AVReading Newsletter December

Full newsletter here. 

AVReading Newsletter November-- Micro-Affections

            Our emphasis for the Cultural Proficiency workshop this month was on “Building Relationships.”  We discussed how important it is, and how the actual nature of our relationships with students have changed over the course of time.  As stated in a recent Educational Leadership article that Eugene Schegolkov found, “The absolute, unquestionable, and essentially assumed authority that teachers once possessed is diminishing and being replaced by an authority that has to be earned. Building a healthy rapport and positive relationship with students requires the careful cultivation of mutual respect, honesty, and trust” (“Relationships and Rapport: ‘You Don’t Know Me Like That,’” Educational Leadership, Fall 2018).  

            Building relationships across lines of race, class, and culture becomes even more complex, as we are constantly working to become more aware of our own biases and assumptions that have led us to say or do things in the past that were likely to close doors instead of open them.  That is why it is extremely important that we are doing work on our own as we continue to make connections.  This work includes raising our awareness of our whiteness and how that can impact the way we see the world and the way the world sees us. 

There are a great number of resources to help us with this journey.  Here are a couple that are especially powerful.  Robin DiAngelo’s White Fragility: Why It’s So Hard for White People to Talk about Racism (2018) is a fantastic and comprehensive guide to thinking differently about race and racism.  She specifically talks about the way that our notions of race and whiteness are socialized into our understanding of the world from birth.  Therefore, it takes constant and perpetual work to make the “invisible” aspects of socialized practices and beliefs “visible”.  Too often, when we are made aware of our assumptions, biases, and microaggressions, we respond rather defensively, retreating to various natural responses that serve to show how we, in fact, are not racist or a bad person.  Instead, DiAngelo encourages us to think differently about these encounters. Rather than being offended, own up to it, acknowledge the person who had the courage to point it out, and think of it as a gift-- a little lesson that you have learned, a little step closer to becoming more aware of what is happening around you.  You might not fully grasp why someone might have been hurt by the thing you said or did even after they have explained it.  Then store it away.  Put it someplace where the distance of time will allow you to revisit it once again and think a little more deeply about how this particular moment may have caused concern for someone.

The second resource that will offer a lot of useful tips is How to Teach Students Who Don’t Look Like You.  This particular text, written by Bonnie Davis, gets into the day-to-day practices of teaching, which allow for teachers to see how we can create classroom environments that foster strong relationships across cultures.  Of course, the tips aren’t always exclusive to cross cultural relationships, but nonetheless, they are meaningful steps we can take. 

About a year ago, my brother who is not a huge advocate of smart phone technology offered one saving grace it offers: the opportunity to send little nudges of affirmation in unexpected ways.  You’ve probably done it before, a random little text message to someone letting them know that you are thinking of them, that you love them, that you are grateful for their presence in your life.  It got me to thinking about how beautiful those little “micro-affections” can be.  It also got me to thinking of how many different ways we can communicate that same message in real life.  These could be micro-affections I communicate by simply catching a student at my door to welcome them in.  A private note on the bottom of an assignment where I let someone know how much I appreciate their effort or time.  A little post it, that expresses my awareness of a student’s struggle or pain.  Or even, the gift of space, which is the ability to be present with someone, to listen with deep empathy, to withhold judgement and to offer someone the time and energy they need to heal, to grow, or to connect. 

Teaching is a full body and soul experience.  Healing the historic gaps that have existed across race and culture will take a tremendous amount of trust building and compassion.  And it begins with one micro-affection at a time, which ultimately will crowdsource into an even greater community of warmth, safety, and understanding.  

Read the full newsletter here. 

AVReading October-- Embodied Learning

            Our focus this year is on educational research and theory, and its application to classroom practice.  Each month, you are invited to join our data blitz during which we sift through volumes of educational research publications looking for studies or writings that look of interest or significance.  Over the course of this year’s newsletters, we will take this opportunity to share out some of the studies and writings that we have discovered.

I’ve decided to start with a study entitled “Enactive Metaphors: Learning Through Full-Body Engagement” published in Educational Psychology Review (2015). And I have three reasons for doing so.  First, it was co-authored by Robb Lindgren,  a former AVHS student (Class of 1996) now professor of education at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.  Second, it highlights the exciting and important domain of engagement. And third, it might be an excellent resource for those of you who are interested in making use of our new learning stairs.

In the study, Lindgren, and his co-author Gallagher, argue that metaphors are an important and meaningful tool in understanding complex ideas or processes.  They also discuss the difference between “sitting metaphors” which are those you experience through reading and thinking and “active metaphors” which are those you can “embody” or experience physically.  While Gallagher and Lindgren recognize the value of sitting metaphors, they offer a wide body of evidence that demonstrates how “enacting” these metaphors (or bringing them to life with movement, gesture or action) allows for deeper, richer understanding of these concepts or ideas.  On a continuum of use, it could be something as simple as moving around manipulatives on a desktop all the way to full body movement and actions. 

Here is a list of embodied learning examples Gallagher and Lindgren offer.  In looking at them, you might be inspired to develop some embodied learning activities of your own or even recognize things you are already doing. 

• Geometry teachers asked students to use the angle of their arms to simulate the slope of lines.
• Chemistry teachers asked students to use gestures to enact the rotation of molecules.
• Reading students recreated characters with figurines on their desks and played out events of the story using those figurines.
• Science students acted out the steps of an experiment focusing on control of variables.
• Math students learned about fractions within a narrative metaphor using manipulatives on their desks.
• Science students took on the roles of asteroids and planets to show trajectories.
• Science students learned about the conservation of length through an activity that involved them physically zig zagging across the floor.

Some recent studies have also started to expand the concept of embodied learning to digital experiences like the following.

• Students learned about wavelengths and their features through a computer program that interpreted arm movements as waves.
• Augmented reality simulations that allowed students to participate in an archeological dig.
• Computer models that let students manipulate variables of virtual objects to learn about force and friction.
• Mixed reality games where students interacted with scenarios involving disease transmission or chemistry concepts.  
• A “Music is movement” program enabled students to convert their bodily actions into sound, displaying the relationship between speed and pitch.  

Some of these might look like things you are currently doing, like the “tableau activity promoted by AVID.  Though not discussed specifically within this study, researchers within the field point out that there are a few conditions to consider when developing an idea for enactive metaphors.

1. Teaching through metaphor works best with more complex or abstract ideas.  If the concept is too simple or basic, there is a good chance students don’t really need a metaphor to understand it.  Embodied learning is not movement for the sake of movement. Rather, it is movement and action for the specific purpose of learning, understanding, or exploring complex and dynamic concepts, ideas, or principles.

2. The link back to the metaphor needs to be clear.   If students have to work too hard to see the connection, it might even make things more confusing for them.  

3.  Avoid taking the metaphor too far.  When working with metaphors, focus on just a few key elements that might apply back to the principles or concepts you are teaching.  Again, if it the metaphor becomes too complicated (no matter how rich it might be) students are not likely to remember it or be able to transfer it back to the original lesson.

I will close with the sentiments of Gallagher and Lindgren who write that our natural stance in the world is to learn by experiencing it.  “As learners, we are more ‘in-the-world’ than ‘in-the-book’ or ‘in-the-head’; we take more from active engagement and interactions than from passive observation.”  Ultimately, embodied learning allows for dynamic learning spaces that better reflect the way students normally process and understand the world.   

Read the full newsletter here.  

AVReading Newsletter September 2018

As we start a new school year, it is once again an opportunity (rushed though it may be) to reflect upon changes we can make as we move ahead.  One of the challenges to making a change is not knowing what has been tried and tested by others before us.

That’s why my focus for the newsletters and this year’s “Reading Group” will be on research.

I actually stole the idea from an acquaintance who is a bioinformatician at the Mayo Center in Rochester.  He once told me of a Data Blitz that a cross-disciplinary group of researchers completed about once a month.  The group of thinkers, representing a number of different scientific fields, would come together and browse through the hundreds of recently published research studies. Each member of the group would vet a few studies that looked to be worthy of study, present them to the group, and then they would vote on which ones to read and discuss more deeply. 

Within the culture at Mayo, this type of practice is not considered unusual at all.  In fact, programs similar to this exist at 3M and Google.  Employees of these companies are encouraged to not only stay current on research, but to develop and explore potential areas of study on their own.  It’s a culture where people are encouraged (even paid) to take time out of their days to read, reflect, and discuss the work of innovative thinkers. 

Unfortunately, teachers are rarely afforded this opportunity.  The schedule of the school day is so compressed and unforgiving that it really doesn’t lend itself to very much reflection or study beyond the most basic.  As a side note, there are countries with highly successful educational systems where teachers are afforded these opportunities. They have achieved this with lower class sizes, fewer duties, and a built in part of the day for reading and reflective practices.  

As the field of educational research grew in the U.S., so did the divide between practitioners and researchers.  The critiques from both sides hold a morsel of truth.  Some research, practitioners claim, seems to out of touch with the actual practice of a classroom.  While some practioners, as some researcher state, are simply unwilling to part from long standing and entrenched traditions of teaching.

Yet I believe that there is a tremendous interest today on the part of many teachers, a craving to look at the latest studies and consider what they might tell us about our classrooms and how we might adapt to this fast changing landscape. I think there is an interest to dig deeper, not only at the quantitative and experimental research, but in the critical studies of culture as well.  

This year, I will dedicate the  newsletters to this purpose. My goal is to share out the findings of our “Reading Group” in order to sample some of the findings we discover along the way.   

Here is my vision.  Each month, the “Reading Group” will meet briefly to browse a number of journals and articles to find some that might be worthy of study.  Each member of the group, will then choose one study / journal article. They will have a month to read it, process it, and then come back to the group and report out their findings.  And then we will repeat the cycle again. 

Looking at some of the exciting changes and challenges of our building, I can think of numerous potential areas of reading that would be helpful:

- Educational research that examines the growing trend of absenteeism

- Critical readings and studies that address culture and race

- Experimental research that looks at the use of movement and space

- Research around educational technology

- Studies related to recent trends in teaching content areas (ie. science, math, language arts, etc).

If this seems like something that might interest you, please join us.  We will meet the first Thursday of each month (starting September 6th) in Room B121 from 2:30-3:00.  Be a part of a fun and engaging learning environment.

Full newsletter here. 

AVReading Newsletter June Coming to Consciousness

The focus of the AVReading newsletters this year has been on race and equity.  If you missed some of the newsletters or you would like to review them, you can access them at avreading.org.  We have examined a broad range of topics from intentionality and language to recognizing privilege, holding courageous conversations and addressing microagressions. We’ve addressed specific practices like calling home, bringing in current events, and acknowledging language choices.  

For this last installment, I will discuss the idea of increased consciousness.  I have taken the idea from the concept of “Stay Woke” which has a history within the African American community.  It’s the idea that once you start to realize the inequities and injustices that exist around you, it’s important to remain aware and active in your work to make our community safe for everyone.  

The idea of staying conscious implies that it requires a perpetual effort to recognize the changing landscape of marginalization.  Racialized practices have a way of evolving. When our country finally grappled with the injustice of slavery, Jim Crow policies became the new evolution of that same ugly stain of racism. And after the work of the civil rights movements of the 50s and 60s, mass incarceration became it’s next iteration.  Even within our school systems, we must be ever vigilant in our choices and practices-- as a building and as educators.  While a given policy may not have been intentionally discriminatory, in practice sometimes they disproportionately impact one group over another, privileging some and disadvantaging others.  

Being aware simply takes constant attention: engaging in conversations, participating in events that celebrate and acknowledge diversity, reading books, viewing movies and documentaries, listening to podcasts, building community.  

Over Memorial Day weekend, I traveled with the speech team to Washington D.C for a grand national tournament.  One of the students traveling with us was a young woman of color who was also Muslim.  Upon arriving, we waited in a fairly large group of people for a shuttle to take us to the rental vehicles.  I invited this student, as we entered the shuttle, to come stand by me because-- even in this day and age-- I worry about her in those spaces.  Sitting across from us was an elderly white gentleman and his wife.  And from the moment she took her spot next to me, he maintained a hard stare at her.    It went on for a few moments, until finally, she looked back at him with direct eye contact at which point he broke it off.  Of course, I cannot know the exact reason for his glare, but I do know how the experience bothered the student, leaving her to wonder if she had somehow trespassed into space where she didn’t belong.  It was just another example of how we still have a ways to go, how we find ways to make people feel different or marginal. 

The weekend turned out to be a truly exceptional experience.  Not only did the students perform exceptionally well, but we also got to visit some of our nation’s most important landmarks, including the newly opened African American Museum.  The floorplan for the museum is immense. You begin by taking an elevator three floors down where you begin your journey with the creation of race as a construct, through slavery, the Civil War, to Jim Crow, the Civil Rights and beyond.  We gathered that evening as a team around the table to talk about what we saw and felt at the museum, and it was one of those moments, where you could just sense a growing awareness.  One coach, who is African American, mentioned to the group that he struggles at times with the path of our society’s racial journey.  He says that it is easy to get really overwhelmed by the problems we face. That oppression seemed to be cyclical because we seemed to overcome forms of racism only to work our way back to a new ones.  But he mentioned that as he went through the displays in the museum, he was reminded that it isn’t so much a circle that we are travelling in, as much as a spiral, which is trending upward.  And he stated that while we still have much ground to travel, there is progress and hope.

We are truly blessed to work in a school that mirrors the demographic proportions of our country. We are America. And the work we do here should be the model of the work we envision for our larger community. May you embrace the challenges that are ahead and help us to continue our spiral up. 

View full Newsletter here.  

AVReading Newsletter May

The White Savior Narrative

       To continue our examination of equity and cultural proficiency within the classroom, we will focus this month on what has come to be known as the white savior complex.  While an examination of the white savior theme or narrative  might be a bit disturbing for some people, it is important to study, as it can have an impact on the way we see others, the way we see ourselves, and the way we respond  in certain situations. 

To paraphrase a definition offered by the Urban Dictionary, the white savior is a term that refers to a white person who acts to help a non-white person for reasons that might be self serving.  It is a story type that has appeared frequently throughout literature and film, and usually sends implicit messages that both validate and honor the knowledge and culture of the dominant culture and reduces (or in some cases patronizes) the knowledge and culture of non-dominant cultures.  At its root, it sends the message that people of color need to be saved from themselves and the only people who can do that are from the dominant culture. Examples of the white savior are relatively easy to find in Hollywood stories: The Blind Side, Dances with Wolves, Django Unchained, Freedom Writers, The Revenant, McFarland U.S.A., and The Help to just name a few.  Among the many problems with the cultural messages that these stories send, there is the message that instead of addressing the systemic or institutionalized forms of discrimination it is better to act simply upon individual cases.  So instead of tackling the problem at its roots, white savior stories generally depict people trying to aid people of color within communities that are inherently bias or racist. 

We can find these themes even in some of our most cherished texts.  For as much as it pains me to say this, To Kill a Mockingbird is at heart the story of a white savior,  Atticus Finch.  For as noble as his actions are, and as important as his story may have been, it now reflects a model of intervention and help that we probably need to move beyond.  The truth is Atticus was immensely brave.  His choice to defend a black man came at a great sacrifice to his safety and position.  But like many other white savior stories, it doesn’t really address the underlying problem of racism, just the immediate manifestation of it in the case of Tom Robinson.  Atticus doesn’t take up the banner of injustice, using his privilege to bring awareness to the violence and terror done to people of color.  There is no rally or political action, no protest against the system that allows this injustice to occur.  Instead, his focus was on one individual case of an innocent black man who was unjustly accused.  And while that story needed to be told and studied at the time of its writing, it is time to re-think it  with a more critical lens.  At the very least, the white savior theme should be addressed with our students as we read it today.

Within the classroom, the white savior mindset can also be problematic.  In his book, For White Folks Who Teach in the Hood. . . and the Rest of Y’all Too: Reality Pedagogy in Urban Schools, Christopher Emdin states that sometimes white teachers take on students of color like they have to “save” them.  He explains, “The vision that kids need to be saved equates to thinking something’s wrong with them. There’s no teacher who should go into a space thinking that the students are inherently bad. If you are walking into a classroom and see students as victims, you are seeing them as having an inherent flaw that only you can fix. You [the teacher] are there to help them learn and allow them to do fixing for themselves.”

Discussing the concept of “white saviorism” with people is difficult.  It can lead some people down a rabbit hole where suddenly they feel stuck.  To move forward though, it will require, as Teju Cole writes in the Atlantic, “due diligence”.  Due Diligence means that when it comes to our choices-- specifically when it relates to working with power differentials like those within classroom-- we should be monitoring our intentions and motives.  How might our cultural lenses influence the way we see ourselves and our roles as educators?  How might the news stories we read, the movies we watch, and the books we consume perpetuate these white savior themes?  How might the materials I am using in class perpetuate these themes?  And how can I counteract these messages within my classroom?

In the end, the question should not be about whether we should act or not.  It should be more about why are we acting and how can we take action.  Our mission should balance two needs: our need to help this specific individual to navigate the system of the dominant culture and our need (as educators) to challenge and take-on some of these systemic practices that discriminate and marginalize students in the first place. Ultimately, it changes the focus from “saving” children to creating a community that is more equitable and just.

Read the full newsletter here.

MCA Reading Online Samplar

Here is the address for the online MCA Practice test. 

Sr. Speaker Materials

Guidelines for Writing a Commencement Address

The draft you write for consideration does not need to be a final version, but should give the panelists a clear idea of what you plan to say in your speech.  The traditional commencement address has had content which reflects back on the class's experiences and also gives advice or guidance for the future.  The tone should be one which inspires and motivates the listeners.

Although the Commencement Address is directed at the graduating class, the message needs to be meaningful and appropriate for the adult audience present as well.  Content, language, or style which parents or grandparents might find offensive is not suitable for a Commencement Address.

Humor can be an effective minor element of a Commencement Address.  The predominant message, and consequently the predominant writing style, should be serious, thoughtful and inspirational. 

Format:  This might be helpful.  It is an all purpose formula.  It is not required.  Feel free to be creative.  But as a starting point, you might want to observe the following steps.

Introduction--

* Attention getting anecdote

* Establish a theme -- Past speakers have used themes likethe qualities of Eagles or the symbolic importance of bridges

* Set purpose or message

Body--

* Reflect on events of past 4 years

* Reflect on present status

* Reflect on  where things are headed

Conclusion--

* Re-emphasize message

* Closing thoughts and anecdotes

A few helpful suggestions:

Though you may want to fill your speech with inspirational quotations, and heartfelt thoughts of hope, be careful of overusing clichés.  Because they have been used so often, clichés do not always hold much power within a text and tend to be easily forgotten by an audience.

On the other hand, the most memorable speeches are those that tell some type of story.  Typically, speakers will use either brief anecdotes or longer narratives to convey their message.  As opposed to citing bland clichés that are easy to forget, stories tend to stay with people and carry a stronger emotional and intellectual impact. 
Here are some samples of past commencement addresses.
2017
2013
2012 

AVReading Newsletter March

At your wits end?  Not sure how to handle the growing number of students who are not handing in work, misbehaving, or just simply not showing up?  I know the feeling.  Working with a higher percentage of students who struggle with reading (and by default school), I have to employ as many tools in my toolbox as possible. One of the most important, is the call.  As a teacher, I have to admit that I’ve always shied away from “the call.”  They are time consuming, they usually communicate bad news, and they require a live conversation (which can be unpredictable at times).  However, despite my reservations, I have found it to be one of the most useful tools in my toolbox.  And when talking about creating more culturally proficient environments and practices that promote equity, I believe practices like the call are especially important in building school-to-home relationships.  

Now I am going to preface this newsletter with the understanding that not everyone will be able to implement the following practice-- at least in the way that I have done so.  Limitations of time and class sizes would prohibit most teachers from making the types of calls I make on a regular basis.  So I do not mean to suggest that everyone should be calling the families of all students on a regular basis.  Instead, my intent is to explain why I do it and to encourage the use of “the call” as another tool in the toolbox.

The call-- as I use it-- is a regularly timed communication with families that goes like this.  Hello, this is Scott Voss, and I am your student’s English teacher calling with a quick update.  Do you have two minutes to hear a little about how your student is doing in class?  Great, right now your student has a __ in English.  This is what they are doing well. This is what they need to work on.  Our next big assignment is due on ____.  Do you have any questions or concerns?  I will call again in about three weeks, but if you have any questions or concerns before then, please feel free to call or email me and I’ll get right back to you.  Have a good day!”  

The call is important for three reasons. First, it creates a connection with families.  The calls generally last about two minutes, but you get to hear a voice, you get to share a little about what is happening beyond just the grade, and you get the chance to hear the thoughts of the family members.  Second, the call allows you to indicate any outstanding or missing work.  Third, (if you do it regularly), students begin to prioritize your class because they know the call is coming soon.  

Of course, there are obstacles to making the call. First and foremost, there is the problem with time.  A teacher with a full load would never be able to call every family on a regular basis.  Second, they take a lot of energy.  Getting names right when you talk to parents and guardians can be difficult.  Hearing or understanding what they say can also be a struggle.  I find that after an hour of making calls, I am both physically and emotionally exhausted.  Sometimes even finding the right space to make the call can be tricky.  

Reaching families that don’t use English as their primary language is also a challenge.  However, I will say that the Over-the-Phone Interpreter that our district makes available is really, really easy to use.  It takes a minute or two to set-up, but I have found this to be a fantastic resource.  If you are interested in learning more about it, see me or Tracy Cavalli to get the easy-to-use information sheet.  

Again, while it is not easy, I have found some remarkable results in using the call. The day after the calls, I usually see a healthy amount of late work come in.  Students are also a little more likely to be on their best behavior with you, since they know that you are never very far from a call home.  Finally, I overwhelmingly receive expressions of gratitude for the call.  Families are so appreciative for the news. They are eager to hear how they can help.  And they get especially excited when the news is good.  So many times, I have walked away from these phone calls with a better understanding of the students and the situations in which they live and an overwhelming sense that I am appreciated for what I do.  In addition to all of this, the call is just about the best PR campaign a school can run, as it makes a huge institution (like AVHS) feel like a small community school.

Here are some tips for the logistics. First, start small.  Don’t try to do all of your classes. Choose one.  Or better yet, choose a small number of families (5-10) that you intend to call on a semi-regular basis.  Look for students who might best benefit from that exchange-- not only in terms of missing work, but who appear to be getting “lost in the crowd” and would benefit from a more personal connection (namely with the family).  Sometimes I might do it for that student who is showing disruptive behavior. The first call might express concerns, but I’ll follow up a week or two later with a positive note call. Another option is to set aside one hour every three weeks, reaching as many students as you can in that time-- spreading out the calls between those who struggle and those whose families would benefit from a little good news. Sometimes, I’ll give students the chance to request a call.  In other words, “Who here would like me to call home to tell your family how great you are doing in class right now?”  

Of course, some of the same objectives can be met through email.  But it has to be personalized in some way.  Mass emails are less likely to achieve that positive sense of connection that we hope for.  Looking back on it, I’ve had so many revelations during these calls home.  The things I have learned truly test some of the assumptions I had unknowingly made about students and the struggles they face.  I consider the time well spent, not only for the things these calls do for students, but for the things that help me further grow as an educator, striving to meet the needs of all students.

Find the full newsletter here.  

AVReading Newsletter February

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Because culture is so deeply embedded in language, it is often important that we spend a little time thinking very specifically about the words and phrases we choose to use, and under what circumstances.  While some might bristle at the thought of adapting our language to accommodate the latest trends and thinking, I see it differently.  For the change isn’t with our trends or thinking, but with a greater awareness of inequities that have always existed.  

This recently became very clear to me when my 9th grade daughter got very irritated with the novel she was reading, To Kill a Mockingbird.  She was disappointed in the character of Atticus, who was supposed to be the moral compass of us all-- defending those who can’t defend themselves, standing tall in the face of adversity, acting on his moral courage.  But she was extremely angry when Atticus made light of putting women on the jury. He states, “I doubt if we'd ever get a complete case tried—the ladies'd be interrupting to ask questions."  You know, I’ve read the book myself once a year, on and off, for the last two decades, and I never really thought twice about this passage.  But hearing her read it, I suddenly saw it a little differently.  For years I have given Atticus a pass, justifying his beliefs on gender by thinking of him as a product of his time and place, and by the fact that he seemed to be so entirely wonderful in every other way.  But, as my daughter pointed out, this really seems to establish a double standard, where we would be morally outraged by issues of race but let them go when they related to gender.  

And so our goal isn’t to jump onto the next passing fad of buzz words or acceptable terminology, but rather to raise an awareness of language and how it can potentially perpetuate stereotypes or marginalize members of our community.  The idea is that we work harder to avoid the “but I didn’t know” category of mistakes.  And better yet, to help our students figure them out as well.  

Here is a case in point.  Earlier this winter, some type of meme was circulating through social media that inspired some of our students to call one another “boy.”  Imitating the video, they would often say it as a jeer, which might seem relatively harmless.  However, the moniker of “boy” has a rather disturbing past.  It was a derogatory term used by the white community in interactions with Black men throughout the days of slavery and Jim Crow to establish their subordination within a given social exchange.  Many of our students have no idea of this history, and it is important that we help them to see how they need to be careful of the things they pull from pop culture and the things they see around them.  

There are many other examples, far too many to cover in a one page newsletter. But  I will offer a few that can be hurtful to people within our community.  If you do use some of these, but have never considered them to be hurtful, you might look them up and learn a little more about their origins and what they connote for some people.  For example, you might hear someone say they got “gypped” when they mean, “swindled” or “tricked”, but doing so ignores the ethnic culture of the Romany people and how they have often been targeted  and persecuted by the dominant culture throughout history.  Or the phrase “cotton pickin” which has been associated to a racial slur for African Americans who were referred to as “cotton pickers.”  We have also become more aware of ableist language, like “crazy” and “insane,” used to describe things that are unusual or odd.  But in a country where one in five people suffer from a mental health condition (the vast majority of which go untreated because of the stigma around seeking help), these adjectives minimize and reduce the very real mental and emotional struggles that they face everyday.  Yet, we frequently use them to describe the world and people around us.  

Again, we don’t need “language” police to tell us what words to use and not to use.  It’s more about becoming aware of what other people might be hearing when you use certain words and phrases.  Change does happen.  In fact, it is remarkable to see how much the language has shifted as we became more aware of how certain words impacted people, even in just the last few decades.  Try watching Goonies today, and you will probably squirm a little as they refer to each other as “gay” or “retarded.”  Your jaw will probably drop when you go back and watch John Travolta’s classic Saturday Night Fever as they talk to and about women in language that is clearly out-of-bounds today.  It’s just an interesting comment about how much the language changes over time, and what it reflects about us.  And yet, we must also be aware of the fact that changing a few words does not address the larger issues they represent.  Replacing, “guys” with “people” or “folks” doesn’t fix our problems with gender discrimination or gender norms.  But it can open up a discussion about why those terms exist in the first place and how they might inadvertently position people.  

Language matters.  It represents so much about what we value, so it is important that we become a little more intentional about the words we use and how they impact those around us.  

Read the full newsletter here. 

AVReading Newsetter January-- Microaggressions

Life for students who do not belong to the dominant culture can be exhausting.  While some of our more overt forms of discrimination and prejudice have been confronted, schools (and communities) can  still be difficult places to navigate for those who come from historically underserved or underrepresented groups.  There are just so many subtle ways that people from the dominant culture (many times unintentionally) remind others that they don’t quite belong.  These tendencies are known as microaggressions.  Derald Wing Sue, a professor at Columbia University, defines them as follows:

Microaggressions are the everyday verbal, nonverbal, and environmental slights, snubs, or insults, whether intentional or unintentional, which communicate hostile, derogatory, or negative messages to target persons based solely upon their marginalized group membership. In many cases, these hidden messages may invalidate the group identity or experiential reality of target persons, demean them on a personal or group level, communicate they are lesser human beings, suggest they do not belong with the majority group, threaten and intimidate, or relegate them to inferior status and treatment.

                  If “macroagressions” are overt, explicit choices people make to dehumanize others, microaggressions are more subtle behaviors that often fall under the radar.  But for those on the receiving end of these experiences, the sting is quite real.  And because they happen so frequently, in so many unexpected places, the overall impact can be just as distressing as overt acts themselves.  Many have compared these experiences to tiny paper cuts, which on the face of things may seem harmless.  But when you get 8-10 paper cuts each day, some of which aren’t allowed to heal, you can imagine how it might take its toll.  

                  Again, it is likely that most of those microaggressions are unintentional.  Many of the behaviors are done without much forethought as to how it might be perceived by others.  It can be as simple as addressing a group of students as “guys” or complementing a Latinx student for speaking English well.  The list of potential microaggressions is pretty lengthy.  And, depending on important cultural and social shifts, they constantly change.  It is important to become more aware of our microaggressions.  We can do this, as it has been mentioned in other newsletters this school year, by working to remain more conscious of our choices by reading widely, expanding our social circles, and viewing shows / movies / artwork from people who have been traditionally silenced.  

                  It would be impossible to create an exhaustive list of microaggressions unique to the classroom. But, I will include here a modified list developed by the University of Denver, as a starter.   

Examples of Microaggressions Common to Education

- Continue to mispronounce the names of students after they have corrected you several times.

- Scheduling tests and project due dates on religious or cultural holidays.

- Setting low expectations for students from particular groups.

- Calling on and validating men and ignoring women students during class discussions.

- Using inappropriate humor in class that degrades students from different groups.

- Expressing racially charged political opinions in class assuming the targets of those opinions are not present..

- Hosting debates in class that place students from groups who may represent the minority opinion in a difficult position.  

- Denying the experiences of students by questioning the credibility and validity of their stories.

- Assigning projects that ignore differences in socioeconomic class status.  

-Ignoring student-to-student microaggressions.  

- Asking non-white students where they are from.

-Assuming a student’s sexuality.

-Assuming that a student has one or both parents.  

Finally, it should be noted that these may be actions we made with good intentions, so it might hurt a little to find out that our intended message was eclipsed by an unintended one.  When confronted with these mistakes, a common reaction is to become defensive or offended.  However, as much as it might sting, it’s okay to just hold off on saying something.  Especially if that confrontation happened with a student;  it took a considerable amount of courage to say something on their part.  Considering the power dynamic of teacher and student, they made the comment knowing that you could retaliate in some way.  Honor their willingness to say something.  Set it aside for a time when you can think on it more deeply. Or simply say, “You are right.  I made an assumption I shouldn’t have.  I apologize.”  Do NOT say, “I am sorry if you were offended by something I said.”  Doing so implies that they are at fault for being offended in the first place.  

                  The week before break, a neighbor asked me if I was tired of teaching in an environment where you always had to be “politically correct”. I responded by saying that I didn’t see it that way.  I said replace the phrase “politically correct” with the word “respectful” or “thoughtful”.  Being politically correct, or monitoring our microaggressions, is really just a way to be more mindful of the people around us and how they experience and see the world.  As a teacher, my hope is to provide a space where all students feel respected and heard, despite the subtle and not-so-subtle differences that exist between us.  

See the full newsletter here.