Going into this semester I asked myself what more I could I ascertain about reading, writing, and the thinking process of children in the classroom? I have explored these topics in other graduate classes and have worked with many children over the years from diverse backgrounds and have taken note of many differences. After the first reading I became aware that I had only scratched the surface of this topic. There was a statement in the first article we read from Dowdy that lead into the importance of considering how a student’s history affects their academics.
“I think that I survived my high school years by assuming the best mask ever fabricated: the mask of language. I invented a character who wanted to please her teachers and her dead mother.”
I have used this statement as the cornerstone of my learning this semester and reflected on it with each of the articles. I had never thought of language as a mask and the more discourses one has the greater a person’s ability to slide into a new role with confidence, which will empower a person in their own life and make them comfortable. Ironically my final class links directly to my first class, Culturally Diverse Children’s Literature, in this class we were asked to reflect on our own lives through poetry and then make connections to other cultures as we explored literature. It was at this point that I realized the short comings of my classroom library. Children were seeking out characters that they could relate to where they could see a mirror image of who they were. Using this type of literature also allows students to explore other cultures and ideas freely. After this course I see that although that was a nice start there is so much more that I must put in place to make my school and classroom accessible to everyone. This realization led me to choose the quote by Michel Foucault.
“There are times in life when the question of knowing if one can think differently than one thinks, and perceive differently than one sees, is absolutely necessary if one is to go on looking and reflecting at all.”
Michel Foucault
To me this statement means that I should always look carefully at who and what I am teaching and I should strive to grow and change to meet the needs of myself and others. I must be willing to change.
This statement hits at the heart of the research articles we read during our course work. We wish to understand more fully so that we can be most effective in the classroom. In Hick’s article I am reminded that there is a distinct difference between the way middle class and working class students address the classroom. They come with different expectations and they must be supported as they make a “shift” in their thinking. It is my responsibility to make sure that the texts are approachable to the students. In other words in my own classroom it is my responsibility to show students all of the possibilities and how new knowledge can lead to different venues.
Noll’s article points out the importance of valuing what is important to an individual if you want to truly make the classroom a place where the student feels comfortable. Both Daniel and Zonnie had a great divide between their academic discourse and what they felt truly connected to. They were wonderful at “re-authoring” themselves outside of school. They were dancers, poets, and musicians. In these roles they displayed great confidence. If only the teachers had been more aware of what was going on with these students maybe this knowledge could have been used to draw the students into the classroom. I believe that an approach similar to Writer’s Workshop would be one way to make this happen. By giving students an opportunity to write and share what is important in their lives it will give others a greater appreciation of a student’s expertise outside of school. Through this appreciation of knowledge I would be hopeful that the attitude of the other students would be more accepting of Daniel and Zonnie’s differences and that they would find a comfortable place in the academic world.
Voice is power as stated by Annette Henry and I must strive to make sure that my students’ voices are being heard. I cannot be so driven in my school day that I miss the opportunity for a student to make a connection between home and school. I must be willing to see the world as they see it in order to help them develop fully. The more the students feel empowered the more risk they will be willing to take when approaching a new discourse.
This class has also made me more aware of gender in the classroom. Up to this point I have only sorted books by genre so that I can direct girls to literature that may be of interest and that know seems like a pitiful attempt. There is so much more that needs to be addressed in the classroom. I understand know why sometimes my girls are less likely to share responses in whole group and why my small teams don’t always work out for my girls. Like Laurie sometimes they are busy being little mothers to get to what they need to accomplish. I am also reminded by chapters 3 and 4 that I shouldn’t assume that a student knows what I expect. Laurie had figured out what it took to be a good girl in three years but I have to wonder if this would have all been an easier transition if the teach had been more clear in their expectations of each component in the classroom while taking into consideration her need to interact as a caretaker and providing that time as well. Next year I plan to have literacy centers in my first grade class and I plan to use what I have learned through Hick’s research to make sure that each student feels successful.
This leads back to Michel Foucault statement that we must “think differently than one thinks, and perceive differently than one sees…” We must work to create a hybrid classroom where the students are comfortable and able to transition from one discourse to the other. We must work to have a greater understanding of what is important to our students and true to see more clearly what they hope to gain in the classroom. Through my course work my approach to my students next year will be dramatically different. I plan to spend more time talking with parents to gain a better understanding of my students outside of school and I want to incorporate what I learn into writing and author’s chair time. I also hope to include parents as guest speakers in social studies or science whenever there is a connection.
Candy Mooney