Blog #4: History of public schooling & The Academic and Social Value of Ethnic Studies by Christine Sleeter

 Argument

In the History of Public Schooling video that we were assigned to watch gave us an idea on how the basis of public school came to be when the system started in the early 1900s. Once this new system was introduced, kids were required to complete elementary school. This was a much different atmosphere in comparison to their homeschooled education, as they were in a public classroom with unfamiliar people. Horrace Mann, who was secretary of the board of education, established that schools should have a "common ground" of education and rules for all students in the schooling system. Mann believed that all students were entitled to education and this new system would help students learn obedience in an industrial age for job placement. The system was described to become a military workforce. The result of this causes students destruction of their imaginations and become complacent with their new places within the industrial workforce after schooling. During the video, there were background voice recordings of how the teachers would speak to their students. The things that were said to the students strongly lacked positive reinforcement. With the developing minds of these young students, continuous negative reinforcements became the building blocks of these students' perspective on life.

Throughout the reading of The Academic and Social Value of Ethnic Studies by Christine Sleeter, she focuses on the lack of diversity in educational teachings. Students of different ethnicities and background can clearly see these types of oppression while white students are generally unaware of this. She conducts interviews with black and white students in grades 5, 8, and 11. Specifically, the black 5th graders she interviewed were starting to get a sense on oppression within their curriculum while the white 5th graders only saw a linear progress of democracy and opportunity for all. Its hard to find justification certain historical events, specifically highlighting certain white men and take all the credit for their "heroic" changes. While on the other hand, black people only get highlighted occasionally due to some sort of oppression such as slavery. With the lack of diversity in most educational studies, some students may have hard times staying focused when the subject is always "based around the white men". Just because people of different backgrounds live in America does not make it right to disregard and shun other cultures that make up our country. 

Reflection

Cultural awareness and creativity is important in the classroom. Rather than a cut & dry, cog wheel type of approach to teaching students, we need connect with them as individuals and understand that we all have different backgrounds. Sleeter’s research makes a great case for why ethnic studies should be essential to education. Ethnic study programs are not just about teaching history, they also provide students with the tools to critically engage with the world, foster empathy and understanding across cultures, and take action against injustice.

Blog #3: The Urgency of Intersectionality with Kimberle Crenshaw & The Four I's of Oppression

 Argument

The framework based on the Four I's of Ideological, Institutional, Interpersonal, and Internalized oppression highlight the multiple versions of oppression. Each "I" demonstrates how we can examine how power, privilege, and inequality function in society. All of these levels are interconnected, meaning that an individual's experience of oppression may be influenced by all four aspects at the same time. For example, a black woman facing discrimination at her job. Ideologically, society may have ingrained racist and sexist beliefs that devalue her abilities. Institutionally, there may be policies that favor males, making it harder for her as a woman to be promoted. Interpersonally, she might face small acts of racism or sexism from coworkers. And internally, she might struggle with self-doubt, possibly internalizing the negative stereotypes placed on her. 

Kimberle Crenshaws concept of intersectionality brings critical depth to the analysis of oppression by recognizing that people don’t experience discrimination based on a single form of identity, such as race, gender, or class. Their experiences of oppression are shaped by the intersection of multiple identities. Crenshaw uses this term to describe how black women, for example, face discrimination in a way that they are not just women but women of color, demoralizing them because they are not white nor do they possess maleness. Intersectionality emphasizes that oppression is not experienced in one single way, but rather an overlapping and interconnected way. It forces us to move away from simplistic categorizations and understand that identities are fluid and multifaceted. A person may experience privilege in some areas of their life while simultaneously facing disadvantages in others. Recognizing these intersectional standpoints is essential for creating more nuanced and inclusive systems of social justice.

The concept of intersectionality offers a better understanding of how race, class, culture, and other identities intersect with oppression. With the combination of these frameworks, we can gain clarity of how educational inequities are not just about race alone but also about the overlapping identities and power structures that shape the experiences of students in the classroom. As educators, we need to recognize and confront these systemic issues in order to create a more inclusive and equitable education system.

Navigating Social Identity in the Classroom

Blog 2 The Culture of Power, The Silenced Dialogue

Argument

In this weeks blog, our focus is on the ideas of Other People's Children by Lisa Delpit. She talks about how the culture of power in the classroom is important in more ways than just one. Throughout the reading, there were numerous quotes that really stuck out to me. The Culture of Power seems to have a very strong impact in the classroom. It’s important for students at a young age to become aware of the culture of power. As they become aware, they can use it to their advantage much earlier on in their lives, rather than subconsciously being quieted by their peers or superiors, or becoming stuck in their own biases due to history and societal norms. Teaching them about the five proposed aspects found on page 24, could help enable that. As teachers, we need to be advocates to students of different cultures to help promote awareness of the proposed aspects of the culture of power. “The teacher cannot be the only expert in the classroom. To deny students their own expert knowledge is to disempower them.” (p.32) Only sharing our educated side from our own experiences is not enough. We need to be able to listen to them and not just nod our head in agreement with them and actually speak up about what they’re saying if needed. As a white male in society, I've never been a position where I had to be worried about my future in relation to others who are experiencing current events due other white males of actual power or being judged because of the way i speak. During the online narration on the book called Mr. Tiger Goes Wild, I feel as if using the analogies from it could help us as a society break the views of one culture in comparison to another, in term geographical heritage or physical differences. 

Reflection/Comment 

Providing a safe place in the classroom for students of any background helps promote a better future for society. On pages 42 and 43, a black teacher provokes their black student, Joey, to give thought to a book they just read in terms of how it was written. The book was written as if it had a southern accent in comparison to being written in a formal fashion. Joey thinks if the person speaking can clearly get their point across to the listener/reader, points should not be written off. Making the student think for themselves allows them to share their organic thoughts with their reasons why. I'll include a link on The Breakdown on Black English.

S.C.W.A.A.M.P and Power, Privilege, and Difference with Allan Johnson response

Power, Privilege, and Difference by Allan Johnson & S.C.W.A.A.M.P

Argument

In my first response post, I will be focusing on the topics of S.C.W.A.A.M.P and the Power, Privilege, and Difference by Alan Johnson. Information from these two topics focuses on the differences, we as humans, face on a daily occurrence. Differences such as race, gender, and able-bodieness are only a few examples we will be discussing. Alan Johnson also shares his standpoint on white privilege and how it effects our perspectives on society.

Starting with some of the ideologies from SCWAAMP, this handout makes us think of how dominant ideologies affect our community and society. Due to how the “system” of society works, it has developed our visions on how we view these common ideologies. Maleness is one of the dominant ideologies because historically, mostly males of white skin color have been considered leaders. Everything from running our country to being “the man of the house”. These things make woman seem less superior. The view of being heterosexual is also considered normal, historically speaking. People who consider themselves as straight usually don't even give it a second thought because of how mainstream being straight is. On the other hand, people of different sexualities have many ideological obstacles to overcome because society makes us it view as less dominant. Obstacles such as “coming out”. That one obstacle alone can put an incredibly heavy weight on someone's shoulders because it may cause a shift toward a negative perspective with important people in that persons life due to it not being considered mainstream. Whiteness is also considered valued in our culture because of its historical advantages in relation the maleness dominance as I mentioned above.

To elaborate a little further on whiteness with Alan Johnsons work, he talks about white privilege and how it is something you are born with and can’t change. He mentions that whites are less likely than blacks to be convicted of the same crime. And if a white is convicted of that same crime, their punishment is much more likely to have a lesser consequence. Topics like this can lead to uncomfortable conversations due to historical events that shaped our many perspectives.