"No one enters a classroom without a personal history. No one enters a classroom completely free of bias."
Though I initially understood the importance of these statements, it was not until I spent time in the classroom with students from various backgrounds that I understood the real meaning of these words. When I first began tutoring at Armstrong Elementary School*, I feared that the students would not accept me and would be reluctant to open up to me because of our very different backgrounds and sociocultural characteristics. I wondered if they would think I could not understand them; specifically, their family situations, their educational needs, and their life experiences that have shaped them into the five-year-olds and six-year-olds they are today. In this school that educates approximately 150 Kindergarten and First Grade students, 62% of the students at Armstrong are Hispanic, 17% are Asian, 12% are African-American and 8% are Caucasian (Infoworks 2008).
During my very first visit to the First Grade classroom, a little girl named Emily* approached me, and without hesitation, exclaimed, “You look just like me, but taller. That’s so cool.” Looking at this little blonde hair, blue-eyed child, I wondered what connection of our appearances she was making. After doing a scan of the room, I saw that Emily was the only Caucasian child in the classroom. I smiled at her, but was nervous that other children that could not make that connection would feel isolated from me. However, my fears were put to ease when Kristina*, a young Hispanic girl, excitedly commented that she and I were wearing the same color shirt. Slowly, more students began to observe similarities we shared, and I realized that while these children may be aware of racial differences, it is not an issue on which they dwell. Growing up, I attended a small suburban school that was comprised of primarily Caucasian students. In contrast, my college experience pushed me into a world of much diversity, where my ethnicity was the minority. I remember taking a class entitled Race and Racism, and my teacher made a point to explain that in this class, everyone would be allowed to express their opinions. He said that while one person’s beliefs may differ from another’s, he demanded that each voice be respected. Remembering this, I thought of Dennis Carlson, and how he would agree. He would say that all voices should be heard, and everyone’s truth is partial. I first thought that having gone to an elementary school with no diversity would be a disadvantage in my relating to the children that I would tutor. However, my experience in college helped me understand what it was like to be in a diverse learning situation and will hopefully help me as a teacher to recognize that all students bring different characteristics to the classroom.
Though it is easy to recognize these differences, my challenge as a teacher will be to give equal weight to the voices of my students. Carlson discusses aspects that make up a democratic multicultural pedagogy. He stresses the need to have a “partial imposition” and recognize that each student’s truth comes from past experiences. The students I was tutoring were no different. Even the physical observations they made are rooted in an earlier experience that has shaped their views. The cultural capital that each student brings to the classroom is one piece of the puzzle that makes the whole puzzle complete. What is important is to allow each student to express their views and create a classroom where they feel comfortable doing so.
*names have been changed
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2 comments:
Meghan,
In the Two classrooms I was in, there were approximately 22 and 25 students each week in each class. In the kindergarten class I was in, all but two students were of color, and in my first grade class only one student seemed to be predominantly white. According to infoworks.com: 66% of students in my school are Hispanic, 23% are African-American, 8% are Asian and only 4% are white. It sounds like both of our schools have about the same percentages of students who are of the same ethnicity, with Hispanics making up the large majority. It is too bad that our schools are not more diverse. Reading your blog got me thinking about Carlson and Jonathan Kozol. It's sad how correct Kozol is when he says that schools are no less segregated now than they were 25 or 30 years ago. The statistics Kozol observed in major cities like Chicago, Los Angeles, and New York in 2002 and 2003 are almost exactly the same as our schools today in Providence. Take New York for example, where in 2002-2003, (and I'm sure still today) nearly 75% of students attending public schools were black or Hispanic! Many private schools like yours and mine are at this percentage or above it today. When I think about it, it is very sad how segregated our schools truly are.
I loved how you said that a diverse learning situation lets us (as teachers) recognize that "all students bring differing characteristics to the classroom." This is so true, and like Kozol says, we can't just say it is an impossible goal to change the way our schools are when it comes to diversity. We need diversity in our classrooms, and hopefully one day things will be the way you, I, Kozol, and Martin Luther King wanted things to be "equal opportunity for all."
As I walked into my first grade classroom for the first time I had some of the same experiences you had: I had students coming up to me, telling me their names, and a little bit about themselves, and like you I was bombarded by student after student who was each thrilled to be able to tell someone new some of their life experiences and stories. They all made me feel welcome and as week after week went by I noticed more and more students commenting on things I was wearing that they liked, or had (my watch, earrings, etc.). I totally agree with you when you say even though children might "be aware of racial differences, it is not an issue in which they dwell" at this young age. This is something I observed in my classroom also, but I believe that it is only a matter of time before discrimination becomes prevalent for these students; especially for the Caucasian, African-American, and Asian students, who are the minority groups.
I loved everything you said in this blog especially the last paragraph. It will be a challenge to create more diverse schools as teachers, but it is so important to allow every student time and space to "express their views," in a welcoming classroom environment!
Megan,
I am in another group, but your blog caught my attention. I encountered a similar situation in my classroom exepience as far as diversity. I was assigned to Mrs. Smith's second grade class, at Led Zeppelin Elementary. While you observed one Caucasian student, Emily, the class I was assigned to contained not a single Caucasian student. I should note this did not strike me as wierd, or make me feel uncomfortable.According to Infoworks,Caucasian students made up eight percent of the school I was voluneeting at. Observing this, I wondered if the African American, Asian, and Hispanic students viewed me as much different from them. I can say the issue of me being Caucasian did not arise once. You mentioned that Emily commented on the similar charateristics shared between the two of you. As you stated, do students recognize the differences between their culture, and Caucasion cultures. Furthermore, differences and similarities exist between people even in similar cultures, such was the connection you established with the Hispanic girl Kristina, bonding over similarities.These similaritis foster the destruction of communicaation barriers, to establish healthly learning environmments of equality.
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