Considerations, Reflections, and Aspirations

As we conclude this course, I am thinking about my hopes and a goals relating to working with children and families from diverse backgrounds. Because I believe that no child should be systematically marginalized simply for who they are, my goal for the field is that all children someday have access to the supports and programs that will allow them to live the best possible lives. As we eliminate oppression and marginalization, we can help all children to feel whole, rather than leaving many of them with holes.  

I want to thank all of you for your support throughout this course as we explored issues related to self-identity, diversity, and equity (or lack thereof). Much like our work, these concepts are complex, multifaceted, and can feel overwhelming. As we grow professionally, I hope we maintain collegial relationships and provide the needed supports to one another. We are a network of advocates and activists that have entered the field at a time where great work has preceded us, however, we must do more. Let's continue to work together to build equity as we strive to support children both near and far.

Thank you!

Best,
Parker  

Welcoming Families From Around the World

Any time I receive word that a new student will be in attendance in my preschool program, I know there is preparation to be done. This is especially true when the student's family has recently emigrated from a country I know very little about. For example, if a student from Burundi (a small nation in east-central Africa's Great Lakes region) were to join my class, there are certain ways I would prepare in order to be culturally responsive to the student and family.

Understanding that most schools in the United States use a curriculum that shows preference to the western white world, I am mindful that I must support my students in a culturally relevant way. Based off of suggestions from Hyland (2010), I will seek to: 

• Transform the program of study to use the child's and family's personal and cultural knowledge as part of the curriculum. Hyland (2010) shares a teacher's example of why this is important, not just for students from other countries, but also for students we currently serve: "Sometimes my Black students will have information about home remedies or stories and folktales they have heard from their grandparents. We take those stories and write them up, compare notes, see how their knowledge compares with so-called traditional knowledge. I am always amazed when my students tell me things that I don't know . . . My students know things like community politics and police brutality. I can't just feed them a steady diet of cute animal stories and happy middle-class kids. Their experiences have to be part of our curriculum too." (pp. 83)
• Work to raise critical consciousness among students through open discussion of differences.
• Engage with the family and work towards building a partnership utilizing their expertise of the child's interests, strengths, and learning styles.  
• Make the effort to learn the cultural norms and values of the people Burundi and how those norms and values translate to the family specifically. I will then use this information to enlighten my teaching practice as I work to improve the educational experiences (and outcomes) I provide this student with.
• Because culturally relevant teaching requires the teacher to learn about each student's home culture, I will observe the practices of conversation, praise, and redirection that the family uses with the child. I will then use that information to inform my interactions with that student.   

Teaching in a culturally relevant way supports the needs of my students (and their families) as we seek to build a sense of support and trust between the home and school, preserve home culture, and foster healthy social identity development. I believe each of these components is essential to building towards equity in our social and education worlds.  

References

Hyland, N. E. (2010). Social justice in early childhood classrooms: What the research tells us. YC: Young Children, 65(1), 82-87. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com.ezp.waldenulibrary.org/ 

The Personal Side of Bias, Prejudice, and Oppression

During my undergrad, a group of friends and I took a road trip from Chicago, IL to Miami, FL. We had a great time on the trip until we encountered overt prejudice on the return trip home. Of the six of us, only 2 were white. We missed our exit off of a freeway and ended up turning around and stopping for gas in a rural community in Alabama. We pulled up to the pump across from a old and weathered pickup truck. The pickup was full of white guys dressed in camouflage hunting gear. They seemed to be enjoying themselves and were laughing and socializing with the employees of the gas station. They all seemed familiar with one another and perfectly comfortable in their space. Apparently, our group's appearance was an intrusion.

It just so happened that I was driving and the other white guy in our group was sitting in the front passenger seat.  While we weren't greeted with smiles by the guys in the pickup as we pulled toward them, their stares quickly became frowns as they looked past us and saw 4 not white guys in the back of our vehicle. They turned their gaze back towards the two of us in the front of the car and started shaking their heads as if to tell us no, you're not welcome here. To make it more clear, two of them began to drag their fingers across their throats as if to suggest getting out of the car would result in our demise. The others stuck up their middle fingers at us and began yelling, "Niggers!" and "Nigger Lovers!" We pulled out of the gas station without getting gas, figuring it would be best to avoid such a confrontation.

As we pulled away from the station, however, they jumped into their pickup and proceeded to follow us closely moving from behind our car, to next to us, to getting in front of us and slamming on their brakes while trying to lure us into pulling over to the side of the road. We eventually returned to the freeway and with increased traffic, they backed off. We were left wondering what we had done to warrant such treatment? Not only was their malice directed at races other than their own, it was also directed at other white guys for simply being friends with people who looked different.

It was deeply disappointing that problems like this continue to exist in this day and age. Fortunately, I doubt that any of those 'gentleman' will be involved with policy making in the future, however, it shows that much work is needed as we strive towards building equity. For these guys to be so blinded by hatred and ignorance highlights a need for change. While it was difficult to shake off their insults, it has become apparent to me that these guys have likely had limited if any opportunity to become acquainted with diversity. While great diversity exists within the United States as a whole, there are still many areas that remain homogeneous. I feel that without exposure to diversity, people will remain uncomfortable with it. How do we get people to understand and think about multicultural education in areas where diversity is almost nonexistent?