Blog Assignment: Evaluating Impacts on Professional Practice

Growing up down south I have been the subject of stereotypes or biases even in education.  These have included racism and classism.  As an African-American, I have often been discriminated against because of my color.  I was sent to a predominantly white high school where I had to catch a bus from my neighborhood to another school in a different neighborhood.  This was hard but I did learn in that time that not all people are prejudice.  I did learn that there were teachers/educators who saw my abilities and potential and worked very hard to make sure I learned everything necessary to move on in life. I learned with this that I would never want a child to feel what I felt from those around me, including my classmates, that did not recognize that I was a human being first.

In classism, because I was poor, often people would associate the fact that my family was poor and that I came from a poor neighborhood with people who were lazy, loud and did not care anything about their appearance.  All of these things were opposite for me and often I was told that I didn't act like the normal child that came from a large black family.

I now know the feeling when you are in a community where you have been raised in a different culture and the fears associated with trying to belong or just to be treated as equal with the rest of the class.  I would expect those of different isms to be withdrawn or to feel like they don't belong until someone such as an educator would do things to make that child feel like they belong. When coming into the classroom, I feel there should be famous people of all races pictured throughout the classroom along with their achievements.  I believe there should be a wall where students can write things about themselves and their families and to use this as a stepping stone to help all children realize they are special.

I believe, as the educator, they should see me as one who inspires them to do their best and should never see me look down on them because they have a hard time pronouncing certain words of the english language.  I should never allow any students to disrespect any other student and always present the face of love, peace and understanding.