Conclusion Page
Looking back at the reading of this book and what I have learned from this writing, I think that this book has mainly made me re-think how I look at the world and how I view my students in my classroom. I think that I have always been tried to bring equality to the classroom in general and I have always viewed my students equally. But this book would say that viewing my students as equals is not enough, instead I need to really understand where they are coming from, why they are making the decisions that they are making, and what makes them who they are. This means that I need to re-think how I view my students and how I view my classroom. According to the author, I view the world around me through a viewpoint that is solely white-oriented. In order to best serve my students I must be able to view the world around me in a diverse way, in a way that is not only based on my whiteness, but is instead based on the diversity around the classroom and around the world. I think this changes my teaching in the future as I am just much more conscious about what my own thinking and perspectives are and what they look like and how not everyone thinks in the same ways that I do. I think that this changes how I see other people as well, as I realize more that my way is not always the right way, but that there are so many factors that need to be taken into account before I can make judgments about others or think I know why someone is acting a certain way.
I think that I still wrestle with a number of issues from this reading and this book in general. Most of these are based off of the generalizations that the author made about white people in general through the first couple chapters. In later chapters the author clarified that he did not mean to villainize white people, but through the beginning of the book this really seemed to be the case. Through the first couple chapters the author wrote about how white people basically bear the sins of their fathers who started slavery, encouraged slavery, and encouraged discrimination in the past. I agree with the fact that white people really treated other races horribly both in the near and distant past, but this does not mean that I need to feel guilty about these wrongs if I am treating other peoples fairly and with dignity. I should not have to feel bad about what people did years and years ago, there was nothing that I could do to stop them considering I was not yet on the Earth. So at the beginning of this book I feel that I was made to feel guilty for things that I had not done so I was not appreciative of this. I think also that a lot of generalizations were made about white people and Christianity in the book. Some were true, some were not. I really did not appreciate the author writing in a way that made Christianity look so evil. Once again, in the past people have done bad things in the name of Christianity, but this does not mean that my beliefs are to blame. So in these areas I definitely wrestled with some of the author's ideals and the ways that he portrayed a number of issues in his book.
Looking forward to my professional growth, I would like to read another book about this topic, but definitely from a different author and a different perspective. I think that I would also appreciate a book that went more in-depth about diversity in the classroom and how to teach in the most effective manner in a diverse classroom. I feel that the author in this book focused too much on general ideas and generalizations instead of specific methods and ways that can be used to teach in a diverse school or classroom. I would also appreciate hearing a speaker in person on this topic. Hearing someone speak in person is more powerful than reading many times and I would appreciate to see a speaker talk about diversity in the schools and the role of white teachers and be able to talk about this with others as well as seeing the perspectives of other people also listening to the speaker. I think that overall I really would like to attend a conference or a speaker the most of all, I think that this would be a very interesting experience and something that really would be outside of my comfort zone. I think that doing some field experience, teaching, or volunteer work in a neighborhood that was much different than my own would also be helpful. To see first hand how other cultures live and how other neighborhoods work together and what that looks like would be very fruitful for my professional development and I think that this would give me really a good feeling and a good grasp of other cultures, much more so than simply reading or listening to someone else talk about their own experiences.
Wednesday, November 13, 2013
Chapter 4 and 5
Chapter 4
In chapter 4, the title is "White Educators and the River of Change", throughout this chapter the author uses the metaphor of the Colorado river to describe the river of change in our world and in education. Basically, the Colorado river is not made up of one river, but of many rivers all flowing into one eventual river. Each tributary, brings with it a new type of water, different in color, consistency, and substance. What the water looks like shows back to where the water came from and the area that it came from. This is a metaphor for the river of diversity and how many waters from different areas flow together to form a river of diversity and a changing river in our nation.
Throughout the chapter the author talks about a number of healing responses that white teachers must use in the classroom and in their lives. These responses are honesty, empathy, advocacy, and action. White teachers must work through these responses in order to help heal the divides between ethnic and racial groups and to heal past relationships. The author also goes into a section titled from social dominance to social justice in which he talks about the need or a change in the dynamic of white interactions with other people groups. The author hopes that teachers can take part in the gradual change from oppression to greater inclusion and justice.
Chapter 5
Chapter 5 is titled "Mapping the Journey of White Identity Development", this chapter basically goes through some of the different theories of racial identity development and what that looks like. The chapter then compares the stages of black racial identity development with the stages of white racial identity development. The stages of the white racial identity development are broken down into two phases. Phase I includes: Contact, Disintegration, and Reintegration. Phase II includes: Pseudo-Independence, Immersion-Emersion, and Autonomy.
I think that both of these chapters brought up a lot of good insights to think about and that are very valuable for self-reflection and looking back at how we view the world in general. I really liked the metaphor in chapter 4 about the Colorado river, I think that it really showed what diversity looks like in a way and how it is related. The metaphor also talked about how the areas where the areas meet are often the areas where the river is the roughest and I think that this is true as well for humans. Lots of times when inclusion is happening and when diversity happens the time of transition can be very difficult. I think that as teachers we need to make sure that the time of transition for new students and diverse students is not rough, but that they are accepted into the classroom and school community. We need to do all that we can to make sure that this happens. As far as Chapter 5, I think that some of the stages were well thought out, but I also thought that the stages were proposed for a person with very specific beliefs about the world, not only in the areas of diversity and equality. Because of this, I don't think that all of the stages really applied to me and how I see the world around myself. So I think that some of the stages were too individualized, but that's almost always the case with stages of development as well I think.
In chapter 4, the title is "White Educators and the River of Change", throughout this chapter the author uses the metaphor of the Colorado river to describe the river of change in our world and in education. Basically, the Colorado river is not made up of one river, but of many rivers all flowing into one eventual river. Each tributary, brings with it a new type of water, different in color, consistency, and substance. What the water looks like shows back to where the water came from and the area that it came from. This is a metaphor for the river of diversity and how many waters from different areas flow together to form a river of diversity and a changing river in our nation.
Throughout the chapter the author talks about a number of healing responses that white teachers must use in the classroom and in their lives. These responses are honesty, empathy, advocacy, and action. White teachers must work through these responses in order to help heal the divides between ethnic and racial groups and to heal past relationships. The author also goes into a section titled from social dominance to social justice in which he talks about the need or a change in the dynamic of white interactions with other people groups. The author hopes that teachers can take part in the gradual change from oppression to greater inclusion and justice.
Chapter 5
Chapter 5 is titled "Mapping the Journey of White Identity Development", this chapter basically goes through some of the different theories of racial identity development and what that looks like. The chapter then compares the stages of black racial identity development with the stages of white racial identity development. The stages of the white racial identity development are broken down into two phases. Phase I includes: Contact, Disintegration, and Reintegration. Phase II includes: Pseudo-Independence, Immersion-Emersion, and Autonomy.
I think that both of these chapters brought up a lot of good insights to think about and that are very valuable for self-reflection and looking back at how we view the world in general. I really liked the metaphor in chapter 4 about the Colorado river, I think that it really showed what diversity looks like in a way and how it is related. The metaphor also talked about how the areas where the areas meet are often the areas where the river is the roughest and I think that this is true as well for humans. Lots of times when inclusion is happening and when diversity happens the time of transition can be very difficult. I think that as teachers we need to make sure that the time of transition for new students and diverse students is not rough, but that they are accepted into the classroom and school community. We need to do all that we can to make sure that this happens. As far as Chapter 5, I think that some of the stages were well thought out, but I also thought that the stages were proposed for a person with very specific beliefs about the world, not only in the areas of diversity and equality. Because of this, I don't think that all of the stages really applied to me and how I see the world around myself. So I think that some of the stages were too individualized, but that's almost always the case with stages of development as well I think.
Tuesday, November 5, 2013
Chapter 3
Chapter 3 is entitled "Decoding the Dominance Paradigm" and takes a look at white dominance and more of the specifics and science of this dominance. Howard goes through a couple examples to explain this dominance, namely the assumption of rightness that many white people follow and have followed in the past and where this ideology has come from. Howard uses quite a few historical examples from colonization to industrialization to explain his thoughts on this topic. He also writes quite a bit about the role of Christianity in this process and how Christianity has been used through the ages to keep up white dominance and keep other ethnic groups in lower places in society. Howard also makes sure to mention privilege and ignorance, two facts of white culture which he writes are very prevalent in common culture and has been common in the white culture for the most part. These art that white's receive privileges that they had no idea they were receiving and also the fact that many whites basically just ignore other cultures and think that their culture is the only correct culture.
Another main point of Howard's is that people in the dominant culture decide not to learn more about other cultures, but instead decide that their own culture is the only culture and they do not need to learn about other cultures or other nations. Howard points out that this is the main point with a lot of the ignorance and disapproval that comes when the dominant culture is exposed to other cultures. Howard believes that the dominant culture believes that everyone should assimilate to their culture and not keep living in their own cultures.
I agree and disagree with Howard throughout this chapter. In many of his points I agree to a certain extent, but also disagree to a certain extent. For example, I do agree that many people are ignorant of other cultures a lot of the time, instead preferring to only live in their own culture and stay to what they know. I think that all parties involved would definitely benefit simply by learning about other cultures and learning about people who live differently than themselves. The world is a beautiful place full of all kinds of individuals who live in different and interesting ways and all people can benefit from learning from one another. Because we live in such a diverse country the people around us are resources in that we can easily learn about a multitude of other cultures just by interacting with those who live around us. This is also very true about education and the modern classroom. The modern classroom likely will have students from a patchwork of cultures all included in one class. Because of this, the teacher has the great opportunity to learn from students and for students to work together and learn together and learn from one another's cultures.
What I disagree with is the generalizations that Howard makes about White culture and white educators in general. After reading this chapter I definitely agree with points, but the way that Howard writes and thinks really leaves a bitter taste in mouth. This is firstly because of the way that he speaks with disdain about Christianity. I believe that Jesus is the one true and only Way. Howard throws down this belief and writes about how it is ignorant and mean to other cultures. He also thinks the evangelical side of Christianity is horrible because it forces beliefs on others. As someone who grew up in the church I thought Howard would understand more about Christianity but this is evidently not the case. Christians are called to spread Christ's love through the world and with our brothers and sisters of different faiths and cultures. This does not mean that we hate other cultures and religions, but instead that we want to share Christ's love with them while still valuing their cultures and their beliefs. We do believe that Christ is the only way, but that does not mean that we think we are superior to others or think that other cultures are evil. Also I think that Howard generalizes the White culture in general, writing that white people have thrown their culture into the melting pot and lost their connections to their history. This is simply not true, many White people also have beautiful cultures and enjoy looking back at where their families came from and where their beliefs came from. Howard writes some good points, but generalizes way too much and is very extreme in his views of White culture as well as Christianity.
Chapter 3 is entitled "Decoding the Dominance Paradigm" and takes a look at white dominance and more of the specifics and science of this dominance. Howard goes through a couple examples to explain this dominance, namely the assumption of rightness that many white people follow and have followed in the past and where this ideology has come from. Howard uses quite a few historical examples from colonization to industrialization to explain his thoughts on this topic. He also writes quite a bit about the role of Christianity in this process and how Christianity has been used through the ages to keep up white dominance and keep other ethnic groups in lower places in society. Howard also makes sure to mention privilege and ignorance, two facts of white culture which he writes are very prevalent in common culture and has been common in the white culture for the most part. These art that white's receive privileges that they had no idea they were receiving and also the fact that many whites basically just ignore other cultures and think that their culture is the only correct culture.
Another main point of Howard's is that people in the dominant culture decide not to learn more about other cultures, but instead decide that their own culture is the only culture and they do not need to learn about other cultures or other nations. Howard points out that this is the main point with a lot of the ignorance and disapproval that comes when the dominant culture is exposed to other cultures. Howard believes that the dominant culture believes that everyone should assimilate to their culture and not keep living in their own cultures.
I agree and disagree with Howard throughout this chapter. In many of his points I agree to a certain extent, but also disagree to a certain extent. For example, I do agree that many people are ignorant of other cultures a lot of the time, instead preferring to only live in their own culture and stay to what they know. I think that all parties involved would definitely benefit simply by learning about other cultures and learning about people who live differently than themselves. The world is a beautiful place full of all kinds of individuals who live in different and interesting ways and all people can benefit from learning from one another. Because we live in such a diverse country the people around us are resources in that we can easily learn about a multitude of other cultures just by interacting with those who live around us. This is also very true about education and the modern classroom. The modern classroom likely will have students from a patchwork of cultures all included in one class. Because of this, the teacher has the great opportunity to learn from students and for students to work together and learn together and learn from one another's cultures.
What I disagree with is the generalizations that Howard makes about White culture and white educators in general. After reading this chapter I definitely agree with points, but the way that Howard writes and thinks really leaves a bitter taste in mouth. This is firstly because of the way that he speaks with disdain about Christianity. I believe that Jesus is the one true and only Way. Howard throws down this belief and writes about how it is ignorant and mean to other cultures. He also thinks the evangelical side of Christianity is horrible because it forces beliefs on others. As someone who grew up in the church I thought Howard would understand more about Christianity but this is evidently not the case. Christians are called to spread Christ's love through the world and with our brothers and sisters of different faiths and cultures. This does not mean that we hate other cultures and religions, but instead that we want to share Christ's love with them while still valuing their cultures and their beliefs. We do believe that Christ is the only way, but that does not mean that we think we are superior to others or think that other cultures are evil. Also I think that Howard generalizes the White culture in general, writing that white people have thrown their culture into the melting pot and lost their connections to their history. This is simply not true, many White people also have beautiful cultures and enjoy looking back at where their families came from and where their beliefs came from. Howard writes some good points, but generalizes way too much and is very extreme in his views of White culture as well as Christianity.
Sunday, November 3, 2013
Chapter 2
Chapter 2 of "We Can't Teach What We Don't Know" is titled White Dominance and the Weight of the West. This chapter goes into the specifics of what white dominance looks like in societies around the world and what dominance looks like in general. The chapter starts off with a teacher talking about all of her students coming in "with all of the same stuff" but in the upcoming years the white students continuing to achieve while the minority students fall behind. The author is really appalled by this teacher's statement and the fact that she believed that all students come in at the same level. The author goes on to investigate dominance not only in education but in multiple areas of life. He also finds out that humans naturally form in-groups and out-groups in our societies in almost anything that we do, it is a natural phenomenon. Dominance is based on this theory, that we always are making groups and assigning dominance and subordination to these groups. In his writing, Howard also writes about the fact that many white people do not realize that they are in a dominant position in culture, instead it is almost like a "fish discovering water for the first time". White people grow up in a dominant position and do not realize the benefits they are receiving or the privileges they receive just because they are white. Then they pass down these traits and continue living basically in a sphere of privilege that they don't really think about.
Howard also goes deeper into Social Dominance Theory. There are 4 principles in this theory.
1) Human social systems form social hierarchies naturally
2) These groups tend to be disproportionally male at the top
3) Forms of social oppression (racism, sexism etc.) can be viewed as manifestations of group-based social hierarchies
4) Social hierarchy is a survival strategy that is used by humans and also by some animals
After going over this definition, Howard also takes into account the experiences of indigenous populations around the world and how these populations were destroyed or maimed by white dominance in the ages of exploration and even up to the present day. He also goes into detail how this dominance happened and what the methodologies behind this dominance of the indigenous populations was.
After reading this chapter I think that I agreed with some things the author had to say and disagreed with others. First, I agree that the teacher was wrong about her students all coming in with the "same stuff". As teachers we need to be aware of our students' differences and what their backgrounds look like as they come into the classroom. All students come in to school with a different cultural background, different knowledge, language skills, and a myriad of other factors. If a teacher comes into the classroom thinking that all students come in with the same set of all of these attributes they will not be prepared to teach in the most effective manner. Because of this, teachers need to get to know families and students and also be knowledgeable about other cultures and customs and how to be respectful and accepting of different cultural practices.
This being said, I don't think that the amount of impact that the teacher puts on white dominance is true in the classroom. I agree that naturally humans place themselves in groups with dominance being placed in some groups over others. Just witness any group project or team thats put together and this can be observed, it happens in all settings. Yet, the author seems to believe that basically all of the problems in the world and in the classroom are because of race dominance. I disagree with this. Instead of placing the blame on a large group of people, instead effort should be put into the acceptance of other cultures and the collaborations between cultures. Each culture is different from the next, but that doesn't mean that they can't exist together. Each culture also does not have to always be thinking back to past wrongs and events that happened in order to think about how interact in the present. Yes, white people were wrongly dominant in the past and imposed themselves on many other cultures. I agree that that was wrong and destroyed many innocent lives and peoples. Yet, in the classroom and the world today we do not need to be thinking about this and remembering this in our daily interactions with people of other cultures. Instead, we need to treat all equally, not impose privileges on ourselves or others because of their background or culture. We need to see other's differences and embrace and enjoy these differences and then move on from these differences.
Chapter 2 of "We Can't Teach What We Don't Know" is titled White Dominance and the Weight of the West. This chapter goes into the specifics of what white dominance looks like in societies around the world and what dominance looks like in general. The chapter starts off with a teacher talking about all of her students coming in "with all of the same stuff" but in the upcoming years the white students continuing to achieve while the minority students fall behind. The author is really appalled by this teacher's statement and the fact that she believed that all students come in at the same level. The author goes on to investigate dominance not only in education but in multiple areas of life. He also finds out that humans naturally form in-groups and out-groups in our societies in almost anything that we do, it is a natural phenomenon. Dominance is based on this theory, that we always are making groups and assigning dominance and subordination to these groups. In his writing, Howard also writes about the fact that many white people do not realize that they are in a dominant position in culture, instead it is almost like a "fish discovering water for the first time". White people grow up in a dominant position and do not realize the benefits they are receiving or the privileges they receive just because they are white. Then they pass down these traits and continue living basically in a sphere of privilege that they don't really think about.
Howard also goes deeper into Social Dominance Theory. There are 4 principles in this theory.
1) Human social systems form social hierarchies naturally
2) These groups tend to be disproportionally male at the top
3) Forms of social oppression (racism, sexism etc.) can be viewed as manifestations of group-based social hierarchies
4) Social hierarchy is a survival strategy that is used by humans and also by some animals
After going over this definition, Howard also takes into account the experiences of indigenous populations around the world and how these populations were destroyed or maimed by white dominance in the ages of exploration and even up to the present day. He also goes into detail how this dominance happened and what the methodologies behind this dominance of the indigenous populations was.
After reading this chapter I think that I agreed with some things the author had to say and disagreed with others. First, I agree that the teacher was wrong about her students all coming in with the "same stuff". As teachers we need to be aware of our students' differences and what their backgrounds look like as they come into the classroom. All students come in to school with a different cultural background, different knowledge, language skills, and a myriad of other factors. If a teacher comes into the classroom thinking that all students come in with the same set of all of these attributes they will not be prepared to teach in the most effective manner. Because of this, teachers need to get to know families and students and also be knowledgeable about other cultures and customs and how to be respectful and accepting of different cultural practices.
This being said, I don't think that the amount of impact that the teacher puts on white dominance is true in the classroom. I agree that naturally humans place themselves in groups with dominance being placed in some groups over others. Just witness any group project or team thats put together and this can be observed, it happens in all settings. Yet, the author seems to believe that basically all of the problems in the world and in the classroom are because of race dominance. I disagree with this. Instead of placing the blame on a large group of people, instead effort should be put into the acceptance of other cultures and the collaborations between cultures. Each culture is different from the next, but that doesn't mean that they can't exist together. Each culture also does not have to always be thinking back to past wrongs and events that happened in order to think about how interact in the present. Yes, white people were wrongly dominant in the past and imposed themselves on many other cultures. I agree that that was wrong and destroyed many innocent lives and peoples. Yet, in the classroom and the world today we do not need to be thinking about this and remembering this in our daily interactions with people of other cultures. Instead, we need to treat all equally, not impose privileges on ourselves or others because of their background or culture. We need to see other's differences and embrace and enjoy these differences and then move on from these differences.
Tuesday, October 29, 2013
Chapter 1 of "We Can't Teach What We Don't Know" is titled, White Man Dancing: A Story of Personal Transformation. As the title suggests, this chapter is mainly about the author's own journey through life and his look back at his differing views about race, especially his views about the White race which he is part of. The author started out in an all-white community, eventually moving to Yale for his schooling. While at Yale he started volunteering in an all black neighborhood called the Hill. The Hill was quite an impoverished area and it led him to completely change his views, including his faith and his political views. The author eventually moved to the Hill and lived there for a number of years.
After his time at the Hill he decided that in order to be the most effective civil rights leader he could be, he needed to move back into white communities and share with them what he had found out about black communities. Basically, that through history white people have dominated other races and cultures, forcing them to live in their shadow. The author speaks quite a bit about making other races live in the shadow of the white population and making them second class citizens in many ways. He also talked about white privileges and how the populations differ in many ways because of their upbringings and the stereotypes associated with each race. For many of his college years and the years directly after, the author almost rejected his white identity and really almost hated the idea of being white and the ideas associated with this identity. He eventually came to terms with his identity, but through the rest of the writing it is quite obvious that he still is very aggressive about white ideas and the mindsets of large groups of the population.
After reading this chapter I was really struck in a number of ways with this writing. It seemed that the author had such a negative idea about white people in general and their ideas, he was really almost angry at white people in general and thought them to be very uneducated and unyielding in their beliefs. Now, this is definitely true for certain parts of the population, but I think that his anger was unfounded considering that not all white people think themselves superior to other races or practice dominion over them. I think that I understand where the author is coming from and understand what he is trying to accomplish. All races and ethnicities deserve equality and this definitely carries over to education as well, all children deserve a great education regardless of their race or background. Yet, the author seems to take this a step further and almost blame white people for their domination against other races.
After reading this chapter I almost felt guilty being white because of the way that the author stereotyped white people as so domineering and mean to other races and ethnicities. Actions must be taken to make sure that all peoples have equal rights and that stereotypes are not taken up by the population in their ideas or actions. But this does not mean that other races should be made out as villains because of the actions or ideas of some.
We Can't Teach What We Don't Know
This book focuses on White Teachers in Multiracial schools and the issues and information that teachers need to know about in order to become successful teachers in diverse schools. The author has been involved in the civil rights movement and is a nationally known speaker speaking on the topic of diversity in schools as well as the trend of white teachers teaching very in multiracial schools across the nation.
This book is written for white teachers and looks at the history of white teachers teaching students in minority populations, as well as what teachers can do to most effectively teach their students. I chose this book because I currently am teaching a diverse group of students in my novice placement and I'm sure I will continue to do so in the future, meaning that I need to know how to be the best teacher possible for all students in my classroom, especially those students who come from a different background than myself.
Howard, G. R. (2006). We Can't Teach What We Don't Know (2nd ed.). New York, NY: Teachers College Press.
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