RE_5539

“Everything we hear is an opinion, not a fact. Everything we see is a perspective, not the truth.” Marcus Aurelius said this during Roman times and it's still applicable (and speaks volumes) for my understanding of language today. I now understand that my perspective isn't the truth for all of my students. Initially this was difficult to embrace because my perspective was "correct" in my eyes. (Of course it would seem correct to me because it is my perspective. That is a given.) I now understand that my students feel the SAME WAY. Regardless of their backgrounds and life experiences, my students felt the same way that I did. THEY felt THEIR perspective was correct because it was based upon THEIR experience(s).

"The Skin That We Speak" brought excellent illustrations of life experiences to the table in a manner that made it easy to look into the lives of others. While these life experiences were different from mine, they were the same in that I could relate to their feelings and insight. I still stand by my initial thought that I should teach Standard English in the classroom as being "correct," but I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE the idea presented in chapter four about students feeling respect for their home languages while studying the other "Englishes" that we speak. This concept lends weight and importance to all forms of English. I LOVE THAT and will absolutely use that in my classroom, although in a modified form of understanding for my first graders.

This class has strongly reinforced the insight that, as teachers, we cant assume our students experiences are the same as our own. What a challenge this has been for me since day one in the classroom! Now, more than ever, I need to be mindful of the lives children live (like Jake and Laurie). In the back of my mind I know not to assume all parents think like me and that all children in my class are growing up like I did or like my daughter is. It's in those split-second decisions in the classroom that I fall back on MY way of thinking and forget that my students and their families may not even UNDERSTAND those expectations and consequences.

From this class, I see (now more than ever) that I need to have more understanding and compassion for what my students are bringing to the table. Although I THINK I understand and my intentions are well placed, I don't really have my finger on the pulse of my students' lives. It seems the only way to be completely aware of my students backgrounds is to make home visits. I'm debating this for the coming school year. I don't know how I will work it with the challenging factor of time, but this seems to be the "in your face" reality check that I need to see that all of my students don't live lives that mirror my middle-class background. What an eye-opener this will be. This won't lower my expectations or standards in the classroom, but it will help me to create alternate paths to reach the ultimate destination. I will continue to raise the bar on academics, behavior, and citizenship in the classroom, but I will be better prepared for my students by being open to more than my own perspective.

I've really enjoyed this class. The introspective look it forces you to take brings home a much deeper understanding of ourselves as teachers, parents, and human beings. It challenged me to look through my own personal experiences and embrace the diverse backgrounds and experiences my students and their families bring into my classroom. Their truths give me pause to understand that mine isn't the only correct experience and viewpoint in the classroom.