Creating Art

Reflective Poem

Diversity, Development, and Learning

From the view of a child…

When you see me, what do you see?

Do you see the real me, or see what you want to see.

Will you try to learn about me?

Will you teach me?

Will you teach about my culture or only your own?

It’s not fair if I only learn in my home.

I’m ready to learn if you’re to teach,

But I need you to know that learning is within my reach.

Start Seeing Diversity Blog: "We Don't Say Those Words in Class!"

This week we were asked to think of a time when we witnessed or reprimanded or silenced a child after he or she pointed out someone they saw as different. Initially it took me a while to think of an instance but something a little uncomfortable came to mind. I was with my family during my oldest daughter's lacrosse game. A teenage girl with Downs Syndrome decided to sit next to my youngest daughter who was 5 at the time. My daughter covered her eyes and said, "NO! DON'T SIT HERE"!! I was so shocked her response and I wanted to crawl under the bleachers. I yelled at her and told her to be nice. The girl's mother looked at me and said, "That's okay". It wasn't okay. I felt awful about the way my daughter behaved and I knew it was because in her 5 year old mind she thought that the girl looked different. When I had a chance to reflect on what happened I found myself asking what I had to done to help or teach my daughter how accept people even if they looked different.

As a special educator I have always tried to teach about acceptance and diversity. Did I forget to talk about this with my youngest daughter? My oldest child has always been very welcoming and accepting of people with disabilities. I don't really even remember having to go out of my way to teach her about this. As a mother I felt embarrassed about the way my child behaved. When I think about Haro's cycle of liberation, I know that when you look at the cycle, the incident with my daughter caused me to enter into the "wake up" stage. According to the cycle, the wake up stage begins with a critical incident. Based on the incident it moved me into the "getting ready" stage. In the getting ready stage we have to dismantle beliefs that we may have. I realized that along the way my daughter had developed some ideas about people who she thinks look different to her. It was up to me to move her to the "building community" stage. My initial reaction to my daughter to simply be nice wasn't even to explain what she had done wrong. I did  have to try to I did talk about people with disabilities and why it's important to treat people with respect.

Reference

Harro, B. (2008). The cycle of liberation

"Start Seeing Diversity Video" Blog: Gender, Gender Identity, and Sexual Orientation

I found this week's topic very interesting and thought provoking. Gender is something that I have often thought about throughout my teaching career. After watching the course media this week, I realize that gender roles are instilled at a very early age. In the video one of the male students informed his classmate that she couldn't be a doctor because his Dad is a doctor and doctor's can only be men. I liked the way that the teacher handled the situation. She intervened and let both students know that that way of think is called a stereotype. Addressing that way of think at an early age is what can remedy some of the gender stereotypes that exist.

Another thing I've given some thought to is the way that fairy tales have been written. As a child I really did enjoy reading them. At the end of the story everyone always, "lived happily ever after". Well, that just isn't real true. I am completely convinced that this way of thinking  has been psychologically damaging to young women from numerous generations. In the stories there was always some weak woman who needed to be saved by a man! This way of think just isn't realistic. Everyone doesn't always live happily ever after.. That was proven by two failed marriage in the British royal family. I make that point because I believe that what we read to our children really does make a difference. The women in fairly tales were always weak and needed to be saved by a man. Some magical kiss would always make everything right and that just isn't what little girls need to hear.

One thing that does make me comfortable is the way that women are presented to children in comic books. Wonder Woman and Cat Woman are two characters that took care of herself and didn't need to rely the help of a man to save them. My only issues with her character was the way that she was dressed. Why did she need to be dressed in a provocative manner to fight crime?

I think that books, the media and society help to build how children perceive gender roles. I can remember having a student who enjoyed playing in our house corner and liked wearing a purse. One day his father came in to visit and had a fit! He said, "Mrs. Lewis, I can't believe you let my son wear a pocket book! He's gonna be a sissy"! The kids were taking turns being the mother and the father and this dad wasn't happy. He walked over to his son and made him take off the purse. He even told him that boys don't play with purses only girls do. I really think if he hadn't made sure a big deal about it his son might have not have shown an interest in the purse. From that point on, the boy did everything he could to play with the purse when his father wasn't there.

Reference
Week 3 Course Media: "Start Seeing Diversity: Sexual Orientation" (Approx. length: 6 minutes)