RES 5535: Race, Class, and Gender in Literacy Research (summer 2010)

Okay, I know that the title has little to do with the chapter on the surface, but I will make the connection. There were several "ah-hah" moments for me as I read this section. I will start with the one as a mother.

I have been blessed with a unique opportunity as a mother. Not only do I have the opportunity to see the lives of little girls as they grow and learn, but I also have had the chance to see this (at least the beginnings) several times now. It is kind of like my own little study. :)

One of the the most obvious things that I have noticed with my girls is that they are NOT just alike. One would think with six females (especially containing one set of identical twins) that you would have a couple that were alike. However, I have learned that, while there are similarities, they all have unique ways of approaching things.

For the sake of time I won't go into more than just this one connection with them. My first daughter began life wide open academically. She spoke her first word at five and a half months and was reading by three. She hit the doors of kindergarten as a four year old and never looked back. School was her thing. She knew the rules almost innately and played the game well. I don't mean to imply that she hasn't had issues, but she has always seemed to know what to do.

My second daughter (only just over a year younger) is a very bright child as well. However, she is more reserved. She is more "tomboy" in nature and albeit loving and kind cares little for what others want her to do. She often doesn't even notice what the "rules" of interaction are. She began school and did well academically but alway seemed to struggle with being there. She has since learned to cope with the way school works and has had many successes. I have often wondered though how two children raised in the same household could have such different experiences when it wasn't really an intellect issue. Then I read this section and it hit me.

My second daughter had a different set of rules in her own head. Her discourse was rough and wild. She was hands on and questioning. She was the take-it-apart, figure-it-out, "boy" kind of girl. While this is not at all bad, she wasn't the typical girl in the classroom and teachers (as well as other students) had a hard time figuring out how to take her. She didn't know how to deal with the drama that often follows girls (especially socially) in school. This served as a struggle for her--academically and socially. Just as Jake, although a very bright kid in his own right, had a hard time playing the game of school at times, she had to acclimate as well. As much as we try as teachers to not have preconceived notions, I think we do (especially in regard to gender). These thoughts affect our students if for no other reason that it can influence our interactions with them.

This led me to think about my own students. After reading this book, I would LOVE to have the time and opportunity to learn as much about my students as was learned about these two children. I knew that different children brought different things into the classroom, but I don't know that I had ever thought about just how different the discources were. How many times over the years has my notion of what school is and how things should work prevented a child's success simply because their "rules" were different? It has definitely given me something to thing about as I prepare for the new school year!

Christy Laws