I was lucky enough to listen to Pedro speak as a key note guest during the Chancellor's Academy this year. He literally spoke almost the entire time about the exact same things that were in this book. I remember when someone asked a question about where they could find all of the information he just talked about and he referred us to his book that we just read. That being said, it was still a fun read and it went more in-depth than he did while he was speaking.
I think this book should be read by all future teachers and administrators as part of an undergraduate curriculum. I think the material that is presented is eye opening for a lot of people and I think that it would be influential to most. It helped me as a teacher who comes from a humble country lifestyle to realize just how bad it can get in a lot of places. It made me think a lot about who is to blame for all of these issues and what we can do to fix them as educators.
One thing I didn't really like too much in this book was the fact that there weren't often answers provided. I know it isn't necessarily his spot to put all of the answers out there, but I think he should have provided more than what he did considering the amount of research he did. It didn't have to be things that he personally was going to do, but things that he felt the entire country was doing to help the problem.
This was a good book. I really couldn't form any complaints about it other than I just thought more potential solutions to the problems should have been presented. Pedro has done a lot of fantastic research and that research could provide answers to these problems that he has found throughout the country.
Sunday, August 2, 2015
Monday, July 27, 2015
Literature Response 2 "Classroom"
When I think about the set-up of this course, I couldn't help but think about how culture was put before classroom. It was very important for us to learn about culture more in-depth before we started to think about classroom. If we didn't think about culture in the making of our classroom, we won't be able to accurately build a classroom that is influenced and prepared for all different cultures. I have a few things that jumped out at me though that I want to try and tackle in this blog.
The first was a thought by Ogbu where he talks about multicultural education and how most multicultural education approaches that are in place don't really hold the students accountable. He says "One reason is that multicultural education generally ignores the minority students' own responsibility for their academic performance." (Ogbu, pg. 6) I had to sit back when I read this and think about why this meant so much to me. I like to think that I am taking a multicultural approach to my classroom this fall when I am going to start teaching for the first time. I look back at my student teaching though and I start to think that I didn't do the thing Ogbu says I should have been doing. I had a hard time keeping the students responsible for their own work. I think I did this with all students, but I can remember specifically doing this with a certain few minority students that I "thought" I knew. I took the time to go around and hang out with the students in their community. I wanted to get to know who they were and where they came from. I saw the home life for some of the students and started talking to parents, and stopped putting the accountability on the students when I learned more about them and their difficulties. I was doing wrong by the students though. Instead of holding them accountable for their own work and making them better, I was allowing them to get away with doing no work simply because of their minority status and what I "thought" I knew about them. These students started to fall off the grid in terms of their grades. I dug a little deeper and started to realize that their were cultural influences that were hurting classroom performance. I found that these students were bothered by their friends and family telling them that they were "acting White". This is something that Noguera brings up in his book quite often. He talks a lot about how academic performance in the classroom is hurt by the teacher not developing a culture within the classroom where these minority students can break the mold of what their peers think and become academically successful. Ogbu also states "There are also psychological pressures against "acting White" that are just as effective in discouraging involuntary minority students from striving for academic success." (Ogbu, pg. 10) When you have the outside pressures of culture that many of these students are experiencing influences their classroom performance, it becomes part of the teachers job to change that culture and develop a classroom where "acting White" becomes "acting like a student." What I needed to realize was that I was hurting these kids by not developing a classroom with a lot of cultural importance and a classroom in which all children were being held accountable regardless of their situation. If I could have done this, I think I would have built a stronger multicultural approach and avoided the downfalls that Ogbu discussed. In doing this I would have also helped break the mold of "acting White" as an excuse to not doing work like Ogbu and Noguera discuss.
I had two other major thoughts that I wanted to talk about. The first is religion and the second is LGBTQ issues in the classroom. Religion is very important to our society. We can look back over the years and see that the foundations of many cultures come from their religious beliefs. The problem in the classroom is that we often times depict religion in an improper manner. Banks and Banks does a 10-15 page section in Chapter 6 of their book about the shortcomings of religious information and understanding in classrooms and schools, and how these shortcomings can be addressed. One of the main issues was the treatment of religion in history textbooks. Banks and Banks state that "One study characterized the general treatment of religion in history textbooks as brief and simplistic at best, exclusionary at worst." (Banks and Banks, pg. 204) Religion is a major factor in most of our lives as I stated earlier. Textbooks need to be more culturally responsive to religion and not teach practice, but rather teach about the history of the religion itself. It doesn't have to be something that is simplistic. It can be an in-depth look at religion. The major factor that we must take into account is making sure we don't preach the religion through the text, but that we teach our students about the religion and the history of that religion. We also must make sure that we are recognizing all forms of religion and not just one or two. Instead of pointing out major holidays for the Catholic faith and allowing kids to have excused absences on those days, we need to look at many different religions and respect the holidays/events that will cause those students who practice said religions to miss school as well and consider those to be excused absences. I want to leave this section with part of a chart found in Banks and Banks chapter 6 that talks about the natural inclusion of religion into the classroom. I want to include this because I feel it addresses the curriculum and classroom expectations of teachers perfectly in terms of how to handle and address religion.
If you want to have strong schools and strong classrooms, you first have to understand the different aspects of culture that make the students in your classrooms who they are. You then have to find ways to adapt your classroom so that it is a safe environment for all. You must make the effort to learn about all different types of people and you must make the effort to make your classroom welcoming to their needs. It could be as simple as keeping a supply on hand that you know a certain cultural group likes or it could be as complex as building a club to help represent LGBTQ students. Either way, structuring your school and classroom is a difficult process that takes time and requires study and understanding of culture.
The first was a thought by Ogbu where he talks about multicultural education and how most multicultural education approaches that are in place don't really hold the students accountable. He says "One reason is that multicultural education generally ignores the minority students' own responsibility for their academic performance." (Ogbu, pg. 6) I had to sit back when I read this and think about why this meant so much to me. I like to think that I am taking a multicultural approach to my classroom this fall when I am going to start teaching for the first time. I look back at my student teaching though and I start to think that I didn't do the thing Ogbu says I should have been doing. I had a hard time keeping the students responsible for their own work. I think I did this with all students, but I can remember specifically doing this with a certain few minority students that I "thought" I knew. I took the time to go around and hang out with the students in their community. I wanted to get to know who they were and where they came from. I saw the home life for some of the students and started talking to parents, and stopped putting the accountability on the students when I learned more about them and their difficulties. I was doing wrong by the students though. Instead of holding them accountable for their own work and making them better, I was allowing them to get away with doing no work simply because of their minority status and what I "thought" I knew about them. These students started to fall off the grid in terms of their grades. I dug a little deeper and started to realize that their were cultural influences that were hurting classroom performance. I found that these students were bothered by their friends and family telling them that they were "acting White". This is something that Noguera brings up in his book quite often. He talks a lot about how academic performance in the classroom is hurt by the teacher not developing a culture within the classroom where these minority students can break the mold of what their peers think and become academically successful. Ogbu also states "There are also psychological pressures against "acting White" that are just as effective in discouraging involuntary minority students from striving for academic success." (Ogbu, pg. 10) When you have the outside pressures of culture that many of these students are experiencing influences their classroom performance, it becomes part of the teachers job to change that culture and develop a classroom where "acting White" becomes "acting like a student." What I needed to realize was that I was hurting these kids by not developing a classroom with a lot of cultural importance and a classroom in which all children were being held accountable regardless of their situation. If I could have done this, I think I would have built a stronger multicultural approach and avoided the downfalls that Ogbu discussed. In doing this I would have also helped break the mold of "acting White" as an excuse to not doing work like Ogbu and Noguera discuss.
I had two other major thoughts that I wanted to talk about. The first is religion and the second is LGBTQ issues in the classroom. Religion is very important to our society. We can look back over the years and see that the foundations of many cultures come from their religious beliefs. The problem in the classroom is that we often times depict religion in an improper manner. Banks and Banks does a 10-15 page section in Chapter 6 of their book about the shortcomings of religious information and understanding in classrooms and schools, and how these shortcomings can be addressed. One of the main issues was the treatment of religion in history textbooks. Banks and Banks state that "One study characterized the general treatment of religion in history textbooks as brief and simplistic at best, exclusionary at worst." (Banks and Banks, pg. 204) Religion is a major factor in most of our lives as I stated earlier. Textbooks need to be more culturally responsive to religion and not teach practice, but rather teach about the history of the religion itself. It doesn't have to be something that is simplistic. It can be an in-depth look at religion. The major factor that we must take into account is making sure we don't preach the religion through the text, but that we teach our students about the religion and the history of that religion. We also must make sure that we are recognizing all forms of religion and not just one or two. Instead of pointing out major holidays for the Catholic faith and allowing kids to have excused absences on those days, we need to look at many different religions and respect the holidays/events that will cause those students who practice said religions to miss school as well and consider those to be excused absences. I want to leave this section with part of a chart found in Banks and Banks chapter 6 that talks about the natural inclusion of religion into the classroom. I want to include this because I feel it addresses the curriculum and classroom expectations of teachers perfectly in terms of how to handle and address religion.
- Content related to religion should be presented within a historical and cultural context.
- Only content essential to understanding the history and culture of people and events should be taught. Academic requirements should be used to determine which religions are included and what is discussed.
- Teachers should explain why specific religious influences and themes have been selected for inclusion in their study of history and culture.
- Teachers also need to make students aware of the diversity of opinion that exists within as well as across religions. (Banks and Banks, pg. 223)
If you want to have strong schools and strong classrooms, you first have to understand the different aspects of culture that make the students in your classrooms who they are. You then have to find ways to adapt your classroom so that it is a safe environment for all. You must make the effort to learn about all different types of people and you must make the effort to make your classroom welcoming to their needs. It could be as simple as keeping a supply on hand that you know a certain cultural group likes or it could be as complex as building a club to help represent LGBTQ students. Either way, structuring your school and classroom is a difficult process that takes time and requires study and understanding of culture.
Thursday, July 23, 2015
What's it all about anyway?
I am reading through this book and looking at all of the things going on in the world today and I can't help but think that there is a lot of propaganda in the book. I don't think the book is bad in any way and I definitely think that a lot of minority students are at a disadvantage in the world of education, but how much of that is attributed to their own mistakes? This sounds harsh, and I don't mean it that way at all. I just think that this book helps support the idea that different races and ethnic groups are continually killing themselves in terms of their educational achievements and goals. "Acting White" for instance is a big one. African American and Latino students use this term often for members of their own race who are doing well in school. This is terrible and shouldn't be said. I know so many white people who are ridiculously dumb (not special education type of dumb, but rather ignorant dumb). Should I start saying that they are "Acting Black"? NO!!!!!! I shouldn't and I won't. That is wrong and ignorant and culturally insensitive. There shouldn't be any of this "Acting White" or "Acting Black" or whatever talk. Their should be humans and their should be acting like a civilized human being. No matter what your color is, you have the option to act one way or another unless you are diagnosed with a disorder. If you aren't diagnosed with a disorder then, you need to just act like a civilized human and do what is expected of you. There are tons of successful minorities as well as tons of successful white people. There are bad white people and there are bad Black and Latino people as well. Statistics are perfect for skewing data to favor your ideas. Pedro uses a lot of statistics to make the data favor what he wants us to see. Do I believe that a lot of the bad things happening in his research is real? Hell yeah I do!!! I think there are a lot of issues still that need to be figured out and certain people need to be fired and hired to make these changes happen. Until people in this world start looking at the big picture and realize that getting an education doesn't mean you are "acting White" and until people realize that they need to take responsibility for their own education and achievements no matter what race they are we are going to have problems in this world. I would kill for a world where everyone is color blind and we just made it about the person. I would love to keep the cultures of every group of individuals. I don't want that gone. I just want people to see people. Not color. I'm tired of the hate. I'm tired of the segregation and the horrible crimes happening because of race. The world needs to get their shit together and start acting right.
END OF RANT!!!
END OF RANT!!!
Wednesday, July 15, 2015
Chapter 4
I read over chapter 4 and really wanted to talk about the debate on high school size. I came from a small high school and most of my friends did as well. I can relate to almost every single thing that Noguera talks about in terms of how smaller schools could potentially be better. Better teacher-student relationships, safer school environment, and clearer goals are just a few of these ideas that I found to connect with.
I listen to people talk to me about the large high schools that they attended and it almost makes me sick. They will talk about having 1500 people in a graduating class and how they only could name about 20 students and don't remember all of their teachers. They talk about the fights, the guns or knives brought to school, the amount of students that could have been injured had an intruder came into the building. They talk to me about having good academics, but not really knowing what the mission of the school was. They learned while they were there, but it wasn't clear as to what the school really wanted them to achieve. I can't stand this.
I know Pedro doesn't necessarily seem to be a huge advocate for these smaller schools as the answer to the problem in high schools, but I have to respectfully disagree with him on that thought. If we want our youth to get the best possible experience throughout high school we need to limit the size of schools. If we can't limit the size of a school, we need to limit the exposure to a certain amount of students within each school. Students need to know who they are going to school with and need to know who all of their teachers are. Students need to feel safe all the time and shouldn't have to worry about someone coming to school with weapons. These are things that can be controlled in smaller schools. The students should all know the mission of the school as well. If you don't understand why you are there and what the teachers and administrators are trying to achieve, why would you participate?
I think giving the students a voice is a very good idea as well. I have always been an advocate for allowing the students to give their input on how things should be done in their schools. Think about what adults do in order to control things that are happening in their sub-divisions, cities, states, and country. We vote and have a say. We need to afford students this same opportunity if we want to keep democracy alive in America and if we want them to feel highly appreciated. If we want them to know that their opinions are valued than we must start listening.
I listen to people talk to me about the large high schools that they attended and it almost makes me sick. They will talk about having 1500 people in a graduating class and how they only could name about 20 students and don't remember all of their teachers. They talk about the fights, the guns or knives brought to school, the amount of students that could have been injured had an intruder came into the building. They talk to me about having good academics, but not really knowing what the mission of the school was. They learned while they were there, but it wasn't clear as to what the school really wanted them to achieve. I can't stand this.
I know Pedro doesn't necessarily seem to be a huge advocate for these smaller schools as the answer to the problem in high schools, but I have to respectfully disagree with him on that thought. If we want our youth to get the best possible experience throughout high school we need to limit the size of schools. If we can't limit the size of a school, we need to limit the exposure to a certain amount of students within each school. Students need to know who they are going to school with and need to know who all of their teachers are. Students need to feel safe all the time and shouldn't have to worry about someone coming to school with weapons. These are things that can be controlled in smaller schools. The students should all know the mission of the school as well. If you don't understand why you are there and what the teachers and administrators are trying to achieve, why would you participate?
I think giving the students a voice is a very good idea as well. I have always been an advocate for allowing the students to give their input on how things should be done in their schools. Think about what adults do in order to control things that are happening in their sub-divisions, cities, states, and country. We vote and have a say. We need to afford students this same opportunity if we want to keep democracy alive in America and if we want them to feel highly appreciated. If we want them to know that their opinions are valued than we must start listening.
Monday, July 6, 2015
Blacks and Latinos....Awakening to say the least.
These two chapters were quite eye opening in terms of getting real views from African Americans and Latinos. I must say that a lot of the things that were talked about were things that I have heard before, but never really gotten first hand accounts with it.
Pedro talks about Latinos in New Bedford. This was an account that I really enjoyed reading, but also found disturbing. As one kid said to Pedro "I think people are killing each other because they’re bored to death.” (Pg. 57) The irony in this statement is just beyond anything I have heard. So kids are running around in New Bedford and killing others because they are literally bored to death. That is sad. What can we do though? That's what I wanted to start thinking about. Pedro talked about how he was put in a position where he couldn't even respond to the kids statement. What do we do? We are teachers and this is something that reiterates how Latinos are feeling all over the U.S. Nothing is being done to help them, but at the same time they aren't doing anything to further their experiences as mentioned in the book by the store owner. As educators I think we can take examples like this and try to put ourselves in these kids shoes. If we understand what the problem is and walk a day in their lives, maybe we can fix the problem. Schools need to offer more programs to help get kids off the streets. The state needs to step in and offer more money for programs that educate and find jobs for individuals. More people need to take ownership of their city and stand up for what's right. Educators are at the forefront as they are the ones who are going to see the kids more than others. Be an activist for change instead of an acceptor of the wrong.
I'm trying to put "acting white" into perspective for my own good right now and I just can't seem to do it. I read the chapter. I reread the chapter. I still don't understand why this is an issue. I relate it to what we have learned about culture so far in 446, in that there is a micro-culture that has been created by the African American community in which they feel that doing homework and going to school and not getting into fights and acting tough is the white way to do things. Pedro speaks of this and makes it seem as though young African American males associate these things with middle class white folks and they can't be like them at all! I just don't get it. I think a huge reason is because a lot of the African Americans that I know through college and high school were proud to be getting good grades and never wanted to act tough or get in fights to prove themselves. There just wasn't a need to do this. I look at the areas Pedro is in though and have to assume that the setting is affecting this in some way. Pedro was in the South Bronx, the rough areas of L.A., and Oakland. These are historically rough towns as he points out in chapter 2 of his book. The African American children and young adults aren't to blame though. Are they? I think the areas they grow up in have let them down. The states they live in don't give the funding needed to these areas to help support their personal and educational growth. Pedro talks about how it is just fine for an African American girl to get pregnant in her eyes because society has nothing good planned for her anyway. We have to change this mentality. States, cities, and schools have a responsibility to break the stigma that follows these students because of their race. Students want to learn as is evident from Pedro's research, it's just a matter of getting the necessary resources to make change happen.
Eye opening part of the book. Pedro's research thus far has me really thinking and I like that in a book. I have been looking at how this relates to my classroom and how I can change things to impact my students lives.
Pedro talks about Latinos in New Bedford. This was an account that I really enjoyed reading, but also found disturbing. As one kid said to Pedro "I think people are killing each other because they’re bored to death.” (Pg. 57) The irony in this statement is just beyond anything I have heard. So kids are running around in New Bedford and killing others because they are literally bored to death. That is sad. What can we do though? That's what I wanted to start thinking about. Pedro talked about how he was put in a position where he couldn't even respond to the kids statement. What do we do? We are teachers and this is something that reiterates how Latinos are feeling all over the U.S. Nothing is being done to help them, but at the same time they aren't doing anything to further their experiences as mentioned in the book by the store owner. As educators I think we can take examples like this and try to put ourselves in these kids shoes. If we understand what the problem is and walk a day in their lives, maybe we can fix the problem. Schools need to offer more programs to help get kids off the streets. The state needs to step in and offer more money for programs that educate and find jobs for individuals. More people need to take ownership of their city and stand up for what's right. Educators are at the forefront as they are the ones who are going to see the kids more than others. Be an activist for change instead of an acceptor of the wrong.
I'm trying to put "acting white" into perspective for my own good right now and I just can't seem to do it. I read the chapter. I reread the chapter. I still don't understand why this is an issue. I relate it to what we have learned about culture so far in 446, in that there is a micro-culture that has been created by the African American community in which they feel that doing homework and going to school and not getting into fights and acting tough is the white way to do things. Pedro speaks of this and makes it seem as though young African American males associate these things with middle class white folks and they can't be like them at all! I just don't get it. I think a huge reason is because a lot of the African Americans that I know through college and high school were proud to be getting good grades and never wanted to act tough or get in fights to prove themselves. There just wasn't a need to do this. I look at the areas Pedro is in though and have to assume that the setting is affecting this in some way. Pedro was in the South Bronx, the rough areas of L.A., and Oakland. These are historically rough towns as he points out in chapter 2 of his book. The African American children and young adults aren't to blame though. Are they? I think the areas they grow up in have let them down. The states they live in don't give the funding needed to these areas to help support their personal and educational growth. Pedro talks about how it is just fine for an African American girl to get pregnant in her eyes because society has nothing good planned for her anyway. We have to change this mentality. States, cities, and schools have a responsibility to break the stigma that follows these students because of their race. Students want to learn as is evident from Pedro's research, it's just a matter of getting the necessary resources to make change happen.
Eye opening part of the book. Pedro's research thus far has me really thinking and I like that in a book. I have been looking at how this relates to my classroom and how I can change things to impact my students lives.
Wednesday, July 1, 2015
Chapter One Blog
I have to start by saying that I just went to the Chancellor's Academy at the University of Illinois and Pedro was a speaker there. He was amazing to listen to. Ironic that he promoted this book and then I found out I was going to be reading it!
Social norms play a huge part in the lives of young adolescents. Pedro talks about two things specifically that I have had a lot of experience with in my life. He talks about the use of the phrase "acting white" and the "model minority" thought. I grew up in a small town of 600 people that you couldn't even consider a suburb of Champaign. My town, as were most around here at the time, were pretty much all white in terms of race. I remember when an African American student had moved to town and started going to school with us. He instantly became friends with us all since we were such a small school, but there was something weird about him that didn't make sense to me until I was much older and also until I read things like what Pedro wrote. This student was friends with us all and was accepted by his peers. He started to act weird though much like Pedro's son did. He stopped trying in class. He would tell teachers off and try to get in trouble. He loved to play music and didn't really like sports, but he tried out for nearly every sporting event we had and not once tried to be in the band. I remember being at a party after we graduated and hearing him for the first time use the phrase "acting white." He explained how he started to fall off because he was getting made fun of by his own cousins and his peers from his old school because he was "acting white" and wasn't doing the traditional things that African Americans should be doing at his age. He is thankful to this day that he had positive role models around him in his parents and teachers who cared enough to push him to just be him and not to live up to these stereotypes that plague children of color.
The other experience I have is with the "model minority" thought process. I have seen this from the time I was in middle school, all the way through college, in the Air Force, and now as a teacher. I had a great friend in middle school through high school that was of Asian decent. She was an amazing person, but we rarely got to see her because her parents wanted her to live up to the standards of the "model minority". She would get in trouble for getting a B on an assignment. She wasn't allowed to go anywhere on certain days because those were days of study. It was interesting to see, but I chalked it up to just cultural differences at the time. When I was in the Air Force I had to go to technical training school, and while I was there I got pressured hard by an Asian American student who told me one night that his parents would "kill him" if he wasn't able to get top graduate of his class. It was a sad situation where he felt so pressured that he ended up dropping out of the program and going to an easier one just to please them with grades. I again thought this was all a cultural thing. In college I had numerous friends who had to constantly report back to parents or who would always be picked first in groups because they were Asian. This is the first time I realized its not really a cultural thing as much as it is a social stereotype now that even Asian families get wrapped up in and have to live up to. I see this in middle school as I teach when kids go to the Asian's for help on their work because they believe them to be smarter than everyone else. It's what they have been taught by society to think and the Asian kids feel as though they must live up to that stereotype.
I think Pedro brings up a lot of good points, but these are two that really stick out to me in Chapter 1 and are two that I believe need the most attention right now. We have to start breaking these stereotypes as a society. It isn't going to be on the African American and Asian populations alone to stop the molds and to break out and be different in order for the stereotype to stop. It's going to be on the entire human race to stop this. Some will tell you that you are "just a teacher." Would Pedro do most of his research in schools if he didn't think that was one of the most important places where change can occur though? I challenge everyone in society, especially teachers, to help break these stereotypes and to just listen. Listen to what kids have to say and encourage them to do what they want and to be who they feel they really are. It's time for change.
Social norms play a huge part in the lives of young adolescents. Pedro talks about two things specifically that I have had a lot of experience with in my life. He talks about the use of the phrase "acting white" and the "model minority" thought. I grew up in a small town of 600 people that you couldn't even consider a suburb of Champaign. My town, as were most around here at the time, were pretty much all white in terms of race. I remember when an African American student had moved to town and started going to school with us. He instantly became friends with us all since we were such a small school, but there was something weird about him that didn't make sense to me until I was much older and also until I read things like what Pedro wrote. This student was friends with us all and was accepted by his peers. He started to act weird though much like Pedro's son did. He stopped trying in class. He would tell teachers off and try to get in trouble. He loved to play music and didn't really like sports, but he tried out for nearly every sporting event we had and not once tried to be in the band. I remember being at a party after we graduated and hearing him for the first time use the phrase "acting white." He explained how he started to fall off because he was getting made fun of by his own cousins and his peers from his old school because he was "acting white" and wasn't doing the traditional things that African Americans should be doing at his age. He is thankful to this day that he had positive role models around him in his parents and teachers who cared enough to push him to just be him and not to live up to these stereotypes that plague children of color.
The other experience I have is with the "model minority" thought process. I have seen this from the time I was in middle school, all the way through college, in the Air Force, and now as a teacher. I had a great friend in middle school through high school that was of Asian decent. She was an amazing person, but we rarely got to see her because her parents wanted her to live up to the standards of the "model minority". She would get in trouble for getting a B on an assignment. She wasn't allowed to go anywhere on certain days because those were days of study. It was interesting to see, but I chalked it up to just cultural differences at the time. When I was in the Air Force I had to go to technical training school, and while I was there I got pressured hard by an Asian American student who told me one night that his parents would "kill him" if he wasn't able to get top graduate of his class. It was a sad situation where he felt so pressured that he ended up dropping out of the program and going to an easier one just to please them with grades. I again thought this was all a cultural thing. In college I had numerous friends who had to constantly report back to parents or who would always be picked first in groups because they were Asian. This is the first time I realized its not really a cultural thing as much as it is a social stereotype now that even Asian families get wrapped up in and have to live up to. I see this in middle school as I teach when kids go to the Asian's for help on their work because they believe them to be smarter than everyone else. It's what they have been taught by society to think and the Asian kids feel as though they must live up to that stereotype.
I think Pedro brings up a lot of good points, but these are two that really stick out to me in Chapter 1 and are two that I believe need the most attention right now. We have to start breaking these stereotypes as a society. It isn't going to be on the African American and Asian populations alone to stop the molds and to break out and be different in order for the stereotype to stop. It's going to be on the entire human race to stop this. Some will tell you that you are "just a teacher." Would Pedro do most of his research in schools if he didn't think that was one of the most important places where change can occur though? I challenge everyone in society, especially teachers, to help break these stereotypes and to just listen. Listen to what kids have to say and encourage them to do what they want and to be who they feel they really are. It's time for change.
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