The idea of discussing sexual orientation in schools is a very controversial topic.  Some feel that it should be taught in school and others feel it should be taught at home.  Because of the high population of LGBT in Atlanta, we ALL will have to confront this issue at some point in our careers whether we like it not.  What happens when little Tommy with two mommies comes to school and tells all of his classmates about his two moms and your entire class wants to know how little Tommy can have two mommies?  Are you going to address the issue or send your entire class home to ask their parents?  What happens if several of your students have parents who are homophobic and they tell their kids to stay away from little Tommy?  What will you do if little Tommy becomes an outcast because he has two mommies?  What happens if you do decide to teach sexual orientation as a part of your lesson on diversity but several parents come at your throat because your teaching interferes with their religious beliefs?

I am sure that after our class all of these questions have crossed your minds.  It is time for us all to challenge the norm and time for some to challenge their own beliefs.

How will you handle situations like those mentioned above?

Today we discussed what it means to be considered a “gifted” student.  Several of us were in gifted programs in elementary, middle, and high school.  The majority of these gifted programs were centered on one fundamental premise, academic achievement.  Is intellectual giftedness the only form of giftedness that the majority of schools acknowledge?  I decided to do some research and I found this definition and explanation of “gifted” from the National Association for Gifted Children’s website.

National Association for Gifted Children (NAGC)
“A gifted person is someone who shows, or has the potential for showing, an exceptional level of performance in one or more areas of expression.

Some of these abilities are very general and can affect a broad spectrum of the person’s life, such as leadership skills or the ability to think creatively. Some are very specific talents and are only evident in particular circumstances, such as a special aptitude in mathematics, science, or music. The term giftedness provides a general reference to this spectrum of abilities without being specific or dependent on a single measure or index. It is generally recognized that approximately five percent of the student population, or three million children, in the United States are considered gifted.

A person’s giftedness should not be confused with the means by which giftedness is observed or assessed. Parent, teacher, or student recommendations, a high mark on an examination, or a high IQ score are not giftedness; they may be a signal that giftedness exists. Some of these indices of giftedness are more sensitive than others to differences in the person’s environment” (National Association for Gifted Children, http://www.nagc.org/index.aspx?id=574). 

My question:  Should schools limit gifted programs only to students who are intellectually gifted?

“And I say to you, my young friends, doors are opening to you–doors of opportunities that were not open to your mothers and fathers–and the great challenge facing you is to be ready to face these doors as they open.” ~ Martin Luther King, Jr.

One of my moments of solitude and reflection at the Martin Luther King, Jr. Center was surrounded around this quote.  I live my life everyday knowing that I am provided with opportunities that were not readily available to my mother, my father, my grandparents, my great-grandparents, etc.  I embrace these wonderful opportunities and I make the best of each of them.  This particular quote also brings me back to my reasons for wanting to become a teacher.  The students we plan to serve in the urban community may be children of parents who did not finish school so as educators it is up to us to empower these students to accept the challenge of embracing each opportunity that they are afforded.  We should all want to encourage these students to challenge themselves academically and to have an appreciation for knowledge and higher learning.  Our goal is to build a foundation and empower our students to become high school and college graduates. 

“Life’s most persistent and urgent question is, what are YOU doing for others?” ~ Martin Luther King, Jr.

My question: How do YOU plan to empower your students?

Today we took an awareness quiz on class and poverty.  So, how much did Shonda know about class and poverty?  How about I only got two questions out of fifteen correct.  And which two were those?  The first one was that the majority of poor people in the U.S. live in rural areas.  How did I guess that one?  Maybe because I grew up in a rural area.  Maybe because I grew up in one of the poorest counties in the state of Alabama.  Our class discussion on the stereotypes associated with poor people was a bit extreme for me.  Why?  Because 90% of the people living in Wilcox County were labeled as poor but only about 20% fit into more than five of the stereotypes we listed on the board.  It should be noted that many of the stereotypes associated with poor people could be used interchangeably among all of the socioeconomic groups.  The other 10% of the inhabitants of Wilcox County was broken down into 5% who were labeled as working/middle class (my family) and the other 5% were the wealthy White people (which includes two specific families who left Trust Funds to fund the education of Black high school graduates from Wilcox County who wanted to attend college).  

So, what exactly does it mean to be “poor?”  Does being poor mean not having a certain amount of money?  Aside from our stereotypes, how much do we “really” know about poor people?  Do poor people really have a certain look, a certain smell, or something else specific about them? 

Oh, by the way, the other question I got correct was the one about family income being the variable that most closely predicts how high someone will score on the SAT test.  (Just in case inquiring minds wanted to know)

Today in class we watched a video about the Blue Eyes/Brown Eyes exercise by Jane Elliott.  The exercise takes the color of a person’s eyes, either blue or brown, and uses that as a basis to decide which group is inferior and which group is superior.  The basic premise behind her exercise is to show how race is used as a deciding factor on who is labeled as inferior and who is labeled as superior.  For just one day back in 1995, actually two hours out of a day, several adults were differentiated based on the color of their eyes being blue.  The blue eyed adults were labeled as inferior and Jane put a piece of green cloth around each of their necks to distinguish them from the superior adults with brown eyes.  I found it very interesting that Jane was able to bring several of these adults to tears just by allowing them to directly relate to how it feels to be mistreated based on a characteristic for which you have no control. 

The exercise was also conducted on the kids in her classroom back in 1970.  They were differentiated in the same manner and she used blue cloth around each of their necks to distinguish them from their classmates.  At the end of the day she asked them how they felt about being singled out for being different because they had blue eyes.  They all responded that they did not like it because it made them feel like they weren’t as good as their classmates with brown eyes.  Fortunately for them, they could remove their color cloths at the end of the day and rip them and/or trash them and they would no longer have to deal with the agony of discrimination.

Now, imagine how it must feel for minorities who feel like this every day.  How does two hours of one day of feeling distraught about being treated as inferior compare to a lifetime?  For these people in this exercise, the feeling was only temporary as they knew in two hours it was all over and they could resume their normal lives.  Imagine what your life would be like if those two hours were a lifetime…How has this exercise affected your way of looking at all types of discrimination?

I really enjoyed the retreat because it gave me, along with the other 22 members in the cohort and our professors, the opportunity to get to know each other on a more personal level.  I appreciated this opportunity because I often find it difficult to find my “comfort zone” among strangers and discuss personal issues about myself and sensitive issues such as race, stereotypes, sexual orientation, etc.  During the retreat, I interacted with a different group of people for each activity in the hope of getting to know them better and finding my “comfort zone.”  I tend to allow my nerves to get the best of me when speaking to a large group of people that I consider to be strangers.  But, because of my interactions at the retreat, I no longer view my classmates and professors as strangers.  I am now more aware of this weakness and I will put forth my best effort to rectify it.  I will strive to find my “comfort zone” and increase my confidence.

I also received some “constructive criticism” today.  I was “encouraged” to think more deeply about the issues we discuss instead of just offering my opinion.  This is also another weakness of which I am aware.  I am definitely guilty of getting straight to the point about my feelings and interpretations.  I do not like to overanalyze things which, as a result, causes me to underanalyze things and not think as deeply about them as I should.  I think it is interesting how a person’s way of thinking will change with each discipline.  In my last program, I was told to not overanalyze things and to just offer my general ideas and interpretations.  I was often told by my professors and my fellow classmates ”Shonda, it is not that deep.”  However, I am definitely ready to challenge myself and my current way of thinking.  I am self-critical and I do appreciate constructive criticism as I strive to be a better person today than I was yesterday.

Today we had lunch with four teachers from Mexico.  The teacher who sat at my table was named Jorge.  I am extremely happy that we got the opportunity to interact with him and to get his perspective on the differences between the schools in Georgia and the schools in Mexico.  He stated that in Mexico the students are allowed to use the restroom whenever they want without the use of the infamous “hall pass” and that the students are allowed to talk and “be loud” without being punished. 

Before our lunch, he went along with the other teachers to visit some schools in Atlanta and he said he noticed students who were standing in corners.  He asked them why they were standing in the corner and they responded that it was because they had gotten into trouble.  He said that in Mexico they don’t really have too many behavioral issues with their students.  However, when they do have issues they have to get the permission the parents if they want to suspend a student from school.  In America, students are suspended and even expelled without the permission of the parents.  In Mexico, they are not allowed to expell students. 

We briefly discussed the idea of suspension and expulsion in class today.  What purpose does it serve?  How does time away from school benefit the student?  Is suspension or expulsion the answer to problems in schools?

When it comes to discussing issues of race, people are usually somewhat hesitant to speak openly and honestly about it.  We tend to talk around the issues instead of attacking them head on.  Can there really be a reasonable comfort level in a room full of racially diverse individuals who are expected to respectfully discuss these issues?  Time will definitely tell as we embark on this journey of discussing race and equality as it relates to education.  

Racism does exist; it is real.  So how do we begin the process of fixing racism and the problems it creates?  The first step to fixing the problems associated with racism is to actually admit that these problems do in fact exist.  As a group of very intelligent adults, I think that we should be able to respectfully discuss these problems as they relate to education.  We all know that educational inequality is in fact a problem faced by students across the country.  As a result, I think we should be able to express and rationally discuss our beliefs and be open-minded and professional enough to effectively deal with this topic.