How Mr. Cardinal opened my eyes...rethinking schools assignment

Michele Russo

“I See Birds Everywhere I Go”- Engaging Urban Students in the Natural World; by Ellen Royse

“Look Mom...it’s Mr. Cardinal! Hi Mr. Cardinal!” Those sweet little words that my 2 year old yells aloud while he is amazed at the sights and sounds around him while so innocently standing on the pavement.  How adorable.  How pure.  How beautiful.  To be able to share in that excitement would be a wonderful skill.  I think to myself, “Why have I never noticed that beautiful cardinal?” How is it possible that my two year old son is so magically aware of the beauty that surrounds us while there I am fidgeting on my cell phone, as I quickly scroll through emails and reminders for the week.  Wow....I’m kind of jealous of his unique, capable little mind.  Why didn’t I notice that cardinal?  Why don’t I notice those birds that swarm around so sweetly in the sky?  What else am I so preoccupied with that I can’t look up for one minute and see the beautiful sights of nature?

In scrolling through the rethinkingschools.org website, I became particularly intrigued by the article titled "I See Birds Everywhere I Go"- Engaging Urban Students in the Natural World; by Ellen Royse Ellen begins her story by informing us that she grew up in rural Kentucky, where nature was always considered a beautiful sanctuary.  She speaks of always being aware of the presence of nature and all the wonderful things it has to offer us- just as the beautiful wildlife that flies right above our heads.  Ellen eventually moves to Washington, D.C. where she obtains a job teaching Urban Ecology to high school seniors.  She recalls the moment that she eagerly takes her students to Rock Creek Park for an educational experience.  She explains that her students, who are all primarily black and latino, have the face of fear written all over them.  Ellen stated that “they were afraid for their personal safety away from the protection of street lights and watchful neighbors; the woods became a maze where people were vulnerable to attack.”  How naive Ellen had been- she thought.  How was her perception of the woods, so beautiful, peaceful and relaxing so completely opposite of that of her students?  She goes on to note that while walking through the woods, items such as televisions in garbage bags, used condoms and needles paved the pathways into the woods.  How had she never noticed such things before?  How enlightening...How amazing it is that we are all surrounded by that same thing, but that we are not all seeing the same things.  Our lenses are all different and unique.  How can she teach them the beauty of nature when all they are seeing is fear and disgust?

Ellen informs the students that their assignment will be to “adopt a bird,” and to learn everything about that bird- from what they look and sound like to what they eat and where they may come from.  She encourages them to study them closely through the high quality binoculars that she purchased for the classroom students.  The students were more than reluctant and at times seemed resistant to this assignment.  She begins by giving them two quizzes- one in which they must name the brand names of items that are depicted in pictures that she shows, and the other for them to name each bird that she shows.  Ironically enough, the students aced the brand name quiz and very much flunked the bird quiz.  Why is that, she asked?  Students commented such things like, “we see brands everyday.  We don’t see the birds,” and how “people will never value birds the same way that they do Nikes.”  Wow...is this what our world has come to?  We are all so engrossed in today’s culture that we must have the best of the best and such high quality things that we forget the beauty that surrounds us.  

This assignment certainly became an enlightening experience for all of the students.  Ellen mentions that the students eventually found that in “naming the birds it gave them both value and individuality.”  Almost as if they now had meaning.  The students came up with their own mnemonics for the sounds that each individual bird exhibited.  Eventually the students were eager to go back into the woods to see what other species they could learn and study about.  This creative teaching approach (something that is only thought to be offered to the elite and professional class) was something that was offered to these ‘black and latino students.’  It did them great good, as several of them ended up going to college to study science, biology and even urban ecology due to this wonderful educational experience they were so very lucky to be a part of in Ellen’s class.  

I found this article extremely moving on a personal level.  Why are we surrounded by so many “things” that we don’t even notice the beauty around us?  Luckily for me, my adorable little two year old was smart enough to point such beauty out to me.  Such beauty that I neglected to notice.  Such beauty that I was “too busy” or too careless to see.  My son taught me something that Ellen taught one of her students…”Now I can’t go anywhere without seeing birds.”  Thanks Mr. Cardinal for opening my eyes.

Is America really the land of opportunity???

Is American really the land of opportunity???  Or is opportunity only available for the rich?  As this article pointed out in chapter 3, pg. 22- it seems as if the "rich get richer and the poor get poorer."  If I'm being honest, this article was a tad long to me and at times I found myself dozing off....on several different occasions, unfortunately.  After the previous assignment we completed this past weekend, this was not nearly as captivating for me.

I will say however, that I found it quite intriguing to learn about Anyon's study and the differences between all of the different "classes" of schooling.  The dominant themes that were mentioned around the working and middle class and then the affluent professional and executive elite classes were quite astonishing.  The words such as resistance, possibility, individualism and excellence really stood out to me, as did the different teaching styles that each "class" was provided with.  There was a line on chapter 1 that struck me..."sources of inequality are so subtle that the average parent, teacher, student and taxpayer are not conscious of them at all."  What does this mean exactly?  Does this mean that others are not necessarily aware of how kids that come from different "classes" are taught differently? Or are parents aware that their children are all taught differently (in the same state, ironically) and that it is just acceptable because it always has been "that way?"  Something about that statement really caught my eye...

It was equally interesting to me to see the different teaching styles in each class.  For example, the working class mirrored the more "do what I say and don't ask any questions," where the affluent professionals encouraged creativity and conversations surrounding current events.  It really seemed that the affluent students are encouraged to use higher level thinking skills, where the working class settles on lower level thinking skills.  Kind of sad to me, if you ask...Children in the higher classes were also given more freedom---such as not needing passes, being able to leave the class without permission, being able to speak out openly and honestly.  It almost seemed as if the working and middle class students can't be trusted as much as those who belong to the wealthier classes.  Talk about stigma....

My last talking point refers to page 20 of this article where the different classes and their career paths were all touched upon.  The working class aims for more of the "mechanical work with lower pay, the middle- keeps society producing and running smoothly, the affluent professional create products and art where the executive elite learn to be masters of the universe.  Talk about culture of power....

I believe that Finn is arguing that we need to have equal educational opportunities and justice throughout.  High quality and creative education needs to be given to all and not just those in power.

Tears...

Michele Russo

This American Life-The Problem We All Live

Nikole Hannah Jones

Well this was certainly my most favorite piece thus far.  I felt myself tearing up on many occasions while I listened to This American Life- The Problem We All Live With . How moving, touching and truly sad this all was.  I felt as if I wanted to jump through the speaker and hold Mah-ria’s hand and tell her “I'm so sorry that you are going through this.”

Four and a half pages later, I sit back and read through my notes.  There were several pieces of Nikole’s article that jumped out to me.  Pieces such as “same convos, never works,” “bad schools never caught up to the good” and “we haven’t closed the achievement gap.”  At one point Nikole shared her personal experience with being part of a desegregation process as a young child.  She recalled getting up early to get on the bus- referring to it as a very hard thing to do.  She then made a really significant statement….”We were taken out of our community and put into someone else’s community.  We never felt like we belonged.”  How powerful that she speaks of the separation of communities---communities that were in the same state.  She referred to her own community and then specified someone else’s community.  I was particularly intrigued by that comment.  

My heartstrings were pulled on a hundred times over while listening to this piece.  First, when Nikole describes the memory that has stuck with her over her lifetime- that being the pool incident.  Her white friends were invited to her side of the community and her pool.  They all, one by one, graciously declined the invite, as their parents had all said no, but “you can come to my pool.”  The separation of both a “black pool” and a “white pool” is enough to make me cringe.  You couldn’t even swim together?  Heartbreaking.  

The tears really built up when listening to poor Mah-ria’s story.  This sweet, kind and intelligent lady.  She truly seemed to be full of life.  So much to offer.  However, has not been granted the opportunity.  The opportunity of an equal and worthy education.  Both her and her mother gave us a true depiction of the Normandy School District.  Mah-ria’s school had been on probation for 15 years----how does that happen??? How can you be on probation for 15 years???? What does it take to lose accreditation???? I thought about that over and over again----mind boggling, really.  The excitement in Mah-ria’s voice when learning that she was finally going to be given an equal and worthy opportunity, both educationally and socially, when learning of the “transfer law” and being informed about her transfer to Frances Howell school, provided me with a sigh of relief.  Finally, this girl would have a chance---a chance at something that once seemed inexplicably impossible.  She speaks of her attendance at the town meeting, where parents of children at Frances Howell spoke of their frustrations and anger about the merging of schools.  Many statements were made such as “What is going to happen to our accreditation,?  Are we going to have metal detectors and drug sniffing dogs,?  I don’t want to worry about my child being stabbed or taking a drug.  We don’t want this bad behavior coming into our school.”  Two particular comments that were made stood out to me.  So much so, that I capitalized them in large letters with several underlines and exclamation points…..OUR COMMUNITY!!!  OUR SIDE OF THE BRIDGE!!!!  Ugh- made me sick to my stomach.  All I could think about was the heartbreak that Mah-ria and her mother were experiencing.  Truly gut-wrenching.  Mah-ria’s mother’s comments about her own child- potentially being the one who could “be a doctor and save their kid’s lives,” was one that also made me smile.  She was right---100% right.  How could those parents sit back and judge these poor, underprivileged children who are so deserving of great things?  They are children for god’s sake….children.  

I loved listening to this.  I really did.  Nikole’s key points on how successful desegregation truly is was spot on. It’s really upsetting to me that it’s still “uninvited to the table.” I felt it to be especially empowering listening to real life moments of both Mah-ria’s experience and the parents remarks at the town meeting.  I wonder if the parents of Frances Howell listened to this interview- from start to finish- would feel differently about their remarks.  Could they put their kids in Mah-ria’s shoes? Maybe it would be seen in a different light...Maybe they would see that in order to get to the other side of the bridge, you must cross the whole thing.

Mean Lisa

Damn  you Lisa Delpit.  You really annoyed me in this one.  What's with the blame game???  Are we "white people" that terrible???  Really??? Man oh man I'm frustrated with this one.  I highly disagree with the fact that we are "too headstrong," and that we "think we know what's best for everybody and for everybody's children. (p21)"  I know what is best for myself and my own children...not anyone else's and I don't feel that I come off that way at all.  I feel like some of these statements were sooooo generalized and insulting; such as "they listen but they don't hear," referring to "us" as a 'cancer' or a 'sore. (p. 21)'  On page 24, the term 'miscommunication' is utilized.  This doesn't exactly sound as if "we" are perceived as miscommunicaters, but more so that there is some type of 'blame game' being put on us.  That we are terrible and ignorant beings.  Although I am not necessarily a "teacher" per say, I do educate my students in the health office and my patients in the hospital on a continued basis.  My 'teaching style' is based around empathy and guidance.  I felt that Delpit was implying that if we are not "overly harsh" then we are not doing our jobs right.  Who are you to judge Delpit?  I don't want others to remember me as "harsh and mean."  That's not my style.  So am I know being judged for my style and beliefs?  Why can't we all just get along?!?! I guess it all comes back to Johnson...

Lisa Delpit argues that whites are poor educators ....

Insight- A valuable skill that must be learned

Michele Russo

Color Blindness is the New Racism

Dictionary.com defines insight in a variety of ways.  Some particular pieces of the definition that stood out to me were as follows...."an instance of apprehending the true nature of a thing," "the recognition of sources of emotional difficulty." As a Registered Nurse, I speak to insight quite frequently.  Although I am currently working in the school setting, I remain working per diem at Butler Hospital.  Throughout my 9 years of working within this institution I frequently encourage my patients to have future insight into what their treatment can provide them with. Although I speak frequently to focusing on the 'here and now,' I applaud them in times when they express future insight and recognition.  I have always thought of insight as a particularly positive and healthy tool, in which all beings require in order to see the world as a whole.  Although I perceive insight as a tool, I never quite came to the realization that developing insight truly means having a skill...A skill in which must be learned and modeled in order to be achieved successfully.  

Armstrong and Wildman speak in great detail about instilling the concept of "color insight" into our daily vocabulary.  "Colorblindness is the new racism" was quite an interesting read, to me.  I must admit that after a while, the term "whiteness" was really starting to erk me.  Something about it makes me cringe a bit.  I can't quite pinpoint what it is about the term, but I find it sort of...well...insulting.  I felt at many times, my stomach starting to turn every time that word was mentioned.  Whiteness.  I don't go around saying "Asianness" or "Blackness" or "Latinoness."  Why must the term whiteness be continually utilized?  I found myself feeling judged...even targeted, a bit in this article.  Are we whiteness folks that terrible?  I wondered if I was the only one feeling this particular way.  Something about this term, makes it seem as if we are defined as naive and sheltered folks who can not seem to notice what the color of our skin has to offer us.  

Peggy McIntosh's comment regarding white privilege on page #63 stood out to me as she described white privilege as a "knapsack of benefits in which the holder can remain oblivious."  A knapsack of benefits?  What exactly is she speaking to?  It wasn't until I myself completed the powerline exercise on page 72 that I noticed how heavy my knapsack really is.  If those particular pieces is what privilege is composed of, then I guess I am more privileged than not- meeting 6 of the “privileged” criteria.  Interesting to complete this exercise, I thought.  

Did anyone else relate to the racial observation exercise?  Did anyone else sit back and think about our everyday lives and what our surroundings look like?  The student who spoke of the nail salon really hit home for me.  I totally related and it quite surprisingly made me sit back and think of myself in a different light.  It’s true that the majority of nail salons are composed of Vietnamese workers.  They work extremely hard and extremely long hours.  I found myself thinking about nail salons after reading that particular section.  I tried to think of a time when I went to a nail salon and it was not composed of all Vietnamese workers.  I truly can not recall a time….out of hundreds of times that I have entered nail salons.  I can relate my experiences to the student who spoke to that, in the sense of feeling as if the workers felt as if she and her mom were “inferior” to them.  How terrible.  This triggered a similar response I had to Johnson’s article and the particular question that I pondered…”Can’t we just all get along”  Why is this still occurring in our world?  Just as the "All Lives Matter" article pointed out that we don't treat all lives as though they matter equally. Why do some view themselves as inferior to others? Or why do people feel as though others are inferior to them?

I end this post with a particular line that grasped my attention….”do not be afraid.”  Do not be afraid to address the fact that we continue to live in a world in which many are lacking true insight and have yet to develop this particular skill. Do not be afraid to recognize sources of emotional difficulty.

Assignment A- Privilege, Power & Difference

Wow! Talk about eye-opening!  To me, this article truly fit the definition of eye-opening.  I felt as though Johnson was really preaching to us all, that "racism" and "discrimination" are almost inevitable.  Anyone else feel this way?  There were several pieces of this article that stood out to me...the first being the undying question on page 1 "Can't we just get along?" I mean, how hard does that sound?  Johnson goes on to speak about how we as humans are truly brilliant creatures- our intelligence and our capabilities go above and beyond what other species are equipped with.  There is just one problem....we just can't all seem to get along and we judge and we discriminate and we don't embrace one another's differences.  Whether or not this is done purposefully is up for discussion.  However, Johnson later goes on to state that this is undeniably a "legacy in which we all inherited," and that it was really something that was "passed down from generation to generation. (Johnson...pg 15)"  Interesting enough...I feel he is right.  We tend to stigmatize and identify people by color, sex, occupation etc., instead of by other adjectives such as kind, loving, giving, intelligent beings.  We can't help but identify others that way because it has been ingrained into us...maybe not by choice, but more so by chance.

As Johnson went on with his article, he mentioned a time he was sitting at a restaurant with an African American colleague of his, who also happened to be a female....(double whammy I guess!).  He couldn't help but think to himself about the differences between the both of them in terms of their "privileges." He mentions that he would probably get waited on faster than she would.  She may fear walking to her car at night, more so than he would...etc.  He yearned to ask the question..."can we just talk about these things?"  However, he refrained from doing so in order to refrain from an uncomfortable situation, because again it seems we are ingrained with the fact that this is all "acceptable and that we don't know how to talk about it. (Johnson- pgs 8-9)"  How sad that truly is.  Funny how my first thought was..."Wow.  It's like the expression, 'let's address the elephant in the room'...." and how Johnson later went on to speak of this as "the elephant."  

Another interesting topic to me was when Viola from the film Shakespeare in Love was mentioned and how in order to fulfill one of her dreams to act on the stage, she had to present herself as a man, instead of as her true self...a female; as acting on stage was a privilege for men and men only (Johnson- pg 35).  Anyone else stop and think of the Disney movie Mulan with this one?  Or is it just the fact that I am surrounded by all things Disney with my two littles and that is why this movie all of a sudden shot into my brain that a wave of lightening?  I couldn't help but think of Mulan, who wanted so badly to take her father's spot in the Chinese military that she impersonates herself as a man, in order to be able to serve; as females were not allowed to do so.  Again, bringing to light the topic of discrimination and privilege...in a Disney movie of all places.

My first blog assignment is truly one of thought and reflection.  This is what I took away from this very intriguing article.  [To me] Johnson argues that we are all "stuck" in our ways of discrimination and that we must come together as a society to change what has always been considered acceptable.

Who's ready for this!? :)

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