Portfolio Summary

I feel like I have come so far in this class and with my portfolios for multicultural education. I have especially come very far in my thinking about social justice and issues going on around the world and how that matters and how it can affect my classroom. I have learned that I really get to decide what kind of teacher I want to be and how committed I want to be to help my students feel loved and accepted and to receive the education that they need. At first, I thought this class would just be about how everyone is different and how we need to respect others' cultures and differences. But there is so much more to it. As we had class discussions, I learned that there isn't always a solution to problems in the classroom. Sometimes, people will have their feelings hurt and I can't always prevent that but it's okay. I have learned that as long as I am committed to finding solutions and trying to make things equitable for everyone, I am doing something right and that is something to be proud of. I feel like so many people out there, and so many teachers I've had, don't realize the kinds of things they do that could have a negative effect on their students and it is hurtful to young kids to not feel safe or not feel valued and accepted. I definitely want all of my students to feel that they are cared about and unique and accepted in my classroom. I want them to feel like they really can be successful, like how in my book I read for the Book Club, "The New Kids", they were able to feel successful because their teachers really pushed them and showed that they cared about them in their relationships to the students. There was inclusive pedagogy that applied to all the students and their diverse backgrounds and cultures. I want to be a teacher like that, who naturally plans things in my classroom that are fair and inclusive of everyone. This can be done with the media I use, the posters I use and how I decorate my classroom, the books and materials available for students to use, my rules and procedures, my discipline plan, and just how I interact with students.

I remember one of the first discussions we had in class really bothered me because I was essentially feeling like this class, the discussions, the readings, etc. were all hinting that I was a terrible human being because I was white, Mormon, straight, and an American citizen. And because of these things, it seemed to me that I couldn't be good enough or really understand others around me and how they feel being the minority or being the groups that are not a part of the hegemonic culture. I was feeling bad for myself that I had to feel bad about myself, but that was silly. The point of this class, I've learned, isn't actually to make me feel bad about myself being privileged, and it's also not about feeling bad for and having a deficit thinking model about those with differences. It's about learning about what makes us feel uncomfortable and realizing problems and issues that may be affecting our future students, and then trying to help with that and make it so my future classroom can avoid those problems as much as possible. It's about caring about all of the individuals in my classroom and really trying to show them that as I teach. And so I've learned that there's nothing wrong with loving people, even if they have differences and even if I don't always agree with others' beliefs or customs. I can still treat everyone with respect and that's what I've decided my number one rule in my classroom will be: respecting others.

It was fun for me doing the Personal Cultural Artifact portfolio because I never really thought of myself of having a culture. I just thought that "cultured people" were ones from exotic or foreign countries that did really different things than I had ever done and dressed in different ways and had certain foods that their culture was known for. But I realize that was a very narrow-minded way of thinking about culture. I've learned that I have culture from what I eat and what I wear. I also have culture from what I say, how I interact with people, what things I do every day, and what things are important and special to me. I've realized my own intersectionality, as well, because I have been involved in many kinds of groups involving school, music, sports, religion, hobbies I like, where I'm from, and what I look like. I feel like I'm a diverse person and like many things and I want people to realize that about me. Many others want people to recognize this about themselves, too, and don't want to be seen as just stereotypes or as just one story. People have many stories to tell and many things you can learn about them. I plan on getting to know my students throughout the school year and really trying to expand my knowledge about them and the cultures they come from.

It was very eye-opening when I got to do the Being the "Other" portfolio. I got to go to a Spanish Catholic mass and be the outsider. I kept feeling weird I was the only white person there, who obviously didn't look Hispanic and couldn't speak Spanish either. It made me so happy, though, when people there smiled at me and reached out and I felt not so awkward and different than them. I want my students to never feel awkward about being different than others, perhaps if they are a minority of some type. I want them to know that even though we all look different and like different things and may even speak differently, we all can feel good and there can be celebratory multicultural education in my classroom.

Going to the Food and Care Coalition was another great experience for me to understand a little more about what the poor and homeless go through, but how there's also hope and good people in the world to help them. I loved working with the volunteers there who came regularly and were so kind and genuine in how they treated the homeless there that we got to help feed.

I've also just really enjoyed the opportunity of watching videos and reading articles about different groups and different social justice issues that are in our world today and are things we can fight to overcome and be advocates of. I loved learning about gender and sexuality differences, and even though it was heartbreaking to hear some of the stories and experiences people have gone through, including Professor Draper with her son, Bennett, I feel like I learned so much and can be more understanding to those with differences in that nature. I also have loved hearing about case studies and discussing with the class how we can make a difference and how we can try to solve problematic situations that deal with students and parents and those that may be treated unfairly. Again, there won't always be a perfect solution or way to teach all students, but I feel like because of the different social issues and discrimination we have among us, we can find hope and find purpose as we try to make a change in our own classrooms and in our own lives with the people we come in contact with. I feel like my views and understanding about others has greatly widened and it will continue to do so if I apply the things I've learned in this class and keep thinking about what makes me feel uncomfortable and analyzing why that is and what I can do about it in the world.

Book Club

I thought an international school would make all the students feel comfortable since it wasn’t all predominantly white or American born and raised students. I thought that since everyone’s different, everyone will get along. But boy was I wrong. Chit Su feels very alienated and doesn’t know how to interact with these high schoolers. She doesn’t know what to write on her paper since her English is limited. She feels very confused. And I bet there are tons like her in her situation. So how do we really make international and immigrant students feel welcome, accepted, and normal? How do we fully integrate them in our school systems without alienating them or making them stand out? How do I as a teacher help the school classrooms and systems fully help and integrate them and their cultures into an American school?

I found it sort of funny that Chit Su was trying to eat her pizza unsuccessfully with a spork. Then I had to stop my thinking and realized she didn’t know how to eat it and that I shouldn’t laugh about it. I felt bad for thinking of her in a making fun of sort of way. How many times do I do this with people who are unfamiliar with the culture I am in and who don’t know how to do things? Am I helping or hurting them? Am I choosing to make fun of them? I normally wouldn't choose to do that, it was sort of just subconscious. I realize I need to be more aware of when I do this and try to stop myself. I especially cannot do this as a teacher and I want to treat all my students fairly and lovingly.

Ann is a very admirable teacher, in my opinion, who is trying her hardest to help her students learn and achieve and overcome. She wants them to each write college essays that will tell about their personal story and could really give them the opportunity to go to college. As she discusses the process of trying to teach her students and have them come up with ideas and how to put it all down on paper, she receives many sad and hard stories. But she tries not to view her students as deficits and tries not to pity them. She doesn't want that to get in the way of how she grades them. A line in the book says, “She can correct a run-on sentence, if not a life run off course.” She sort of struggles with the fact that some of the stories are so sad and hard, like Ngawang who had to travel in a suitcase for 24 hours, or Yasmeen whose father had cancer and mother had kidney problems, or Jessica whose father abandoned her not only once to receive a new family in America, but twice when they were reunited after 7 years and the stepmom didn’t like her. I want to be a teacher like Ann and the other staff there at the high school, who are friends and mentors to their students, and who sincerely care about them, but try not to view their students as a problem to be fixed.

I thought it was great they did a PTA meeting, where they let students come, and they had attorneys there to talk about being undocumented in the US and answer questions. Depending on who you bring, it could get risky about what they might say and if they would offend the immigrants who aren’t there legally. But I was surprised how helpful and kind they were to the parents and students. I kind of was annoyed with Mohamed, with how many questions he had and how he kept interrupting people. If I were one of teachers or attorneys there I think I would deliberately not call on him and would get frustrated with him. It bothered me that he seemed sort of disrespectful to everyone there with legitimate questions. But maybe his questions were really legitimate? I think it’s easy for me to sometimes brush off teenagers opinions and say they don’t know what they are talking about and they just want attention. But maybe they really need to be heard? Am I going to be patient and not assume bad judgments on my students when I’m a teacher? I want to say I will, but I don’t know. Sometimes certain behaviors can test my patience and I’m worried I might treat a student like Mohamed with disrespect and judgment.

I think it is sort of unfair for these poor immigrant students who have worked so hard and have applied for colleges they want to go to, but many are rejected because even though they’ve prepared and tried their best, they are still very behind other schools and students in the US. The staff especially has worked so hard to help their students be ready and prepare and apply to internships, but many still don’t succeed. This is sort of sad for these students. Many are still learning proper English Standard grammar and other things to get fully integrated into American society, and so they are behind the standards that we set for many prestigious colleges and universities. What can be done about this though? Much of what is based off of getting into college is merit and certain grades and standards.

And then there are students who do get accepted into great colleges but they don’t know where they’ll get the money to pay for it. I’ve always used scholarships and fafsa money to pay for tuition in college and it hasn’t ever been that hard for me. Just a lot of hard work and filling out the papers I need to. But if you don’t get a scholarship or financial aid, I could see that being a huge struggle, especially for the students who live in more working class conditions and don’t have very much. It makes me think of Yasmeen who doesn’t have a job but has an older brother who has a meager job as a salesperson to provide for her and also their two younger siblings. They don’t even have parents alive to help them. How would she ever have enough money to go to college and be a kidney doctor like she wants to?

And then those students who are undocumented aren’t even allowed to get financial aid at all so they have to fully rely on scholarships or else they have to pay out of pocket. We say that people can come to America and live the American dream, but how often can that really happen? We don’t make it all that easy. Many immigrants work super hard and still can only barely get by to provide for themselves and their families.

I felt kinda weird when I read the part about the teacher meeting. They were all sharing experiences about different students and showing examples of poorly written essays and bad things students did wrong. And most of the comments about the stuff being discussed seemed tacky and rude and critical. They seemed like they had a kick out of talking about their students in a bad light, like they were making fun of them. I know the purpose was probably to share concerns and find solutions to help their students, and that is fine, but I feel like they went about it in the wrong way. I just felt uncomfortable the whole time I read their conversation. I certainly do not want to do that in teacher meetings I have in the future. I want to focus on the positive as much as possible and treat the harder things more delicately.

I thought it was definitely the wrong thing for James, the teacher, to throw an unwanted party for Yasmeen about her getting married. She had kept it a secret from most people for a reason, and then was obligated to show up in class for the party where the food and drink was already gone, and she had to tell the whole class in a very public and humiliating way about it. I know that James meant well and didn’t want her to go through the next few days by herself and so he thought this would be a great way to show support, but it didn’t have the best effects. People thought it was weird she was marrying her cousin and they were bombarding her with questions and so it wasn’t even comforting to her, but seemed more like they were intruding on her business. She didn't even seem excited about the whole thing, and so I felt even more bad that she had to be humiliated and questioned at school.

It’s amazing to me how much Chit Su had changed and adapted to high school from the beginning of the year til when she had to move away, about 6 months later. She completely changes. She isn’t the shy scared confused girl she was before. Her appearance, outfits, communication skills, and demeanor have changed. She’s dated several guys, she isn’t afraid to speak in front of her class, she has just really “unpacked” herself and has become much more American. Is this a good or bad thing that she’s changed so much, though? So many students at International High probably started out just like Chit Su, fully ingrained in their culture and have this culture shock of everything different around them, but not after long they all become quite similar. Is it a good thing for them to be similar and to be a “soup” in the melting pot? Or should they try to hold onto their culture as much as possible and live in a society being part of a “salad”? Which is better? Is there one better? I am not sure. She seems happier being assimilated into the culture there, but not everyone probably would be. It shows on the students Facebook accounts though that they clearly want to be American and want to portray who they are on there rather than stick to their roots. What makes it so they want to all be in a melting pot and become the same? Why don’t they want to keep their culture and remain different than everyone else? Maybe they feel the pressure to be the same as everyone else because we, Americans, make people different than us outsiders? We don’t give them the same respect and opportunities, perhaps? Whether my students want to be a salad or a soup in my class is up to them, I just hope they don't have to feel pressured into becoming the soup and becoming the same as everyone else. I want to show all my students how valuable and unique everyone is, no matter who they are.

Re-Imagined Clasroom

I am going to have my additions in bolded red text. My deletions of what I wrote and don't want to include anymore will be in bolded blue text and will be in parentheses.


1. Five images (you can take them or they can come from the Internet [provide proper credit]). These images should reflect, in some way, what you imagine your classroom will look like once you are a teacher. Please annotate your images by providing a description of the image and how it relates to your future classroom.

I want my classroom to be engaging for the students. I want them involved in discussions and participate in the learning process. I think that teaching them as a group and having them come up close, sitting on a rug, is great for having students participate. If I want them to talk about a certain thing to their neighbor, they are sitting right there and can do it easily. 

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f1/School-education-learning-1750587-h.jpg

I want my classroom desks set up in small groups so they make different tables. This will create a good collaborative environment where they can learn and talk with their peers in group activities. 

http://media.cmgdigital.com/shared/lt/lt_cache/thumbnail/960/img/photos/2012/04/28/95/fc/ddn072111gzschnell_982313a.jpg

I want my classroom to be a happy place where children can feel good about themselves, no matter what race, gender, or background they come from. I plan on teaching my students about how we can be a school family and have the focus on how we are all different and how that is a wonderful thing. We are unique and can help to serve each other with that uniqueness and with different talents. I don't want students to feel above or more special than someone else, though. We will be a caring and sharing classroom. 

https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsDr8scr8cl9YqFjgw1AyJpKD4_glM_mkg1lElVfmOT9Ads1XzSN1J0V0IZBu8VwWKC4RNfvuT-EsW-6b6fGTf8Rm2x9iDmoEPQ8RQ4lfpiTsm45RTHIi1KGQLY2B271MutiaNEJivXpE/s1600/holland+giess.jpg

I want my classroom to be colorful and bright and fun. 

http://www.tkcalifornia.org/assets/homepage-panels/teacher-reads-large-book.jpg

I want my classroom to have plenty of resources and ways my students can learn and be excited about learning. So by having arts and crafts, books, computers, and other materials, they can feel like they have what they need to be successful and learn. 

http://go-neighborhoods.org/northside/files/2013/03/LAImage-181SMALL.jpg

2. Imagine the surrounding in your classroom. What does the room look like? What resources are available for students? How are the resources used during the lesson?

The room is set up with desks pushed together to make several small tables so that students can interact with each other as they learn. This can help many students, including those who are ELLs because they can learn from and can be surrounded by English speaking students. They can have those by them to associate with and practice both BICS and CALP language.

I want to have posters in my room of children from all different races (not just all white kids) so that my students will feel represented in the classroom. I also want to include posters and things around my room that my students want. They get to put their input in how the class is decorated and how it looks. (There are lots of colorful posters and materials on the walls for the children to learn from and look at to be excited to learn.)

There will be sight words up on the board to remind the students of what they are learning about that week. They will mainly be in English, but I want to also include Spanish words around the classroom to help my ELL students who are mainly Spanish speaking. There will be lots of books that represent different ethnicity, genders, and cultures where students can learn from a variety of examples.

There will be lots of arts and crafts materials. There will be blocks to help with math problems. There will be a few computers (if they can fit) for times that children are in rotations and use the computers for assignments. There is a overhead projector and white board for me to do my main whole group teaching on. There will also be a colorful rug for my students to all sit on as I read them stories or as we have certain focus lessons where I want them to participate and discuss things with their neighbor. If students feel uncomfortable with talking to their neighbor, maybe because they are still learning English, I will arrange for someone they feel comfortable with to be their buddy. I plan on having class helpers to make students feel important by having a job to do. I will have all of their names on a popsicle stick in a jar and will draw out a few names each day and make sure everyone in the class gets a turn to participate and be a class helper.

3. Describe the students in your classroom. What are their backgrounds? What are their interests? What are they doing during the lesson?

My grade level is 5th grade. My students come from different cultural backgrounds. Some are Caucasian, some African American, some Hispanic, some Asian. Some of the Hispanic students mainly speak Spanish and so they are English Language Learners. Some also come from different households where there parents are divorced, they live with a grandparent, they live in poverty, or some live with really wealthy parents (and are spoiled). I plan on getting to know my students by having not only beginning of the year activities where they can write about their interests, their lives, and other info about themselves, but also will provide times throughout the school year to get to know my students. I want to really know how they feel about things and want to include their input in how I manage my classroom and what I teach them. I want to know their primary discourses and primary languages they speak and find ways to let them use that and value that in class.

They are all interested in having fun and playing with their friends. They like playing sports and dancing and watching movies and TV. (They are sometimes talking to their neighbors when they shouldn't during the lesson. But they know they will get called out for it, so they sometimes whisper. They try to pay attention though,) They like speaking to those sitting by them and love sharing their own ideas and opinions when we have group discussions. During this particular lesson, they have their writing notebooks out and are sitting in their chairs looking up front at me for instruction.

4. Describe you classroom policies. What are you classroom rules? What is your discipline plan? What are your homework policies?

(Students have to raise their hand if they want to speak when I am up front talking to them as a class.) In my classroom, I don't want to be too up-tight about rules, but I do plan on having a main rule of respecting others. This means that we don't judge others by being different. That means that there is no name calling or bullying or physical violence allowed. If they do something to hurt someone's feelings, they will have a talk with me outside of the classroom. I plan on disciplining privately, not publicly because it doesn't do any good to shame a child in front of the whole class. I don't want students labeling that child as "the bad kid" and then treating him/her differently. Instead of giving students a punishment, I want to give them different options/consequences that they can choose from. If they keep misbehaving (doing it), I will call their parents. Also, if they do something to disrupt the class and the lesson, I will talk to them privately and if needs be have them (do the same discipline plan. If I have to I will have students) trade seats with someone else.

I plan on giving homework that won't be a burden for parents to have to teach to their children at home. I know that some parents have to work a lot or may speak in another language than what the homework is in and so that will not be effective to assign long/hard assignments for kids to do at home, because they may not have the help they need. So, the main homework my students will have will be assignments that we worked on in class that they weren't able to finish there at school. My homework policy is that if they turn it in late, they have to have their parents/guardians sign their paper and have them write down why it is late. If more than 4 homework assignments are late, they will start losing points.

5. Describe a typical lesson you will teach in your classroom. What will you teach? What is the topic? Why did you choose this topic? How will you teach it? What is the main thing you want students to learn during this lesson?

I'll teach a writing lesson on poetry and skills to use as students write poems. I specifically want them to learn to write poems that focus on having dreams and wanting to make a difference in the world. This will let students express their ideas of things in their own lives that they wish were different and want to change or some sort of dream they have. I really want my students to know that no matter who they are or what background they come from, they can make a difference. They can have a dream and can fight for it. I am going to ask the class what their dreams are and what differences they would like to see in the world. We can discuss what kinds of things may be hard in our world like oppression against gender, race, classes, etc. Then, I will share the poem "I Dream A World" by Langston Hughes:
"I dream a world where man 
No other man will scorn,
Where love will bless the earth
And peace its paths adorn
I dream a world where all
Will know sweet freedom's way,
Where greed no longer saps the soul
Nor avarice blights our day.
A world I dream where black or white,
Whatever race you be,
Will share the bounties of the earth
And every man is free,
Where wretchedness will hang its head
And joy, like a pearl,
Attends the needs of all mankind- Of such I dream, my world!"

I am going to talk about how Langston Hughes is part African American, part Native American, and part White American. He is multiracial and I want to bring up how racial oppression might have been an issue of social justice that he had to go through in life. His poem shows that aspect of his life and his dream of wanting a free and fair world for everyone.

Then, I will share a few other poems written by diverse authors - female and male, white and black, immigrant and American born. I want my students to see a variety of people with things that are important to them and changes they want to see in the world. I want to also include a poem written in both Spanish and English, and give students, especially those who are Spanish speaking, an opportunity to use this as an example and inspiration for their poems they will write.

(use descriptive imagery because I think it is important that they can explain themselves clearly and poetically. They can create images using new and interesting words to them. I will show them different examples of poems using descriptive imagery. Then I will ask the students to help me point out what some of the descriptive words were and why they made the poem more interesting.)

I will have students help me write a short poem as a class and then have them write their own individual poems about having dreams and making changes. (using descriptive words.) The main thing I want my students to learn is to understand why their dreams and what they want to change in the world (descriptive imagery) in poems is important and how they can use it in their own writing to make a topic more interesting and meaningful.

6. Imagine your work as a teacher during this lesson. What are you doing during the lesson?

I am showing examples of poems and reading to the class. I am asking the class questions and trying to get a discussion going about the topic. I am getting their input and brainstorming with them as I teach and write a poem with them as a class. I am letting them write on their own and then getting different students to share what they wrote. I am always being positive about what they say and write.

7. Imagine your students again, what are they doing during the lesson?

My students are sitting in their desks, listening to the examples. They are discovering certain words and sharing their answers about what made the poems meaningful (descriptive) and interesting. They are helping me brainstorm and think of ideas for our own class poem as I write it on the board. They are using what they just learned and are creating their own poem by writing it in their writing notebooks. They can either write it in English or in their native language, like the Spanish poem. They then are sharing their poems with the class if they feel comfortable doing that and are proud of themselves that they accomplished something new.

8. Imagine how you will assess your students' learning and achievement. How will you know they have learned?

I will know that my students have learned by hearing their answers and ideas as they brainstormed with me. This will be a sort of formative assessment. I will also know if they understood what I was teaching by letting them all create their own poems and hearing several in front of the whole class. I will also have them all turn in their poems so I can read them on my own and assess them. If they made a poem that is about something important to them and expresses in a meaningful way how they want something to change or how they view the world in relation to their dreams, then I will know they grasped the concept of what I have taught and how things are important to them in their life.

Community Experience

I was able to go to the Food and Care Coalition in Provo and got to volunteer there. I brought about 100 brownies to serve and got to help with the lunch rotation for an hour and a half. It was such an awesome experience and very rewarding to serve the homeless and the needy there. I thought my experience would be sort of sad and I thought I would see all of these desperate and downtrodden people, but that wasn't what I saw at all. I think it had a lot to do with the way things were run there and the friendly hardworking people who made it a good experience not only for me but for the people who come and eat there every day. There were some workers in the kitchen that seemed like they worked there at the coalition, but some were regular volunteers and they all knew each other. I talked to one lady about how often she goes, and she does it once every week. She made it seem like it wasn't a big deal or very much, but I thought that was amazing! All the workers talked to me and made me feel really good about being there and joining their group. They were such happy and kind people. There was a young man in a wheelchair there who had some physical and mental disabilities, named Sam, and I'm not sure if he was related to anyone there or how he knew the workers, but he joined us in the kitchen and everyone made him feel so important and talked to him and teased him throughout the time I was there. It was so sweet.

I noticed that the homeless people were all very different in many ways. There were men and women. There were people of different races including Caucasian, Hispanic, African American, and probably more. There were people of all different ages: the elderly, children, and mostly middle aged people. Some looked like they had been through rougher times than others. Some looked like they had disabilities. Some were in families and some came all by themselves. They all looked like they hadn't showered or had clean clothes to wear, though. This was hard for me. I wondered whether they were able to stay sometimes at the coalition or if they had to live on the streets. I wondered where all their family members were and if they ever had help from them or from friends around them. Did they have any social capital? When they became homeless, were they cut off from their ties to people they knew? Did those people care about or want to help them? How did they become homeless? I also wondered what they did during the day, especially the children, who I thought should be in school but weren't. All these questions were running through my head the whole time, but I felt too bad to ask them. Was I thinking about these people as a deficit? I didn't mean to, but I think I was. I naturally feel bad for them and that they don't have enough to eat and live on their own. I want them to have what I have and have a warm house and food and clean clothes. So maybe it isn't always bad to think of people as having a problem or deficit? Maybe it's okay to feel sorry for someone and want to wish them the best?

I was surprised how many seemed like they knew each other, though. Although there were many loners, they sat down with people and usually smiled and looked like they had a good time. I was really happy to see this. I also was pleasantly surprised that many of them would come up to me and the other workers, thanking us for what we made them. Some of the workers seemed to know certain people really well and even knew what food preferences or allergies they had and were always trying to be accommodating and giving to them.

Overall, I really enjoyed my experience volunteering at the food and care coalition. I was so glad that there's people like the workers I worked with that care so much about the homeless and give of their time so often to help feed them. When I originally called the coalition to ask about volunteer opportunities they told me that their normal food serving jobs have to be booked months in advance because it fills up so fast with volunteers. This is amazing. Everything the workers do to prepare for and serve the people there is so efficient and seems so professionally done. It was a great place to work at, and you can see how happy it makes the people who come there. I'm so glad Provo has a place provided for the homeless to get a really great meal 3 times a day. I wish there were more of these places around. But I definitely know that it is helping our world and the problem of poverty, even just a little bit, by having a place like this and having such wonderful people serving there all the time.

The Oppression of the Lower Class in the United States

Just as this PowerPoint about Marxism says, a superstructure is a system where one social class controls all the other classes through law, education, media, religion, etc. 

I believe that the upper class, which definitely includes those in political power, make up this superstructure. They basically run the United States and make the decisions about what should be done in our country. Lower class people have no say in matters like law, education, and media. They don't have the money to make a difference. But should money and higher SES be the determining factor? 

History of Class Struggle

Above is a link to a website about class struggle. It is defined as a struggle over the surplus wealth created by the producing classes. 

In American history, it was the Europeans who introduced the U.S. to classes. They brought over feudalism, merchant capitalism, and even slavery. Having higher and lower classes and especially indentured servitude and slavery has brought about a lot of violence. 

One of the first examples was in 1676, when there was Bacon's Rebellion in Virginia, and slaves, indentured servants, and frontiersmen fought against the state government. 

Other small rebellions and fights led eventually to the Civil War, probably the greatest example of class struggle our country has had. Thankfully, slaves were freed and African Americans were given rights, in which they could try to improve their situation to rise to a higher class. Unfortunately, after slavery ended, class struggle lines became even more clear as the working class grew, as well as the upper class. The middle class became smaller and smaller as more people were trying to receive jobs and move up in society. 

Now, the United States still has a problem with where the wealth should be distributed, and we are still seeing people in the lower/working class who are trying to be heard but struggle to find a voice. In 2011, however, the Occupy Wall Street movement showed thousands of Americans unhappy with our government and financial situation. 

We've seen other protests in the past few years, as well, with fast food, retail, and service industries who feel they have been treated unfairly and have walked out or gone on strike. 

From The Washington Post, I found some typical stereotypes that people have with the Lower Class.

1. They do not value education

Too often this is linked to parents being involved in the school with activities going on, but just because poor parents cannot visit and participate does not mean they don't value their children's education.

2. They are lazy

This is simply not always true, because many lower class families are working full-time jobs and even work several jobs to provide for their children. It can be hard, too, for poor parents to find better jobs that give better benefits and more income. More than 1 out of 5 jobs in the U.S. pay at a rate that is below the poverty threshold. This is a problem. 

3. They are substance abusers

But actually, low-income workers are actually less likely than wealthier people to abuse or use alcohol. It is true that we see a lot of people in poverty drink, but this is mainly associated youth, not associated exactly with the lower class. 

4. They are linguistically deficient and poor communicators

It is true that many children from poor families come into school with not learning as many words as wealthier students. They also usually have lower reading levels at the beginning of school. But this does not mean that their language use is deficient or that it reflects on the parents as not valuing education. 

5. They are ineffective and inattentive parents

Most actually care a lot about their children and are very attentive to their needs. Single moms especially are known for encouraging their children to pursue higher education. 

Understanding that there is lower class individuals out there, I know that I am bound to have many students throughout my career as a teacher who are poor and come from lower class families. They may not have all the resources they need at home to feel successful in school, and so I want to get to know my students and provide what I can in the classroom to have their needs met, at least in school. With some cases, I may be lenient and more understanding, depending on situations that parents are in to help their children. I want to create a safe place where they do not have to be stressed about what their family worries about in the home, so they can relax and feel confident in doing their best and being happy. 

The article in our reading assignment "Invisible Inequality: Social Class and Childrearing in Black Families and White Families" talked about a study done comparing difference between middle class and working class/poor families. In the article, the working class was more passive towards schools and professional institutions. They usually didn't feel like they could express their opinions to teachers and usually didn't trust them. I think this was because they must have felt institutionalized oppression in the past. They are used to the higher classes getting their way and receiving what they need, and they feel useless and hopeless. 

I want to avoid this kind of oppression for my students who are in the lower class. I want to try my best to be a trustworthy and approachable individual that students and parents can come to for solutions or for help. I want to work out ways to improve the education of students who may have trouble reading at the beginning of the school year and want to reach out to parents to show my concern and love for their children. 

Being the "Other"

If you couldn't tell from my pictures, I went to a Spanish Catholic Church for Mass one evening this week. I was excited about the idea of going to something where the culture would be extremely different to me. For one thing, I can't speak Spanish, and another thing is that I'm LDS and have never been to a Catholic Mass before. As it was time to walk in, though, I was very worried about it and almost scared for the Hispanic people to see me. I was worried that some people might try to talk to me or ask me why I was there and I wouldn't be able to communicate back. No one spoke to me as I walked in, though, and I saw that surprisingly no one else was talking to each other either. Everyone who came in at different times, came in silently and focused and very reverent and sat down.

To start the mass, the priest entered the room from the back and everyone stood up as he got water from the pool (the 2nd picture) and walked up to the front. Everyone stayed standing throughout the meeting when the priest stood, or they would sit down when he told them to. I think this was a way they were showing respect for him, and the water he dipped his hand in was symbolic of sanctifying himself to be worthy to be there. This seemed really nice to me, although I was sort of tired of having to stand up and sit down so often, because I'm not used to that. In a Sacrament Meeting at my church, we get to sit down the whole time, with the exception of maybe standing up for an intermediate hymn. Another observation that I noticed that was very different to what I'm used to in Sacrament Meeting, is that their worship was very involved and had a lot of participation. The preacher would chant things and the congregation would chant certain things in unison back to him. They also sang songs quite a bit, and sometimes did hand actions with the songs or chants. I feel like they did these chants and songs because maybe they were reciting prayers or scriptures together. I felt a little confused when they did them, because I couldn't understand anything they were saying, but I tried to be involved by doing the hand actions they did.

Their communion was very different than my church's version of partaking of the sacrament. Instead of the priesthood holders saying prayers to bless the bread and water and then passing it out to everyone, the priest at the front had a whole series of things he did and said before people were able to partake. The congregation had to kneel down quite a bit, which was sort of uncomfortable to me, but I thought it taught a good message of being humble and respectful. Then, the priest chanted things as he prepared the bread and wine, but he only put them in one cup, instead of many. Then, something really confusing happened. Everyone got up and walked around for a couple minutes shaking people's hands. I had two people who came up to me and shook my hand and smiled at me, and I didn't know if I had to then talk to them, but they turned away and just shook hands with others. I felt relieved I didn't have to talk, and also happy because I thought that was a really nice thing for them to do. I'm not sure of what the purpose of this ritual is, but I felt like it had to do with loving others and being accepting as we are all brothers and sisters. Then, to finish communion, everyone went up at different times and got in a line to receive the bread and wine from the priest and his assistant. I was worried that I had to go up there too, but then realized they were drinking wine and I can't drink wine, so I just stayed seated and tried looking normal.

Overall, my experience of being the "other" went better than I expected. I feel like if I had to be more involved or talk to people during the service, I would have been really stressed out as to what I could say and explain why I was there, when I obviously wasn't Hispanic or Catholic. From this event, I realized that those who feel like the "other" must be worried and confused quite a bit of the time, like I was. They maybe can recognize or guess what is going on around them, but it is still hard for them to fully fit in and feel welcomed and normal. For students in a classroom who are the "other", there needs to be an inclusive pedagogy and environment for children to cope with being different and hopefully they will eventually feel accepted and not singled out.

Personal Cultural Artifacts

My Wedding Rings

My wedding ring and band are extremely important to me. They are a symbol of my love for my husband and how we are faithful to each other. I hardly ever take them off and so they have become a part of me. Many people in my culture have wedding rings to show their devotion and love for their spouse. 

My Cat, Simba

Although, I don't live with him anymore, (because he's at my Dad's house), I go and visit and take care of him frequently. The cats I've had growing up have become a major part of my life that I will always love and I will always be a "cat-person". Many people around me have pets, especially cats or dogs. We have them in our culture to take care of and have as a friend. 

A Delicious Pizza at Brick Oven

Going out to eat and eating really delicious food is one of my absolute favorite things to do. Eating American food, especially like this pizza, is part of my culture. Fast food and restaurants with usually unhealthy types of food are very common in the United States. 

My Scriptures

Every day I read in my scriptures. They are a symbol of my beliefs and values and contain the doctrines and teachings in my religion. Having scriptures and reading scriptures is a part of my religious culture and is even a way how Christians can worship. 

Mississippi Ornament

I served my mission in Mississippi, where I met so many of my favorite kinds of people, nature, food, and culture. It was completely different out there than Utah, where I had always lived before that. But ever since my mission, Mississippi has been a part of my culture and is a place I will always cherish and go back to. Things like the food, lingo, laid-back attitude, and friendly gestures that I got to experience out there have become a part of my life.

Painting of the Payson Utah Temple

This is the temple where I was married. It is, and all temples are, a symbol to me of the eternal truths of the gospel and how families can be together forever. I go there frequently to renew my covenants and live my life to be worthy to go there. Many church members do the same thing, in fact that is what we are often told to do when we need answers to prayers or need a peaceful place or way to serve the Lord. 

Photograph of My Wedding

This is a photograph of me and my husband getting married. This, and many other photographs around my house, remind me of my role as a wife every day. I live a culture of sharing with and serving and loving my husband. Being a wife is the most important thing to my life and what I have always dreamed of becoming. Having family pictures around the house is a part of the culture I live in. Many families do this to show others what is most important to them and want to preserve special memories. 

Ultrasound Pictures of My Baby

I am currently pregnant and am very excited for my baby and for being a mother soon. This is a constant focus and goal for me as I look up information and plan and live healthily to have a baby and become a parent soon. Having children is definitely a part of the culture I live in. People will have doctor visits and ultrasounds to check on the progress of their baby. 

Crocheted Baby Blanket

I'm crocheting a baby blanket right now for my baby. Crafts and sewing are a big part of who I am, and  making things for others is how I like to show my love for people. Making crafts and having hobbies like sewing are a part of the culture I live in. Many people enjoy working on projects like this in their free time. 

Present and Card for My Mom

My mom's birthday is tomorrow and so I got her a gift and card to give to her. Gift giving is a big part of my culture and I love celebrating people's birthdays and celebrating other occasions and holidays. Being with my loved ones and family is a big part of my life, especially since I live so close to where I grew up and live close to many relatives of mine. It is normal in our culture to give gifts and cards to people and wrap them up nice as a way to show appreciation for someone. 

Medicine

As I've been pregnant the last few months, I have gotten sick multiple times in multiple ways and have had to take different kinds of medicine very frequently. It's basically my life now to not feel very good and needing something or other to help with it. Many other people in my culture can relate to this, whether they are pregnant, or whether they are sick and have other health problems. Medicine is a necessity and usually is cheap and easy enough for people in my culture to obtain. 

Alarms on My Phone

My alarms on my phone represent me usually having a busy day, going from place to place, getting different things done. Even when I have spare time, I usually set a mental alarm for myself to only have a little bit of free time before doing something else and getting back to my schedule for the day. We live in such a fast-paced society and so my culture is used to having schedules and time limits like this. 

A To Do List on My Phone

I am definitely a list person. Everything I do or think of is displayed in my mind or on paper or in my phone digitally as a list. That is how I organize my thoughts and how I plan for the future and how I get things done throughout the day. 

Flowers

Nature and being outside, especially in the warm weather, is definitely part of my culture and represents who I am. I love just going for walks, looking at nature, just doing anything outside getting fresh air and warmth. Especially living here by the mountains, many people here with my same culture have a love for the outdoors and doing activities outside. 

DVDs

Watching TV shows and movies are a big part of my leisure life and are something I watch and enjoy every week. Media and TV are so popular in the culture I live, where people know movie stars and know the latest about what's happened or what movies came out. 

My Work Badge

I have a job working in custodial at BYU and so wearing this badge with my ID has become part of my uniform. It represents my job I do every day. Many other jobs require some sort of uniform or involve objects that go along with the job. 

Books from My Classes

Textbooks for my classes represent the school aspect of my culture and especially these ones represent who I want to be, as I am studying Elementary Education and want to teach many things to students as a teacher. Having textbooks and lots of materials for classes is a big part of going to school at college in my culture. 

My Clothes in My Closet

My clothing is part of my culture. I love wearing nice blouses, colorful outfits with prints, and comfy maternity clothes (now that I'm pregnant). Clothing like this is normal for women in my culture to have. 

Fruit Pizza and Normal Pizza

I love baking and cooking and do it now almost every day! I really enjoy making things and expanding my knowledge of cooking, but am also a poor college student and so I try to keep meals relatively cheap. 

Kissing My Husband Goodbye (or to Say Hello)

I don't mean to put PDA in here, but kissing my husband goodbye when either of us leave somewhere, or kissing as a greeting when we see each other again is a tradition of ours. It's a norm in my culture with him as his wife to always greet or say goodbye to each other by kissing and hugging each other. 

Reflection

I have learned that my culture largely revolves around me being a wife and a mother. Those two things have always been the most important goals of my life and now that I am achieving them, I really try hard to center my life around those. Family has always been so important to me and so are my religious beliefs about families and marriage and being together forever. This is very common in my culture and how I identify myself in society. I also have realized that my culture isn't just about the things I wear or eat, or even just the things I like to do. It also has to do with just how my natural every day goes and the things I do with my time and how I organize that time and manage the things in my life. I think my culture can be a help in a school setting. Since I am so focused on family and my roles as a wife and mother, I think I will also be very dedicated as a teacher to children that I care about and want to help learn and grow. I also think that with my mental alarms I set for myself and daily lists of things to do and think about, I can be responsible and plan out what needs to be done for my students in the classroom. 

Imagined Classroom

1. Five images (you can take them or they can come from the Internet [provide proper credit]). These images should reflect, in some way, what you imagine your classroom will look like once you are a teacher. Please annotate your images by providing a description of the image and how it relates to your future classroom.

I want my classroom to be engaging for the students. I want them involved in discussions and participate in the learning process. I think that teaching them as a group and having them come up close, sitting on a rug, is great for having students participate. If I want them to talk about a certain thing to their neighbor, they are sitting right there and can do it easily. 

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f1/School-education-learning-1750587-h.jpg

I want my classroom desks set up in small groups so they make different tables. This will create a good collaborative environment where they can learn and talk with their peers in group activities. 

http://media.cmgdigital.com/shared/lt/lt_cache/thumbnail/960/img/photos/2012/04/28/95/fc/ddn072111gzschnell_982313a.jpg

I want my classroom to be a happy place where children can feel good about themselves, no matter what race, gender, or background they come from. 

https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsDr8scr8cl9YqFjgw1AyJpKD4_glM_mkg1lElVfmOT9Ads1XzSN1J0V0IZBu8VwWKC4RNfvuT-EsW-6b6fGTf8Rm2x9iDmoEPQ8RQ4lfpiTsm45RTHIi1KGQLY2B271MutiaNEJivXpE/s1600/holland+giess.jpg

I want my classroom to be colorful and bright and fun. 

http://www.tkcalifornia.org/assets/homepage-panels/teacher-reads-large-book.jpg

I want my classroom to have plenty of resources and ways my students can learn and be excited about learning. So by having arts and crafts, books, computers, and other materials, they can feel like they have what they need to be successful and learn. 

http://go-neighborhoods.org/northside/files/2013/03/LAImage-181SMALL.jpg

2. Imagine the surrounding in your classroom. What does the room look like? What resources are available for students? How are the resources used during the lesson?

The room is set up with desks pushed together to make several small tables. There are lots of colorful posters and materials on the walls for the children to learn from and look at to be excited to learn. There will be sight words up on the board to remind the students of what they are learning about that week. There will be lots of books and arts and crafts materials. There will be blocks to help with math problems. There will be a few computers (if they can fit) for times that children are in rotations and use the computers for assignments. There is a overhead projector and white board for me to do my main whole group teaching on. There will also be a colorful rug for my students to all sit on as I read them stories or as we have certain focus lessons where I want them to participate and discuss things with their neighbor.

3. Describe the students in your classroom. What are their backgrounds? What are their interests? What are they doing during the lesson?

My students come from different cultural backgrounds. Some are Caucasian, some African American, some Hispanic. Some of the Hispanic students mainly speak Spanish and so they are English Language Learners. Some also come from different households where there parents are divorced, they live with a grandparent, they live in poverty, or some live with really wealthy parents and are spoiled. They are all interested in having fun and playing with their friends. They like playing sports and dancing and watching movies and TV. They are sometimes talking to their neighbors when they shouldn't during the lesson. But they know they will get called out for it, so they sometimes whisper. They try to pay attention though, and love sharing their own ideas and opinions when we have group discussions. During this particular lesson, they have their writing notebooks out and are sitting in their chairs looking up front at me for instruction.

4. Describe you classroom policies. What are you classroom rules? What is your discipline plan? What are your homework policies?

Students have to raise their hand if they want to speak when I am up front talking to them as a class. There is no name calling or bullying allowed. If they do something to hurt someone's feelings, they will have a talk with me outside of the classroom. If they keep doing it, I will call their parents. Also, if they do something to disrupt the class and the lesson, I will do the same discipline plan. If I have to I will have students trade seats with someone else. My homework policy is that if they turn it in late, they have to have their parents sign their paper and have them write down why it is late. If more than 4 homework assignments are late, they will start losing points.

5. Describe a typical lesson you will teach in your classroom. What will you teach? What is the topic? Why did you choose this topic? How will you teach it? What is the main thing you want students to learn during this lesson?

I'll teach a writing lesson on poetry and skills to use as students write poems. I specifically want them to learn to write poems that use descriptive imagery because I think it is important that they can explain themselves clearly and poetically. They can create images using new and interesting words to them. I will show them different examples of poems using descriptive imagery. Then I will ask the students to help me point out what some of the descriptive words were and why they made the poem more interesting. I will have students help me write a poem and then have them write their own individual poems using descriptive words. The main thing I want my students to learn is to understand why descriptive imagery in poems is important and how they can use it in their own writing to make a topic more interesting.

6. Imagine your work as a teacher during this lesson. What are you doing during the lesson?

I am showing examples of poems and reading to the class. I am asking the class questions and trying to get a discussion going about the topic. I am getting their input and brainstorming with them as I teach and write a poem with them as a class. I am letting them write on their own and then getting different students to share what they wrote. I am always being positive about what they say and write.

7. Imagine your students again, what are they doing during the lesson?

My students are sitting in their desks, listening to the examples. They are discovering certain words and sharing their answers about what made the poems descriptive and interesting. They are helping me brainstorm and think of ideas for our own class poem as I write it on the board. They are using what they just learned and are creating their own poem by writing it in their writing notebooks. They then are sharing their poems with the class and are proud of themselves that they accomplished something new.

8. Imagine how you will assess your students' learning and achievement. How will you know they have learned?

I will know that my students have learned by hearing their answers and ideas as they brainstormed with me. I will also know if they understood what I was teaching by letting them all create their own poems and hearing several in front of the whole class. I will also have them all turn in their poems so I can read them on my own and assess them.