Other People's Children by Lisa Delpit

Reflection: While reading, a few points stood out to me. Lisa Delpit talks about how social class can make a difference in a student's education. She says middle-class students will do better in school than lower-class students. Lower-class students will fall behind and not do as well compared to medium-class students. Showing that the educational system is set up for students of certain socioeconomic status. This ties into the students' race because we see lower-class students in schools that are primarily students of color. We need to teach lower-class students who don't know the unwritten rules because they don't learn them at home. Being able to help these students not have these disadvantages of not knowing compared to if they didn't know. This is the white middle-class teacher who really needs to be the one teaching this. I grew up in a middle/upper-class town with resources to help us succeed. I fully understood the difference in schools when I moved to Rhode Island and started being more aware of the differences in the educational system based on your social class. Seeing these differences and being able to compare them in my own mind has helped educate myself. 

Questions/Comments/Points to Share: A big part of the reading to me was Lisa Delpit telling us that it is essential to be aware and make the issue of the culture known. We can teach and share to show others what is going on; this way, we can make a difference. But if nothing is done, how can we make a difference. It is sad to read about how students of color not getting along with their white teachers. There is a disconnect going on between the two making it hard in the classroom. The culture of power in the classrooms between the student and teachers. These people with more power tend to be less aware of its existence, while people with less power tend to be more aware. 

Hyperlink: https://www.theguardian.com/education/2017/nov/21/english-class-system-shaped-in-schools

This article shows the similarities between schools in the US and England. 

Alan Johnson: Intro to Privilege Power and Difference

 Reflection:

While reading, the author really caught my attention when talking about sexism and white male privilege. As a woman, it is something I can relate to and deal with from day to day. Growing up in school, there would be tasks that needed to be done, like lifting something heavy or fixing something. Every time the teacher would ask a boy to help over asking a girl with these challenging tasks. This made it unfair to the girls who knew how to do the task or wanted to help. This basically told us that the boys can do things better compared to girls. As Alan stated, "If we can't talk about it if we can't use the words." No one stood up or said anything, which adds to the difficulty of even start using those words and talking about it and making that difference. Which can be scary to do. Just because men and women are different, that shouldn't be the problem; either gender is fully capable of the same tasks. Another time I experienced this was when I was working at a barn with horses. Some tasks like lifting and dumping water buckets, and whenever it was my turn, my male co-worker would come over and say, "those look heavy for you. Do you want me to just do it?" This was very diminishing and made me feel not good enough or as important in the workplace. Meanwhile, I was fully capable of doing my work. Not only does it include being able to complete the same tasks, but there is a safety aspect with sexism for women in the work we live in today. Women are always told to make sure they aren't walking alone so nothing bad happens to them, while men do not get that same treatment.  

Questions/Comments/Points to share:

The diversity wheel is a way to see all the differences people have that they can use against each other. People think they can use these outer characteristics about people assume about who they really are. Yes, we are all made up of these characteristics, and they are a part of us. But, why do we let ourselves judge others from the outside? Everyone should be equal, and opinions made about people should be made after you know who they really are. This will not be possible if we don't start using the words. To begin solving the problem. 

Hyperlink: 

https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2021/10/14/opinion/gender-bias.html

Introduction

 

Hi! My name is Elizabeth, but I like to go by Liz. I am 23, almost 24 years old (in 4 days)! My intended major is Early Childhood Education, and my goal is to teach Kindergarten. Right now, I work at Champions, it is a before and after-school program at an Elementary school in Seekonk. I have worked with kids and animals my whole life. For many years I worked at my barn teaching kids how to ride horses and running our youngest group at summer camp. I have ridden/worked with horses for about 17 years. Besides horseback riding (my main hobby and where I spend a lot of my time), I love to cook and have been teaching myself how over the past few years. Being outdoors and exploring is something fun I love to do. I have a horse named Tucker, who is so amazing and a big part of my life. I also have 4 other important animals in my life. My dogs Marley and Pepper, my roommate's cat Twix, and my sister's dog CoCo. Animals are so important to me and have helped me so much throughout my life. Animals are a big part of my life and mean a lot to me. My boyfriend, roommates, and family are all important people, and I am happy to have them in my life. Over break, it was nice to spend a lot of time with my horse because I can get so busy during the school semesters. I also was able to experiment with new recipes, which was very fun! Just enjoying time with friends and family was another significant part of the break. 

Tucker, my horse!

Marley, my dog!

Twix, my roommate's cat!