Do I Have The Big Picture?
While reading Autumn's story this week, I realized what this module meant by "The Big Picture". Too often, people of color are seen as aggressors, taking advantage of the system; people that are not on the same level as other "honest, hardworking Americans". In our society, black people and other people of color are painted in a bad light. However, like in Autumn's situation, the full story is not shown. Systemic racism like gerrymandering and a lack of opportunity to grow generational wealth are only a few issues rooted in prejudice. So not only are people of color facing systemic racism, but they are also stereotyped and treated more harshly for existing within it. POC exist in a society that forces them to work harder, to be quiet, and to willingly accept the prejudice of others in order to succeed in white spaces. When a marginalized person, like the student in the article we read, is fed up with the abuse, they are labeled aggressive, loud, violent. They are punished harshly. If we all recognized the entire story, we as a society could begin to dismantle the systemic oppression of black and brown Americans.
So how can we as future educators dismantle these negative beliefs? Challenging prejudice within ourselves is the first step. Especially with white teachers, educators and their students may have a certain level of disconnect. Even if you yourself do not have racist beliefs, it is important to establish a view of anti-racism. How can we expect children to have a broader and more accepting perspective without it? I know that anti-bigotry is a continuous learning experience, even as a brown woman. For the sake of my fellow people of color, as well as the minds of future students, I know that I must always look at the big picture.
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As a white educator I have found that my Mexican husband is by far the racist one in our relationship and makes it very difficult to speak about issues I have each day in the school with students. Unfortunately, racism isn't just one sided and only on the Anglos that are racist. All races have the racism towards others and that is where it all needs to stop. Everyone needs to realize that we are all human and have to be open to finding ways to teach the next generation how to be better. I feel that all sides need to come together and find a way to make that all happen.
ReplyDeleteGood afternoon! I agree that anyone can have prejudiced feelings about others. However, in this module, some parts focused on the fact that as a majority-white occupation, there may be more difficulty in discussing issues and ideas that primarily affect students of color. I think it is called the Teacher Education gap, where more and more black and brown students are in classrooms but teachers remain primarily white. This is not to say that white women are incapable of being great teachers, because I have had many amazing ones, but that it is important to have a more active approach to ensure students feel welcome and understood. Especially when students of color do worse statistically on standardized exams compared, we all have to look past this issue beyond face value and recognize what different circumstances contribute to minority students having more trouble with succeeding in classrooms.
DeleteHi Ashely! Great post I loved the picture you added and how much detail you went into within your blog. I LOVE that you added your own questions into your blog to answer and go into detail about how you feel on the topic. how do you as a future teacher plan on teaching students about this picture that we don’t know about and aren’t taught? Also how do you as a teacher want to make sure that students feel safe when learning about this new information? I loved your post and loved how you didn’t dive into saying yes or no I have the whole picture. You said you much always look at the whole picture rather than saying you don’t know the whole picture and that is a really positive way to look at this. Again great post, I really enjoyed your blog and I cant wait to hear your responses!
ReplyDeleteHey Alex! Thank you! :) My goal is to be aware of the biases that exist within our society and evaluate how these biases may manifest within the classroom. Last week, one of the readings talked about how students of color may face more disciplinary action because of conscious or subconscious perceptions. Their curiosity and creativity are too often shut down, forcing them to remain quiet and compliant in an environment that does not focus on their needs as students. They are targeted much more often for the same behaviors that are overlooked in their white peers, and new forms of learning and collaborative work are rejected. I will need to make sure that I as an individual act in a way that encourages growth among all students, making the classroom a safe space to laugh and to learn.
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