EDL 7030

This was a great article talking about all of the things that are pulling on women - work, family, relationships, time for oneself and for others. I do realize that some men also feel this way as well. They feel the pull of "trying to strike balance between family obligations and work related responsibilities." However, I do think it ways heavier on a woman than the man, because we are seen by society as the nurturers. But I am also woman enough to admit that I would not be where I am today without a supportive husband and family. If I "step up", I step up as a group with the support of family. The confidence I feel comes from them as well as the students and teachers I work with. I have attached a video to this blog, please take an opportunity to listen to it, even if you don't like Salt-n-Pepa. It is a great representation of what woman work towards throughout our lives. I ask each of the woman in the class to look at yourself and your support system and make your voices heard. This video was sent to me by my boys and husband after a particularly rough work week away from home. I was feeling guilty because one had been sick during this time and here I was away from home unable to be with my sick child. The next day this video arrived in my inbox, with a great note, that simply said "It Ain't nothing but a She-thing and that is why we love you." So when you are feeling torn between some many things, pull this song out to cheer you up. This was the first thing, I thought about as I read the article.

Melanie

I had an interesting AET Zone meeting Sunday evening with my cross cohort group. As we talked about 21st Century Schools it became apparent that most professional educators are scared and skeptical of change. We want to teach what we know and how we know. The Tupper article provides this definition of curriculum “the collective story we tell our children about our past, our present, and our future” (P. 560). I’d never thought of curriculum as a narrative before and as I listened to the teachers in my group defend the old way of teaching reading and writing, I realized that most curriculum hasn’t changed that much over the last 100 years.
What will it take for the story we tell to change our approach to curriculum? My guess is that the answer lies somewhere is this statistic: “The proportion of K-12 teachers who are white has gone from 91 percent in 1986 to 92 percent in 1990 to 89 percent in 1996 to 85 percent in 2005” (Drs. Feistritzer and Haar 2005).
For a fascinating look at why education is stuck in the 20th century, check out the "PROFILE OF TEACHERS IN THE U.S. 2005" at http://www.ncei.com/POT05PRESSREL3.htm

Danielle

Though I see the importance of individuality, self- confidence, and the need to be independent (Quinn, 2008), I still believe in the importance of corroboration, collaboration, and interdependence. To a certain degree, we are all independent; however, to a larger magnitude we are not. For instance, as I write this blog, my ability to sustain internet connection and power supply is heavily reliant upon both my cable and power companies’ technological ability to sustain and maintain ample power supply. Though it appears, I am in my room working on this assignment in solitude, indeed, I am really not alone. Even in my solace, I still carry along the thoughts, opinions, and reflective narratives of those closest to me. Perhaps these concepts are just fragments of my imagination?

Another thought comes as a response to Quinn’s discussions on the role of women teachers’ and the “role strain” they encounter. I believe that men can and often experience these same nervous tensions, particularly minority men. On any given day, I, a minority male professional have to engage in, navigate through an academic world consisting of predominately - white, middle to upper class professionals. Along with that society, comes a set of ideals, beliefs, and perspectives in which I am expected to govern myself by. On the contrary, as soon as the clock strikes 4:30 p.m. and my shift ends for that day, I must begin to alter my thoughts, my role, my dialect, and my conversation in order to relate to both “Pookey” and “Ray – Ray”, who live in my neighborhood. This can be stressful and sometimes frustrating. Perhaps this is an example of the “role strain” that Quinn shares in her piece about ‘Postmodern Teachers’ and the tensions they face both as female-teachers and as mothers.

The frustration comes knowing that this, a continual cycle of tensions and dynamics has the impossibility of ending. So, I find myself pretending. Talk about Role Strain – at least Quinn and the several ladies she interviewed have a chance for theirs (Role Strain) to end. For example, a woman who is with child will eventually have the baby. The baby grows up and eventually is out on his/ her own. However, as for me, my roles of tensions, strains, and angst have the overwhelming possibility of lasting much longer than 9 months - the time it takes a woman to bear a child. Marginalization has no deadline or does it?

Just as the teachers in Quinns’ “Constructivist Cosmopolitan” piece found themselves’ juggling the daunting and challenging roles of wife, mother, and professional, I, too, am doing a tight-rope act of my own. I am juggling my role as husband, educational professional, minority male, and on-and-on. And through my life experiences and cultural differences, I have learned to appreciate the struggle for acceptance, inclusion, and the right to be heard. Having understood and continuing to understand some of the historical foundations of racial discrimination, has given me another vantage point from which to envision and tell my narrative. According to (Tupper& Cappello) stories and counter stories can serve as a road map that will lead the colonialized away from unjustified exclusion.

As I close, I would like to bring attention to this quote from the reading of (Tupper& Cappello, 2008) and I quote,

“We are what we know. We are, however, also what we don’t know. If we know about ourselves-our history, our culture, our national identity-is deformed by absences, denials, and incompleteness, then our identity … is fragmented.”

No more fragmented identity for me. No more dyconsciousness of the mind whereby uncritical habits of the mind produces distorted images, perspectives, and a societal order that corroborates with exploitation and inequality. This way of seeing the world shuts down the ‘pursuit of happiness’ for those who may have an alternate vision of what society should look like or could feel like. Without the narratives of others, our world-view or our historical consciencesness is left with holes, empty spaces, or even worse – ‘Fragmented’.

Johnny Smith

I find your insights very interesting, and you bring up a point I have often wondered myself: how racially consistent will the teaching pool remain? Even if the newly graduated pool of teaching candidates is 50 percent Hispanic, will this much needed change be enough? I am not sure if I am saying this correctly or using the appropriate terminology, but my point is that even if the teaching pool of K-12 graduates changes as to racial composition, how will this change in racial and cultural composition affect the core teaching values of these graduates if the university faculty does not change its racial and cultural composition? It is easy and almost imperceptible for a dominator class of educators (even unintentionally) to pass on certain values that support the dominant class.

In reading these articles I have come to the realization of a simple idea that most everyone else in class is probably already aware of- Life is just a big series of constructions and deconstructions. As we move through life our experiences add to our body of knowledge and allow us to construct and deconstruct as is fitting.

We as educators hold a powerful tool for this process for our students- curriculum. As we saw in the Tupper and Cappello article curriculum can take an idea which has been omitted and is largely unfamiliar and it can become something causes change. Students studying the treaties in many cases were forced to deconstruct their existing ideas and construct new ideas about treaties, history, First Nations peoples and other aspects of their lives. For some students this undoubtedly led them to consider aspects of their lives they had not even really been aware of previously. Take for instance the comment of the young woman from p. 573:

"When I listen to us-even still-it's like 'them'-I don't know-I was thinking about it as we were going around, it's almost like everyone says them or they like they're all one group, and I'm sure-and I just did it too-it's something that I'm going to have to adjust to now that I'm thinking about it"

The curriculum resulted in this young woman taking a powerful look at the language used by herself and others. To that point she had not likely thought about the language she and others used.

I guess my point here is that we as educators owe it to our students to give them as much of the story as possible on which to base their constructions and deconstructions. If we show them during their time with us that the construction they currently have should always be open for deconstruction, perhpas they will carry that through life and keep an open mind for the series of constructions and deconstructions to come.

Christy

I really was touched by this article for several reasons. First, I was drawn into the methodology of the narrative form (with blended narrative from the author). When articles are laid out in this fashion, they are easier to read...from my perspective. I enjoyed the "back and forth"ness between teachers in the field and the educational researcher because the flow of the writing was smooth and very rythmatic. It displayed humaness and reflective soul work coming from the teachers and insightful (referenced) information from the researcher. It was balanced well between the subjects and the researcher; no one voice stood strong, the teachers and the researchers both produced insight for the reader.

Secondly, I have to admit that I also enjoyed the topic. As a woman educator, I struggled with ALL the topics: nurturer, giver, mother, social worker, advocate, etc. for my students. Perhaps my own burnout from teaching preschool was brought on by what these teachers experienced. This article gave me a voice, as though I had contributed. What was refreshing was that the researcher "heard" and "felt" and made meaning to what was written in reflection. When I taught and felt the same as these teachers, no one was willing to listen. If fact, there were so many of us women feeling the same way that, I guess, it was pointless to dwell on the situation because it wasn't going to change.

Finally, I think that living in the time as we do, we are ALL faced with multiple roles tugging at us; be it in the workplace or at home and in the community. However, in teaching, especially for the professional who holds the profession high, we give and give until we just burnout. I am grateful that these women had a voice that was heard. Perhaps, in continuing ed programs, these issues, especially for women teachers who have been in the field a long time, self-care can be addressed so that teachers don't leave the field like I needed to do.

Diane

Do you question that which you hear?
Or do you take it all at face value.

How closed minded that would be.

Your dominance remains,
along with your dysconsciousness...

But how could you know?
How could you understand?

The silence of the tongue is a powerful thing.
Sometimes more powerful than a hated word.

Discrimination spoken against any group... is at least acknowledgement of that group.
How would you feel to not be acknowledged at all?
To be invisible... silenced... not worthy of a word?

Giving an alternative vision gives rise to many
and questions the dominant culture.

Students need perspective... and truth
Open their minds to all perspectives
and they in return will open the world...

Kim Moore

I agree so much with what you said about teachers being afraid. I experience this a lot where I work and even with some very close friends that are teachers. I find them fighting administration when asked to step beyond what they know and are comfortable with. They use a lot of excuses for not wanting to make this change but I really believe it is because they are scared. They are afraid to step beyond what they are comfortable with. Afraid that a student may know something more than them. They are paralyzed in their fear to step into the unknown.
I think what will need to happen before we start seeing changes in the classroom, is that teachers will need to be required to be trained in areas of technology. They need to have opportunities that are "safe" for them to practice and use these approaches in the classroom. Until teachers "own" their own knowledge of technology and a different approach to teaching...I do not think we will see sustained and widespread change.

Kim Moore

Do women experience multiple roles and demands in their lives?

This woman does...

Teacher, Doctoral student, daughter, friend, mom, committee member, church member, ex-wife (yes...that has a lot of demands too!).

"More often, teachers related their identity to multiple role demands that exist outside of a geographically defined spaces" (Quinn,2008)

I agree with Quinn that "time" governs our lives. So what impact does this limitation of time and multiple demands have on our lives? It pulls us in ways unimaginable. It zaps our energy, sometimes making us lose track of the big picture or prevents us from taking big steps for big changes.

"In our time governed lives, where teachers are challenged by the demands of their cosmopolitan selves, we quickly grab the most accessible device to keep us a float" (Quinn,2008).

We are overloaded in demands and often cannot even think about stepping up to take charge and make real change. So we leave it to others. It is less demanding to complain about something... than it is to put yourself out there through time, energy and risk... to try and make the changes we complain about.

So do we need more hours in a day? I don't think so. We would fill those up with other demands as well. So we continue to rely on those who find time and energy for these demands and we accept things the way they are, unable to find a way to make changes we want.

Kim Moore

A man may work from sun to sun...
But women's work is never done.

The Quinn article reminded me of this old adage describing the near-constant demands on women, regardless of occupation -- but particularly those women who work in a helping profession such as teaching, nursing, or counseling, or even as a homemaker. We are expected to be caretakers for our students, patients, clients, parents, children, partners, and so on. As a new mom, I am learning the great responsibility that comes with the ability to bear children. My husband is wonderful and always willing to help, but it is solely my responsibility, around the clock, to make sure my daughter is fed. I am allowed maternity leave from work, while my husband had to return almost immediately. My baby and I spent 9 months getting to know each other, before she even took her first breath. This kind of relationship is a blessing that only I have experienced with her, but also a challenging obligation, compared to the freedom and uninterrupted sleep I once had. I will forever be responsible for this child.

All of us, men and women alike, have demands put on us by occupation, society, nature, or by our own choice. Women are certainly not the only ones to suffer the strain of multiple designated roles and guidelines, but we often find ourselves with less power to change the ones we don't like. Quinn and her female students discussed the negative aspects of their daily lives as teachers, mothers, wives, and daughters, but they really didn't address the benefits and pleasures of filling these same roles. The stress they felt seemed to come not from the roles themselves, but from the energy expense of carrying out the balancing acts that are their Cosmopolitan Selves, day after day. Perhaps a more balanced exploration of the feminine experience might assist in the process of empowerment that Quinn encouraged. Knowing what and who are "for" us is as helpful as knowing what we struggle against.

marisa

Kim, I could not agree more with what you write about teachers stepping outside of their areas of comfort. This same fear can also be manifested in college teachers as well. Aa a university instructor, I try to keep abreast of technological changes, but as I try to also remain current in my two fields of study, I often find that technological pursuits take a back seat to academic interests. While this lack of technical knowledge is not intentional, I often find that I do tend to let this area of my professional development slack a little as I need to sleep occasionally. However, I have come to realize too that I will find students who do possess technical expertise that I do not have. I have to be okay with acknowledging their excellence. Probably the hardest skill I had to acquire as a teacher was the ability to say, "I do not know, but I will try to find out for you." Or, "Why don't you explain it to us."

Fear is very much alive in the classroom. While teachers' fears are certainly understandable, collaboration with others in the same group should help alleviate those fears. As a doctoral student. I entered the program very much afraid of what I did not know. However, I soon realized that others did not know some things either. We will all continue to learn throughout our lives, at least hopefully.

The Tupper and Capello article brushes a theme I also saw in the article by Angelina Weenie (yes, I'm reading slightly out of order - sorry). Both the Tupper & Cappello article (on page 561) and the Weenie article (on page 553) draw attention to a well-intentioned move to teach Aboriginal language or history. In both pieces there is a suggestion that though the desire to teach First National history and language is good that if the form of that teaching is forced into the Euro-centric positivist model of curriculum and course delivery that something is being lost. I agree with this idea, but I am left wondering in the face of such a strong paradigm, what we could do better. If traditional Native American curriculum were delivered (and I know even the word “delivered” is a vestige of the Eurocentric positivist paradigm) in traditional ways then what would be the result? I would hope that the result would be a deepening of the culture and a good foundation for its continued survival. I also believe however that time spent in this kind of experience would be considered wasted by much of Western society that values the nicely quantifiable credit hour and grade. One of the obstacles to more traditional ways of knowing, teaching and learning is capitalism. I don’t like capitalism. Capital is not alive, and yet the net result (pun intended) of capitalism is simply to build, sell and profit from the building and sale of things.

The Weenie article mentions the importance of stories, here is one of my favorites concerning the ills of capitalism. My mother-in-law and I had a heated conversation one day. She suggested to me that gold had intrinsic value. She told me that she had been watching Pat Robertson speak and that he was giving investment advice. In light of my view of Jesus’ teachings on money, I always find myself amused and also sad when I hear evangelicals talk about investments and money. My mother in law said that Pat Robertson said that the best investment right now was gold. He then quickly amended his statement by saying that of course one’s primary investment should be in God’s kingdom, but then gold. Capitalism has become our religion. My little sister who has been a student at UNC, NC State, UNC-Asheville, ASU and the University of Washington and does not yet have a single degree told me once that she had a theory about money. She said that money was infinite, and that because of this that money was positioning itself to compete against love, which is also theoretically infinite.

So ultimately I believe that if each of us can maintain a degree of humility in the face of learning that is harder for us to quantify we can play a small role in the coming paradigm shift.

Alan

Alan, I always enjoy reading anything you post because your insights get me thinking about issues from very different perspectives, but I am also glad to see that we agree on one of your final statements in the previous post: the importance of humility. I made a point in class recently that all knowledge should be treated with a great amount of tolerance. As academics, we should all be tolerant of any knowledge because any such body of knowledge possesses an equal chance of being corrrect, or valid might be a better word.. While I realize that my view leaves my assertion open to the counter claim of extreme skepticism or the accusation that "all knowlwdge is relevant," I still believe that academic research, inquisitiveness, and curosity demand this tolerance. Aristotle thought he was correct about almost everything he wrote, and of course we know that many of his ideas have been proven to be incorrect.

I also appreciate the fact that we as humans can be wrong. I always like to speak with my history students about the misguided attempts of the late mediaeval/early modern Roman Catholic Chuirch to maintain and reinforce, to the point of death, the notion of a geo-centric cosmology. Any time a person, group of people, or powerful organization believe that dogma should dominate and that any counter knowledge should be prohibnited, humility and tolerance are lost. Finally this point brings me to the Tupper and Cappello essay about teaching treaties. In my first Masters program, I had a Canadian history class in which no mention was ever made of First Nations peoples and only passing reference to the many treaties that helped to create the Canada we have today. As a young historian, I was still not accustomed to questioning the voices of those who were supposedly the "experts" of their respective fields. While I enjoyed that "graduate" class at the time, I am sure that I would not do so now as I would be continually full of questions about the lack of inclusion and the exclusivity of the dominator culture directing the course.