This is a video discussing my teaching identity and what I dream to achieve as a teacher in the future.
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"Howard Zinn and Eve Tuck have centered their careers upon the marginalized voices of history. Think about the lesson you taught in the first round of full-class microteaching, and, in at least two paragraphs, describe how you could have:
1) In a CONCRETE WAY, acknowledged the "smaller" voices within the historical narrative in which your lesson was placed? Thinking about what Howard Zinn wrote in his book, I reflect upon my lesson of early English Colonialism, and I find it somewhat embarrassing. Looking back I never gave any more detail or volume to the “smaller” voices than what little information a student might find within a European centered textbook. I feel as though I could have given a more impactful lesson if I had focused on those smaller voices instead, like the Native Americans and their different ways of lifestyle, customs, and cultures. Another potential voice I could have used would be the common English settler. Textbooks describe the businesses, the governments, and the leaders of expeditions and colonies. However, not much detail is given about the lifestyle of the common man in England at the time. Or on the Native Americans, except when they helped out or were attacking colonies. I could have the class discuss or do a compare-and-contrast on these two groups. If someone asks, “why talk about an English settler?” ‘Don’t they already have a voice of their country and it’s actions?’ They have a voice, but it’s different than the voice of their country. Zinn wrote, “Nations are not communities and never have been.” So it wouldn’t be the fact that I am giving volume to another English voice, but rather I’m giving volume to a voice that happens to be English. Another reason would be, that it would demonstrate the differences in culture between the English and their capital, and the Native Americans. Not just physical differences. 2) Battled the "continued disavowal" of land theft and genocide settler colonialism perpetrated upon First Peoples, and which serves as the platform for all American education today With “continued disavowal” I could have the class debate over this issue. With the way the lesson could be restructured as mentioned earlier, it would be a good introduction toward discussing this controversial topic. If however, we ran out of time for the class, I would still want to hear the students’ thoughts on this. Perhaps I could use this as an exit slip strategy, make the students take a side on the matter, and then talk about it the next day. It could potentially be done with multiple events over the course of the year, and open up students’ views on history as just one-sided. At the least the biggest part of battling the “continued disavowal” would be to introduce and talk about it with students. To open the class to different viewpoints and how different people were affected by events that are labeled throughout history as justified. 1) Talk about the argument being made in the podcast: what is ‘The Satire Paradox’ exactly?
The ‘Satire Paradox’ is where people use comedy to talk about serious problems and people give little thought to counterargument and more on the interpretation of the skit and what the person meant by it. When Tina Fey did a portrayal of Sarah Palin on SNL she did in a way that Fey was trying to show who Palin was in the public eye. Yet, according to the podcast Revisionist History the portrayal took away the message of who Palin was and instead just gave the audience something to laugh at. 2) Critically react to the argument of The Satire Paradox, Going off what was said in the podcast there are some people who us satire effectively in influencing public perception. Satire itself takes away from the influential message already. However, for a lot of political satire shows here in the U.S. they fail to achieve that mark even more than most satire shows and messages. In the podcast it was said that shows like SNL have no teeth in attacking problems that are being portrayed. These shows instead drink it though a straw. Taking to mean that the problems are watered down and have a more entertaining message than a influential message. 1. What is Critical Race Theory?
Critical Race Theory is a theoretical framework that critically examines how society and culture intersect with race, law, and power. 2. How does formal curriculum typically portray African & Native Americans? That inaccurate Historical representations "depict American Indians as frozen in time; that is, wearing costumes... war paint, with bow and arrow" These stereotypical images are static, timeless, and ultimately damaging to students. History presents African American males as either ignorant and helpless or duplicitous and shiftless. And these "historical" images serve to reinforce the stereotypes that many students’ and teachers already possess. 3. What is the dominant means by which society receives its racial messages? The most prevalent peddler of minority racial stereotypes is popular media. Through this medium, African Americans are portrayed as "stupid," "lazy," "dangerous," or “dirty”. And if addressed at all, American Indians are perceived as "simple," "primitive," "submissive," or "wild" These descriptors can and are used by non-minorities to rationalize and hence justify their racial privilege in society. 4. How can education promote personal awareness of biases? Why might a person be bias in the first place? Why does a person cheer for one team over all the other choices? Maybe a friend cheers for that team, and they want to be supportive. Maybe that is the only team that the person knows anything about. Or maybe it’s because it’s the hometown team. Are they aware that they are being bias towards their team? They probably don’t. The person probably just goes on about how his or her team is better than everybody else’s and doesn’t stop to consider the many other teams there are to cheer for. Now this presents a narrow-minded style of thinking. If a person won’t be open to consider other teams to cheer for, then how will that person be open minded about things like race, gender, politics, or religion. In education, the introduction of other viewpoints can allow for the opening of that narrow-mindset. Now in regular society these introductions happen all the time, but in education they occur in specific way that makes the students stop and consider the difference in viewpoint. How does this happen? It varies with individual students. That is a big part of a teachers’ job, is to open students minds to new and different ideas. To have students recognize their potential biasness and broaden it. Through the means, of having students listen to and speak upon the difference of opinions of fellow students and the teacher as well. |
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