Author, educator, presenter - Blog

Post Title.

Tue, 08 May 2012 16:15:02 -0800

Find meaning in your roles and allow others to do the same for themselves.

on stereotyping

Sun, 15 Apr 2012 12:08:39 -0800

What role are you playing before your students? Be very deliberate in developing your students’ perceptions of you. Take care not to come across as too nice—students interpret this as weakness; or too mean—students may be turned off and tune you out; too “caring”—you may insult your students. And of course, avoid prejudging your students. Give the relationship a chance; learn for yourself who you’re working with and keep those expectations high. Do the best you can at being YOU; that’s all anyone can ask!

from Diversity Teacher

Tue, 03 Apr 2012 09:00:57 -0800

Mathematics professor Uri Treisman at the University of Texas studied Asian American, African American, and Hispanic students before teaching them. He came to realize that the high performing Asian American students belonged to peer groups that reinforced their class work by collaborating on their homework. When he transferred these same techniques to his African American and Hispanic students, “including those whose performance would have been predicted to be deficient,” they equaled Asian American students “in every respect.”

on stereotyping from Diversity Teacher

Wed, 21 Mar 2012 08:25:04 -0800

The most lethal part of stereotyping is its subtly. We stereotype without realizing it. It is a subconscious activity of which we educators should be aware at all times. The biggest injustice we can commit toward students is to stereotype them, not just racially, but also regarding lifestyle, i.e., if they live in a trailer, whether they may be gay, how they dress or smell, etc. Don’t make assumptions about these students; get to know them as individuals.

on stereotyping from Diversity Teacher

Tue, 13 Mar 2012 13:46:20 -0800

It seems that every major minority group has been challenged with the stereotypicalimages that each assigns to the other.[i] This is problematic because it leads to racial or ethnic profiling, which tends to use race or ethnicity as predictive factors. Profiling automatically casts suspicion against certain groups even though the vast majority of these groups are honest, law-abiding citizens.[ii]

Tips: The most lethal part of stereotyping is its subtly. We stereotype without realizing it. It is a subconscious activity of which we educators should be aware at all times. The biggest injustice we can commit toward students is to stereotype them, not just racially, but also regarding lifestyle, i.e., if they live in a trailer, whether they may be gay, how they dress or smell, etc. Don’t make assumptions about these students; get to know them as individuals.

[i] Bass, K., Tomkiewicz, J., Adeyemi-Bello, T., & Vaicys, C. (2001). Workgroup productivity: the implication of African Americans' racial stereotypes for cooperative job designs. Work Study, 50(6/7), 263-269.

Dozier, R. W. J. (2002). Why we hate: understanding, curbing, and eliminating hate in ourselves and our world. New York: Contemporary Books.

Gilbert, J., Carr-Ruffino, N., Ivancevich, J.M., & Lownes-Jackson, M. (2003). An empirical examination of inter-ethnic stereotypes: comparing Asian American and African American employees. Public Personnel Management, 32(2), 251.

[ii] Dozier, R. W. J. (2002). Why we hate: understanding, curbing, and eliminating hate in ourselves and our world. New York: Contemporary Books.

on stereotyping from Diversity Teacher

Sun, 26 Feb 2012 09:23:55 -0800

One of the greatest moral gains of the Civil Rights Movement was the widespread recognition in American society that stereotyping is destructive.[i] Stereotyping seems to be at the root of the conflict that tends to surround diverse populations.[ii] For example, historically speaking, after years of being bombarded with negative social images, stereotypes of self-denigration, and being socialized to self-abase and affirm European superiority, Blacks developed a combative consciousness that unsettled and challenged ingrained Eurocentric values.[iii]

[i] Wood, P. (2003). Diversity: the invention of a concept. San Francisco, CA: Encounter Books.

[ii] Adeleke, T. (2001). Will the real father of Afrocentricity please stand. The Western Journal of Black Studies, 25(1), 21-30.

Bass, K., Tomkiewicz, J., Adeyemi-Bello, T., & Vaicys, C. (2001). Workgroup productivity: the implication of African Americans' racial stereotypes for cooperative job designs. Work Study, 50(6/7), 263-269.

Gilbert, J., Carr-Ruffino, N., Ivancevich, J.M., & Lownes-Jackson, M. (2003). An empirical examination of inter-ethnic stereotypes: comparing Asian American and African American employees. Public Personnel Management, 32(2), 251.

[iii] Adeleke, T. (2001). Will the real father of Afrocentricity please stand. The Western Journal of Black Studies, 25(1), 21-30.

from Diversity Teacher

Sun, 12 Feb 2012 08:09:08 -0800

It was not until I was in my early 40s, when I became a teacher, that I was actually able to embrace my ancestral heritage and form a solid identity. After a few weeks of getting to know my students, they began to ask me “what I am.” As I ran down the list that my father is Honduran and Mayan Indian and my mother is Black, White and French with a dash of Cherokee, I noticed my students begin to sit up straighter. One of my Black male students beamed, “I knew she was one of us!” (this is the same little culprit I mentioned in my introduction; the one who “loved” me! J) and I saw that same expression of pride and acceptance in every face in the room! They all took ownership of me, which was a significant breakthrough for me! My bi- and multi-racial students and I learned, together, to embrace all of who we are. Mixed race people do not have and should not be forced to choose one ancestor over another.

on self-esteem from Diversity Teacher

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 15:49:55 -0800

According to Dr. Shockley (2008), Black students in U.S. schools are disproportionately placed in special education classes and represent:

17% of the total U.S. school population

36% of the students who get suspended from school

32% of the students who are expelled from school (p. 6)

African ancestors say, “When you don’t know where you are going, any road will get you there! If you do not claim your African self, anyone can come along, tell you who you are, and then get you to fulfill their agenda.” (Shockley, 2008)

from Diversity Teacher

Sat, 28 Jan 2012 17:01:58 -0800

One of the participants in my study was a Danish/Swedish male with blue eyes and curly blonde hair. During his developmental years he self-identified as Black because he grew up south of Chicago in mixed racial neighborhoods and found he was most influenced by the Black culture. But now he self-identifies as Navajo because he has been living and working on the reservation for more than 25 years! He suggested that all human beings are part of the rainbow of races, including Whites.

on self-esteem from Diversity Teacher

Wed, 25 Jan 2012 15:01:32 -0800

I caution you, as an educator, to be cognizant of the reason you associate with others, and more importantly, what you take away from those associations. Yes, you may feel validated if your conflict with a student or administrator is shared by another faculty member, but does this particular validation solve the problem, or enhance it by justifying your contempt? Can you feel better about yourself for snubbing a student? Does justification of any type of disdain make you feel better in the long run?

Contempt is not a joyous feeling. Besides, the nature of your profession places you above such things. Might you feel better strategizing on and possibly finding a solution for that ineffectual teacher/student, teacher/administrator relationship? Don’t you have enough stress just doing your job?

Try to surround yourself with positive people, who offer solutions, not reinforce problems. Forget work for those 20-30 minutes and escape with talk of family or plans for the weekend or memories of fun times, or if you must, collaborate on effective lesson plans.