No one enters a classroom without a personal history; thus, no one enters a classroom completely free of bias. Each time I visit the school I am tutoring in, this statement becomes more clear, real, and obvious to me. The school in which I am tutoring in is extremely different for the schools I attended. Although the distance between my old schools and this school I am tutoring at isn't drastic, the worlds and lives in which the students experience are like night and day from one another.
As a future teacher I realize that there will be certain situations where it will be hard not to carry over a bias opinion and learning technique. One of major difference I feel I may find myself facing often will be the simple difference in language, culture, and privileges at hand. I have grown up and attended schools where English is the first language, if not the only language. Working with students who are in the complete opposite situation for language will be a hard task to accomplish. Although I know that I personally will do anything and everything to be able to educate these children the best and most effective way possible, I know that it will be extremely hard. Because I have grown up with English as my only language, I am unaware of how hard and confusing it actually is to not have grown this way. I am clueless to how difficult it is for these students because I myself have not personally experienced this. Also, I have been fortunate enough to have many privileges handed my way, a safe and loving home, and positive role models. Some of these children have not had any of this. This is another barrier that I will need to put my bias aside and work closer with these children.
I find myself becoming more and more interested in working in a inner city school setting. Although I have grown up in a predominately English speaking society, predominately white area with predominately white schools, I in no way think of myself or find myself better than any of these students. I actually have started to feel as though these students have the upper hand. These students in this school are learning with peers of multiple different cultures, religions, races, life styles, and languages. The students in this school are experiencing interactions with real life. In reality everyone is different. Everyone has their own history, their own story, and their own future. I find it amazing that these children are able to interact with one another and set their differences aside in order to help each other succeed and reach a brighter future.
Before tutoring in this school I feel as though I was blind to the reality of the beauty in these inner city schools. I pictured myself working in the Elementary school I attended and living the life that I have known until today. Tutoring in the city has opened my eyes to new options.
I feel that these children in these inner city schools are desperate for help. They need the teachers that are willing to go above and beyond to teach them. Not only is this school environment an educational experience for the students, I feel these schools are educational and beneficial to the faculty also.
I have related this prompt and experiences to the theorist Johnson. Johnson writes about the issue of race and how racism and fear is still present. He believes that humans do not fear what is different but instead we are intrigued and interested in it. Johnson talks about diversity and how race is only an issue because we acknowledge it and create it to be an issue ourselves. The school I tutor in is extremely diverse. From the languages spoken, to the religions, clothing, races, and preferred food.. the children in this school all bring individuality to their classrooms and provide their classmates with first hand education and insights on how life is different for everyone. As future educators we need to cross this boarder of fearing the different. We need to open our eyes and accept all. Race is only present if we allow it to be. As future educators we need to break these barriers and allow all of our students the same feeling of equality and opportunities. We all come from somewhere different, but at the same time we all share this earth. In order to create a brighter future for ourselves, our families, and our students, we need to push all fears and judgments aside and work together as a whole.
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I completely agree with your statement on pushing fears and judgement aside. It wasn't until high school that I realized how different lives could be. I had no idea how hard some people had it until my younger brothers and sister were adopted. Reality never sets in until you are out of your comfort zone and see how diverse life actually is. After elemenarty and high school college can be a reality slap and it can really open your eyes to what the world is actually like. The students in the school we tutor at are a step ahead because they already now what the world is like.
ReplyDeleteI also want to work at an inner city school, i feel like these students could use the most help. Johnson's article fit's well with you experience. The school definatly proved that the issue of diversity is "alive and well". Most people just do not realize how much diversity there is because like me they went to a school that didn't have any.
Jess,
ReplyDeleteTo begin, I completely agree with you when you talked about how different the school that you tutor in is compared to the schools which you attended. The schools which I attended are basically worlds apart from the school that I tutor in every Friday. There was no Spanish written next to the English on all the signs, there were always more white kids than non-white kids, and so. It’s funny in a way to think about how close my school and this school physically are, yet how different they are demographically and, unfortunately academically.
I think it’s interesting how you brought up these children are really the ones who have the upper hand as they are the ones who get to interact with teachers and other students who are not like themselves. They are constantly surrounded by different skin colors, cultures, languages, etc. growing up in a predominantly white town and going to a predominantly white school, I am almost jealous that I did not get to experience this sort of diversity.
Finally, I also related this prompt to Alan Johnson. I definitely agree with you when you said that we need to stop pushing the issue of diversity aside. I think that it is important that as future educators, we must not be afraid of difference amongst our students and ourselves. Instead, we must do as Johnson says and “champion diversity, promote tolerance, celebrate difference”!
Talk to you soon!
Jess,
ReplyDeleteLike yourself, where I went to school I was surrounded a lot of people who came from the same background as me, although there were various different cultural backgrounds but mine seemed to be the dominant one therefore I was able to feel a sense of comfort while in school but I also find myself wanting to teach more so in an inner city school setting because I feel such a need to help these children. Some part of me agrees with you when you said that you feel as though these kids have the upper hand because they get to experience all types of people, cultures and backgrounds but I also feel as though most of them just stay at the status of their parents, which is not necessarily a good thing. Hopefully these kids will use that to their advantage rather than disadvantage. I think the whole experience over all was such an eye opener, and I hope along the way these children realize how much is out there and that they have a place and a chance in life.
When I was in school there was always a diverse crowd but like I said above my backround dominated, but when I was put in the providence school setting I felt a bit out of place. I could and at the same time could not relate to a lot of what was going on at the school. I knew I was going to have my hands full as soon as I walked up to the main entrance and there was Spanish signs everywhere. But I am glad I got to have this experience. I totally agree with you and as future educators we need to break the barriers that exist within the public school educational system , not to fear difference but accept it.