Review of the Semester

Portfolio 8: What have I learned?

Looking back at all of my portfolio assignments and reading reflections, I realized I knew nothing at the beginning of the semester. I had no idea what this class was about or what I was supposed to learn from it. I was like Michael:

I knew that my future classroom would be diverse racially, but other that was the only definition of the word diverse I knew. I didn't consider various SES, sexual orientation, and culture. 

During this class, I have found out that I have many biases. 

I learned that this is NEVER acceptable:

I think one of the most important things I learned in this class is that there is always more than one story. People are not made up of a single story. As a history teacher, I can show students that there is never just a single story. There are not only multiple perspectives, but historical figures are multidimensional people. 

The "Other" assignment not only helped me to understand that there are places where I feel like an "other." It also helped me to understand what it is like to be an "other" and relate and empathize with people who may not "fit in" especially within the American classroom. On this same day we read the Gladwell articles that made me feel like an awful person. I hated the word pairing activities because I became aware of my biases against men, women, race and others. We also had to watch Stephen Colbert's video about privilege. Throughout the course of this class, I have learned that I may not be able to take away or cut back on my privilege but I can help others that do not have the same privilege as me to have more opportunities. 

The Walton reading taught me that we should let people define themselves. Students are told what they are or what they are supposed to be all of the time from many different sources, I can help them to succeed at what they want to do or want to be. 

This class taught me that just because a parent doesn't show up to something, does not mean that they don't care. They may not have even known that parent-teacher conferences exist, or they may face a language barrier and feel uncomfortable entering the school. They may face huge financial burdens with a very low SES, being a part of the working poor and are working all of the time just to provide the basics. In my ideal classroom, I would like to have snacks in my classrooms for students that are like those in the child poverty in the US video we watched. I hope my classroom is like pretzel day every day for my students. I want my classroom to be an escape from the other worries that they have.

One thing is for sure, I have become hypersensitive to the use of the word "gay". I did not know how much my friends used it until this class. I have started to say things to them and ask them not to use that word. This is something I never would have done before this class. Speaking of language, I learned that a student may be succeeding in basic interpersonal communication skills but lacking in cognitive academic language proficiency. Francisco from "Breaking Through" was a great example of this. 

I learned that I can teach students about different religions in school. As a history teacher, I can incorporate knowledge of world religions into the classroom. I learned how to differentiate between freedom of religion and freedom from religion. I can also learn about my students' beliefs so that I can be like the teacher in the Muslima video. 

Overall, this class taught me about many different aspects of students' lives that I should be aware of. I learned that all humans are different and that they have had many life experiences that have led them to be who they are today. I can help students to know that they are of great worth and have great potential. A successful teacher is someone who wants to be in the classroom because they love their students. They care about the individual. We can adopt Ellen Degeneres' motto to "be kind to one another". 

I know that I still have more to learn and there are many steps for me to take in order to become a true advocate. Once I become a teacher, I will make it my goal to continue to learn and be aware of my students' needs. I hope to be like one of the many supportive teachers that Francisco had, teachers who learned about his goals and helped him to achieve them.