Source: Washington Post
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/education/wp/2016/10/19/to-be-white-is-to-be-racist-period-a-high-school-teacher-told-his-class/
Relevance: This article discusses what a high school teacher told his class when attempting to have a discussion about race. While the country is focused more on race issues in recent months, because of the horrible shootings across the country, the topic of race has been talked about more and more. This teacher made the statement that "To be white is to be racist, period". This has started a controversy about what teachers should teach and how they should incorporate the topic of race in classrooms. Race has also been a topic in the current election due to the discussion of immigration.
Key Points: Some students were supportive of the teacher, because of the attempt at discussing race. However, there were some students who felt that they were being picked and should be picked on for being white.
Audience: Parents, students, administrators, teachers, and community.
I love this! I feel like this is so important, especially because there are so many racial issues in our country today. I really like how you pointed out in your key points that there were students that were supportive but also some that were not. I think it is so important to be able to see things from all different perspectives.
ReplyDeleteI like this topic, because it brings up the fact that it IS important to discuss what is going on in the news. Right now, race is a big issue and one that is definitely worth talking about in the classroom. However, this is a cautionary tale as to how to go about doing just that. It is such a great opportunity for class discussion and may be best moderated by the teacher with outside supporting materials. As a teacher, you have to be careful about sharing opinions. I think the teacher was trying to say that because of his background and upbringing, it is hard for him to be empathetic toward the plights of the marginalized, but in my thinking that is more ignorance than racism. Let this be a lesson in never painting entire groups of people with one large brush. I would like to think life is more complex than "this or that". We should be encouraging the explorations of such complexities in our classrooms.
ReplyDeleteI like this topic, because it brings up the fact that it IS important to discuss what is going on in the news. Right now, race is a big issue and one that is definitely worth talking about in the classroom. However, this is a cautionary tale as to how to go about doing just that. It is such a great opportunity for class discussion and may be best moderated by the teacher with outside supporting materials. As a teacher, you have to be careful about sharing opinions. I think the teacher was trying to say that because of his background and upbringing, it is hard for him to be empathetic toward the plights of the marginalized, but in my thinking that is more ignorance than racism. Let this be a lesson in never painting entire groups of people with one large brush. I would like to think life is more complex than "this or that". We should be encouraging the explorations of such complexities in our classrooms.
ReplyDeleteI watched a comedian once that would make a joke where he would state "people get really uncomfortable when you talk about race", at which the audience would suddenly become dead quite, which he would follow with "see what I mean?", which people would laugh at. I only bring it up because we talk about slavery, segregation, and other past events that epitomize racism, but it's very rare that people will teach about racism that's happening now due to it's volatile nature. If there could be a training in place that teaches educators to approach relevant issues such as racism, this might have been avoided.
ReplyDeleteI had a college professor say the same thing, in so many words, and we were assigned readings that pushed the same message. This kind of talk is everywhere, just look for it.
ReplyDeleteThe article says that, while race is an important issue, the discussion could have been a handled better. I agree. However, until you have the words for something in your mind and in your mouth, it is difficult to know how to talk about any subject. Before going on a job interview,stand in front of a mirror and practice. This strategy helps you have "words in your mouth" that you can use in your interview. The same thing should be done for teaching subjects such as racism. We should all be talking about these subjects, bringing the words into our mouths, and understanding how to use the words to the best effect. We need to guide each other through the maze of ideas and opinions in order to reach a common truth, one we can all live with comfortably.
ReplyDelete