Professional Hopes and Goals

This school year I have began to truly understand diversity. In my school district they have choosen to stop busing students who are English Language Learners to certain schools and make them attend their neighborhood school. With the district choosing to do this several teachers at my school have children in their class from various backgrounds who don't speak Englsih at all. Being put in this situation has caused me and many others to pay attention to way that we do things so that we are including and not offending these children and their families. I hope that we can all learn to work together to do what is best for the children and their families. We all need to find ways to adjust and accomidate so that everyone feels welcome and a part of something. A kindergarten child that speaks only chinese started at our school. Her parents knew that it would be hard on her as well as the class. So the parents made cards that have things like "I have to go to the bathroom" in English and Chinese so that the girl can read them and show them to the teacher to rell her what she wants. 
With the people at my school learning to work with diverse families I want to make it a goal for the early childhood field to be more willing to learn parts of the families lanuaguage and culture. I have found a program online that when I type in something in Englsih the program will say what I typed in a different language. This way I know the family is understanding what I am trying to tell them.

I would like to say thank you to all my classmates and collegues from this semester and class. You all have helped me stay on track and keep things together. I know that all of us started this journey togehter and we are all going to make it to the end. We are almost the end and I know we can all see the finish line.

Welcoming Families from Around the World

I am an elementary school teacher. We recently went back to school this past Wednesday. I have a little girl in my class name Seetha. Her family is from India. The father speaks little to no English and the mother speaks some English. Seetha is also deaf. She has a cochlear implant so she can hear in her right ear. To accommodate the family I welcomed them in English and with a traditional Hindu greeting by bowing and saying Namaste. In Indian culture the father is the head of the household. I made sure that when I was talking I tried to address the father most of the time, even though I knew he really didn't understand me. To accommodate Seetha the mother requested I talk to her on her right side. So I made sure she sits to my left so that she can hear me. I also requested a speaker system for my class. This system comes with a small speaker and a microphone I would wear around my neck. The speaker helps to magnify my voice so that Seetha will be able to hear me no matter where I am in the classroom. I hope to learn more about her family and culture as the year goes on. I think this will be an interesting experience.

The Personal Side of Bias, Prejudice, and Oppression

In high school I worked at a restaurant. We were not busy one day so the manager asked to take out the trash and clean off tables etc.  I had no problem doing it until I noticed that no one else was cleaning. I was the only African American girl working that day. When he asked me to clean the bathrooms I questioned him and asked him and said aren’t we all suppose to share the work? He told me that he was in charge and if I didn’t like what he said then I could clock out and go home. Well I went home. It made me mad that he thought he could treat me that way. I had no problem doing my share, but I was not about to do all the cleaning while the other girls stood around and talked. He was being racist.  If he had changed his mood then I could have turned the situation around. When I brought it to his attention that I was the only one cleaning he could have said oh I didn’t mean to let me get someone else to do it. The fact that he got so upset when questioned proved to me that he was being racist. Later when I informed the head manager of the situation she didn’t seem all too pleased. I was fired a few days later for “poor performance”. It is funny that I never had a problem or got a bad review until I complained. That just told me that this restaurant was not the place for me.

Practicing Awareness of Microaggressions

Microaggression is when someone makes a comment or assumption about someone based on their race, gender, class, etc.

I have witnessed microaggression several times in my life. I have experienced microaggression a lot of times when I call people on the phone. During this past school year I received a new student late in the year. I called his mother to express some concerns I had about his grades from the other school. The next day the mother came to the school to talk to me. When she came she couldn't remember who called her house so she told the office staff a white woman had called her. They assumed it was the speech therapist who is white. When she spoke to the speech therapist, she found out that it was not her that called her. The parent could not speak to me at the time, because I was in a meeting. The parent then came back the next day. When she walked in my room the next morning she said "Girl, I thought you was a white women when you called me."

This is an example of microaggression because she felt that as a black woman I was not suppose to speak proper English. I did not feel bad about it because this is a problem I have dealt with before. People have told me that I sound white. I really don't understand this because in my family we are encouraged to speak with proper English and not slang. I also feel that as a teacher I should speak proper English.  I realize that everyone has microaggressions. I know that when a person exhibits a microaggression they don't mean to be offensive. Educating people to know when they are exhibiting microaggressions is the first step in stopping them.

Perspectives on Diversity and Culture

For EDUC 6164 I was told to ask three friends or family members what their definition of diversity and culture are. I asked my father, Uncle Eric, and Aunt Jackie.

Father:  Culture- The language, music, up bring, and work of a particular people.

              Diversity- the differences within people

Uncle Eric: Culture- deals with the way a person is brought up and what they learn

        Diversity- not having the same background

Aunt Jackie: Culture- an individual way of doing things, religion

     Diversity- different ways that races do things

After talking to my family and friends I realized that everyone feels that culture is the way a person is raised. No one really got into details about the specifics. Through the Lacerate Education videos in class I learned that race, ethnicity, language, religion, ability, class, parenting pattern, and life style also play an important part in one’s culture.  I know they understand what culture is because in order to define it they had to give examples as it related to them and what their culture is. They did the same with diversity.  I don’t think that anyone included class as a part of culture. People don’t remember that your social class plays a part in how you are raised.   Listening to my family’s definition of culture made me realize that I was lucky to be raised in such an environment where culture and diversity is recognized and respected. Being accepting of who people are is an important aspect of the culture in which I was raised.

References

Laureate Education Inc. (2011) “Family Cultures: Dynamic Interactions” (Video Webcast). Retrieved from http://sylvan.live.ecollege.com/ec/crs/default.learn?CourseID=5364616&Survey=1&47=8004829&ClientNodeID=984650&coursenav=1&bhcp=1

My Family Culture

If there was a catastrophe in my home country and My family and I were forced to relocate I would be devastated. Then I find out that I could only take three items with me. The first item that I would choose would be my patchwork quilt. This quilt is very special to me. My grandmother hand made this quilt. She put pieces of clothing and things that meant something to someone in our family. The second item I would take would be a baby bassinet crib. This bassinet has been handed down for generations. My husband slept in this bassinet and so did our son. The third item I would bring is my language. My father's family is from "Cajun country." They know how to speak Cajun french. I feel that even though we'd be going to another country this would be important to carry with us.
I want others in this new country to understand that staying together with my family is one of the most important things. All of these items mean so much to me because I want to feel close to where I came from and what I know.
Unfortunately when we arrive in the new country I am told that I can only keep one of the items that I brought. I know I would keep my quilt. I think that it means the most. The quilt holds pieces of different family members and represents who we are. I can also keep my language. The new country could not take that from me. I will be able to teach my children and they can teach their children.
After doing this exercise I realized that all parts of my family are important to who I am. When I was thinking of things to take I couldn't just look at my mother's side or my father's side or even just my side of the family. I know that I am made up of so many more things then I originally thought and it makes me happy.

When I think of research.....

Before I started EDCU 6163 I knew very little about research. I realized that it takes many steps to plan an effective research study. While planning my research simulation I kept hitting dead ends. I questioned myself at every step. Research is not easy at all. Whatever you plan do in a research study has to be approved and if is wrong you have to fix it. I tip my hat to those who do research for a living. It takes countless hours reading, looking, and conducting your study. Some challenges that I kept running into was wording. I was having a hard time wording things in the way that I wanted to say them so that others could understand what I meant. To fix this challenge I talked to others that I let read over my papers. I found that if I could explain to them what was going on in my head then they could help me figure out how to word correctly. Another challenge I had when doing research was understanding. I continually became confused with the terminology of research. To understand the terminology I found myself googling words. Sometimes it took me looking at three or four definitions to finally get a word. As an early childhood professional I now see the importance of research. Research is done in such a way that it benefits the children. I know see that when we are told to try a new way of teaching because research has proven it works. I think after going through this course I will take the time to listen to the research and give it a chance, because I now know what it takes to go through the process.