Initially, I wanted to come up with questions I had before digging into the two articles. The questions or reflections I had in mind while reading were: 1. What qualifies something as multicultural? 2. Thinking back to my experience in middle and high school, what do I remember about our literature and history? 3. What has changed since then? (I graduated high school in 2008). How does this go in hand with legislation put in place about the Critical Race Theory? How does unconscious bias play a role in our educational systems today?
After reading the two articles, particular spots stood out to me while thinking of the above questions. In Glazier and Seo's, "Multicultural Literature and Discussion as a Mirror and Window?", the definition surprised me. Multicultural Literature is defined as, "literature that represents voices typically omitted from the traditional canon." (Glazier & Seo, 2005). This only surprised me because of how easy and to the point the definition truly is, while still being difficult for some Americans to grasp. Tying in a statement from Torres-Padilla, he expresses that we often forget that from the start, America has been racially diverse, and oftentimes, White Americans forget that, they too, come from somewhere else.
Another thought that came to mind was in Glazier and Seo's article. The part of the article where they talk about silent spaces and how it is usually to keep the U.S. looking like there are no issues with race, gender, and the economy. This made me think about a book I read last summer for a class called, "Biased", by Jennifer L. Eberhardt, PhD. Today, most, if not all, people have an unconscious bias because of the culture in America and not addressing the biases individually. The connection to Glaizier and Seo's article made me think about how we can provide safe classrooms to have these conversations within our classroom walls. Being able to trust and build relationships in our classroom environments is the first step in diving into conversations that can be uncomfortable at times. One thing I appreciate about this course already, is that we have been provided with the etiquette of having professional discussions even when we disagree with one another. This is important to establish in any classroom, regardless of the topic or content.
Resources:
Glazier, J., & Seo, J. (2005). Multicultural literature and discussion as Mirror and window? Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy, 48(8), 686–700. https://doi.org/10.1598/jaal.48.8.6
Torres-Padilla, J. L. (2005). Death to the originary narrative! or, insurgent multiculturalism and teaching multiethnic literature. MELUS: Multi-Ethnic Literature of the United States, 30(2), 13–30. https://doi.org/10.1093/melus/30.2.13
I like your point about a safe classroom for our students. This class has set the expectation and made it more comfortable for us to voice our opinions. I look at the books that a 6th grade literacy classroom used that I cotaught in and there was "Code Orange", "Bud, Not Buddy", a book about Vishnu and a book about a young boy coming to Plymouth. I think diverse literature is coming and we are seeing different perspectives. So it is now learning how to lead more in-depth conversations.
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely! I think making the conversations feel safe and productive is so important. I haven't heard of Code Orange but will definitely check it out!
DeleteAh, the much-bandied-about critical race theory. That phrase has caused an uproar, hasn't it?! Last year, after it became such a volatile term, I started asking people what they believed it to be. I never received the exact same answer from anyone, and a few people I asked, after wandering around verbally for a minute or two, acknowledged that they didn't really know what it was but they were certain it was bad.
ReplyDeleteOne of the reasons it's so important to me that we talk about ideas even though we may disagree is so that we understand what we think and what others think (mirror and window!). I find very often that while I may initially believe that my position on something is very different from another person's position, it may not be. And even when it is, that person may very well have a good reason to hold that position. I strongly resist any categorizing other beliefs as backward or ignorant or elitist or privileged or any other pejorative humans too often throw around.
The more we model accepting (rather than tolerating, which implies scrunching up my face and holding my nose while walking through something that smells bad) and honoring, the safer our classrooms will be and the more productive our discussions will be. Are there moments we have to mediate and times when we have to draw a line? Yes. And those can be uncomfortable, certainly. But I recognize that those moments are necessary, too.
I absolutely love how you talked about trying to understand what an individual knows and what they define whatever the discussion is about. This is something I have grown to do more of as I get older. I try not to get defensive about tough subjects because I want to first understand what they know and think before I ask questions. I think your comment about modeling acceptance is important and that sometimes people just haven't been exposed to any other ideas than what they have been taught.
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