Fairbanks, Crooks
CONNECTIONS
This reading really made me think about a lot of other
readings we have done in class. The
culture of power, white privilege and the silenced dialogue are a few. I related this to the culture of power
because Esme’s teachers used their power to place her in which classes they
believed she belonged in without really knowing. As a student Esme did not really have much of
a say in where they placed her, especially when she was in the earlier
grades. It was not until she got older
that she began to take control of her own education by realizing where she
should really be placed.
I also
connected this reading to the reading on white privilege. In this case however, Esme’s nationality
caused her to be labeled and underprivileged.
She was denied the privilege to be placed in the appropriate classes, or
challenging classes because she was assumed to be a “not so smart
student”. Her guidance counselors and
school officials also used their privileges to decide for Esme as to where she
would be placed in class.
The last
reading it made me think of was the Silenced Dialogue. I think this reading is an excellent example
of how easily someone, especially a student with realistically no power, can be
silenced. It was not until Esme really
made her feelings and thoughts heard that she was set free from the silence she
had been subjected to for so long.
Silencing students happens all too often. Teachers assume students are unable to make
decisions for themselves, or find it absurd that students might actually know
what it is they need for their education.
I think that sometimes teachers and administrators get so caught up in
viewing the school as a whole that they forget to focus on each individual. Not all students learn and perform the same
way, just as they do no learn at the same levels at the same speed. It is important for educators to understand
the needs for individuals and do their best to not lump students into groups
that in reality are not benefitting them at all.
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