Race, Class, and Gender in Literacy Research (Summer 2011)

A reader is a person in history, a person with a history. -Jane Miller

This is a powerful quote that we, as educators, need to keep fresh in our minds. Each student we teach will have a different history, values, and beliefs. We can not control what happens to these students before they enter our classroom, and we can not control what happens outside of our classroom. As educators, we need to understand that their history has an influence on everything they do from the way they speak, behave, and act to the way that they learn and what they learn. Whether a teacher has been in the classroom one year or thirty years, it is obvious to us that a child’s history and home life has a direct effect on their overall achievement in the classroom.

As I was reading these two chapters, it was obvious that Laurie is an excellent example to prove that a child’s history has an effect on achievement in the classroom. The text mentions that Laurie’s mother was seeking romance, and thought it important to have a man in her life. Laurie also values romantic relationships because she refers to it several times in her writing and talks about her relationships with Nicholas and Steven when talking with Deborah. The text also mentions that Laurie’s mother and grandmother loved her very much, and they had to make sacrifices in hopes of bettering the family. Laurie’s mother attended college (which is a great example of educational importance of Laurie) and her grandmother had to work two jobs to fulfill the financial obligations of the family. In the hustle and bustle of work, school, and tending to all three children, her mother and grandmother could not provide Laurie with the emotional attention she needed. In order to get the attention, Laurie would act out. As educators, I believe we see this situation too often in our own classrooms. Many parents work odd shifts or multiple jobs, so the children can not receive that necessary attention that a child needs. Students then resort to acting out or misbehaving because they want attention, positive or negative.

Laurie realized that she had not been a ‘good girl’ in first grade, and as she entered second grade she decided that she was going to work harder to be a good girl (or a teacher pleaser). She was working to have better behavior and she was also working diligently to improve academically. Although she still struggled in reading, Laurie enjoyed math. She was so proud of herself when she walked into the classroom during a lesson and found that taking ten away from eighteen would leave eight. She proudly told the teacher the answer, who in return praised Laurie. I believe it is very important to praise students for their accomplishments. Not only does it boost their confidence and self-esteem, but it offers that emotional attention that some students so desperately desire. I was guilty of being a teacher pleaser in school, and I loved to get praise from my teachers. I was a student who after being praised for an accomplishment, I would work very hard so that I might be praised again. Maybe some of our students are the same way and it would motivate them to work harder on academics or other aspects of their lives.

Lisa Beach