Bolinder-Week 5

Week 5: Toward a Social Justice Ethic: What is an American, Anyway?

The article discusses ways to effectively include multicultural literature in the classroom and why it's important.  They affect me as a teacher and as a citizen.  As a teacher, it is my job to prepare students to be positive active citizens in their community.  Part of this is preparing them academically, and part of this is preparing them to be critical thinkers and how to engage in thoughtful discussions regarding what is going on in the world around them. In order to do this, students need perspective and practice with being thoughtful regarding things that are both familiar and unfamiliar.  The article mentions multicultural literature as a mirror, window and a sliding glass door. Being able to utilize the text in all of these ways, depending on what they are reading is an essential skill for students.  Outside of being a teacher, it is a necessary skill to have open minded, informed discussions with those around me about the world we live in. Our world is filled with so much disagreement and inability to listen to those around them. I think often we want similar things as those around us, like to live in a positive community, and have a well run country that treats people well, but how we are able to do this is what leads to different opinions.

I believe that no matter your role-teacher, mother, student, daughter, etc.- it is important to have a voice and be heard. No matter your role, you have a lived experience as a part of society that includes both positive and negative lived experiences. In order to make improvements in the space we live, we need to identify areas for improvement. For this to happen, it is necessary that people have a voice to share their thoughts and perspectives.  We have discussed recently about the many intersections of identities that people possess. These different intersections also make up different experiences.  By bringing them together we are able to connect with people more easily. While we may not be able to agree with someone through the lens of race, perhaps through the lens of motherhood we can connect and more easily empathize with others.  

When in the classroom you attempt to respond to the question "What does it mean to be American?", utilizing the strategies mentioned in the article would be very beneficial.  The article mentions explicit instruction about multiple identities which would be a great place to start.  From there, using platforms to give students opportunities to use their own voices is a great strategy. The article suggests using classroom discussion, paired with proper discussion norms and rules.  They also mention using a blog as digital platform for students to share their voice.  The more students can share, the more opportunities they have to learn from their peers. The article also recommends using self reflection journals or surveys as another way for students to share their voice and allow both teachers and peers alike to learn more about each other.

References:

Ezell, S., & Daly, A. (2022). Honoring Multiple Identities Using Multicultural Literature. Texas Association for Literacy Education Yearbook, 9, 35-41.

DeFord Week 5

    On one level, the issues examined in the article and the book affect me less than they may affect other teachers. I teach at a private school with policies that excludes the majority of students that might attend a public school. Many of the students share the same faith identities, making my teaching context a homogeneous one in which students' insular experience can sometimes become problematic to their education. Although my school does have ethnic diversity, many of the other identities claimed by today's population are conspicuously absent from my classroom. Fortunately, many families step up and support their students' growth by ensuring that they participate in activities and events that expose them to a broader experience of cultures and beliefs around them. Many, if not most, of my students are transfer students from public schools, so they have had the opportunity to meet and interact with people who see the world differently from themselves. Certainly, few of my students have come from a situation like the one described in Drown. I have met a few parents of my students, however, that are probably familiar with the lifestyle described by Diaz. 

    On another level, the reality of my teaching context makes it perhaps more important for me and the other teachers at our school to ensure that our students have a wide range of exposure to other ideas. I think our teaching team does a good job of exposing our students to other popularly-held beliefs and ideas. One project required in an 8th grade class at school requires students to articulate their own opinion on a controversial topic (e.g. abortion, etc.) and then interview an adult who disagrees with them. I'm thankful that our teachers are willing to push our students out of their comfort zones to learn more about others. It's also very important that my students learn how to respectfully agree or disagree with others. Ezell and Daly (2022) explain that "Multicultural literature has the capacity to foreground stories and experiences of individuals and communities who have been silenced and have experienced injustice." When we understand the background stories of those around us, whether we agree on things like politics or religion, we have a better grasp on their rationale for their beliefs. My goal for my students is that they become more and more gracious toward all people around them while simultaneously becoming more and more grounded in their own beliefs. 

Díaz, J. (1997). Drown. Penguin

Ezell, S., & Daly, A. (2022). Texas Association for Literacy Education Yearbook (Vol. 9).

Campbell - Week 5

 Kirsten Campbell

ENGL 478 G

Week 5 Post 

As the article states, “Students are the voices of the next generation and deserve access to multicultural literature”(Ezell & Daly, P.38, 2022). Multicultural literacy exposes students to diversity and plays a crucial role in shaping their identity. It allows them to see themselves as reflections in text and apply new knowledge to their communities. The importance of having a voice or being heard is that students see this in a role model; it could be a parent, sibling, an online influence, or a character in the media. Adolescence is the most influential part of our lives because we grow and discover more about ourselves than we thought. A lot of adolescent literature is about finding yourself; as you find yourself, you find your voice. While your students read, they reflect on their lives with the character, further developing the beliefs that influence them to find their voice. Your students need to be heard because how does it feel not to be heard? When you are not heard, your ideas slip under the rug with no one noticing, and you feel alone, and no one else understands you or has similar views. When you are heard, it is such a powerful thing. “With great power, comes great responsibility.” It is silly to quote Spider-Man, but it is as powerful as that. Your voice can change the perspective of others, add to views, or it can hurt others. Having diverse literature in our classrooms will provide a window, a mirror, and a sliding glass door and create open-minded learners, critical thinkers, and powerful speakers. When we have powerful voices, it can make the most essential class discussions, which impact people. 

I enjoyed Figure 1 in the article because it teaches students from a young age how to appreciate others and their differences. It is also a way for students to involve their whole family. Before creating the web, you can make a little take-home sheet that parents can help with, and the questions will be about family, ethnicity, holidays, and food. I also thought about a column with rules to follow, and then the students could sign their names on it, which would be a part of our class constitution. Classroom rules, learning about diverse cultures, and encouraging voices can bring those expectations and responsibilities together. 

References:

Ezell, S. & Daly, A. (2022). Honoring multiple identities using multicultural literature. Texas Association for Literacy Education Yearbook, 9.

Salow- Week 5

 The issues addressed in “Honoring Multiple Identities Using Multicultural Literature” by Ezell and Daly center on the need to address the identities of all of our students and some ways that teachers can do that. This article mostly speaks to practices that would be easier to implement in a reading class, which I teach, so I found the information to be applicable in nearly every way. One of the first questions I thought to myself was is there an age that identity as a focus makes the most sense? I mean this in the way of it being a year long discussion and discussed whenever the opportunity arises. I do think that discussing identity is absolutely necessary and important, but I think that the discussion would be better suited, and more in depth at some of the older ages. I teach 6th grade, and knowing all of the changes and struggles that my students go through, to add this what some could consider pressure to identify yourself when you are still trying to figure it out may not be the most conducive to a meaningful discovery of identity. I am not saying that it shouldn’t be talked about or discussed, but at the 6th grade level I think it would be more appropriate to analyze characters' identity and then by the end of the year give them the opportunity to apply the skills that we have discussed in class to themselves. 

It is so important for students to have a voice, but we still have to give students the time and space to find and use those voices in a productive way. I know many people who know they have a voice, but they use it in a way that is more harmful than productive. I do not mean just the people that disagree with my views. I mean the people who spout off loudly, but then are unable to have a normal productive conversation with respect coming from both sides. Those skills really need to be emphasized to our students while they are still in the process of or starting to find their true voice. 

The roles that I inhabit at this point in time are teacher, wife, daughter, friend, member of society, and soon to be first time mom. I would say that while reflecting on these positions now, there are some differences. The values and beliefs that myself and my husband have are going to heavily affect the way that we raise our children. That being said, I am not going to teach those beliefs or values to my students because I would not want someone to do that with my children. I believe that it is a teacher's job to allow space for students to feel safe and opportunities to learn and grow. It is not my job to raise them as my children. I do love them as my children but, they are not. I can wholeheartedly disagree with how parents are raising their children, but it is not my place or my job to raise them. The article discusses many great ways to allow the students to grow and develop their identity on their own.

References:

Ezell, S. & Daly, A. (2022). Honoring multiple identities using multicultural literature. Texas Association for Literacy Education Yearbook, 9.

Meyer- Week 5

Throughout life, we all experience different identities and need to voices to be heard. The different subjects we are in our lives may bring on a different importance of our voice and what we want to be heard. As a mother and a teacher, I feel it is my job to make sure my children and students voices can be heard and acknowledged. We owe it to them to make sure they they feel empowered and can give them a sense of identity. The way I teach them may be different but it is the same end goal. One way we can bring all these multiple identities together is by having multicultural literature available whether that be in the classroom or at home. Students are the voices of the next generation and deserve access to multicultural literature (Ezell and Daly, 2022).

Multiple identities are in every single classroom and set of students we teach. Many time students feel silenced in the classroom about their multiple identities. This affects me as a teacher because by silencing these issues, students do not feel empowered and they lose their voice. Every person wants to have a voice and be heard regardless of if your a child or an adult. Having a voice and feeling heard can make students more successful. It can give them a sense of belonging. It is easy for us to shut down other people's voices we may not agree with but everyone deserves to be heard. Every person develops a sense of who they are
through the relationships they hold with family, friends, and society (Ezell and Daly, 2022). Children learn at a young age who they are and eventually learn to silence that as they arrive in school and it is not welcome. That is why teachers, myself included, need to incorporate more multicultural literature in the classroom. In order for students to be fully seen and heard at school, their multiple identities must recognized and honored (Muhammad, 2018). Teachers can normalize this by incorporating students into collaborative discussions. Normalizing discussion about identity is one way to help students learn about who they are and how identities and experiences differ. ( Ezell and Daly, 2022). As a community, we need to come together to make all identities welcome!

References:
Ezell, S. & Daly, A. (2022). Honoring multiple identities using multicultural literature. Texas Association for Literacy Education Yearbook, 9.

 

 

Schiefelbein - Week 5 - What is American Anyway?

Helping my students to connect to multicultural texts can be tricky when there is little diversity in the classroom.  Although this is the reality in my school, my students can still gain the skills and mindsets that are essential for learning from others' experiences.  This article reminded me of the intentional planning I do to ensure that the culture in my classroom is inclusive.  I want my students to feel supported in their pursuit of finding their voice in my classroom and beyond.  One of the key elements that I implement is a Social Contract that outlines how the students agree that they will treat each other.  Although it sometimes feels inauthentic in the beginning, it becomes a valuable tool throughout the term.  One positive impact the Social Contract has had on my classroom is that, over time, the students begin to lead more of the discussions in class.  Eventually, each student gets an opportunity to lead the class in a book-talk about book that they have read independently.  This has been a really valuable strategy in getting students to choose texts that are outside their comfort zones.  Encouraging students to read a variety of literature and to share their experiences with texts can be empowering both for the presenters as well as the audience.

I also want my students to know how valuable their voice and perspective is to the content in our class.  I use identity webs to get students thinking about, and talking about different branches of their identity.  Identity webs also set my students up for the complex narratives they will encounter in the literature we study together.  Ezell and Daly mention revising these identity webs at several points throughout the year, giving students space to reflect, and to make changes as they broaden their understanding of themselves.  I hadn't thought of making additions and changes to these webs throughout the year, and I think it would be a valuable exercise in the future.  Engaging in these reflections would help my students to develop a deeper understanding of how their identities change.  In turn, I think my students will be more willing to share their perspectives with others. 

References

Diaz, J., & Lago, E. (1996). Drown. Riverhead Books.

Ezell, S., & Daly, A. (2022). Honoring multiple identities using multicultural literature. Texas Association for Literacy Education Yearbook, 9, 35-41.

Lampman- Week 5

While reading this article, my mind kept going back to the book bans and different laws that are going on around our country.  I just keep asking myself, “How did we get here?  Why do certain individuals get to decide what is acceptable to read and what is not?” One of my favorite authors had a few books that were banned in Texas, and she was not quiet about it.  Jodi Picoult took to social media and called out the politicians on their decision.  This made me wonder what are these politicians afraid of? 

 At the beginning of the school year, we had an all staff meeting from our superintendent advising us not to give surveys that ask about personal items such as, family dynamics, feelings, and so forth.  This was due to a law passed in Iowa.  While I do not know what the law exactly stated or forbid, I know it made the leaders of our school districts uneasy and put things into place that seems crazy to me.  In my classroom, my students are my family and I want to know everything I can about them. This is how we get engagement and show them that we care.  Why can’t I ask them how they are feeling and the makeup of their home lives?  

I do think as a teacher, we can be scrutinized more for our responses and or personal beliefs.  I know in 2020, I put a Black Lives Matter photo as my profile picture on facebook.  My facebook is private, however, people can still see my profile pictures, and I am okay with that.  I had heard from a coworker that there was a family that attends our school district that was appalled that I would have such a thing on my facebook, and that “she hoped I wasn’t teaching these things to my students.”  I did some self reflection after hearing this and for a second, I thought about taking it down.  But, here’s the thing… This is where it’s important to use my voice and not to be ashamed for standing up for people who need it.  If that parent would have come to me to speak, I would have told them that I do think Black Lives Matter.  I do think we need more training in the United States when it comes to unconscious bias.  I do want to make sure every person feels safe in this school district and to know that we are all important.  

That being said, it is hard to stand up to people that you care about such as your family members, coworkers, community members, etc.  But, if no one ever does, how do we change racism, equity, and inclusion?  Ezell and Daly states, “Multicultural texts create opportunities for students to feel visible, included, and valued, yet literacy educators are often challenged using these texts in ways that honor students' multiple identities and address the intersections of identity and (in)justice.” (2022, p. 35).  We have to be a voice and we have to stand up for each other.  

I think the 3 practices are great steps in starting to honor multiple identities.  I really liked the examples of the identity web and I could see my past students enjoying this activity.  If I were to go back into the classroom, there are many books that I have been exposed to over the course of my Master’s program that I would want to add to my library.  I also think setting up discussion norms is so important, and through this class, we have all had an example of this.  

Resources:

Ezell, S. & Daly, A. (2022). Honoring multiple identities using multicultural literature. Texas Association for Literacy Education Yearbook, 9.

Dibert: Week 5 Post

I really enjoyed the article this week. As all of the articles and stories we have read have done, it caused me to look at practices that I am doing in my classroom. There are a few quotes that really stood out to me from this article that allow me to reflect on. The first one comes from page 36. It states, “ in order for students to be fully seen and heard at school, their multiple identities must be recognized and honored” (Ezell and Daly, 2022). This quote stood out to me, because when we look at ourselves or look at our students, we can usually identify each other with one major characteristic that stands out. For example, we could say the one black student, or the student in the wheelchair, or something like that that stands out. When in reality, everybody is made up of multiple Identities. If I were to look at myself, I could identify as a white Christian female with glasses. In that statement, I identify with four different groups. It is important that we look at people as a whole instead of just one characteristic. Another quote that stood out to me was, “too often, multicultural literature and discussions about identity are viewed as deviations from the official, academic curriculum” (Ezell and Daly, 2022, pg. 37). During my first year of teaching I really thought of it that way. I felt like I had to follow the curriculum and could not talk about what I wanted to. That took away my voice as a teacher because I was worried I would get in trouble. Now I realize not only did it take my voice away, but it took the voice away of my students. My last two years of teaching I have really tried to talk about different cultural events when they come up as well as investigate different cultural topics within our reading curriculum. My students are very curious, so, even if it goes off the curriculum trail, I still think it is important to immerse my students in the world around them. As the article talks about during instructional time “make sure to model listening as the instructor to share the microphone to make room for student voice and encourage partner dialogue” (Ezell and Daly, 2022, pg. 37). I didn’t realize the power pure conversation can have. This is something I have really been working on as a teacher to give the voice back to my students.
As we talked about, giving people a voice is very important. With the political climate that we are in, it is very easy to shut down someone else’s voice who we think is different. We need to work on hearing each other out, and realizing that everyone has a valid opinion and valid experience. Until we all start realizing that, it is going to be very difficult for us to put differences aside and embrace the role that everybody has. My question, for everyone would be, how do we prepare students to have a strong voice and impact on society?

References:
Ezell, S. & Daly, A. (2022). Honoring multiple identities using multicultural literature. Texas Association for Literacy Education Yearbook, 9.

Akkermann - Week 5 Blog Post

 Week 5: Toward a Social Justice Ethic: What is an American Anyway?

As a teacher, mother, community member, sister, daughter, and wife I see it as my responsibility to help all people “feel visible, included, and valued” (Ezell & Daly, 2022, p.35).  These qualities are the heart of all humanity and do not change no matter the culture.  However, people lose value, are left out, and are unseen when humanity puts selfishness, pride, preferences, and themselves ahead of others.  In my classroom, I often see these characteristics because my students are still learning how to think of others (A lot of adults still struggle with this!) and see the value of another perspective. 

This is where using multicultural texts comes into play because they help students to learn, understand, and appreciate difference.  Thus, allowing for inclusion, worth, and being seen as a person.  Ezell & Daly (2022) talk about how multicultural texts allow students to look at themselves (the mirror), observe relationships (window), and connect personally to new experiences (sliding glass door).  I appreciate the analogy of the mirror, window, and sliding glass door because this is a visual that I can use with my elementary students as we read a multicultural text.  I would like to project a picture of each of these on my Promethean board, have an oral discussion with my students about what these represent, and as we read a book use them throughout to have discussions. 

Ezell & Daly (2022) pointed out that students who have privilege should “use their power to end discrimination and oppression” (p.36).  I could see this being what I would focus on in my classroom because our district has less than 1% of the national average of minority students.  I would couple that idea with the thought that students can be “change makers and critical, compassionate community members” (Ezell & Daly, 2022, p.36).  I see this playing out reading multicultural texts that focus on “identity, power, and equity” (Ezell & Daly, 2022, p.36) and talking about how we can use those characteristics now and how they can be used as the students grow up. 

Since I work primarily with lower elementary students I liked the idea of using the identity web as a whole class and using the example given in Table 1 (Ezell & Daly, 2022, p.40).  I would use the book The Colors of Us by Karen Katz.  We would make a web and discuss at the same time.  We would talk about our differences and commonalities and how these characteristics give us value, include each other, and give us each a voice.

References

Ezell, S., & Daly, A. (2023). Honoring multiple identities using multicultural literature (Vol. 9, pp. 35–41). Texas Association for Literacy Education.

Hamm_Week #5

The issues from the article are political issues tied to a lack of accountability in society. Scholars like Ezell and Daly (2022) look at the imbalance in society today, between the colors in the culture, and blame those of the past on one side for the 'inequity'. I would counter that argument with the question: When do we start looking for changes that need to occur? Or, when does the blame shift to a moment of action for the betterment of society today? In several places within the article, there is hateful intention towards the European part of the American culture. Places where they would like to create a divide through decisive language, which is another way to show ethnocentricity--thinking that they have the answer. As a teacher, it is integral to remember my personal values so I do my job well. All of the research tells us that students value authenticity. If I were ashamed of my values (of my culture), I would be lying to students every day; which does not generate a sense of community.


Each and every person in a space deserves to have a voice. You cannot hear one voice and silence another. The value of being American is that every citizen has a spot at the table, and at that table, every person is valued for the ideas and work ethic they bring to it. This is how the 'sliding glass door' symbol is supposed to support the American culture, Stepping through to allow another perspective. The society developed at the beginning of the country's design has evolved and changed to incorporate the value of all thoughts.

My voice doesn't change depending on what role I am in at the time because my values are my values. I have a moral compass that does not alter within the roles assigned to me or those I take on for myself. The expectations of the greater society prefer for me to not have a voice as a teacher, but this is backward and is not a practice I adhere to.

Every person has value! Every person has an identity! And every person should be heard, even when I do not agree!

Stevenson: Week 5

Brown - Week 5 Post

I found a lot of similarities between this article and “Multicultural literature and discussion as mirror and window?” by Jocelyn Glazier and Jung-A Seo (2005). Especially when referencing multicultural literature as a mirror or window. However, this article introduced the idea of a sliding glass door. The article states, “Texts can also serve as sliding glass doors, inviting students to interact, exchange, and establish personal connections to new and unfamiliar experiences” (Ezell & Daly, 2022, p. 35). I believe this is a perfect description of multicultural literature, because it allows students to explore different cultures and ideas without any barriers between the character they are reading about and their own self. I also really liked that Ezell and Daly gave teaching strategies for teaching multicultural literature and gave ideas about including it in classroom libraries. Many of the strategies described using discussion, which is very important when students are exploring new ideas.

I believe it is crucial to have a voice and to be heard, as long as everyone is respectful to one another. Having a voice goes along with having an identity. One without the other does not usually happen. As a future teacher, I have always been cautioned in my classes to be careful— to make sure that my voice does not overpower any of my students’ voices. Everyone’s ideas, identities, and voices are important and everyone should be able to voice their opinions. Many students also look up to their teachers, so students have the potential to adopt ideas, whether positive or negative, from their teachers. Ezell and Daly quote Gholnecsar Muhammad when he defines identity, “Being composed of notions of who we are, who others say we are (in both positive and negative ways), and whom we desire to be” (2022, p. 36). “Who others say we are” becomes very important to pay attention to when having discussions, so no one is being disrespectful to others or having too strong of a voice that overpowers others’ ideas or identities. This applies outside of the classroom too. As a golden rule, everyone should be respectful to one another when sharing their voices with others no matter what identity you fall into in society.

References

Ezell, S., & Daly, A. (2022). Honoring multiple identities using multicultural literature. Texas Association for Literacy Education Yearbook, 9, 35-41. https://moodle.morningside.edu/ pluginfile.php/1431504/mod_resource/content/1/Ezell%20and%20Daly%20Honoring%20Multiple%20Identities%20Using%20Multicultural%20Literature.pdf

Glazier, J., & Seo, J.-A. (2005). Multicultural literature and discussion as mirror and window? Minority students in one U.S. high school class find their voices, but the majority students have a different experience. Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy, 48(8), 686+. https://link-gale-com.ezproxy.morningside.edu/apps/doc/A132746287/PPPC?u= morningside&sid=bookmark-PPPC&xid=61f53cd6

Beckman - Week 5

The article just re-affirms how important multicultural literature is in our classrooms. I thought the quote at the end of the article was very powerful, “Students are the voices of the next generation and deserve access to multicultural literature. Students need to experience inclusive and affirming literacy learning by seeing reflections of themselves in classroom texts.” (Ezell & Daly, 2022, p. 38). The importance of voice is that it is what drives change in our country, so it is important for us to facilitate and encourage student voices, but also give them the opportunity to listen to voices that are different from their own. I think using your voice, but allowing others to have their own, are equally important skills for students to use. As well as discerning when someone’s opinion may not be right, but being able to stand up and disagree in a way that is helpful. 

I think that regardless of your role in society, teacher, parent, community member, it is important to have a voice of your own and listen to the voices of others. As a teacher, I still need to listen to my students’ voices and concerns, even though I am in a position of power of them. Same as a parent still wants to / should hear their kids out when they come to them with concerns or complaints. This aligns with another quote from the article, “Every person develops a sense of who they are through the relationships they hold with family, friends, and society.” (Ezell & Daly, 2022, p. 36)

Ezell, S. & Daly, A. (2022). Honoring multiple identities using multicultural literature. Texas Association for Literacy Education Yearbook, 9.

Lansink - Week 5 Post

 The issues examined in the article affect me as a third grade teacher by reflecting on my ability to influence young minds and to better society. One quote from Ezell and Daly (2022) that especially strikes me is, “Multicultural literature can also teach children and youth who have privilege to recognize ways they benefit from their race, class, and gender identities and use their power to end discrimination and oppression”. This is a very strong quote that doesn’t shout at you to learn about other cultures, but the impact that your culture and race can have on others. The topic of humanizing people who hold multiple identities sits with me, as a person living in today’s world, because we do create a “norm” for multiple identities, but in reality that just isn’t fair. Any combination of identities shouldn’t set you apart from one another, but further point to your identities in common with others, ideally bringing us closer in today’s world.

The idea of an identity web is brilliant to me. It opens discussion of multiple identities, but also provides proper and appropriate vocabulary for varying identities. And more importantly, a common vocabulary for the class community to use as one, which can make discussions less daunting and scary. I’ve mentioned this idea in previous posts, but incorporating multicultural literature into informal read aloud time to provide discussions and creating charts can be very effective. There are ways to bring the needs, expectations, and responsibilities based on the roles we inhabit together through opening up and inviting discussion and really making connections with characters in multicultural literature and their stories and experiences.

References

Ezell, S. & Daly, A. (2022). Honoring multiple identities using multicultural literature. Texas Association for Literacy Education Yearbook, 9.

Minkler Week 5

 This article showed me how you, as an educator, can affect students’ perspectives and make them more well-rounded individuals by reading and introducing multicultural texts in the classroom (Ezell & Daly, 2022). By reading these books and starting discussions based on the window, mirror, sliding glass door method, students have a chance to share their voice and connect with other people who are different from them. Everyone wants to feel like they’re being heard, and it is important that students are given the platform to do so. If they practice using their voice and celebrating diversity at a young age, they will only grow to do so when they are adults. Our students are the future of our country, and it is beneficial, as educators, to prepare them for that. We want them to lead our society in the best way possible, and this starts in the classroom. 

While we practice this in the classroom, it is important to know that voices should also be heard in individual families, in the community, etc. Children should also be taught to use their voice, because what they say matters! Everyone has a need to be heard, and it is the parents’ and teachers’ responsibility to show children that they can stand up for themselves and others. Teaching children how to properly stand up for themselves and use their voices can bring these needs, expectations, and responsibilities together. 

Ezell, S. & Daly, A. (2022). Honoring multiple identities using multicultural literature. Texas 

Association for Literacy Education Yearbook, 9(2). 

https://moodle.morningside.edu/pluginfile.php/1431504/mod_resource/content/1/Ezell

%20and%20Daly%20Honoring%20Multiple%20Identities%20Using%20Multicultural%20Li

terature.pdf 

DeFord Week 4

 I enjoyed the story Recitatif this week. I actually read ahead (or listened to the audio version) so I was unprepared when I saw the instructions to have pre-conceptions noted. I also did not read the article prior to reading the short story (because stories are always more fun than research!), so my perspective may be different from other students. 

Like any good story, Recitatif leaves many questions for the reader to fill in given imagination or prior experience. I immediately felt sorry for Twyla and Roberta, but I didn't get a sense of why either of them was where they were until the end. As I listened to their escapades as young girls, I had the rosy picture in my mind that they would grow up to be lifelong friends after their bonding experiences. I was disappointed when Roberta ended up treating Twyla rudely in the restaurant, and I was disturbed that Roberta would march in a racial display in front of the school later. To be honest, I didn't want Roberta to be successful or wealthy after the way she acted. I also found it frustrating that Twyla and Roberta couldn't agree on what happened to the poor lady that the older girls were beating up in the story. The conclusion of the story, although maybe a little more satisfying than what I had thought it might be, helped draw the reader to the fact that Twyla and Roberta were not so different as they had thought after all. Both of them had personal struggles and "skeletons in the closet" that they needed to deal with, and they both had personal hurts that helped shape their responses. 

The way the author wrote the story helps draw the reader into the personal struggles of these two girls/women and gives readers a glimpse into what life must have been like from two perspectives. We end up feeling sorry for both women, despite their shortcomings. This type of story fits into the construct of the research article for this week. Szecsi et al., (2010) point out that multicultural literature helps us understand the humanity of other cultures and find out that we have more to learn. As teachers who may have students from a variety of cultures, multicultural literature can help us become a closer community as we learn more about what makes other cultures unique. It doesn't mean that we will adopt everything about the other cultures, but it does create a bridge of understanding, just like the bridge that Twyla and Roberta ended up building at the conclusion of their story. 

Szecsi, T., Spillman, C., Vazquez-Montilla, E., & Mayberry, S. C. (2010b). Transforming teacher cultural landscapes by reflecting on multicultural literature. Multicultural Education, 17(4), 44–48. http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ915271.pdf

Gill - Week 4 Post

 I read the story three times and was still confused.  The assignment asked us to think about the role/importance of memory?  People want to remember and focus on good things.  That is why Twyla is always asking about Roberta's mom.  She does not want to remember that she was sick.  Twyla also does not remember exactly what happened to Maggie.  She thinks Maggie fell down.  She does not want to remember that she possibly kicked Maggie.  She does not want to remember that she had a part in anything terrible.  Especially after her life has gotten better.  It happened after Roberta's mom shunned Twyla and her mom, so maybe she had taken it out on Maggie.  Later in her life, she does not want to think about anything she did that was terrible.  So, she changes the story and makes it fit her reality and life.  The article says that authentic narratives may be critical reflections and confrontations of their beliefs and cultural assumptions (secs et al. pg45).  So, is Toni Morrison saying that at that moment of Maggie's fall, it was all okay to treat her that way, and then the guilt makes you change the story so that you are innocent?  

Szecsi, T., Spillman, C., Vázquez-Montilla, E., & Mayberry, S. C. (2010). Transforming Teacher Cultural  Landscapes by Reflecting on Multicultural Literature. Multicultural Education, 17(4), 44-48.

Beckman - Week 4

I think ‘travel disappointment’ is very prominent right now with the world watching Paris as they prepare for the Summer Olympics. I see lots of posts or videos on different social media sites where people are talking about the ‘expectation versus reality’ of being a tourist in Paris. I think with the rise of vlogs and short form video content, a lot of traveling is romanticized - not by people who are trying to learn more about a new culture or group of people, but by people who are working a job. As we read about last week, not every part of someone’s cultures or beliefs are going to be perfect, but everything online is shown with rose colored glasses almost. I think that as people do less of their own research about different countries or cultures and only use videos made by content creators that this problem is just going to get worse, which is one drawback of the technology available to us. 

When I think about perspective and what forms my perspective,I think a lot of it has to do with how I grew up. Every time I make a decision, or have an opinion about something, really it is just a culmination of how I was raised and how that makes me who I am today. I find that often times, when I disagree with someone and we talk about our different perspectives, both of us tie it back to how we grew up because that shaped how we see and interact with the world. Outside of that, my perspective is shape by the media I consume, either books, television, or social media. I liked the quote from the Szecsi article, because it sort of affirmed my thinking, “Mezirow (1991) also notes that transformative learning occurs when individuals change their frames of reference by critically reflecting on assumptions and beliefs, and consciously making and implementing plans that bring about new ways of defining their worlds.(Szecsi et. al., 2010, p. 44)”, in order for me to understand other people, I have to be willing to change and look outside of my frame of reference. 

Szecsi, T., Spillman, C., Vázquez-Montilla, E., & Mayberry, S. C. (2010). Transforming Teacher Cultural Landscapes by Reflecting on Multicultural Literature. Multicultural Education, 17(4), 44-48.

Salow- Week 4 Post

 While reading this week's article, I found myself thinking about how other people might perceive me based on their limited knowledge of what they see online or what they hear from other people. I do not actively post on any social media. The ironic part about that is my husband and I both made that decision based off of another person's social media post. We both saw a video that was a woman talking about how she had been targeted by criminals because she posted everything online and because neither myself or my husband were super attached to social media, we just decided to stop posting. That does not mean we don’t still have it. We both fall victim to the never-ending scroll, we just do not post ourselves, so I have been made fun of (light-heartedly) by a few of my friends who are very active that I am “old” because I do not participate in the way that is pretty normal for people my age. This is part of other people's perspective of me. 

I have noticed social media is formulated to show you videos that they think you will like or would be interested in. I started making a list on Amazon of things that we might get for our first baby, just found out I am pregnant. Then as soon as I go to Facebook, YouTube, or any other social media site they are throwing all of these videos about pregnancy at me! That is the algorithm that can be responsible for the echo chambers that are created by social media. They show you videos that are similar to ones that you have interacted with in the past. This type of media does not expose you to opposing views and leads to headstrong people about topics that they feel they are knowledgeable in just from watching videos on any social media site. There is so much information out there that is being thrown at anybody who accesses the internet that it can feel overwhelming. So people do not reach and go beyond that first video. Many do not go research for themselves, and those that do can still struggle because many people don’t know what sources are truthful and which ones are not. You can find a site to support any way of thinking, so this skill of being curious is absolutely necessary for our students to have, but we also have to show them how to use that curiosity in a positive and truthful way. 

Tunde Szecsi et al article Transforming Teacher Cultural Landscapes by Reflecting on Multicultural Literature discusses that ways to learn and show curiosity in a positive way are to reflect on readings before and after reading. It also lists elements of the transformative learning experience such as lasting impression, part of the person’s self-narrative, and behavioral impact. (Szecsi et al., 2010) It then goes on to talking about how “disorienting” or “shocking” the students can lead to critical reflections and lasting impressions. I have experimented with this a little in my class. We read the novel “The Watsons Go to Birmingham - 1963” in my class. It follows an African American family from Flint, Michigan that goes down to visit family in Birmingham, Alabama at the height of the Civil Rights Movement. I have used resources like videos and interviews of people who were in Birmingham at that time to show my students what was actually happening to people at that time. I have had to make sure that I am not crossing the line into inappropriate because they discuss in some detail the horrific things that they experienced. This was also a few days that my students left my class discussing with themselves why people did that and they had no idea things were like that. I would say it definitely shocked them. I think that a great way to make these resources more impactful would be not only to discuss them as a class, but have them reflect on their own before and after seeing the resources so they can physically see how the literature and other resources add to their knowledge and perspective. 

Szecsi, T., Spillman, C., Vazquez-Montilla, E., & Mayberry, S. (2010). Transforming teacher cultural landscapes by reflecting on multicultural literature. Multicultural Education, (Summer), 44-48.

Bolinder- Week 4 Post

There are multiple things that affect my perspective of the world. The books I read, tv I watch, news sources, lived experiences and the perspectives of the people I surround myself with. I believe all of these pieces add together to build my perspective. The biggest of these I believe are the books I read and the digital information I get from social media. While I like to read a variety of text, I most frequently enjoy mystery thriller type novels and life doesn’t always lend to time for leisure reading. That said, I find moments to squeeze in time on social media. The information I get from the words of others, news stories(not always credible), and pictures are part of what is forming my perspectives. While I try to remain cautious about what I am seeing on the internet, I am taking in the information regardless.


Our experiences are impacted by what we know of them. It is important to be mindful and intentional with seeking out information about the world around us. Not only to see information, but to seek credible information from multiple sources that will give a more well rounded picture about the topic we are inquiring about.


Thinking about the short story Recitatif that we read, it leaves me with further thinking about our perspectives. The story recounts the tough shared experience of two girls living in a home when they were younger. They both experience older girls with behavioral issues mistreating a worker from the home. Their regrets, guilt, intentions, shame, and naivetes all clouded their memories of a traumatic moment from their childhood that left the characters questioning their own characters and beliefs about the people around them. The way the brain works to make sense of the world around us is complex as exemplified by the way the girls question their difference in memory of the same incident from their past.


There are both benefits and drawbacks to the use of technology. The first benefit is the way we can capture moments. I think of how much I love looking back on photos and moments of my son and both the ease and clarity of the memories through the use of technology. Another benefit is the ease of access to resources and information. There is an abundance of resources that are available to us at the touch of a button. However, this lends itself to drawbacks. There are issues with credibility of sources. Furthermore, with algorithms filtering the content we are exposed to, the type of information we have access to is influenced by what we search and are interested in rather than being exposed to more information that might challenge our thinking or broaden our understanding of topics. It is easy for us to simply read the information that is given to us on our feeds rather than intentionally seek out information from other sources.



While technology presents information as easily accessible and in abundance, the article shared for this week presents the lasting benefits of utilizing multicultural literature in the classroom. The article recognizes the need for a shift in mindset as classrooms are becoming more diverse and children cannot simply be told to be more culturally sensitive and respond as quoted by Wham, Barnhart, & Cook. From their research they found that exposing teachers to multicultural literature adds awareness that is the starting point for a lasting learning. They also found that it helps them reflect more on their own cultures and cultivate a curiosity for further learning about the cultures around them. These traits are beneficial to the teachers and the students who will be entering their classrooms in the future.



References:

Morrison, T. (2021). Recitatif. In Ancestral House (pp. 422-436). Routledge.

Szecsi, T., Spillman, C., Vázquez-Montilla, E., & Mayberry, S. C. (2010). Transforming Teacher Cultural Landscapes by Reflecting on Multicultural Literature. Multicultural Education, 17(4), 44-48.

Campbell - Week 4 Post

 Kirsten Campbell

ENGL 478 G

Week 4 Post 

Literature, movies, television, culture parades, the internet, and theater inform my perspective of the world. From a young age, I have been fascinated by other cultures, wanting to try foods and persuading my parents to explore outside the U.S. That has not happened yet, but they may change their mind soon. Attending a school with a sizeable Hispanic population also informed my perspective because a lot of my friends are Hispanic, and they all have different backgrounds and lifestyles. For theater, we even have a group dedicated to displaying Hispanic culture.  We had a huge showcase with various scenes, music, and dances to inform others of their perspective of Hispanic culture. Not only did my town celebrate Hispanic culture, but our high school held a culture fair every year. There are performances, food, and vendors, all run by high school students. 

“When students enter my classroom from a similar culture as mine I cannot just assume they have had the same upbringing as myself.” “The roots of a culture may be the same but that does not mean the lives that stem from the roots will all be the same, everyone is unique and that is an important thing to remember for me as a future teacher”(Szeci, P.46). This portion of the text sticks out to me because people and even our students make assumptions about how people live based on their culture. For example, if a person knows a Hispanic person whose family lives with their grandparents, they might assume it is what all Hispanics do. Or, like in the text, a student assumed all Muslims were terrorists and that the hijab that women wore represented terrorism. These resources, such as literature, movies, and the Internet, serve as a window to reaching an understanding of culture. Still, we must remember to our students that these depictions and experiences can be different for many people in the same culture. We do not want our students to stereotype a culture just because of events occurring to a book or movie character. 

There are plenty of benefits and drawbacks to using technology. We could use technology to have students do research on different cultures or watch videos of current events happening in the world around us. The drawback of technology is the amount of fake news we have today, and it could stray someone away from the truth. There is a lot of horrible fake news out there that changes people's perspectives on not only politics but also cultures. Like Kermit says, “It ain’t easy being green.” 

References:

Szeci, T., Spillman, C., Vazquez-Montilla, E., & Mayberry, S., (2010), Transforming teacher cultural landscapes by reflecting on multicultural literature.

Dibert- Week 4 Blog Post

     My perspective on the world, as many of my other colleagues would say as well, is mainly formulated by social media or the news. I fought to keep YouTube TV, so I could still have access to new stations for important events. Unfortunately, I am finding that so much of the news is one-sided, depending on what you are watching. This means that my perspective on different situations are not always correct. What I find interesting is, the idea of someone who says they are “cultured”. What exactly does that mean? If you ask five different people, you’re going to get five different responses. Unfortunately, one of those responses could be information they get online and feel that they know everything about a culture or an event. It is very easy to get sucked into an app like Tik Tok or Facebook and feel like you are getting accurate information. I do it all the time. I cannot tell you the amount of times I see news about Disney World and come to find out that most of the news is false. Information can be so easily manipulated and falsified nowadays that people will believe anything. If information about Disney World can be falsified, who's to say that there is not more false information about other cultures that we don’t quite realize.
Even though social media has an age limit, we know, especially on an app like TikTok, many of the users are kids. Kids will believe anything that is put out there to be fact. If kids are only seeing negative information about different cultures or cultural events, then that is the only information they are going to go off of. As a fourth grade teacher, many of my students have a TikTok account. It is very interesting to hear them talk about what appears on their “for you page” and what type of information they receive. I appreciate that some of my kids are trying to learn about different cultures, but a lot of the time they come in with false information that I attempt to correct. I think this idea of social media and kids ties directly back to Tunde Szecsi et al article Transforming Teacher Cultural Landscapes by Reflecting on Multicultural Literature. We need to integrate more types of multicultural, literature, and curriculum to provide students with opportunities to be exposed to a variety of cultural narratives and help foster empathy and understanding (Szecsi et al., 2010).  If students are getting differing news from school and TikTok, then it could make the students step back and think about what is actually being presented to them.
Even though it may not seem like it, I do not believe that social media is not all bad. There are plenty of benefits that come from it. The fact that we are able to learn about the world with the touch of a button is something we should not take for granted. I think the important thing to take away is, the importance of not only teaching children how to navigate it correctly, but making sure everyone is diligent and aware. My question to everyone would be what makes somebody “ cultured?” Can you be cultured just by looking on the Internet?

Szecsi, T., Spillman, C., Vazquez-Montilla, E., & Mayberry, S. (2010). Transforming teacher cultural landscapes by reflecting on multicultural literature. Multicultural Education, (Summer), 44-48.

Lampman- Week 4

 This week’s post poses a discussion that I have with coworkers and friends quite often.  That discussion usually entails how people portray themselves on social media.  I think this discussion can relate to some of the questions you are posing because unless we know that person or place, do we really KNOW that person or place?  I think not.  For myself, I do post to social media, but typically I post about the good things and triumphs in my life so that I have somewhere that holds these memories as I get older.  I do this because I have had experiences where I have lost precious photos or videos of loved ones who are no longer with us today.  At the same time, one of my coworkers does not post because she doesn’t feel like she wants people to be that involved in her life.  Is either way wrong? No, however, people may think my life is always roses, but we all know life is a balance of highs and lows.  

That being said, I think the same could go for perspectives of other people and places.  Many times, people buy into what the media is telling them.  If the media is heavily focused on negative attention for a certain group, people will start having those beliefs without doing fact checking and not stereotyping.  I have had many discussions with my best friend who is on tiktok and the things she will bring up in conversation.  It’s always fear-leading conversations and I always talk her down asking, “What is your source? Have you done any research on your own off tiktok?”  I worry that we have access to so much information with technology these days, but people do not fact check or see if the source is reliable.  

Thinking about Recitatif by Toni Morrison, each main character had different memories from the same events.  I think our backgrounds and our biases play a part in what our memory holds and what ideas form from those events.  Like Szecsi et.al. states, “the term “landscape” to describe one’s personal understandings, including biases, preferences, and what she calls “vacancies” in the landscape. Vacancies are experiences to which one has never been exposed or even contemplated and likely create holes of misunderstandings.” (2010, p. 44-45).  This shows my perspective of one experience could be completely different than someone with a different culture or background.  I feel this is why it’s important to seek out each other and have discussions on the same topics and learn from each other’s experiences as well.  I think when we seek out understanding from each other, that is when we learn the most.

One thing that was confusing for me in Recitatif by Toni Morrison was when Roberta told Twyla that Maggie was black and that they too, kicked her. If anyone has an opinion on this, I would love to hear so I can ponder. Was this because she felt guilty for watching and doing nothing? Or/or was she trying to show Twyla that she still had biases about people with different ethnicity? When she came back to tell Twyla that it wasn't true, that is when I was mostly confused because I didn't quite understand the meaning behind that. It left me wanting to know more..

Schiefelbein - Week 4 Blog Post

 The article suggests that multicultural texts, along with reflection both before and after the reading experience, can provide a positive foundation from which to glean an authentic perspective.  Although this strategy can certainly help pre-service teachers gain confidence in understanding different cultures, and build curiosity to learn more, there is a lot to be said about using multiple resources in order to gain a well-rounded perspective.

Typically, I seek out a number of sources to inform my perspective of cultures different from my own.  Certainly, the internet can serve as a quick reference for information, but, just as I teach the students in my own class, multiple sources need to be viewed in order to synthesize the information.  Multicultural literature can serve as one source to gain a different perspective, but I also rely on the first-hand experiences of students, families, and colleagues.  These sources can provide unique perspectives, and help me to gain better insight into the specific experiences of the people I interact with each day.  

While technology can be a powerful tool for gaining access to information about different cultures, it can have its drawbacks as well.  In this day and age, we need to have a critical lens on the information we view online.  And, with tourism generating a significant amount of revenue, even credible sources on the internet can hold some bias.  Additionally, as access to artificial intelligence grows, it can be even more difficult to separate fact from fiction.  I tend to keep in mind that using multiple sources, and corroborating information between sources is the best way to gain an accurate and authentic perspective.

Morrison, T. (1983). Recitatif. In A. Baraka & A. Baraka (Eds.), An anthology of African American women. (Original work published in 1983).

Szecsi, T., Spillman, C., Vazquez-Montilla, E., & Mayberry, S. (2010). Transforming teacher cultural landscapes by reflecting on multicultural literature. Multicultural Education, (Summer), 44-48.

Hamm_Week 4: Landscapes and Vacancies

It is important to recognize that through historical changes, technology has altered how humans interact with the world. That statement could not be truer in today's internet-based society. The media is controlled by individual platforms, uploaded videos, and spur-of-the-moment snapshots of lives from afar, which create ratings for the companies. There are fewer face-to-face interactions- from the littles up to geriatric adults. Communication is primarily done through screens and filters, essentially diluting the transmitted culture with pop culture.

I understand that I do not know everything about every culture. Having the benefit of knowing several of my ancestral cultures, a broken family by design, and a culturally diverse immediate family, opened my mind to different possibilities. Until recently, the internet seemed like a great tool for opening conversations. Unfortunately, it has become a place where individuals observe a moment in time without questioning anything! Then, the symbols, ideas, jokes, or whatever else seems like a good thing to pull-- are integrated into someone else's everyday life. Individuals end up promoting disrespectful behaviors because they do not understand the culture they were viewing at the time.

When I think about social platforms, I think about how different that culture is from the one I understand. I was just watching a GEN-X video. I cannot formulate in my mind how it is expected to give a 3-year-old a tablet or iPad. Not because I don't want them to have tools, but because they lose the interaction with verbal language patterns, interpersonal communication, and soft skills; as well as insinuating it is okay to spend hundreds of dollars on a toy, that will be broken because toddlers throw things. My perspective is based on numerous experiences with children, as I raised four and have many nieces and nephews. While every experience should involve interpersonal communication, technology seems to be shifting or replacing that. Or is it just changed?

Meyer- Week 4 Blog

I would have to say that social media has a big impact on what influences my perspective. We live in a world now where a lot of us do not even have cable tv anymore and we use different apps to watch movies and shows. I find myself hearing about news and events through facebook, tiktok videos, and word of mouth. If something interests me that I see on social media I will investigate further and do more research on it. I have never really traveled much and have not read a lot of multicultural books. I have lived in Sioux City my whole life and have only gone on a handful of family vacations to local places around us. Because of this, I would say that the way I experience other cultures is mostly based on what I hear about on different video clips or news clips I read about. The thing with only knowing about cultures through social media is that I am not sure what is always true and what is not. I feel like I only get certain things happening and now the whole picture. There is also no emotion attached to hearing about things. A lot of movies do not depict the facts of what is happening around us so it us up to us to do our own research on it. I know a lot of things that I think I know comes from technology and the media and this absolutely impacts how I learn about them. I know that I do need to experience and learn more about different cultures and educate myself on them. The best way I know how to do this is through different novels and different articles of what people have experienced or seen, otherwise I feel like I am just sheltered from the world and what is happening. 

There are benefits to having technology available to us. It does help us learn more about different places and different things such as cultures and events happening that otherwise we would have no idea about it. It can give us quick access to a lot of things that we otherwise would never know about.It can also connect different people and different cultures of people from around the world together. It helps us communicate with one another and it gives us answers to questions we may have about different things. 

Along with the benefits does come draw backs to using technology. I believe that now technology causes a lot of addiction in kids and students and even adults that I have seen. I have seen students hiding their computers to try to play games during the class and I have also see students walking in the hallways with their computers open playing on them and not paying attention to anything else. I have seen adults that constantly are on their phone scrolling. People have learned that they do not really need to learn anything anymore because they can find the answer to almost anything on the internet. The problem with this is that lots of times it can be false information. That false information is spread around and then more and more people start believing that false information. For example, just the other night my husband was telling me a story about a girl he saw a video about that had lost her job. I knew exactly what he was talking about but I had done more research and found out that it was actually a fake article and video about this girl. This just showed me how easy it is to believe things and spread false information around.

I believe that technology will always be a big factor in all of out lives and it is how we chose to utilize it that can either benefit or hurt us. Learning about different cultures is important and technology does give us easy access to find out and make connections with different cultures besides our own, as long as we are learning the correct information. This is beneficial because otherwise we may never experience or know about any other culture besides our own.  

When discussing what influence out perspectives, I had stated that social media has a big influence on me but I also feel like our experiences in life can alter our perspectives on things. I think about the short story we read, Recitatif. Both Roberta and Twyla had different experiences and perceived their situations differently and what they actually remembered. We never found out what truly happened and it left us wondering whose perspective was right. Morrison made us think about race and multiculturism because we never found out exactly who was black and who was white, which in the end it did not matter. What mattered was that Twyla and Roberta found out that they were not that different after all. Before I read this, I had my own thoughts and perspectives that did alter how I felt when reading the story and about each character. . I think this can reflect on what I need to change in my teaching. Even though cultural attitudes emerge at an early age, when teacher candidates are exposed to disorienting ideas found in authentic narratives, the result maybe critical reflection and confrontation of their beliefs and cultural assumptions. Examining their own landscapes through a different cultural lens may yield other perspectives and consequently transform beliefs and practices (Szecsi, 2010). It is important to set aside our own assumptions and experience different cultures through narratives with a different perspective so we can learn and make connections to the best of out ability.

 

Szecsi, T., Spillman, C., Vazquez-Montilla, E., & Mayberry, S. C. (2009, November 30). Transforming teacher cultural landscapes by reflecting on multicultural literature. Multicultural Education. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ915271 

Morrison, T. (1983). Recitatif.