Identity in the Classroom

     After reading the article "Becoming Something Different' by Fairbanks, Crooks, and Ariail, I felt as though it connected really well with the readings we have done without the semester. For instance it connected really well to the readings of "Aria" and an "Indians Father's Plea". I think this because throughout the study on Esmé she was faced with similar situations that occurred to the young boy in "Aria" and from Wind-Wolf in "An Indian Father's Plea". However I feel as though this reading had more of a personal connection to me. Like many of you I am faced with a lot of diversity in our tutoring classrooms. And in mine I have witnessed first hand a young boy change from who he is in order to fit in. On the first day of tutoring I was asked to work with some students who had trouble working on some basic math problems. One was Rico(alias). Now Rico had moved here from Spain over the summer and really hadn't picked up on much over the past couple months. However after working with him through out the weeks I began to notice slight changes in him. What started off as getting new shoes, and a unique hair cut, eventually led to a big change in behavior and I watched as this sweet boy turned into a very agitated, mean young man. He stopped paying attention in class and when he would work with me had little to no interest in focusing. But last Tuesday while I was working with him, he seemed to open up. And began telling me how he was getting picked on for his accent, and the way he dressed, and he actually apologized for the way he had been acting. After this I went up and talked to the teacher and she had let me know how she was dealing with the situation and what was being done to make sure Rico was happy in the classroom.

     Now even though I will never experience what its like to change my culture in order to fit in, by working with Rico I managed to see just how big of an effect it can have on a young child.

 

http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=latino+students+in+the+class+room&FORM=HDRSC3#view=detail&mid=5CBBE4B8902F96EE80BD5CBBE4B8902F96EE80BD
In the video above it talks about the importance of affirming identity inside the classroom.