https://padlet.com/highlanderfan/7e848zeda3p6 An Analysis of Multicultural Education in Television Shows and Film en-us 2017-05-13 22:52:31 UTC 2017-05-16 03:27:47 UTC hello@padlet.com highlanderfan https://padlet.com/highlanderfan/7e848zeda3p6/wish/171643662 One of the most frequent micro aggressions committed against students of color is the mispronunciation of their "ethnic" names. Names are very intimately connected to identity. It speaks to cultures, traditions, history, and family. Young people learn to define themselves by their name. Unfortunately, when teachers come across unfamiliar names, many either mispronounce them or change them altogether, shortening or anglicizing them. These actions communicate to students that their culture and identity are unimportant to their teachers and schools. It is not overt racism in that the students are not being segregated or deliberately put down. In fact, some teachers may argue that they are assisting students with acculturation and assimilation. However, despite these good intentions, this type of micro aggression indicates to students that who they are is abnormal, unusual, something to be changed. 

The video below is a humorous representation of what happens when teachers mispronounce students' names. In the clip, the substitute teacher, Mr. Garvey very proudly proclaims that he has spent years in inner city schools and then proceeds to call attendance. He, unknowingly, mispronounces every name on the attendance list and then gets very upset at the students when they don't respond. The students are bewildered and unsure how to react as he gets more and more irritated. Some of them seem have fear in their eyes. Although this video is meant to be factional and funny, it touches on some very real occurrences that happen in classrooms across America everyday. The satire of a class who is composed almost entirely of "white kids" being jarred out of their comfort zone by a black substitute teacher who "African-Americanizes" the students' names becomes markedly poignant and insightful given the reality of certain racist actions in our minority students' educational experiences. These actions are not typically called out in our mainstream media, so it is especially interesting to see this being acknowledged by a show like Key and Peele. ]]> 2017-05-13 23:58:28 UTC https://padlet.com/highlanderfan/7e848zeda3p6/wish/171643662 highlanderfan https://padlet.com/highlanderfan/7e848zeda3p6/wish/171644023 Many people mistakenly believe that we live in a post-racist society and that education has become equal solely because of court cases such as Brown v. Board of Education or Lau v. Nichols. Some people argue that all students get the opportunity for a free education to learn, to excel, and to make something of themselves. Unfortunately, too much research has shown that much of our education has become tinged with overt and covert racism. Although standards are absolutely necessary in order to ensure that we hold all students to the same expectations, standardized testing and the measurement of proficiency is often problematic because it favors topics that require background knowledge many minority students may not possess. As educators, we must expect students to make progress, but it is also important to acknowledge where the students come from, taking them from their current level and challenging to improve.

In this clip from one of the most famous education movies of all time, Dangerous Minds, the character played by Michelle Pfeiffer tries to convince her principal that the students need an alternate curriculum. The principal, however, insists that she just follow the board approved readings even if they may not be level-appropriate or culturally-responsive. In this scene, Pfeiffer's character does not know how to respond but to agree. This film provides commentary on the detriment it may cause students for schools and teachers to strictly adhere to standardized curriculum. As new teachers in schools, we must seek advice from other colleagues with more experience, but we also must listen to our students' needs and interests, so that we can meet them where they are and take them where they need to go. ]]> 2017-05-14 00:14:58 UTC https://padlet.com/highlanderfan/7e848zeda3p6/wish/171644023 highlanderfan https://padlet.com/highlanderfan/7e848zeda3p6/wish/171644054 Although it may seem counterintuitive, another microagression that is detrimental to student achievement is the model minority myth. Asian students are often portrayed in the media as "nerds" and "geeks" who are good at math and school. This can be very harmful to students because it pigeonholes them into stereotypes. Many of our Asian student come from a variety of backgrounds, especially students whose families are from Southeast Asian countries. When we believe in and operate on the belief of the model minority myth, we reduce all student experiences down to one characteristic, their ability to achieve. While we under-expect from some students, we begin to over-expect from others, losing sight of the challenges that some students face. This can be very limiting to struggling Asian stuffs because they begin to feel inadequate and abnormal: "if all Asians can achieve, then what's wrong with me?" Or, they feel intense pressure to stay on top, at any cost and any sacrifice. Students and teachers alike also come to see that achievement of skills in certain areas (math) must be related to ethnicity rather than hard work or good teaching. 

In this compilation of clips from the movie Better Luck Tomorrow, we meet a group of model minority students who are extremely good at school and other aspects of their life, such as their part time jobs and relationships. However, we quickly find out that the pressure to be perfect becomes overwhelming and they begin resorting to a life of petty crime and ultimately murder. This piece of media demonstrates a piece of often-believed stereotype about Asian students: they are smart and quiet. However, the movie also flips the myth and demonstrates the detrimental effect it can have on these students.]]> 2017-05-14 00:15:47 UTC https://padlet.com/highlanderfan/7e848zeda3p6/wish/171644054 highlanderfan https://padlet.com/highlanderfan/7e848zeda3p6/wish/171644138 Another form of microagression against minority students is low expectations. Many minority students are placed into remedial courses or courses that require very few challenges of them. Once again, much of this programming is not due to poor intentions. No responsible counselor holds students back on purpose. Many of them may even argue that they are ensuring that students have a chance to learn foundational skills before they move on, giving them chances to take the more rigorous classes. However, even with the best of intentions, minority students such as blacks and Latinos, often never get placed into advanced placement courses. Because of this, we are not only doing them a disservice from being able to adequately prepare them for college and careers, we are effectively telling them that we do not believe in their abilities and that we expect them to do less because they are less. 

In this video clip from Stand and Deliver, the teacher Jaime Escalante wants to teach his students calculus. As he runs this idea by other teachers in a department meeting, they begin discrediting his idea. One teacher laughs outwardly, and the department chair calls it ridiculous since the students hadn't taken trigonometry or math analysis. Mr. Escalante has very high expectations for his students, wanting them to go to summer school even on Saturdays. Nobody sitting around the table seems to be able to understand his vision or expectations. In fact, the department becomes upset that Mr. Escalante cannot understand her perspective that if the students fail, he will dash what little confidence they have left. This portrayal of low expectations in pop culture is quite accurate in some schools. Many minority students are being held back not because of their abilities but because of the systems that we have set up to prevent them from advancing. ]]> 2017-05-14 00:19:56 UTC https://padlet.com/highlanderfan/7e848zeda3p6/wish/171644138 highlanderfan https://padlet.com/highlanderfan/7e848zeda3p6/wish/171644390 There are many important aspects to becoming a true multicultural educator. Teaching is a political act, and although teachers are not politicians, we must understand our roles in shaping the power structures of education for our students. California is a diverse place filled with students of different ethnic backgrounds, religions, socio-economic statuses, sexual orientations, abilities, etc. We can no longer use the “one-size-fits-all” model andignore the harm that we have committed against some of our students in our attempt to fit them into that mold. As educators, we can affirm our students’ identities and help them feel valued and empowered. In order to become an effective multicultural educator, we must be open-minded, be willing to learn about the history of our students, be updated with culturally responsive education, be prepared to implement sound pedagogy, and be kind and caring models for our students.

In this clip from the Freedom Writers, one of the very quiet students comes forward to read what he has written about the teacher Erin Gruwell. He is so quiet, in fact, that his fellow classmates don't know his name even though they have spent years together in class. He talks about the challenges he's experienced and the excitement he feels for learning, especially at getting to be taught by Ms. Gruwell. Although this film seems to heavily emphasize the "savior complex" of a whites woman coming to save the lives of this group of ethnically children, it seems that the students' in the film genuinely care for and respect her because she is a true embodiment of good multicultural teaching. ]]> 2017-05-14 00:29:04 UTC https://padlet.com/highlanderfan/7e848zeda3p6/wish/171644390 highlanderfan https://padlet.com/highlanderfan/7e848zeda3p6/wish/171644495 In American public schools, race, ethnicity, gender, and socio-economic status are frequently barriers to student achievement. Latino and African-American families often suffer from poverty due to institutional oppression. However, as Pedro Noguera points out in his speech, “Poverty is not a learning disability,” and schools should not treat it as such. It is essential then that educators become aware of the structural and organizational aspects of schools contributing to discriminatory practices. Only then can we support social justice efforts in our classrooms in order to begin to empower our students toward achievement. 

In this clip from the movie Won't Back Down, the two main characters galvanize a group of parents and community members to restructure the school because the current structure has prevented the students from succeeding. As the character portrayed by Viola Davis cites, "Seven out of 10 students who leave the school cannot read." While this statistic may seem overexaggerated, we cannot deny that many of our schools have failed our minority students for too long. Instead of investing in schools and ensuring our students have adequate funding to go to college, our government has spent a lot of money building prisons. This particular film highlights the inequities of our system. While the portrayal seems overly biased, with administration and district personnel as the "bad guys," there is much truth to the situation it addresses in the movie. ]]> 2017-05-14 00:33:44 UTC https://padlet.com/highlanderfan/7e848zeda3p6/wish/171644495 highlanderfan https://padlet.com/highlanderfan/7e848zeda3p6/wish/171644771 LGBTQ issues are not new to education, but it is a recent phenomenon in that they are being discussed in an open, inclusive, and accepting manner. Historically, many students have had to "stay in the closet" at school. Those who have come out have either had to suffer discrimination by teachers or bullying by students. Now, schools must face head on issues such as same-sex dates for schools dances, public displays of affection for same-sixes couples, cyberbullying for LGBTQ students, and bathrooms for students who are transgendered or transitioning. Traditionally, multicultural education may not have included LGBTQ issues, but these are realities that educators must address now. 

In this clip also from the TV show Glee, we meet Santana, an extremely popular student and captain of the cheerleading squad. Before this scene, there had been rumors of her being with another female cheerleader, but in this instance, she admits completely and wholeheartedly to being gay. Although some of the other cheerleaders are surprised, they do not seem unaccepting. What is more unusual, however, seems to be the positive and kind reaction of coach Sue Sylvester, who can be mean hearted and mean spirited in many ways. This seems to provide commentary on the importance of positive teacher modeling in dealing with coming out stories. Students look to us in order to determine a reaction, and in this case, Sylvester was able to provide the "right" reaction for the other students to see. ]]> 2017-05-14 00:47:57 UTC https://padlet.com/highlanderfan/7e848zeda3p6/wish/171644771 highlanderfan https://padlet.com/highlanderfan/7e848zeda3p6/wish/171644841 DisabilitiesThere are many types of disabilities that students face in schools. Some of them are physical, others are emotional, and still others cognitive. That is why Special Education exists--in order to provide students equal and equitable access to education and ensure that all students have an opportunity to receive an solid education as preparation for postsecondary  education and beyond. Up until the 1970s, our education system has not always been kind or accepting of these students and their families. Schools had the right to turn them away if they didn't fit the mold, or they have told parents of children with disabilities that they could not serve them because they did not have the services. However, with policies such as the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, students can no longer be turned away. Instead, schools must do their best in order to prove free and appropriate education (FAPE) under the least restrictive environments (LRE). Schools must find ways to differentiate, scaffold, and accommodate for these students' disabilities. 

In pop culture, especially film and TV, there is very little representation of people of disability. It is even rarer to find a student with a disability who isn't portrayed as helpless, pitiful, sad, or distraught. All disabilities seem to be challenges that must be overcome. Think of examples such as What's Eating Gilbert Grape. In the following clip from the TV show Glee, we meet Becky Jackson, a student with Down Syndrome. If it is rare to see disabled people on TV and film, then it is even more unusual to see people with Down Syndrome. Perhaps what is even more out of the ordinary is the show's treatment of Becky. She is not a person to be pitied. Instead, she has sass. She plots and schemes against other students. She is capable of doing bad but also doing good. She feels deeply and has dreams. This is an unusual portrayal of students with disabilities since most of them are reduced to stereotypes, but it is refreshing to see that Becky is treated as a "real" person. ]]> 2017-05-14 00:51:49 UTC https://padlet.com/highlanderfan/7e848zeda3p6/wish/171644841 highlanderfan https://padlet.com/highlanderfan/7e848zeda3p6/wish/171645019 The language of schools is often referred to as Standard English. However, many of our minority students do not come to schools fluent in Standard English. In fact, many of them of often English learners or Standard English learners. English learners (EL) are defined as students who enroll in our schools without a proficient grasp of the English language. They may be newcomers from another country or children who grew up in the United States with another home language. Standard English learners (SEL) are students who learned a different type of English in their homes. These might include African-American English or Ebonics, Mexican-American English, or even Hawaiian-American English. Many of these students struggle with education not because they cannot learn Standard English, but because the languages they bring are considered deficits. Their home languages are considered inadequate, useless, unsuccessful, and unwanted in this country. Additionally, students who speak these minority languages often go to schools in communities that are poverty-stricken with teachers who lack experience, knowledge, preparation, or skills for helping these ELs or SELs. This compounds the challenges they face when learning Standard English. Although it is no small feat, schools must hire teachers who are culturally responsive and responsible, people who acknowledge the strengths that students bring to school, and teach them to codeswitch between different languages and different worlds. Language is a tool, and we need to value the tools the students already have while teaching them new tools to use for life. 

The video shown below in a humorous example of the different vernaculars of English. At first, the video portrays the manager who speaks Ebonics as a caricature. She is crass, unsophisticated, and intimidating to her workers. That's why the new employee imitates her. However, as he gets caught in his imitation, he quickly codeswitches. He understands that to stay in good graces with the manager, he must continue this facade. As the years continue however, he becomes more and more proficient in his use of Ebonics, so much so that it becomes his default language. This video demonstrates two things to educators: 1) we are often too quick to discredit languages we don't understand and 2) when students learn to use language as a tools, they can become successful in different arenas. It is unfortunate that the video still portrays the language of Ebonics as rude and unprofessional, but that is also commentary on how pop culture often views vernacular that is not Standard English. 

]]> 2017-05-14 01:00:36 UTC https://padlet.com/highlanderfan/7e848zeda3p6/wish/171645019 highlanderfan https://padlet.com/highlanderfan/7e848zeda3p6/wish/171645164 Historically, much of American education has focused on making students the "same." This often entails that we ask our student to forget and forgo their culture in order to fit in. They become marginalized. However, we now know that this marginalization has resulted in either resentment of the system or internalized racism. When people think about diversity, they often think about race or ethnicity, but they are focused on foods and festivals as demonstrated by multicultural week that most schools have. It is never about how to truly honor the cultural identity of our students.

In this clip from the TV show, the Goldbergs, the subject of Christmas is addressed. The mom wants desperately to include her family in the celebration of Christmas as it is the mainstream holiday. This occurs to the dismay of her father who feels like she has sold out and butchered traditional Jewish practices. Although not directly related to education, students can feel marginalized because of holidays celebrated and acknowledged versus the ones that aren't. When it comes to education, it often feels like some cultures are more respected and prioritized than others. Many of our students from minority cultures feel pressured to conform so that they do not seem "weird." ]]> 2017-05-14 01:06:14 UTC https://padlet.com/highlanderfan/7e848zeda3p6/wish/171645164