No Brothers.....

I chose to do my posting on the "No Brothers" chapter.

I'm going to be completely honest about something here, which may get me some flack in the long run. I am tired of hearing about white privilege. I really am. It is NOT my fault that I was born to white parents. The same as it is not a childs fault if they are born to black parents. But I am getting really tired of hearing teachers write about white privilege. "At least Duke can still get a cab at night............" (pg 486)

White privilege isn't all that it's cracked up to be. Trust me, I know. I was THE ONLY white girl to graduate from my senior class in highschool. I was the FIRST white girl brought home to a Hispanic family. My children are THE ONLY part white children in that family. (The others are fully hispanic, or half Hispanic, half Black) Almost all of the articles dealing with race mention white privilege. So please, spare me the race talk.

(sorry, its been a really long weekend)

Social Justice

I found this article to be very helpful as we are working on our problem based learning assignments.

I suppose that I never really thought about teaching social justice from the math perspective, but as I read the article, I realized that we can use the math approach for our project. We are doing "lead paint", I was a bit worried how we could incorporate multi-disciplines for our project, but I now realize that it may be easier than I had previously thought to incorporate different subject matters.

I have heard (in a currins 100 course) that problem based learning and problem solving skills are emphasized in suburban districts rather than urban school districts. However, most of the classes that we read about are urban based districts that choose to incorporate problem based learning (social justice, service learning, etc). It seems that children in urban districts, or students whom are in trouble really benefit from such teaching.
Perhaps it is because the students are put in control of their own education. Perhaps it's doing something positive to change the world. Perhaps it's the sense of accomplishment when the project is finished. Whichever it is, it seems like a positive way to connect students to the world around them, and make an impact on their own lives, as well as those around them.

readings

The stereotypses that the students face in the classroon often do not begin in the classroom. These are issues that students deal with, and bring to school with them, like extra baggage.

It is hard to help students break out of these stereotypes within the classroom, if the second they leave the school, they will be bombarded with them once again. I think we can try to have a fair and equitable classroom, where everyone feels welcomed, however I don't know if we are capable of removing stereotypes that out students deal with.

Some students will immerese themselves within a stereotype because it gives them a sense of belonging. Even this causes problems. Asians- the model minority- are expected to achieve well in school, which could make people of another race react in a negative way if they fulfill the stereotype. Asians that struggle in school may not know how to get help, since they are expected to naturally be smart and excel in school.

African Americans can be looked down upon or accused of acting white if they excel in school. All this does is show how little progress we as a society have really made. Education is the best way to improve one's lot in life. What kind of message are we sending our children if we tell them that succeeding in school is selling out?

Naughty By Nature.....

I was a bit shocked and disheartened by what I read in this weeks readings. I suppose I have taken for granted the "white privilege". I had not really ever paid attention to the disparities in the classroom. I was very surprised by one of the examples listed early on, that a black student was written up for given the teacher a look that said "you bitch". I can see the kid being in trouble if they actually said it, but for a look?!?! come on now.

I was a bit surprised that the article didn't go more into the disproportionate number of black students that receive suspensions or expulsions as a way to deal with behavior problems. In Milwaukee, this is a huge problem. In other districts as well. Usually it is a small percentage of students who receive a majority of the suspensions / expulsions, and the majority of those students are black.

I also found the discussion about black males used to intimidate children to behave interesting. It got me thinking about my own placement. The school has three security guards. Two of them are black. All are male. All are pretty large. There is a very visible lack of minority males in other positions in the school.

Identity

I suppose that when I read what the topic for these readings was, I expected something a bit different. I'm not exactly sure what though. I thought that chapter 16 was outdated and didn't apply much to the formation of identity, at least my version of identity formation. The article about the black women was a weak argument until the very end. I thought there was a lot of fluff, and the author didn't really make any kind of argument until the end. I thought that the article about the difference in schools in the Chicago area was very interesting, and that it highlights the need for an overall educational reform. I understand that the students in Mountain view are afforded more benefits because of the area they live. Schools are funded through property tax. Perhaps this article is a prime example for a change that is needed to make the educational system more equitable.

project post

UGH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I think I'm stuck. Maybe just going in the wrong direction. Our topic is "What resources are available to help troubled youth, build self esteem, etc" not exactly, but that's the gist of it.

I wanted to focus on "alternatives" but I don't know if I'm doing this project right or not. I'm finding a lot of information & statistics for Milwaukee schools, but I don't know if I'm doing a good enough job tying it in to our topic.

I think alternative schools / programs are great to help students who are considered at risk succeed. But I don't know how to spin it so it's a resource for the teacher. I know that placing students in the alternative programs reduces behavior problems in the class room. I know that teaching in the alternative schools is beneficial for the teacher because of smaller class sizes, and the benefits of helping at risk kids. But is this enough for the assignment?

Plus I really have no clue where my group members are at with their projects. I'm frustrated, over worked, and over tired. Maybe it'll make more sense after some sleep

Middle schools

I'm not surprised there is so much attention given to the middle schools. Paraphrasing page 164-165, middle school students deal with body growth, hygiene, become sexually aware, develop social skills for the opposite sex, changes in belonging to a peer group, become more independent from their parents, try to discover their own identity, have issues fitting in, become critical of adults, and begin thinking about adults. These are extremely important years in a persons life.

Students in this age group need the guidance and support of their parents and school staff to become aware and informed on the proper way to act and present themselves. I Imagine that this isn't made any easier by the negative stereotype that teenagers receive in the media (as we learned in last weeks readings).

I did find it interesting to note that the "recommendations for transforming middle school learners" should be our goal, as teachers for ALL students. I also find it interesting to note that the goals based on the Carnegie Corporation are very similar to the goals of the Social Studies programs.

To sum it up, I guess what I am saying is that it seems that when these children need us most, they are often overlooked and ignored