Blog 6

The guiding question that I chose to address in my Language and Power assignment is how Standard english represents power today, and how classrooms and students can go about challenging that power instead of replicating it.

First and foremost, I am very intrigued by the notion of English as a representation of power. In America, there is an notion deeply imbedded into our society that everyone has equal opportunity, that each person must "pull themselves up by their bootstraps". People of privilege decide to take this in stride, believing fully that systems within our country grant each and every person the same opportunity, therefore all is fair. This is precisely the problem however, as people of privilege do not realize their privilege. Such privilege can be examined in students whose first language is English. Students who are fluent in English come into the schooling system with a wide enough vocabulary that they are able to build upon their language as they further their schooling career. However, this is not the case with English Language Learning students. This is not the case with ELL students because they have not had the ability to build on their understanding of English for the entirety of their lives. Whether it be students who have immigrated to the U.S., or were brought up in a multicultural household, it is clear that not everyone is given equal opportunity.

ELL students are not given equal opportunity within the schooling system because they do not come from the same background that is so normalized in American schooling. They do not possess the cultural background that is commonly identified and catered around, that being an English speaking background. English emerges as a symbol of power here. English is power because if a student speaks english as their first language, they automatically have a leg up over a student that doesn't. This causes setbacks and separation between students, in and out of the classroom. It is clear to students who are the achievers and who falls behind. The students who can keep up with curriculum are then placed into a position of power over those who can’t, that power being symbolized by English. Here, the essence of “pulling oneself up by their bootstraps” is challenged and ultimately proven wrong. ELL’s cannot simply make themselves equal to native english speakers, they must work even harder and even then they more often than not fall short of the curve.

To better enhance the learning and well being of each and every student, teachers must take a hard look at how they can challenge such power rather than continuing the vicious cycle of it.

Blog 5

I was born into a life of diversity. Being hispanic and coming from a family of immigrants gave me an edge: I was able to develop my english as I developed my Spanish. But it also gave me perspective: Being in America, you are expected to speak english. When I saw an article about being Chicana, I was immediately drawn to it. I consider myself somewhat Chicana, as my dad was born in Mexico but I was born in the U.S. Reading the article, I was very intrigued by the authors analogies and the way she described the adversity she faced being a woman and having Spanish as her first language. The title itself, "How to Tame a Wild Tongue", caught my attention. In the United States, being different sets you apart more than it should. To be a Chicana living in America, you are considered "wild"; unnatural, unsophisticated and non acceptable. The author of this piece highlights this message in her work. She speaks of being disciplined by her peers, by her teachers and even by her own family. This is something that is new to me, as I did not have to feel ridiculed by my environment. I did not feel such shame because my mother was white, therefore I appeared to be white as well. My mother was able to condition me to speak English first, so I did not have to face that kind of temperament in my life. The author speaks of facing adversity head on, and allowing her native tongue to still remain despite the setbacks and the oppression she faces. Thinking in respects of being a teacher, I would never want my students to feel like they would have to fight in order to maintain their dignity and identity. Assimilation is not natural, and I don't believe it has any place in the classroom. This article also brought to my attention that assimilation can happen in a classroom but it can also happen outside of it. I believe that teachers can help avoid dominant language in the classroom by paying close attention to students and straying away from strict curriculum. Students are not all the same, they will not all learn the same and each needs to be compensated, while at the same time every student is getting to the same level; no one is left behind. As a teacher, I would like to not only do everything in my power to steer away from assimilation but also to combat it in students minds. I want my students to know that knowledge is power, therefore language is power. I would want to create a safe environment for them within my classroom and encourage their first language, not strip them of it. This blog and this assignment helps me think about my upcoming research project by giving me a foundation. My foundation for my project will be that of making sure my project aims to send the message of giving pride to students. More than focus on the setbacks in language within classrooms, presently and in the past, I want to focus on the accomplishments of teachers and what works for multicultural students within classrooms. And how that work within classrooms, takes students outside of class and helps them in the real world. I have always had a soft spot for people who had to work harder to find a place in this country than others. Many families travel to the United States in order to make a better life for their families. The shame is that the families, the children, must suffer because we as a society enforce assimilation. We have created a culture that believes that to be American you must walk like a white person, learn like a white person and talk like a white person. As a teacher, I want to do my best to oppose that in my teaching. Children are the future, and teachers have the responsibility to instill confidence and drive into them; not shame and anger.

Blog 4

The major points of this section in the article are that English should not be viewed or treated as a language that only belongs to one community or nation, but one that is multilingual and is open discretion by other countries and ethnicities of people who consider it to be their first language or one of their languages. As said in the article, “They know that there are millions of people around the world who use varieties like their own and are open to negotiating differences with sensitivity and skill. Therefore, they are now using their own varieties with greater confidence” (589). This quote highlights the main point of the article, because the article is essentially saying that there is no need to classify English as one language that has no room for personalization or expression. The article is defending the fact that English is spoken all over the world, and is interpreted in different ways by different people. Once we all become comfortable with accepting the differences in how we each speak our own version of English, we become comfortable within ourselves to express our on “varieties” of our own English. Another main point of the article is that we cannot restrict one form of English to only the place that it is practiced. If one country has a version of English that they go by, we cannot reject that English when they try to use it in a different place that practices their own commonly held English. Lastly in relation with TESOL style of teaching, the author brings up an interesting point that students should not be taught to learn only by a set of grammatical rules in their new language but by trying to incorporate old and new languages with strategies. This encourages students to want to learn, as they don't feel that they are failing by trying. This also makes them feel as if they are not leaving their first language behind in the process of learning a new one.

What I have gained from this article is a new perspective on my own practice of English. I have never noticed myself becoming biased towards my own practice of English, but it has also never registered to me that there is more than just one practice of English. As a white girl who has a decent amount of privilege and grew up with English as her first language, I always just assumed that my English tongue was grammatically correct and the version of English that everyone else should speak by as well. It did not occur to me very much before this article that although I don’t realize it so often, the English I speak is not the only english that there is. So reading this article gave me a more level head and made me want to re evaluate my teaching abilities in relation to this. In regards to why this information would be important to consider when teaching a middle school or high school language arts class, it is clear to me that this information is far beyond merely consideration. This material is fundamental to the success within a classroom. For a teacher to be able to appreciate and understand that every student that walks into her classroom comes from a different ethnic and socioeconomic background, is for that teacher to understand that her mind must be broad and accepting for all forms of comprehension and learning as it pertains to language arts.