Elizabeth Noll impressed me with her determination to understand and represent the Native Americans in the study accurately. She considered and understood the objections of the family’s toward the name of the literacy club. She checked her perceptions or assumptions at the door in order to view the data honestly as possible. The research causes her to broaden her definition of literacy. Shouldn’t all research cause people to reflect and grow?
Zonnie and Daniel shared similar family backgrounds. They came from families that value education, were read to in the early years and taught to express themselves. Daniel’s ability to connect music to reading was amazing. It reflected his knowledge of literature. Both children freely wrote stories and poems own their own. Zonnie and Daniel did not connect to school because school did not connect with them. The teachers did not attempt to invite Zonnie or Daniel into the class. Instead, they seem to blame Zonnie and Daniel for not being better students. The teachers in the study appeared indifferent toward the children’s ability in the classroom. I believe teachers have to open their minds to different culturals and respect their beliefs and traditions.
I become frustrated with teachers who keep their head buried in the sand. If a student does not conform to society’s perception, the student is not teachable. Zonnie and Daniel can teach me a few things—I cannot read music, no rhythm whatsoever and cannot write rhythmic poetry. Both, Zonnie and Daniel, expresses themselves through stories or poems for an assignment. Neither student’s work is acknowledged by the teacher. Why? Is it because the story or poem is telling a truth the teacher is avoiding? The teacher walked away from a moment to connect with the students.
Zandra Hunt
Comments (3)
I agree with your statement of the teachers missing an opportunity to connect with their students. The teachers had a chance to learn from their students and draw connections to what Zonnie and Daniel were trying to say in their writing. I feel that a lot of the time, as teachers, we seem to do this. I know that I am guilty of it because it is just easier to ignore something than to learn something and embrace it. I know that with this upcoming school year I will try and do a better job at this!
Posted by Katy Dellinger | June 10, 2010 10:37 AM
Posted on June 10, 2010 10:37
Zandra,
I am glad someone else was impressed with Noll's willingness to change the name of the literacy club. When I read the reasoning behind why the parents did not want to use literacy in the name of the club, I completely understood what they were saying. As I mentioned in my introduction, I feel much more comfortable when writing as opposed to speaking because writing affords me the opportunity to carefully consider my words before committing to them. I have often agonized over word choice to most accurately convey what it is that I wish to say, so I could see their point in wanting to change the word "literacy" to "literary" in order to avoid certain negative connotations they associated with the word "literacy."
Like you, I agree that Daniel expressed the relationship he saw between music and reading very well. I am not a musical person, but the comparison made terrific sense.
You mentioned the similar family backgrounds for Daniel and Zonnie. Since Daniel's mother was white, one thing I wondered upon reading this article was how she felt about his identification with his Native American heritage. I wondered about the interaction between the parents and whether there was ever conflict between the two of them about whether Daniel was neglecting one side of his racial identity in order to embrace the other, whether in literacy development or any other topic.
Clyde Rice
Posted by Clyde Rice | June 10, 2010 4:28 PM
Posted on June 10, 2010 16:28
I am so glad someone else was frustrated by the teachers. I don't understand why teachers pass up opportunities to learn new things about his/her students.
I also wondered, like Clyde, if there were any conflicts in Daniel's home because of his father's heritage?!?! I also wondered if he seemed more interested in his father's heritage because of the roles of males/females in this heritage. Could it be that more importance is placed upon the father's heritage because he is the male of the household?!?!? Marsha Warren
Posted by Marsha Warren | June 11, 2010 8:31 PM
Posted on June 11, 2010 20:31