Talking Points #5

Jeannie Oakes and Martin Lipton - Teaching to Change the World

Talking Points #4

Linda Christensen - Unlearning the myths that blind us

This article is about...
-The media
-Effects
-Stereotypes
-Feedback
-Truth
-Reality

Christensen argues that through the media and other outside forms of entertainment, children receive a 'secret education' and subconsciously follow it.

1. "Dorfman wrote 'Although these stories are supposed to merely entertain us, they constantly give us a secret education.' "

2. "But i want students to understand that if the race of the character is the only thing changing, injustices may still remain" By this she talks about how even though producers have made an effort to change characters in movies and cartoons to a different race to accommodate more people the plots are legends and will probably always remain with the same outcome that is still discrimination in some sense.

3. "Both of these tales leave young woman with two myths: happiness means getting a man, and transformation from wretched conditions can be achieved through consumption- in their cases, through new clothes and a new hairstyle." In this statement she is suggesting the fact that growing up watching these movies, girls tend to come to the conclusion that everything possible must be done in order to get a male. It leaves out that woman can be just as content without a man. It teaches them how woman have no independence on their own and they must rely on someone of the opposite sex. It also explains that woman cannot be themselves. It talks about how being in style with a new wardrobe and the most up to date hairstyle you can achieve much more.

This article opened up a new view for me. In a way I feel like it took away what was left of my childhood innocence. Through the years I have noticed little things about race and 'perfection' of certain fairy tales but never this much in depth. Growing up I was a huge fan of Disney movies and I do believe it has made me view things differently. Almost every year for Halloween for probably five years in a row i was always the same thing, Cinderella. I always made my mother put my hair in a bun with a tiara as id prance around pretending to be the prettiest. Also, i often dreamed of growing up and running into my 'prince charming.' Although i see where Christensen is coming from I have to slightly disagree. Being raised by the media and other published works doesn’t necessarily mean that the child will grow up and completely assume a life like that seen on TV. It didn’t take long after my Saturday morning cartoons and Disney movies stage was over to realize that as a girl I am not helpless and i don’t intend to ever rely on some man to come around as my 'savior' so we can live happily ever after. In reality today i think things are progressing a little better but at the same time seem to become worse. Even though more cartoons are out with different races and ethnic backgrounds with a more logical ending the classics are legends and have been out for dozens of years and will most likely remain out for dozens more. However, its not just cartoons that kids tend to watch. Even when their not suppose to they tend to flip through the channels and find something that catches their eye while the adult is out of the room. I can remember when i was little i was watching the news when they announced that The Simpson’s was no longer a kids show but now for adult viewers only. I had a hard time understanding why and proceeded to watch it anyway. Also, the show Beavis and butthead was finally taken off the air because so many kids were imitating the bad things they watched and then laughed at it because that’s what they did on the show. I can recall hearing about several incidents from a kid lighting the living couch on fire to putting a cat in the microwave. The reality is that as long as programs get viewers, they will continue to trash the brains of minors.

"Crash diets, fat phobias and an obsession with the materialistic become commonplace." This is very well said. It’s not only children that the media targets its also young teens and perhaps even a more mature teen who has been raised on the media and will continue to do so. It's not only cartoons that give the image of perfection but reality shows also. They tend to have all different types of people involved but it’s always the same. The pretty skinny girl that attracts all the guys, and if their so happens to be an over weight person they get little or no attention and tend to have a very low self esteem. The conclusion is that nothing in society teaches the developing mind to be satisfied with who they are and to disregard people who think otherwise.

Talking Points #3

Dennis Carlson - Gayness, Multiculturalism and Community

This article is about..

-Gays, Homosexuals, Lesbians

-Teaching methods

-Courage

-Individualism

-Acceptance

-Laws

Carlson argues that homosexuals have to indoor a lot more everyday stress and decisions compared to a straight person. He also talks about the demands that are expected from certain people and how some laws are even made to carry out those demands.

1. "Law of Minnesota bill that makes it illegal to discriminate against lesbians and gay men in employment and housing." However, he also stated the fact that within this bill it prohibits teaching about homosexuality in the public schools meaning that even though they are allowed to teach they also have to have their personal lives remain a mystery including not even mentioning it at all. To me, this is discrimination so even though the law gave them a little extra freedom it still holds them back almost just as much as before.

2. "Estimated that up to one-third of all adolescent suicide victims are gay. approximately one-quarter of all homeless youth in the united states are gay, and dropout and drug abuse rates among gay youth are likewise high." When this is revealed it brings up a whole new set of points. It shows that having the audacity to actually accept who you really are differs from how people will view you. It changes your daily lifestyle and even goes so far as to putting a threat on their lives itself.

3. ""Being yourself" celebrates individualism and the autonomy of individuals to construct their own lives according to their own values and achieve goals they set for themselves." The statement "being yourself" it very valuable in relation towards gays. They shouldn't have to hide their personality's and pretend to be someone that thy are not. Nevertheless, it is very difficult to be acknowledge the fact that your allowed to be different in a society that accepts everyone to be the same.

This article had a lot of information to take in at once. It was long but possessed a lot of potential. I liked the way that Carlson did not pick sides and explained things from different points of view. He spoke about the laws that were changed to accommodate gays but also the catch that they had which still made everything for them a little harder. He discussed the struggle they have to overcome by just having the bravery to get out of bed every morning. I'm not sure how to make life less awkward for gays nor do i have any suggestions towards it. By teaching children to approve of them at a young age might be to much for them to grasp and it might be better to wait until they have a better understanding of the situation. However, prolonging it might cause even more of a dilemma. Even though various students grow more mature as the years go on some of them lack communication skills causing other children to get immediately bullied because students refused to take the matter seriously. I think that as hard as it is to go against the wishes and expectations of society you should always be proud of who you are and refuse to change the person you were born to be. The golden rule states "Treat others the way you want to be treated" and i strongly believe these are words to follow. No one ever said life was easy but theirs no excuse for causing extra pressure to those who already have enough of their minds. Being gay doesn't make anyone any less human.

Talking Points #2

Virginia Collier - Teaching Multilingual Children

This artical is about..

-Teaching

-Learning

-Cultural Backgrounds

-Diversity

-Language

-Understanding

-Guidelines

The author argues that teachers need to acquirer ways of teaching so that the students individual language spoken is appreciated both inside and outside the classroom.

1. "Teachers should be aware of the special kind of speech that mothers and fathers use automatically with their children, and try to emulate this." When Collier says this she is trying to promote the idea that relating to the child’s home life will not only make them more comfortable but also use it as a learning technique to inspire the child.

2. "On the other hand, teachers are responsible for facilitating academic language development." Meaning, it’s important to support students to use the language they know as well as getting them involved in learning the more dominate langue that is most often being spoke in the classroom.

3. "Don't teach a second language in any way that challenges or seeks to eliminate the first language." By saying this, she suggests how important is it to promote the child to pursue their first langue and to not put them in a position where they would have to choose one or the other.

This article easily caught my attention. Collier talked about the importance of never to pressure the child or make them uncomfortable even when introducing the different ness of an unusual language. She tries to explain to teachers that if this is taught the wrong way the child will almost immediately become uncomfortable and will disregard the new langauge. This can also result in the child being less confident and a lot more skeptical about learning a second language. In addition, she spoke about the importance of the family life; if family members are not supportive of these teachings styles and they do not encourage the child to peruse the learning process then it also plays a big part in how the child will view the language. She explained the importance of ‘code-switching’ and how it should be accepted and not penalized. This is when the student more then one language when communicating, breaking up random words and switching up the speech in the middle of a sentence. It may seem very confusing at first but once the teacher understands what the child is trying to clarify it motivates both parties to keep this a consistent way of speaking. Eventually the student becomes comfortable with the new language and fortunately the code-switching slowly vanishes. Various languages are spoken differently all over the world; they also come with diverse backgrounds and cultures to follow. The essential thing to do is to welcome the new language, to embrace it and learn from it.