I was moved by the raw truth in the stories from both chapters about children searching for their identity and trying to find a place to belong based on their use of language. Even Michelle Obama struggled with finding her own voice and said she was teased as a child for “talking like a white girl.” Like it or not, right or wrong, we are judged by others based on our choices, outward appearance, and yes even the way we talk.
In Dowdy’s “Ovuh Dyuh,” language was described and used as a tool to be mastered in order to gain personal and public power over the past “memory of slavery.” Dowdy’s passion for protecting her roots and honoring the person she truly felt she was is inspiring. She took a tough stand against her mother and embraced her Trinidad heritage by the way she spoke and chose to wear her hair. Feeling torn between the two worlds of what feels right and what looks right is what ultimately shapes who we are as people. Accepting who you are and allowing others to be themselves too is what will set us all free. In a perfect world and in writing that sounds great but it is tougher task to put into practice. I encourage my students to remember that it doesn’t matter what someone looks like on the outside, but rather what is on the inside and how they treat others that really counts. I guess I often get caught up in everyone getting along, that I could at times do a better job of acknowledging and celebrating their differences too.
Affirming differences and being accepted are key points that I related to in Delpit’s “No Kinda Sense.” Whether using Standard English or Ebonics to express ourselves, it feels good to be accepted and part of a group that we like and likes us. Delpit’s daughter experienced this feeling when she moved schools and learned a “second language form.” Who is to say that there is only one right way to do anything, much less tell someone the way they can and can’t express themselves? Kids know when they are with their friends and/or family there is a certain language used, different from how they talk in public or school. “Code-switching” is the formal name for this. How interesting that children can acquire this ability and knowledge without formal lessons. Instead such authentic learning takes place when it is fun and you don’t even know it is happening. As teachers, who tend to get bogged down by the pressure of tests scores, we can take from this chapter that learning can be made fun again! Let’s not take ourselves or our students too seriously. Instead, get to know them and use that knowledge as a foundation for helping them discover the larger world through language. I think in today’s classrooms there has to be a balance of allowing individual expression as well as traditional/formal instruction.
Ruth Ann Timmons
Comments (4)
Ruth Ann, I can very much relate to your comment that sometimes we get so caught up in trying to make everyone get along that we forget to acknowledge the differences that make them unique individuals. I, a middle-class white woman, may not notice that differences are not being celebrated, but I'm realizing this may not be the case for children of other cultures. As Delpit's article says, many of our textbooks do not celebrate the accomplishments and contributions of societies and people outside of the white society. Therefore, those students who are part of other cultures might be feeling inferior because they don't see any evidence that people that look like them have helped to make the world what it is today.
Celebrating these students' unique backgrounds may help them to feel proud of where they have come from. Also, a deeper understanding of their peers may help everyone to "get along", which was a goal from the beginning.
Posted by Andrea Schlobohm | June 7, 2011 9:11 AM
Posted on June 7, 2011 09:11
I agree with your statement that we get so caught up in trying to make everyone get along that we forget to acknowledge the differences that make them unique individuals. I think that, with all the curriculum we have to cover at our various grade levels, we become more focused on students who are compliant than on having students who are independent thinkers and who are unique individuals, with different interests, home cultures, and personalities. Truly, many cultures are under-represented in our textbooks and school curriculums; therefore, I feel that one of our goals should be to search out as much good multicultural literature as we can find to share with our students. Sometimes I think that we forget that, although we are all alike in many ways, it is our differences that make people interesting.
Posted by Marlee Wright | June 7, 2011 10:10 PM
Posted on June 7, 2011 22:10
Ruth, isn't it amazing how "code-switching" just seems to be second nature for children? While we know being able to speak correctly is important, we do need to make learning fun by giving students the opportunity to be themselves. We need to allow them to express concepts in their own languages first. Since children learn so much from each other, this approach may be more beneficial to everyone involved.
Posted by Holly Lawson | June 7, 2011 10:15 PM
Posted on June 7, 2011 22:15
I agree, Ruth, that difference does not mean deficient! Your comment about children "code switching" helped me to think about how so much of what children do naturally that is "right" with the world. We can learn so much from watching them! :)
Posted by Dr. Jackson | June 9, 2011 11:04 AM
Posted on June 9, 2011 11:04