Review of the Semester

     Throughout this semester, I definitely feel I learned a lot more about working with kids. Both from the service learning that has occurred and the topics that we go over in class. But out of everything that we have gone over, there were three topics that really resonated with me. Those being the reading on Lisa Delpit on the cultural rules of power, the novel by Patrick J. Finn discussing that the education system is setup to keep people in their social and economic class, and the ideas from academic and social values of ethnic studies. 

    Lisa Delpit's reading really resonates with me when it comes down to how I should setup the classroom. Specifically, with how I should make sure the rules and expectations of my room to be crystal clear. Understanding what the requirements of your environment truly are an important factor if you are going to succeed. Which is something that I will probably always keep with me now that I have it recontextualized. 

    Patrick J. Finn's book certainly made me take a look back at the school system I grew up in and the schools that I plan to work at in the future. I never thought about how people who are in either a High or low-income neighborhood are typically designed to keep them in their social bracket via education. I always believed it was related to infrastructure and job opportunities in the said areas. 

    The last piece that struck me was about ethnic studies classes. Both from the reading and in class, I learned that being able to relate to my students from a historical standpoint will help them improve their grades and morale overall. But most importantly, I learned that classrooms are meant to be safe places for where students can feel welcomed and appreciated for who they are. This is something that I truly hope to achieve once I become a teacher. 

    After all the lessons and discussions that we had together. These three topics are the ones that stand out to being important factors to being a successful teacher. I don't see how a classroom could operate without at least one themes that we discussed. I am very grateful that I was able to better understand these ideas this spring semester and I am excited to learn more about education at Rhode Island College.

Sex and Gender based systems (Argumentative)

      This week's reading is about Sex and Gender Based Systems by the "Trevor  Project". What the Trevor project is attempting to do from this piece is trying to educate people on what Sex and Gender are, and how to properly address people who identify as the opposite or nonbinary genders. The first thing the piece does is define the terms to make sure people who read it are on the same page. They define Sex as something that we are assigned to us at birth, while gender identity is how each person experiences or views themselves. Gender is more complicated because it is more personal to us as people. Though the Trevor project does provide some clarity for people. There is Cisgender which is the gender they associate with their sex at birth. Then there is Transgender, which is someone's gender identity for those who have a different gender from the one assigned at birth. 

    The next part that the Trevor Project goes over is how to properly address/refer to people who identify as Transgender. it states that it is important to use people's preferred pronouns as a form of respect and dignity towards them. It also states that it is important to use appropriate language with someone to avoid offending them. This can range from misgendering someone or saying a microaggression that isn't meant to harm them. One ways one can better prevent situations like this from occurring is by asking someone what their preferred pronouns are. This helps as a way to mitigate any chances of saying something that may offend someone who is cis, trans, or non-binary. The Trevor project even talks about how important it is to take accountability and attempt to do better by trying to apologize if one of the mistakes listed above occurs. The Trevor Project does a really good job of educating people on navigating these sensitive topics. It also makes the reader feel more confident in being able to engage in these kinds of discussions in a respectful manner. 

https://www.uab.cat/web/newsroom/news-detail/the-uab-creates-a-list-of-good-practices-in-gender-perspective-at-european-universities-1345830290613.html?detid=1345733983875 

Questions for Dr. Sasha Sidorkin

Question 1. Do you see AI becoming a resource similar to the internet or do you think AI will evolve into something much worse in the education field?

Question 2. Do you think AI has a place in the classroom where it is used in a positive manner?

Question 3. Do you think that future students will utilize AI to educate themselves or will they become less interested in learning because of AI?

https://perhapsperhapsperhaps.typepad.com/what_the_butler_saw/2024/09/a-conversation-with-sasha-sidorkin-chief-ai-officer-california-state-university-sacramento-by-james-.html

Rodriquez reading (Reflection)

     This week's reading focused on bilingual students in the U.S. and how they are viewed by those who are attempting to assimilate into American society. They view the English Language as something you only use in public when communicating with people. However, when it came down to speaking Spanish, their native language, the narrator viewed it as a very personal language—one that is only spoken to family or friends. The narrator also describes that once they started speaking English at home and at school they felt more included as part of society. The narrator actually defends this idea of assimilating a little bit stating that while their personal identity becomes less important, the people gain a new public identity that is all their own. 

    This reading like the the last two really hits home with me personally as I have actually seen these ideas and experiences firsthand. The more recent example of this is actually at my service learning that occurs once a week. A good amount of my students only know how to speak Spanish in the classroom. The reading really does make me wonder how the students view speaking English if they view it as similar to that of the reading. A less recent example of this was my time as a Youth Care Counselor. One of the clients I used to work with was actually bilingual and could speak both English and Spanish fluently. However, if he could, he would predominantly choose to speak Spanish over English if he could if either Staff or another client could speak Spanish as well. I think archons back to this reading in that bilingual speakers value their first language as their private language. It really does make me wonder if I would be similar to them if the roles were reversed. 

https://books.apple.com/us/book/tongue-tied/id639171272 

Literacy with Attitude (Reflection)

     The reading for this week's is based on the reading from Patrick J. Finn. In this reading, he discusses the contrasts and relations that literacy has depending on which social class people are apart of. Finn talks about how the social class one is a part of often determines what kind of education the children of said class will receive. Often stating that the education system often keeps people from escaping/maintaining the social class that they are a part of. Finn classifies two different types of literacy that are taught in the American school system. The first is Domestic Literacy, which he argues was used as a way to control people and ensure that upper-class people stayed on top. The second type of education Finn talks about is Empowering Literacy which is meant to encourage people to think more creatively and challenge the current systems that we have in place. 

    

These couple of excerpts from this book also struck a couple of nerves with me as did last week's reading. Based on my time as a social worker. I physically saw the talking points that he was mentioning in this reading. I just did not recognize them until they were recontextualized in this manner. From my time being in the trenches trying to figure out what I wanted to do with my life. I physically saw the idea that people who were from lesser-developed social classes were set up to fail. Youths that did not receive a proper education or had little to no education struggled the most when attempting to follow expectations set by the facility, with all attempts to help them failing due to their attempts to even try as stated in Finn's preface. But the children who received a high level of education or were from a higher social class were able to understand and be creative with the rules of the unit to benefit themselves. Usually done in a non-malicious way that was transparent. It is just really shocking seeing all of these ideas and talking points brought up in these manners and that I am actually able to relate to them on a personal level. I definitely would like to check out more of his work over the summer. 

https://www.goodreads.com/author/list/137087.Patrick_J_Finn 

Trouble Makers by Carla Shalaby (Reflection)

    Coming back from Spring break at RIC. The preface and introduction of the book "Troublemakers" by Carla Shalaby made me remember many times at my previous job as a Youth Care Counselor. The book's main idea behind it is that troubled/disobedient kids are trying to communicate to us that the environment they are receiving an education in is toxic to them. The book is also trying to point out that the behavior maybe a result of the system failing not because of the kids themselves. 

    This was giving me almost PTSD flashbacks to the past 4 years of my life. As a fresh assistant counselor attempting to make the lives of kids in the custody of the state better. I was tasked to enforce the rules that the facility wanted to promote/impose on the kids. The standards that this facility wanted were seen by both the kids in the unit and adults as very simple rules to follow and there seemed to be no issues with them at first. However, as time went on and I continued to work there. I began to notice the exact talking points that Shalaby was making. After long 8-hour, sometimes 16-hour shifts with these "difficult" kids. I often had this question in my head as try to fall asleep. Were the rules and expectations that were put in place too difficult for them to handle, or if the rules were fine and the youth was just being disobedient? To this day I never really figured out the answer to that question after four years of my life working there. Because there were kids who were able to succeed and follow expectations at this group placement who had equally bad track records coming in. I also attempted to have conversations with these kids to try and figure out what rules were not working for them. The kids even stated that they wanted to follow the rules, they just couldn't explain why they struggled to follow them. 

    This excerpt from this book really did bring up some tough memories for me personally. Though the content of this book definitely made a lot of good points about the type of environment that kids are brought up in. They unfortunately are forced into a one-size-fits-all standard behavior-wise, and if they deviate from said standard they are cast out. That can be either being put into a time-out corner. or as severe as expulsion. It truly is a one-size-fits-all method standard that I wish had an easy solution. 

https://teach4theheart.com/30-logical-classroom-consequence-ideas/ 

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