Education is Politics

Shor’s article, Education is Politics, raises multiple questions and viewpoints about education through three quotes. The first quote that stood out to me was, “People are naturally curious. They are born learners. Education can either develop or stille their inclination to ask why and to learn”. This is a powerful quote because I have seen this happen in my own education experience. One teacher or one curriculum or one class can affect how someone views themselves, the world, a subject etc. If the teacher/curriculum/class is interesting or empowers a student enough, it can push them to pursue something they thought they wouldn’t before. The same can be said for the opposite circumstances. One bad experience in a class that someone was looking forward to can affect their thinking. They can question whether this path is right for them or if they really want to put themselves in a situation to get an outcome that seems to be at the end of a long, dark tunnel. I myself have questioned myself on my career path or decisions based on bad experiences. ‘Is it really worth it? Will I be happy doing this for the rest of my life?’. Questions like this can haunt you and its only positive experiences that can bring you back on track.

        The second quote that stood out to me was “Student participation and positive emotions are influenced by the teacher’s commitment to both”. If a teacher is not committed to getting students involved in their own education and make it a positive experience, it can push them in the wrong direction, away from education. It can also make them view themselves in a negative light, where they think they aren’t worth it or that they simply can’t do anything because they aren’t smart enough to do it. Students need encouragement to succeed, do their best and even go above and beyond what is expected of them.

          The last quote that stood out to me was, “Changing power relations in the classroom through problem-posing reduces the need for students to resist learning. More students can embrace education without fear of boredom or a cultural invasion by an elite, remote curriculum.” I love this quote because it connects back to a student’s love of learning. If you allow a student to figure out a problem on their own, using their own creative avenues, they are more encouraged to think outside the box and not conform to rules or regulations that can make everything uniform. It’s important, especially in elementary school, for a student to feel like they can express themselves and create their own individualities. Utopian societies have their ups, but the can get boring if everyone is exactly the same. So it’s a teacher’s job, and a parent’s as well, to encourage students to think outside the box and embrace new ideas never thought of before.

     This website is actually dedicated to empowering education, following the ideas that Shor has come up with. http://empoweringeducation.org/.

Reconceptualizing Down Syndrome

      Kliewer’s article, Citizenship in School: Reconceptualizing Down Syndrome, really got me thinking about how educators, and society in general, truly treat individuals with Down Syndrome and three specific quotes stood out to me.

      The first quote that stood out is, “We will not recognize the diverse contributions of those who wear obscuring labels until we move our focus from the disability and look for the complexity and individuality we take for granted in ourselves. Only getting to know a person in all his or her multifaceted individuality can cause the "huge" disability [spread] to magically shrink and assume its real proportion-only one small facet of a person.” This stood out to me because it points out a flaw that many people have; they cannot or will not, look past a person’s disability to see their true potential. I have a friend who has a wheelchair and he has to work extra hard to prove to people that he can do something just a well as someone who does not have a disability. He has had a wheelchair for the majority of his life so he has grown accustomed to what he can and cannot handle and he often tells me that he wishes he could prove that to others. He’s double majoring, works in a hospital and is involved in multiple organizations both on and off campus. And yet he still has to wait for people to see past the wheelchair before they see all of his accomplishments.

       The second quote that stood out to me gave me a goal to strive for as a teacher myself in the future. “Shayne, however, did not see Isaac, or any of her students, as defective. In her classroom, which contained 6 students clinically identified as disabled (3 with Down syndrome, including Isaac) and 10 students considered nondisabled...”

This specific quote shows how a teacher should treat students with and without disabilities. All students should be treated as equal, and by doing so a teacher will be setting an example of how they should treat each other equally. It’s also important to remember that all students learn differently so it’s important that the teacher is flexible in her teaching.

        The last quote that stood out to me connects to the first quote I picked; “Now we know that people with disabilities can learn and have a full, rich life. The challenge is to erase negative attitudes about people with developmental disabilities, get rid of the stereotypes and break the barriers for people with disabilities.” Like I mentioned earlier, it’s important to be able to look past a person’s disability and see them for their accomplishments as a person.

        This video is incredibly inspirational and highlights how people why people should be treated the same, disability or not (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5M--xOyGUX4). This video also does the same (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-cA3t1HW1Ow).

          The National Down Syndrome Congress (http://www.NDSCcenter.org/) offers more information on Down Syndrome and offers ways in which you can help.

Literacy with an Attitude

    Patrick J. Finn, the author of “Literacy with an Attitude”, argues that our nation has developed two different types of education, an empowering education that leads to positions of power and authority through powerful literacy, and a domesticating education that leads to a fundamental literacy, which leads to a more productive and dependable individual. Finn claims his argument as a matter of justice. According to him, powerful literacy is the education children deserve because it fosters critical thinking about complex ideas and prepares young people to consider multiple perspectives and their own interests as they make life decisions. He also claims that one’s social class affects the aims and means of education. He found that poor, working-class students received functional literacy that taught compliance, while students from privileged backgrounds were taught powerful literacy that promoted independence and leadership.

     Finn requires his readers to reconsider the purpose of school in a democratic society by linking the aims and purposes of education with empowering and critical literacy, literacy with an attitude. While he provides examples of teachers and programs in public schools that engage in empowering and critical literacy, he emphasizes that the responsibility is on each of us to contribute to the promise and future of our public schools. We can do this by becoming teachers who empower their students through powerful literacy, by being parents and concerned citizens who engage with one another and with educators about the aims and purposes of public schools in a democratic society. His article ultimately asks us, “What is the society we envision for our children?” 

This link gives a short summary of the book and offers information about some of his other books. (http://literacywithanattitude.com/)

Becoming Something Different

    In “Becoming Something Different” by Fairbanks, Crooks and Ariail, readers are introduced to Esme Martinez and her journey through education with her peers.

     Upon reading this article, I immediately see connections between the Rodriquez article and the Kozol article. In terms of Rodriquez, Martinez is developing her English language proficiency all through middle school. She finds herself getting frustrated when she is not able to display her feelings and ideas on certain matters but she was grateful for any help she received. At home, Spanish is the dominant language, but that doesn’t stop her English illiterate parents from trying to help her. Throughout all these, Martinez saw herself as increasingly American while her father enforced certain rules that wore among the traditional Mexican practices and beliefs. This connects to Rodriquez because although she comes from a strong Mexican background, her education and her school environment is drawing her more into an American lifestyle, and not so much Mexican. She doesn’t even recognize herself as Mexican, instead she calls herself American. She speaks very little Spanish outside of home and attributes her improving grades to her improving grades to her improving in English proficiency.

      This overall connects to the Bozol article and the impact of institutions on individuals. Esme goes to a school that is teaching her how to speak, read and write in English, which has affected the way in which she views herself and the way she wants to live her life. She only considers herself a good student because of her difficulty with English, but when that improves, so do her grades. She believes that by improving her English proficiency, she is getting smarter, which better impacts her life both in and outside of school. The institution of ESL classes affects Martinez and the direction in which her life is going. A teacher at the same high school Martinez attends describes the ESL program  and its impact on the school’s students at http://larryferlazzo.com/Positiveimpact.html.