Applying Delpit to the classroom
As a future teacher, I haven’t really thought beyond Spanish-English speaking students in the classroom. However, having read Delpit's piece, I am now conscious of the fact of the language of power, and must respond accordingly. I cannot say for certain because I need further explanation of process vs. skills oriented learning, but I think I am more inclined to skills—although I think a good balance is central to student learning. I think I probably would have “dumbed down” myself (tried to pretend that I didn’t have the power I did) in the classroom had I not read this article. I think I would have tried to mix that with a standards-emphasized learning environment, but now I don’t know if that is possible. I definitely want to be liked by the students, but to pretend that I function outside of the culture of power could potentially hamstring my teaching style, career or otherwise.
posted by jeremytd @ 3:47 PM
3 comments
3 Comments:
I think that just being aware of the ways in which power is operating when you're a teacher is a big step to figuring out the most effective ways to prepare students for the future. If there is awareness, at least changes can be made to teaching styles or curriculum, but without the thought of power at work, it seems that many decisions and processes are left up to the institutions of power already in place. I think just being made aware of things we haven't before is so useful. It's how I felt after watching Writing Across Borders and after reading the Delpit article. There's so much to think about and try to work with.
It's hard to do a little of everything to suit all students' needs, isn't it? I think the best that any teacher can do is to be aware of issues that can arise, and teach how they teach best. Of course, some students won't learn as well as others, but in our present education system, I think it's impossible to have every student obtain the same level of learning.
I agree that it is impossible to give all students in our classrooms a fair education. There are so many levels of learning in each grade that to choose one level and teach only that is unfair to those who learn at a quicker pace (and thus are bored in classes) and those who learn at a slower pace (who struggle to keep up in classes). I think that being aware of what is around you and trying to convey to the students that you know there are various learning levels in the classroom is important.
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