In the past, the way to categorize anything surrounding humankind was based on the color of the skin. Think of it like this: white was where the power and intelligence lay, followed by the Natives, with always the black race beneath everyone else-horrendous hierarchy. This belief was due to characteristics of how far the race was from primates- scientific racism. p. 31

Boas-changed the "race ideals" into the concept of culture. Culture is inherent in societies-knowledge, belief, art, morals, law, custom, and any other concept that creates a society and defines a human in that society. Boas' argument is that groups of people borrowed culture from each other and changed it or "evolved" the culture to suit their surroundings and needs. pp. 31-32.

Pros: looks at the human race as equal

culture defines what makes us different

Cons: makes race invisible?

takes the culture away from the race that created it p.32

Does culture provide the framework for the behavioral rules for all individuals to follow within that particular culture?

mentalist- culture is inside of head

system of ideas

materialist-culture is a response on how to deal with the conditions of living/surviving

gives humans the chance to adapt to environment p.33

One last question: does culture have "neat boundaries?"

One of the issues with culture that is recurring in education-the blame game. Viewing poor and marginalized students through the lens of deficiencies due to the language practices, social practices, and attitudes towards academic achievement that differ from the colloquial framework. p. 34

Thoughts that give the blame factors:

culture of poverty

households of marginalized groups are low in cognitive and social resources for knowledge

perhaps a culture of nonachievement?

view as "others" p. 35

Coming to know your students

The thought process that teachers need to understand the cultures of their students in order to bridge the gap between the culture of the classroom and the culture of the home. The attitude that school was more academic and perhaps not making connections with the students due to their own cultural bound. The main issue with this approach is to assume all members of the same culture have the same integrated view of their culture. This added to the power dynamics between the dominant and the marginalized populations-teachers are the fixers. p. 35

Cultural frame of reference p.35

• recent immigrants do better in school

• minoritized students underperform

• shift gaze from micro to macro

• power structural shifts

• understanding the historical patterns and how they affect minoritized groups

Paul Willis (1977)

Cultural Production p. 36

• agency-to disregard some parts of culture while retaining others

• students choose what to take or add to their individual cultures to form their own identity

• culture should be seen as an adaptive mechanism

Both view culture as a concept that can be manipulated and changing, not as a static way of living/thinking or even learning.

Culture p. 39

• a set of inquiries

• reactive and proactive

Funds of Knowledge p. 42

• view that lived experiences are knowledge sources

• daily activities