they may speak. We need to stop listening to the single story and begin with “Secondly” so that we can be more educated and empathetic.
I don’t want my single story to be that I’m the teacher that other teachers feel sorry for because I teach “THOSE” kids. I want my story to read, she gets to teach those kids, she is passionate about what she does, she believes in each and every student regardless, and she can make a difference in their lives.
Leslie, I am guilty of the same thing! I used my preconceived notions to quickly assign a single story to the speaker. She truly opened my eyes to the danger of the single story. I agree that we must teach our students not to make assumptions about someone based solely on a single story. As teachers we have such an influence... it is a huge job (but an important one) to be placed in our hands.
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DeleteLeslie, I like how you were able to reflect on how we only hear the single story. As teachers we have the opportunity to make a students educational experience great, small acts of kindness count everyday in the classroom. I agree, we must teach them about respect and values while we teach the curriculum. All is a great balancing act.
DeleteI enjoyed her humor in the video and sarcasm when apoligizing to the man that all white men are serial killers. Although it made everyone laugh because the thought seemed so outlandish, it was meant to be a eye opener for how unfair it is to judge a large group of people by one thing.
DeleteChimamanda Ngozi Adichie: The Danger of a Single Story
ReplyDeleteAs I viewed the video, I begin to understand why the novelist bi-line posted near the article stated critical misunderstanding of social constructed identity. So many terms from from chapter one in the text Developing Multicultural Educators from our last session stood out as she shared. As she shared her story, I recognized examples of oppositional differentiation, social constructioned identity, ethnocentrism, and otherizing. As she shared her journay of produced her first fruit in writing and why she begin writing based on life experience from a single story. I started to reflect on some publishers are beginning to create multicutural settings, characters and names in many wonderful pieces of literature. This is excellent so all of our friends will not have to infer from a single story. This video reminded me of the importance of always challenging your assumptions especially when it comes to a dominate society.
Sonya, I love how the video reminded you of the importance of always challenging assumptions, especially when it comes to a dominant society. I feel that I came away with a similar thought. As teachers we have the job to open the eyes of our students to single stories... even their own!
DeleteReflection Chapter 1
ReplyDeleteWhat did you learn?
As I reflect on the reading of chapter one Culture in the text Developing Multicultural Educators, word splashes of vocabulary for example social construction, oppositional differentiation, and cultural discontinuities stand out as new learning. The author's clarification through defining these terms comes to mind. I also found a few more aspects stating pieces of literature that have formed our beliefs about values and relations with others quite interesting.
Reflect-What did it mean to me?
As I was reading, I begin to make connections with a familiar area of prior learning. The author makes a connection of the functions of culture based on Maslow's Hierarchy (1943) ( 2008,p.13). Just a reminder of how the basic needs/shelter, love, esteem, and the importance of encouraging all students to do their personal best are simple ingredients connecting all cultures. ( 2008, p.13) The entire concept of culture leads me to view teaching and learning from a totally different perspective. Some of the terminology activated prior knowledge and allowed me to refocus my thought process in preparation for planning instructions more effectively with the English Language Learners in mind. This new knowledge will lead me to a new level of differentiating instructions.
Refine-How will you use this information in your classroom?
The chapter opened my eyes to the premise of planning effective instructions and learning experiences not just in interest of the learners, but evaluating the planned instructions to meet the needs of languages in multicultural learning enviroment. As a professional educator, one of my personal goals has alwasys been to develop and foster a community of learners that feel safe, nurtured and comfortable with their peers. But viewing this community of learners with their cultures in mind changes the focus of planning instructions with the social constructed identities as an essential tool vs. setting expectations based on the dominate society. The author's discussion on this topic was enlightening to my career. From the lesson, I understand that I was expecting all students to conform to the dominate culture. In the future, I will be more attentive to the deeper patterning effects of language and be careful to foster a community of learners in a nurturing enviroment that will not harm the students' socially constructed identities.
Reference
Noel, J. (2008). Developing Multicultural Educators ( 2nd Edition)
Reflection 1: Chapter One of “Developing Multicultural Educators”
ReplyDeleteReview
Chapter one of the text focuses on definition and many aspect of culture. Noel (2008) describes aspects of our cultural background that can affect our identities. These aspects include “family size and family structures, geographic location, size of community, socioeconomic status, religion, and pieces of literature that have formed our beliefs about values and relations with others.” Culture is who we are… it is our identity. Noel (2008) spend the chapter going through different concepts of culture as well as how the functions of culture are seen in terms of why cultures are developed. The chapter goes on to introduce the different components of culture, such as communication style, organizational style, and intellectual style. Noel (2008) discusses how schools in the United States have a large role in shaping cultural identities, “specifically the schools tend to socialize students into the dominant culture, both directly and indirectly.”
Reflect
As a teacher at a highly culturally diverse school it is very important that I am aware of what culture is and what influence it has on my students. “Schools and teachers help instill within their students the values, beliefs, expectations, and perspectives of the dominant society in which they live” (Noel, 2008). As a teacher we are highly influential to our students. They look to us as role models and the younger children, in many ways, want to be like us and look to emulate us. After reading this chapter it opened my eyes to how many different facets of culture there are. Culture isn’t just religion or nationality… it is so much more complex and as a teacher I need to be aware of all of these little facets to be sensitive to the needs of my students and their families.
Refine
As a teacher, a student’s culture has always been a part of my classroom. Of course, I have always known about culture and I have always known that culture was an integral part of a person. What this chapter made me realize (though I did already know) was that culture is not genetic. It is learned. It isn’t gender or race or nationality. Those things you are born with. Culture is something that is shaped by the world around you. As a teacher I influence a student’s culture every day. It is imperative that I am aware of how I influence my students, not just academically and behaviorally, but also in regards to their culture. Every year my school has an International Night. Each grade level chooses a country and prepares several crafts and activities pertinent to that country. Parents are asked to bring a dish native to their country to share with everyone. It is a huge success. Families wear their traditional clothing. It occurred to me that we can use this night to focus less on a COUNTRY and more on a CULTURE. As each country tends to have several cultures in it… perhaps it can be changed to a Cultural Night instead of an International Night. I would like to speak to the organizers of this event and bring this up to them. It would be fun to allow Alford families to showcase their cultures and what make them who they are. I think it also might be very useful for teachers (especially in the older grades) to encourage and teach tolerance and open-mindedness to the cultures of others. Many times a lack of understanding can cause issues between students. With some exposure to other cultures, students are able to develop an understanding of them.
Corey, I like your idea of changing the emphasis of International night from countries to cultures. There are so many cultures in the U.S. as well as in other countries. I don't think I realized until I went away to college how different the cultures and traditions of families can be. It would be nice if our kids/students could learn that a little sooner.
DeleteI learned a whole new definition of culture, too after the reading. I think that's a great idea, too. There can be different cultures within a country as we all know living in the U.S.
DeleteCorey, if you can't change the International Night to Culture Night, maybe you could still highlight some of the different cultures in each of the countries. I believe that would be something that families would be proud to participate in. I agree that it is very important to teach tolerance and open mindedness to the cultures of others. It is awesome when students are able to celebrate their own cultures, as well as the cultures of others!
DeleteReflection 1: Response to Chapter 1 of Developing Multicultural Educators
ReplyDeleteAfter reading Chapter 1 Developing…, it occurs to me that my previous definition of "culture" is in fact far too limited. According to the reading, one's culture encompasses quite a multitude of components. These include a person's perception of knowledge, art, customs, laws, beliefs, and morals. A culture is developed over time and influence how a person's basic needs are met. Culture is not stagnant and norms vary. Communication, relationships, and even decision-making can be affected by your cultural identity. Inside of each culture are family, community, and society as a whole to take into consideration. According to Edward T. Hall, culture can be classified into high context or low context. One interesting part of this exemplification is how high context cultures have more of an emphasis on a group dynamic and a low context focuses more on an individual.
Andrea, I agree that the general definition of culture is far too limited. Reading chapter 1 in the book and the class discussions has somehow expand my understanding of culture. I also like that you mention low and high cultures and even thought they have different views, I think we all benefit if we can respect and value the similarities and differences of other cultures and people.
DeleteAs I reflect on the foundations of culture the reading provides, I realize I have quite a bit more to learn and factor in when planning instruction. Growing up, I lived in an upper-middle class predominantly Caucasian area. My graduating high school class was probably 90+% white. I did not have very much exposure to people of other cultures growing up. I lived a very sheltered life in my formative years. I suppose that because of this I am very set in my ways with what I think is normal and acceptable. I need to be more-open minded with parenting styles from different cultures and maybe do more research on differences between my culture and others. I am really surprised that there is so much to consider with a person's culture. I also thought it referred to a way of life including things like art, music, language, foods, and clothing. I see now that those things are only part of culture. I am looking forward to expanding my horizons!
ReplyDeleteAmerica is commonly referred to as a "melting pot" of varying cultures and ethnicities. Thus it is imperative to be sensitive to cultural diversity. It is even more crucial for teachers at a multicultural school such as Kanoheda Elementary. I have a large percentage of Hispanic children in my class. I have analyzed the differences between the Spanish language and English in an effort to better meet the needs of my students.
One thing I have tried to do is make sure I instill the importance of embracing one's cultural heritage. I hold class meetings where we talk about how unique we all are and how to be proud of your ethnicity. In the future I will make sure I promote this pride while also being accepting and tolerant of different ways of life. I think there are also lots of stereotypes and myths that need to be addressed and refuted.
ReplyDeleteIn the chapter it discusses how pride in one's culture can become an issue with feelings of superiority. I do come across this issue with students in the form of bullying and name-calling. This is why I strive to be pro-active and have a zero tolerance policy for discrimination. I also make sure to include lessons on the contributions of minorities. My Social Studies curriculum covers the Civil War era through modern day America. There are multiple instances where I have an opportunity to open my students minds to the unfair treatment of others based on their skin color, ethnic origin, or religion. I encourage my students to "walk a mile" in the shoes of a slave on the Underground Railroad, a young Native American being forced to move to a reservation, young Annie Moor traveling to the New World alone, a young woman involuntarily hiding in an attic for three years because of a yellow star, or a child growing up during the Civil Rights era fighting just to have books in school. I have a passion for American history and I am happy to say my enthusiasm is contagious in my classroom. My students are very curious about the plights of people throughout our history and this is the perfect occasion to create a respect and an appreciation for people of all kinds. I also will continue to find current event articles about famous Hispanics. I think it is important for my students to have positive role models who have overcome obstacles to become successful.
*Annie Moore
DeleteReview: What did you learn?
ReplyDeleteI have enjoyed the first few weeks of our culture course, and have already learned many new things that have impacted the way I approach my students. The information that stuck with me the most from Chapter 1 of Developing Multicultural Educators was the section on the Social Foundations of Education. This was a topic that we also discussed fairly deeply in class, so it was helpful to hear what the author had to say about the topic as well. According to Noel (2008), “Both directly and indirectly, schools and teachers help instill within their students the values, beliefs, routines, and expectations of the dominant society in which they live” (pg. 29). We are not just teachers of subjects like reading and writing-- we also have the job of teaching our students what is culturally acceptable in our society so they can be successful adults. One of the challenges this presents is the concept called cultural discontinuities. Many of our children are taught a certain culture at home, and then are expected to come to school and adapt to the culture of the school, even though they may be two totally different cultures! This can result in our students feeling like their home culture and language are not valued or seen as important.
Reflect: What did it mean to you?
As a direct ESOL teacher this year, I feel like I am on a mission to become a more culturally aware teacher of multicultural students. I have students from over a dozen different cultures in my room each day and I want to be sensitive to all of their cultures and languages while also carefully balancing the job of teaching them how to thrive in the society that we live in as well as the culture of our school (rules, respect, behavior, etc.). My eyes have just been open more to spending more time having discussions with students, doing research on my own, and getting to know the parents of my students better so I can better relate their each student and the culture that defines them.
Continued from last comment:
ReplyDeleteRefine: How will you use the information in your classroom?
This year I teach several segments of direct ESOL, so I feel like the information in the book and the discussions in class are very close to my heart. One way we are trying to reach out to the families of different cultures is through Parent Outreach Meetings. Once a month, we secure three translators (Spanish, Korean, & Vietnamese) through the county. These translators come out to our school for two hours and we invite parents to come and hear presentations and participate in hands on activities on topics that they requested through a survey sent home in the beginning of the year. I was very surprised that some of our most popular topics did not have to do with school subjects such as reading or math, but rather school rules, discipline, parenting skills, homework routines, and bullying. The bullying session generated the most questions from parents and it was a very eye-opening to hear some of their concerns that they finally felt comfortable to express. For example, a Korean parent explained how her daughter had been coming home crying for months because she was being picked on by another student in the class. When asked if she had talked to the teacher, she quickly responded by saying, “Absolutely not—that is not how the Korean culture works!” Another Spanish speaking parent asked questions about a behavior referral that was sent home with her son because he hit another student back after the student hit him first. She did not understand why he would also get in trouble when the other student started it. It was hard for her to comprehend the response from our administrator who was presenting at the meeting because in her culture, self-defense is celebrated and she explained how she was proud of her son for defending himself. As I sat in the meeting, I was very shocked by these parents’ questions and reactions, but now I feel that I am becoming more culturally aware and more understanding to the reasons why they have their beliefs and values. After all, they obviously think that our school culture is not “normal”, and yet they show up every month at our meetings to learn more about it—all to support their students who mean so much to them as well as to our school.
I am very proud that our school is reaching out this year and not just putting our school culture norms and expectations on the shoulders of our students, but also reaching out to the parents so they can work on continuing and emphasizing these norms in their homes. I feel like this is the puzzle piece that has been missing from our ESOL program for a long time. According to Noel (2008), if a school wants to perpetuate the existing school culture, “They must work to transmit the cultural values of the existing culture to students and their families” (pg. 31).
Chimanmanda Ngozy Adichie
ReplyDeleteHer presentation was very powerful. I was impressed by her early childhood experience and how her early writing reflected the type of literature she was exposed to. Also, how others had a view of her. based on her appearance when in reality her life experience had been completely different. I also like her journey to self discovery and how she was empowered by "seeing herself" reflected in the literature she later was exposed to. This makes me reflect on the responsibility i have as an educator to provide ESOL students with positive literature that is also representative of their background. Her message is clear, there is more than one side to every culture and individual and we must respect that and promote students' cultural discovery.
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ReplyDeleteMy Reflection of Thoughts from Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
ReplyDeleteI was impressed by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie and the speech she gave. Her look, her accent, and her way of speaking were all so refreshing. Everything she said made perfect sense to me. It is so important to learn about someone or something before forming our own opinions. When we let others feed us negative thoughts or impressions about a particular group or culture as a result of something they have heard, we take on the same idea that because one is inferior, the whole group or culture is inferior. Stereotyping is an incomplete way of thinking. We must look at each person as an individual.
I have always been shy – more so as a child than now. I would hardly ever speak at school when I was very young. I remember when I was in third grade, my teacher had several small reading groups, similar to the way we divide our classes for reading groups today. She had a remedial group, and several other tiers that went up from there. Because I didn’t talk, she assumed that I should be in the remedial group for reading. I remember when my dad found out about it, he went to have a conference with my teacher. The next day, I was moved up to a higher group that was better suited for my abilities and I was more than capable of doing the work required. I believe that this story of mine has helped to repair and empower me as an adult. I realize how important it is to look at all of the qualities of a person, to look beyond the surface.
I really like the way Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie closed by saying “when we reject a single story, we gain a kind of paradise”.
After reading this chapter, I became aware that our definition of culture is very limited. In general, culture is defined as the characteristics of a particular group of people, as reflected in their language, religion, cuisine, social habits, music and arts. From the book we learned that culture is much more complex; as it goes deeper to state that there exit underlying beliefs and perspectives that give expressions to the above described cultural manifestations. Here culture is defined as a strong force that forms the individual’s identity. Culture provides each person a unique experience that constructs their social identities. According to Taylor and Spencer (2004) Human identity is socially, historically and culturally shaped. And cultural background is affected by family size and structure, geographical location, community, socioeconomic status, religion and even literature.
ReplyDeleteReading this chapter, heighten my awareness of how my childhood and personal experiences have shaped me into the person I am today. I have so many wonderful memories and also sad experiences growing up with my maternal grandmother. Having this new understating on culture is really eye opening. Coming from a different cultural background I felt my own humanity validated by my new perspective. I can now see how my identity was constructed by exposure to all the evens of my life. I also realized that without cultural understanding is easy to stereotype a group, a person. a student; This is not wise, as each individual will experience and express their culture differently.
My school has a diverse student population and a large population of ESOL students. As a teacher, I want to be culturally responsive to all students. I want to create a classroom environment that makes students feel welcome and validated for who they are. I think that the student’s cultural background should provide them with a sense of pride. I will Acknowledge the students cultural background and will encourage students to continue to grow and learn more about their cultural heritage. I will create cultural show and tell activities where children showcase their culture. I will provide students extra support, before and after school for students who have recently arrived and need help adapting to their new life. I will provide books that relate the experiences and cultures of my students. I will also would like to invite parents of diverse cultural background to come and read to the class and/or share their experiences with us.
Lorena,
DeleteIsn't it amazing how one short chapter about culture can make us realize how limited our personal definition of the word is? Adding personal experiences to the definition opens up a whole new arena for cultural expression. I don't have as high a population of ESOL students in our program, but I would also like to access the parents of these students as resources to share their experiences with the classes and help build up a sense of pride for their children in the presence of their classmates.Too often we are neglecting to call upon the greatest resource we have, the parents.
Thoughts on Adichie clip…
ReplyDeleteThe single story refers to the limited perspective that many people have. Without thinking, many people have formed prejudices based on books , media, and family upbringing. To put this simply, they "judge a book by its cover." Adichie addresses the common misconceptions may people have about Africa. I thought it was funny when she was asked to tell somebody about her "tribal music" and she played Mariah Carey.
I'm going to be politically incorrect and say this video clip infuriated me. As a W.A.S.P., this video immediately made me feel like I needed to be on the defensive. I grew up in an upper middle class area. I feel like I should apologize for that because she drew pictures of blue eyed, blonde haired children when she was young. I wondered why we were watching something that preaches to the choir. Clearly teachers taking this class appreciate diversity and we know we should expose students to more than one point of view. I do teach about the achievements of minorities and it almost makes me feel guilty being a white southerner because I teach the Civil War. Luckily my ancestors fought on the Union side in the war. Even better, my ancestors came over on The Mayflower so I have guilt for how the Native Americans were treated as well.
*many people have...ugh typos via cutting/pasting
DeleteI enjoyed the watching Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie speak on the danger of a single story. I loved how she said that yes, some sad things have happened to my people, and those things have changed me and molded me… but there are other stories that are happy and show the successes of my people, which also change me and mold me. The consequence of the single story is that it robs people of power and focuses more on how we are different rather than how we are similar. I think this is so powerful, because when it all comes down to it, we are all just people. We very quickly place ourselves in certain groups—whether it be by gender, race, religion—and think that the people in our group are the only ones like us… when really, we are probably very much similar to lots of people in other “groups”… which justy choose not to look at those similarities. This video made me think about how I can connect more with my students and their parents. Even though we have different backgrounds and life experiences, we also have things in common that when shared can result in a stronger bond and understanding. I also like how she ended the video by saying that we should always reject the single story—because there is no such thing as a single story. Very powerful.
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