This lesson was about prejudice and discrimination and how we as teachers would handle it in our classrooms. Some of these situations are tough, but we as teachers are going to face discrimination in our classrooms and we have to know the correct way to handle them.
EDUC 2120 – Lesson 1 – Ethnicity, Race, Bias, and Prejudice
How comfortable do you feel with handling issues of race and culture in the classroom? How can you ensure that you are not discriminating against students of a different color or culture in your classroom?
If I had an incident happen in my classroom between students, involving race and/or culture, I’m confident I could handle the situation the way it’s supposed to be handled. When conflict happens with these types of issues, you have to manage them carefully. You have to be sure not to discriminate against anyone. You have to keep each student in mind when dealing with situations as such as this, always. To make sure not to discriminate, I would treat every student equal. I wouldn't be more harsh and demanding with one student if I wasn't with another. Being a teacher, you have to be able to "think before you speak".
How would you use the ethnicity and race of your students to teach a lesson in the subject you are planning to teach?
When preparing a lesson about ethnicity and race to your students, we need to be careful not to discriminate against other students who aren’t the same as yourself. If I were to use examples in the classroom, I would choose a student of each race, this is so no one would feel as if they were being discriminated against. I think having a lesson on race, ethnicity, and culture would be rather difficult to teach, so you would have to be very careful of the choice words you would use to teach that lesson. If I were to use examples for my class, I could choose different students who are different races and use them as examples while I teach about race, ethnicity, etc.
How does one become prejudice? Explain.
In my opinion, being prejudice is something you have to learn. Parents, teachers, etc., all have a huge influence on kid’s lives. The children look up to the “bigger and smarter person” around them, and they learn from their ways. A child could grow up and be best friends with another child of a different race at school, but if a parent doesn’t like it, they will influence their child of why he or she shouldn’t be friends with that certain person. This child now has been taught that they’re not supposed to like another skin color other than their own.
Who is at fault or responsible for discrimination? Explain.
All of us are at fault, really, because as we grow older, despite what we were taught when we were younger, we could have changed our beliefs on how we view things. I do believe it starts with the parents first, because a child is going to be taught a certain way when they are younger, but it’s their option to stay true to those beliefs, that came from their parents, or to change them. So really and truly, it’s everyone who is at fault when it comes to discrimination. We each have a choice that we can make.
Can you cite some personal examples of prejudice and discrimination? This example could be personal or something that you witnessed.
I went to a very small school, with only 85 people in my graduating class, and there was definite discrimination. Stereotypes were everywhere, racism issues, everywhere. My school was all about cliques. Popular people sit here. Nerds sit there, and the only types of people that attended were blacks, whites, and a few Mexicans. One day, an Asian girl and her brother moved to our school. From the start of her first day there, she got made fun of because she was Asian. People would make fun of how small her eyes were and would even make fun of her because she was intelligent. This went on for a few years but finally, people started to warm up to her and they wanted to be her friend. From the beginning, I would stand up and defend her when things got tough for her. I’ve always been the type of person to say something to someone if what they said sounded rude.
You may have heard this phrase – “Nothing like leather”. Where did this originate and what does it mean?
Nothing like leather was originated in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. Daniel Fenning was an author at the time and wrote a book called The Universal Spelling Book of 1767. In this book was a town who was under attack and they needed the best way to fight against it. The mason on the council suggested a stone wall, while the shipbuilder suggested wood. After lots of thinking and discussion, a currier stood to speak and said “there was nothing like leather”. I'm not fully understanding of what this expression means, but in my opinion, the man who said "there's nothing like leather" is basically thinking that his idea is better than every one else's.
http://www.worldwidewords.org/qa/qa-not1.htm
Provide some general comments on the video associated with this lesson.
In this video, they mention how people would give them “compliments”. “Compliments” that wouldn’t sound so nice, and made the person sound racist, but in my opinion, I think that some things that people say to others of a different race, they don’t mean it in the way it comes out, including myself. Personally, I think the main problem is that none of us think before we speak. We never think if what we’re about to say may offend someone and hurt their feelings, or if it would make us sound rude. We lack the “think before you speak” method now days. Like the video states, I do think it would help if no one was afraid to talk about it, or call someone out if what that person said sounded racist.
Summary
This lesson made me think about all the issues involving prejudice and discrimination that could go on in the classroom and what the teachers have to deal with. These questions really made me think of what I would do if I were put into these types of situations and how I would handle them. Although I believe I would be able to manage these types of situations correctly, there’s always that possibility that I could mess up and say something that I shouldn’t. I’ve come to the realization that becoming a teacher won’t be an easy task, but it’ll be worth it.
Research Question
How do teachers avoid discrimination in the classroom?
Reference(s):
http://www.understandingprejudice.org/teach/elemtips.htm
http://www.edchange.org/multicultural/papers/racism_morgan.html
Research Analysis
Today's modern teacher is supposed to help eliminate discrimination in the classrooms. A teacher who is really wanting to make a difference in children's lives and society; they should accept everyone as an equal. Being an educator isn't an easy task, and comes with lots of responsibilities. James Baldwin once said "It is your responsibility to change society if you think of yourself as an educated person."
For teachers to create an atmosphere that isn't discriminating, here are some ideas. A teacher should have varied representations throughout the classroom. Classrooms should have diverse materials such as, race, ethnicity, gender, age, disability, etc. this way no one will be discriminated against. Teachers should avoid only having photos to show with only one type of family. You should have families with one parent, families of different races, interracial families, extended families, etc. Also, use language such as "okay, everyone" instead of, "okay, boys and girls", this way you're being unbiased. Avoid gender discrimination also. Girls are always complimented on how they look when boys are complimented for their achievement. Be careful and think about what you say to your students because soon the girls will begin to think that their appearance is more important than their achievement.
Research Summary
Researching this topic makes me realize that being a teacher is really important and all teachers do make a difference. Some educators may not be as good as others, but they still make an impact on their students in some shape or form. Teachers put their students first at school and try their best to not leave anyone out, if at all possible. I want to be like a teacher I had in elementary school. She never treated anyone differently. We were all considered her "kids". She is one teacher I can say that has made the biggest impact on my life and has made me want to become an elementary school teacher, just like her. The issue of discrimination in the classroom may be a little challenge, but if someone is called to be a teacher, it'll be worth it.