RE_5539

Chapter 9 really hit home for me. I will be honest and say that the idea of Teacher Talk and Student Talk is a very difficult one for me. I, like many of you have either experienced or witnessed most of the scenarios that Kohl listed in chapter 9. Daily I watch the class across the hall be as Kohl says, "in control while they were out of control". The class is led by a middle aged first year teacher at a second career from Conneticut. She is the epitome of the scenarios we have read about in this book.

Middle school students wear their feelings on their sleeves. This year more than any I have become more aware of what I say and how I say it. I also liked Kohl's point that many times how you think you are speaking and how your stduents interpret you are saying are not necessarily the same. I hate feeling that I have to walk on eggshells around certain students in fear of saying something to them that they misinterpert. There are very few students in which I feel this way, but I feel this way due to scenarios where students turn around my words on me. It has once become an issue of race, which I think is nonsense. I find that often people argue the issue of race when they have nothing left ot stand on. I have worked hard to connect with my students and enhance their learning, in fact I feel as though one of my greatest strenghts as a teacher is my relationships with students. However Kohl's statement of, " If you are too soft, too hard, too rigid, or too permissive, the students will develop attitudes that often contribute hostility or restistance to learning " is SO on point. I truly feel this is why some students will work or behave for some teachers and not do so for others. The idea of a topsy-turvy is excellent, yet challenging. There are many of us who really need to take a strong look at how we are heard, then I am sure what or howt he students react to us would be much more clear and provide more understanding. I feel as teachers we are constantly adjusting day to day, minute to minute. We also adjust from student to student. I speak to some students differently than I speak to others based on how they best understand or best respond. I think this is an okay thing to do?

In chapter 10, I think Smitherman has a great plan, but I truly wonder what would it really take to not just implement it, but to get all people to buy into it and believe it? I think she makes an important point to that the issue of giving power to the mother tongue would benefit all Americans, not just Blacks. I feel often this issue becomes to much of one of black and white, and she makes and interesting claim that very few powerful need an "linguistic sanctuary" but that the less powerful among us do. How true it that statement? I too, loved the joke she tells about Americans. This is also so incredibley true. We go places and expect them to speak english, when people visit our country, we expect them to speak english. We never go with the idea in mind that perhaps even we, mighty Americans, might need another language to get by?

Wynne in Chapter 12 puts an interesting twist on the conversation of mother tongue. We have been thinking about how we are affecting the lives of the minority children, but she brings up the point of the damage we are doing to dominant culture from learning the gift of the others. If we don't allow mother tongue languages in the classroom we are only continuing the cycle of the dominant culture feeling that their language is superior. The challenge then as I stated earlier is where do we really begin, and what will it take? In part I guess it begins with each classroom teacher, implement the idea of cultural and linguistic acceptance.The idea was brought up that our preservice teachers should be exposed to the reality of the language diversity in the classroom. I feel nothing can truly perpare you for what you experience when you walk in the classroom door, however I do feel like it is a reality that preservice teachers do need exposure to.

Sarah McMillan