Delpit, "The Silenced Dialogue" Arguement

     Lisa Delpit's argues that society demands categorical divisions between students. These are mainly based upon culture and ability, and the two are most likely intertwined. There are many different approaches to teaching, especially to children of a different race or culture than what we know. There is no right or wrong way, but as a teacher it is their job to figure out the best way for the student. Some cultures like African Americans need more discipline or authority from the teacher, while others like Whites do not. For example, she mentions that a black student seemed to understand directions when directly given to him. It also says that sometimes, students do not understand directions if they are given in a less aggressive or liaise fair way, so many teachers are not seen as important or in charge of the classroom. Some teachers are set in their ways and believe they know best, but it may be they are uncomfortable to change and try new methods. I believe her main point is that every student requires something different from their instructor, and not every student fits neatly into society's categories. In order to be a good educator, they must be willing to learn and adapt to what is needed from them.
     This article's argument and examples of the differences between teaching white students and those of Alaskan heritage and African American descent reminded me of the discussion about white privilege we had and the reading from McIntosh. From my own experiences, I have dealt with a few teachers who were stern like the black students liked, and more of those who were more relaxed like the black students seemed to dislike. As a white student, I have a choice of who my teachers are and how they teach, and they do not have to adjust any of their teaching methods based on my race or culture. Also, I do not have to learn an entirely different/new way to speak and write in order to get a job, get into college, or fit into society like the native Alaskan students. But the fact that this is still an issue, really bothers me. I know there are students who come from different backgrounds but I do not think they should have to be subjugated to only receive their education in a certain way, as many teachers are apparently taught to do.
     Below I have posted an introduction to Tim Wise's documentary entitled "White Like Me". The full video is also posted on my blog. The video is about his experiences as an educator and racial equality activist. He believes that the racial bias in which we view others, and when we don't recognize that, not only do we do an injustice to people of color, but we end up doing damage to white people as well. http://youtu.be/ESbFwsZLCe4
     So I pose this question to the class, what part of your education (college, high school, or even younger) do you now see as a privilege? Did your teachers have to change their methods of teaching to fit with your background? Do you even think teachers should change their methods to meet the needs of the few, or just teach to meet the needs of the many? And finally, have our classrooms been damaged by certain ways of teaching, or to better put it is one way better than another?
   

White Like Me

This documentary touches on white privilege and the ever-looming "race" issue.

Kozol's Amazing Grace Reflection

Jonathan Kozol's "Amazing Grace" is about the poorest area of New York, and some may argue the most destitute in the entire country. The worst thing about reading this was not the devastating conditions people were in, but rather the fact that the city had basically given up on them. The city just moves people here that they feel cannot make it any longer and try to provide help for them, but not the help that could ever get them out of the neighborhood. The city sends electric blankets, sleeping bags, electric heaters, condoms, and new needles to help keep the people safe and warm. While I'm sure these things are appreciated and somewhat necessary, where are the tools to help these people survive economically? The city should be sending people to help educate the residents, or help them to find jobs, or just steer them in a direction to help make their lives better. Instead, they are allowing these people to continue down the same path with no light at the end of the tunnel. "Somebody has power. Pretending that they don't so they don't need to use it to help people-- that is my idea of evil" (Kozol 23). The city has power over who receives welfare, SSI, what buildings are put in that neighborhood, and apparently who lives there. They have all this power, yet claim they cannot fix the situations of these people. Denying their power, is evil and is only reassuring the fact that they have given up on these people. In Lisa Delphit's "Will it Help the Sheep?" she mentions Dr. Robert Moses, who worked with children from poor neighborhoods and gave them the attention and tools in order to succeed. He developed new ways in order to teach them including after school and summer programs and allowed these students to grow and prosper.  He did not want them to just become another statistic of a child coming from poverty who never saw their full potential. In Pink Floyd's music video "Another Brick in the Wall" ( http://youtu.be/YR5ApYxkU-U ), he refers to the education system as a factory, and we are making education uniform to every child and they are just becoming another brick to fit into society. The teachers in the video actually frown upon creativity and have the students put on a mask so they are all the same. They don't really care about the education of these children, but rather that they get all the students ready to be molded into society. It is only at the end of the video where the children rip off their masks and destroy the school/factory that we see their disapproval of the system. It seems to have taken some time for this to happen, and maybe one day the citizens of these poor cities in New York will also rise up and convey their disgust with the way the system around them works. Maybe one day, they will have a city that hasn't given up on them.