Power, when I say the word to myself and think about the Boys of Baraka, I think about power in a few different ways. I think about the power structures within the public schools and their neighborhood. When the boys are told that 3/4 of them would never graduate, it seemed hopeless and you could see the morale drop to the ground. Many of the boys were aware of their situations and how they would have to fight to break the norms. They also had the powers of their environment at home and in the community working against them. After the boys were emerged into the Baraka school, they were given freedoms with an understanding that if they were to fight with one another or take advantage of those freedoms they would be kicked out and sent home. This was something brand new to most of these boys, they were given freedom while they were expected to uphold high standards and work hard. The community of teachers got to know these children both one on one and and in the classroom setting. They also provided a very regimented formal curriculum and the boys worked hard. I felt like this was what Delpit was trying to convey in Other peoples children. She expressed that there is a great need for some form of formal education to break through the power structure and to succeed. The reason I also think this worked was because they all became a community which worked to help each other out and build each other up. Instead of teaching to the deficit and teaching less, the curriculum was hard and for the boys to be able to master a subject was just like conquering that mountain, it gave them a sense of ownership and power.
It is often that we find, especially in the world of education, the word power to have a negative connotation coupled with some oppressing force. Yet when you educate and build up a child to work cohesively amongst a community of their peers, in essence you are empowering them and helping them to break through and tap into the codes of power.
Tuesday, August 2, 2011
The word I most resonate with is human. I think that this word encapsulates many of the other words given. To be human is to experience heartbreak, brotherhood, and hope. To be human is to have pride, power, strength, and resiliency. We all experience these things to varying degrees which is why I think it's easy to root for, and feel connected to the Baraka boys.
One of the boys that I found fascinating was Montrey. In the beginning of the movie, Montrey was considered a behavior problem. Even after he was at Baraka, he had a hard time keeping his emotions in check (or at least finding healthier ways to express himself).
At one point he had to spend the night setting up a tent with the other young man he had been fighting with. This scene really reminded me of what Chip Wood says of middle schoolers in "Yardsticks":
For most of my career I have maintained that twelves (and thirteens and fourteens for that matter) probably do not belong in formal school environments at all, but in some kind of cross between summer camp and the Civilian Conservation Corps camps of the Great Depression - plenty of physical activity, structured groups, and plenty of time with peers with a little formal education thrown in.
Baraka seemed the perfect developmental environment for boys of this age - out in the open, amongst boys their own age, and lots of group time.
One of my absolute favorite quotes from Delpit is a long one :) -
This lesson was only one of many I received on learning to be a part of the world rather than trying to dominate it - on learning to see rather than merely look, to feel rather than touch, to hear rather than listen: to learn, in short, about the world by being still and opening myself to experiencing it. If I realize that I am an organic part of all that is, and learn to adopt a receptive, connected stance, then I need not take an active, dominant role to understand; the universe will, in essence, include me in understanding.
Even though this quote doesn't directly relate to Delpit's pedagogical theories, I think it expresses the heart of her writings. When I think about the boys of Baraka in relation to this quote, I am reminded of the scene where the boys are lying on the floor, silently watching a hedge hog. As I watched the boys watch the hedge hog I had a profound sense that what Delpit describes above, the boys were experiencing in some small way watching the hedge hog. They were learning to see, to feel, to hear, and learning that they too are an organic part of all that is. I think we all know this deep down and we all need the time and space to be allowed to experience that connectedness.
I also saw this in the group discussion the boys had about African culture. Just like Bill Cosby said, the boys recognized human beings enjoying the spirit of each other.
I also saw the theories of Vygotsky at work in the film as well. Vygotsky believed that children learn by working with others and persisting at a task until they get it. The example of Montrey setting up the tent with Derek (?) was a great example of social learning. I also saw a lot of social learning happening with the boys during group discussions.
One of the boys that I found fascinating was Montrey. In the beginning of the movie, Montrey was considered a behavior problem. Even after he was at Baraka, he had a hard time keeping his emotions in check (or at least finding healthier ways to express himself).
At one point he had to spend the night setting up a tent with the other young man he had been fighting with. This scene really reminded me of what Chip Wood says of middle schoolers in "Yardsticks":
For most of my career I have maintained that twelves (and thirteens and fourteens for that matter) probably do not belong in formal school environments at all, but in some kind of cross between summer camp and the Civilian Conservation Corps camps of the Great Depression - plenty of physical activity, structured groups, and plenty of time with peers with a little formal education thrown in.
Baraka seemed the perfect developmental environment for boys of this age - out in the open, amongst boys their own age, and lots of group time.
One of my absolute favorite quotes from Delpit is a long one :) -
This lesson was only one of many I received on learning to be a part of the world rather than trying to dominate it - on learning to see rather than merely look, to feel rather than touch, to hear rather than listen: to learn, in short, about the world by being still and opening myself to experiencing it. If I realize that I am an organic part of all that is, and learn to adopt a receptive, connected stance, then I need not take an active, dominant role to understand; the universe will, in essence, include me in understanding.
Even though this quote doesn't directly relate to Delpit's pedagogical theories, I think it expresses the heart of her writings. When I think about the boys of Baraka in relation to this quote, I am reminded of the scene where the boys are lying on the floor, silently watching a hedge hog. As I watched the boys watch the hedge hog I had a profound sense that what Delpit describes above, the boys were experiencing in some small way watching the hedge hog. They were learning to see, to feel, to hear, and learning that they too are an organic part of all that is. I think we all know this deep down and we all need the time and space to be allowed to experience that connectedness.
I also saw this in the group discussion the boys had about African culture. Just like Bill Cosby said, the boys recognized human beings enjoying the spirit of each other.
I also saw the theories of Vygotsky at work in the film as well. Vygotsky believed that children learn by working with others and persisting at a task until they get it. The example of Montrey setting up the tent with Derek (?) was a great example of social learning. I also saw a lot of social learning happening with the boys during group discussions.
Word Connections
One my favorite things about children are their resiliency. Their ability to 'bounce back' and persevere. I think that this term relates to many aspects we have been talking about in class. Looking back on the Baraka Boys Film - with some guidance, faith, support, and many other aspects, most of those boys graduated high school, and are pursuing careers despite their challenges growing up.
Strength also describes all children. I believe that children are much stronger than they get credit for. Strength comes into play when talking about power and privilege - especially when they are ones without access to the codes of power, within race, within socioeconomic status, and within their families.
Human I think this states that all children no matter what race, ethnicity, nationality, religion, language etc. this is the foundation of connectedness, this is the common factor we all have. With that said, this relates to some of the ideas we have been talking about when we state that differentiation often benefits all students rather than just a few, TAG benefits all students etc.
There are so many connections, too many to name.
Strength also describes all children. I believe that children are much stronger than they get credit for. Strength comes into play when talking about power and privilege - especially when they are ones without access to the codes of power, within race, within socioeconomic status, and within their families.
Human I think this states that all children no matter what race, ethnicity, nationality, religion, language etc. this is the foundation of connectedness, this is the common factor we all have. With that said, this relates to some of the ideas we have been talking about when we state that differentiation often benefits all students rather than just a few, TAG benefits all students etc.
There are so many connections, too many to name.
Boys of Baraka
The word I'm choosing to begin with is "strength." The trajectory of the boys' journey, from the projects in Baltimore to Africa and back, impressed me with how huge 0f a stretch it was from their sense of what was known, to the unknown, and then back to their old world transformed--and that they were able to integrate these new experiences into something useful. To relate it to the theorists, the ability of a human being to construct new knowledge and integrate it, to grow in spite of having things stacked against you, is striking. The word "resilience" also comes to mind. Also, underneath the tough exteriors, the boys were still boys underneath, as was so visible when they relaxed into their world in Kenya and were able to play. It is as though the natural state of childhood, the receptiveness and curiosity, is there just waiting for the world to feel safe enough for it to emerge. This reminded me of an experience I noticed, on a smaller/ less intense scale, about 15 years ago when I taught at Outdoor School. Sometimes 6th graders would arrive from rival PPS schools with emerging gang associations. Outdoor School was highly structured but also fun, and the students were held accountable for their behavior by the staff in a loving way. Repeatedly, by the end of the week when the bus came to take them home, the "tough" kids bawled when they had to leave Outdoor School and leave their new friends who had been rivals just a few days before. This to me represents that there is inherent strength in children. In the film, I was worried when the Baraca school closed. I felt that it would be too much of a disappointment and blow to the kids to have the second year taken from them and to have no guidance in transitioning back into the reality of the city school system. I was impressed by the boys' ability to overcome yet another obstacle and to find the strength to draw on their new understanding of their capabilities and continue on a constructive path. I was also especially struck by the strength of the mothers and grandmothers in this film. I felt that having read and discussed Delpit, I had a deeper understanding of how these parents had a keen awareness of the value of education and the codes of power and their link to basic survival for their children. As a parent, I could relate to the "mama grizzly" love from which they acted on behalf of their boys.
As we continue to examine the assumptions of privilege, and unpack the invisible backpack, I've realized that as someone who thought of herself as being open-minded, I still have plenty of learning to do. Being open-minded isn't enough. There are many things to discuss around the film's content, but one thing I wanted to say was that I realize how powerful it is for me to hear people's stories (as in the film). In the lit circle reading for ED 550, bell hooks talks about spirituality as a sense of "connection" in the classroom based in experience, and how it is a pathway to the "other", whatever that other may be. I will go into teaching (and just being) with the desire to honor the strengths of children and families, and to act on the connection.
As we continue to examine the assumptions of privilege, and unpack the invisible backpack, I've realized that as someone who thought of herself as being open-minded, I still have plenty of learning to do. Being open-minded isn't enough. There are many things to discuss around the film's content, but one thing I wanted to say was that I realize how powerful it is for me to hear people's stories (as in the film). In the lit circle reading for ED 550, bell hooks talks about spirituality as a sense of "connection" in the classroom based in experience, and how it is a pathway to the "other", whatever that other may be. I will go into teaching (and just being) with the desire to honor the strengths of children and families, and to act on the connection.
Monday, August 1, 2011
Icebreaker 7/29
Recipe Card Mix-Up Icebreaker
Provide each student with a recipe or index card. Ahead of time choose about five questions that you might ask of students. Be as creative as you want with the questions. Possible questions might include the following:
What is the title of a favorite book?
What do you like doing in your free time when you're not at school?
What is your favorite board game?
What is your favorite candy bar?
If you could request your favorite meal for your birthday, what would that meal be?
When students -- and the teacher -- have written their answers to the questions (not their names!), collect the recipe cards. Shuffle the cards. Then pass out a card to each student; be sure students do not receive their own cards. When everyone has a card, then the job of each student is to find the student in the room who belongs to the card the student holds. When everybody has found the person who wrote the answers on the card they hold, they must make sure they know how to pronounce that student's full name and that they understand everything that is written on the card. Then it is time for introductions. The teacher can begin the activity by asking the student on the card s/he holds to come to the front of the room. As that student stands by, the teacher introduces the student to the rest of the class by saying, "Class, I'd like you to meet ___. Her favorite book is ___. Her favorite board game is Please welcome ___ to our fourth grade class!" (Classmates then give the student 4 claps [for 4th grade]). The student that the teacher introduced continues the activity by calling up the student whose card he or she holds. The teacher can say the welcome to each student or the student introducing the new student can say the welcome. Continue until all students have introduced someone to the class. When everyone has been introduced, take all the cards, shuffle them, and call out responses on one card at a time to see if students can remember who belongs to each card I would just do a few of these or spread them out over the week to see what the students remember. The main part of the activity can be broken up throughout the day if it is too long for the kids.
(Taken from: http://www.educationworld.com/a_lesson/lesson/lesson346.shtml)post from 6.29...
The first connection I noticed between most of the theorists was the idea of observation as a means of assessment. Dewey, Montessori and Vygotsky believed that the teacher's role is to assess what the student needs by watching them as they work through discovery, play and development. They believed that a student would express their academic needs in one way or another and it was the educator's role to adjust to fit their needs.
Another connection that stuck out to me is the fact that Erikson, Montessori and Piaget believed that children would gain the most out of learning experiences that were actual real life situations. Trusting that children are capable of making responsible decisions and using real tools can be incredibly beneficial to a child's developmental skills. Seeing how something works provides a deeper understanding that just reading it in a book and memorizing.
The last connection I wanted to discuss is that both Dewey and Erikson emphasize the importance of being aware of each child's individual difference that may effect how they learn. Dewey says that keeping the families values and culture in mind and incorporating that into school will make their learning rich and meaningful. Erickson believes that individual differences not only will effect development but can also alter the students capabilities day to day. Knowing your students and where they come from will be a great tool to connecting and knowing what they are capable of.
Another connection that stuck out to me is the fact that Erikson, Montessori and Piaget believed that children would gain the most out of learning experiences that were actual real life situations. Trusting that children are capable of making responsible decisions and using real tools can be incredibly beneficial to a child's developmental skills. Seeing how something works provides a deeper understanding that just reading it in a book and memorizing.
The last connection I wanted to discuss is that both Dewey and Erikson emphasize the importance of being aware of each child's individual difference that may effect how they learn. Dewey says that keeping the families values and culture in mind and incorporating that into school will make their learning rich and meaningful. Erickson believes that individual differences not only will effect development but can also alter the students capabilities day to day. Knowing your students and where they come from will be a great tool to connecting and knowing what they are capable of.
The Odds
The word that really jumps out at me is the odds. To think of the odds that these boys have to overcome daily, just to make it to school, to make it home from school, are tremendous. When I think about it, it reminds me very much of White Privilege. The privilege of being able to go to school and to go home not having to worry about things that Montrey mentioned like getting your shoes stolen, or getting beat up. This word is once again just another reminder to being open in the classroom, to understanding that children go through things you can't see before and after school starts and ends, and that we need to be mindful of those things to have an open, inviting classroom. I also like self-reliance, I can only image how hard it would be in middle school to pick up and go to school in Africa for a full year. I see this as them being thrown into the thick of the zone of proximal development, in Africa, without parents, and only themselves to regulate how they ultimately act. That alone to me is a prime learning environment, but the fact they also go to school as well is just more respect to those boys. It showed me that tough learning environments truly can push, but ultimately reward those in them.
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