Social Issues in Education, in my Classroom

A large part of the afro-pessimism intellectual milieu focuses on the dehumanization of the black person, as explored in "Against the Dark: Antiblackness in Education Policy and Discourse." I see this often in the language used to describe our schools, the buildings themselves described as "zoos," and the students as "animals." All problems to be dealt with. How can we as a community move past this damaging rhetoric and into a greater and more productive conversation around institutionalized racism and prejudice, and ways in which we can begin to break the mold around these stereotypes/assumptions?  Michael Dumas states that Afro-pessimist scholars contend that The Black is still seen as The Slave, which I believe makes sense when you consider the disproportionate rates at which black people face mass incarceration, suffer police brutality, endure the school to prison pipeline, and were unfairly persecuted during the War on Drugs.  Tying together ...

The focus of this week's readings is identity. What is it, how is it formed, and what does it mean in our classrooms?  Kirk and Okazawa-Rey's article, "Identities and Social Locations: Who Am I? Who Are my People?" provides a thorough overview of the fundamentals of identity and how it can be formed and changed throughout time. Throughout the text, it is clear that the authors recognize the fluidity and intersectionality of a person's identities. As a white Hispanic woman, I appreciate their recognition of the fact that navigating various socially-constructed spaces can be difficult for folks who do not easily fit into one category or another. Many times throughout my life I have felt like I had to "choose one aspect of [my] identity over another (50)," when I don't easily fit into constructed categories. I think about the fact that often people want identity to be easy, which is why when getting to know someone questions like "where are you f...

Hello, everyone!  My name is Cristina and I am a high school English teacher in Providence, RI. I am currently working toward an Individualized Masters in Education. I am  enrolled in this class called Social Issues in Education and I am very much looking forward to the topics that we will discuss and explore. This will be a place for not only just class assignments, but hopefully also additional reflections about my work and teaching practice.  A bit more about me --  I teach 9th graders this year, and they're pretty awesome! I enjoy the enthusiasm they bring to life and their willingness to try new things out with me.  I love using all kinds of technology in my classroom. Some usual suspects are: Google Classroom, Google Forms (for Do-Nows and Exit Tickets), Peardeck, Bitmoji, Edublogs and Kahoot!. I am always eager to try new tech things out and I welcome any suggestions or experiences you have had in your classroom.  I'm a part of an E videnc...