Exploration and Emergence Institute 2003

Thinking About Diversity

It was a delight for Kim, Doug and me to watch you guys collaborating so enthusiastically during our last session on Friday afternoon. Seeing your engagement with one another--so different from earlier Institutes, in which much of the web work was done individually--reminded me of a discussion held this spring, at a conference on "Gender and Technology" sponsored by the Greater Philadelphia Women's Studies Consortium. During a conversation with our keynote speaker, Mary Bryson, comparisons were made between "the male norm" of working individually when working with computers and the common request of female students for a computer space where they could work in groups. The group discussed whether this was a case of female students' insecurity, of their conforming to stereotypical gender expectations, of different learning styles, and/or of the possibility of learning to learn differently. Similar questions were asked during a BMC Brown Bag led by Doug this winter on Teaching Across the Genders. What do you think?

We had a good, rich session of sharing on Monday morning, as each of us described what our neighborhoods are like, and how we came to live (and stay, or move from) there. (Note that many of us made those decisions based on what schooling was available for our children.)

We turned next to explore various versions of the "Racial Segregation" model of Netlogo .

This enabled us to see how unexpected outcomes arise out of decisions like the ones we have been making in our own lives: Experiential stories and decision-making on the "small, local," individual level get translated into unexpected patterns on the city or "global" level. We talked at length about the ways in which decisions based on preference (for neighbors like ourselves, for teachers who could recognize our children's potential) could end up creating fixed patterns of racism (in which people refuse to recognize the worth of people different from themselves).

On Tuesday morning, we will apply these insights to our experiences in school. Our "head homework" for Monday night is to think about scenarios in our teaching lives where race, identity or diversity has been an issue in our school (in the classroom, or in interactions among teachers).

When you arrive Tuesday morning, please post in the forum area a description of ONE of these scenes...

which we'll be enacting, and revising, in the morning session.

I was on special assignment as the teacher of an introductory algebra class. Math is a passion of mine. I just love learning new ways to solve problems. Anyway, I had been teaching all eighth grade classes, who 'til this point, had used this period as 'social hour'. In the beginning, a vast majority of these children, had it in their minds to run another teacher out in order to extend their free time. Well, it took almost an entire month to bring the children around to treating this subject with open eyes. They were volunteering to workout and discuss solutions, raising their hands to ask and respond to questions, and not walking out of class.

As graduation time approached, along with the many class trips, so did the behavior falter. Then I was told by many of the students in a particular class, that they were told by their teacher that it wasn't neccessary to do the work in this class because it wasn't needed for graduation. I was floored!!! It seemed as if a mac truck had hit me. I spoke to my lead teacher in order to see how to best approach this teacher.

I personally, counted this as an attack against my community, the african-american children and families I serve. All I could think about was, " If these children had looked like this teacher (european-american), this teacher wouldn't have dared make this statement.

I did go and inquire what was said to the students about the 'value' of the class. At first she denied it then, two students overheard the conversation and interjected that she had indeed made this statement. I told her that I didn't appreciate what she said, because our children need all the free education they can get. I also told her that if I heard statements of this kind again, that I wouldn't hesitate to inform the administration and all other stakeholders.

I tried to encourage them to make a difference in their own community first. This scenerio was interesting to me because this was my first year at Chester High School and many people warned me about the "kids" and their behaviors. I felt that they were concerned about how they were supposed to be educated. I felt it was my duty to make them change their minds about the teachers of Chester, especially this one, and I gave them 125% of me so that they could be the best class ever. I would have done this anyway.

To be continued .......

I realize that I'm starting to sound like a broken record, but this morning's discussion was AMAZING. Thank you, Jody and Cynthia, for designing these sessions, and thank you, EVERY one, for all your stories, and all your understanding of the stories you have to tell.

Here are (one woman's) highlights of what was said-and-learned today, as we pulled out the themes, then enacted, then revised, teaching scenarios in which identity was an issue:

• preconceived ideas about Caucasian children by African-Americans, and vice-versa
• importance of socio-economics in racial identity
• isolation of ESOL students
• students respond to tensions about racial identity by trying to assimilate and imitate; they will do anything to be seen as part of the larger population
• students resist the expectations of their (immigrant) parents, by trying to become Americanized
• the identity they choose is often fear-based: they hang w/ a group for protection

• What language (for instance) is appropriate in the classroom?
• Who can say it?
• Who can understand?
• Professional langauge is appropriate in the classroom, which is a work place.
• But: we need to know what they are saying.
• Are we increasing opportunities for our students, by insisting that they learn to use proper English?
• Or are we narrowing their options?
• Are we asking them to forget who they are?
• What do we want these children to do?
• Whose language are we talking about, anyway?
• Whose English is it?
• Who owns the culture?
• Who makes the culture?
• Does American society have a standard so deeply forged that you can't be successful if you don't line youself up in accord w/ it??
• Is there a gender difference among teachers, w/ women insisting on the need for proper English to make the transition to success, and men being more comfortable w/ allowing slang in their classrooms?

• change direction: take on the role of the one of the actors and revise the action by entering it, picking up a role, "cutting in on the dance"
• be the cloud, the bubble: stand behind the characters and say what's going on in their heads
• freeze the action, so we can discuss it.

• a kid who always has the answers shutting down and refusing to let the others ride on what he knows
• a teacher being punched, and called a racial slur, by a student of a different ethnicity, who passes her in the hallway
• a non-English speaking student appearing suddenly in a second-grade classroom where there are other children w/ needs and demands
• an interview being conducted for a job @ Hip Hop Record Company: which language is most successful?

• how a very small local intervention can matter very much and make a big difference in the classroom;
• how we work on instinct in difficult situations, often knowing what to do on an intuitive level, even as we are forgetting all the techniques we are taught.

• whether our students NEED to be taught what they need to be successful, in the ways they want to be successful, or
• whether they can see themselves what is required, and acquire it as needed.