Blog 4
Chapter 3
Essence Extractor:
Culture is an embedded mix of dynamic identities - Building off student's backgrounds rather than Assimilating is essential for learning development.
Elsewhere, I have defined culture as "the ever-changing values, traditions, social and political relationships, and worldwide created, shared, and transformed by a group of people bound together by a combination of factors that can include a common history, geographic location, language, social class, and religion (Nieto pp. 78, 2010).
Culture is commonly decontextualized. In the United States, decontextualization typically occurs in the school curriculum and media images outside of school (Nieto pp. 82, 2010)
This research confirms that simply speaking English is no guarantee that academic success will follow. There seem to be several reasons for this. First, when children are able to keep up with their native language at home, they develop metalinguistic awareness, that is, a greater understanding of how language itself works, and of how to use language for further learning. Based on her extensive research concerning second language acquisition, Virginia Collier (1995) has suggested that practicing English at home among students who are more proficient in another language actually can slow down the cognitive development because it is only when parents and their children speak the language they know best that they are working at "their level of cognitive maturity" (Nieto, pp. 91, 2010).
Chrissy, in regards to the essence extraction you generated: how do you personally define assimilation? What are some practices, methods, and/or approaches that you have seen in the classroom that force students to assimilate into the dominant White middle-class American culture? Do you believe that assimilation is any more or less damaging than practices that stress acculturation? - Elizabeth
ReplyDeleteI see assimilation as the "melting pot" within our school system. Students are not seen as successful unless they are speaking the dominant language and are living the dominant culture. So teachers seem to only focus on the dominant culture by integrating into the school days thus neglecting the culturally deprived students. This can be by choices of literature, example throughout lessons...anything really. I think assimilation is very damaging to our culture as it forces some to push aside their beliefs and values that had been embedded into their lies prior to schooling. Teachers should build off of everyone's culture rather that pick and choose.
ReplyDeleteI think that we also need to understand that it is OK to have our own culture and it is not possible to be void of culture. Therefore, we should see our students as our teachers when it comes to their culture and constantly be adding to our understanding of the many aspects of culture.
ReplyDeleteI agree that students are not seen as successful unless they are speaking the standard form of the English language. All to often, children are assimilating to the dominant culutre, leaving behind their own culture. We have to move away from assimilation in the educational setting and show students that it is okay to have their own culture and be comfortable with themselves.
ReplyDeleteShawne