Goals for Diversity, Equity, and Social Justice

One hope I have for working with children from a diverse background is that I always make them feel welcome and a part of my class.  I never want them to feel ashamed of their background or less than any other student; I want to celebrate all of the diversity in my classroom. 

One goal I want to set related to diversity, equity, and social justice is to share my studies and findings with others in my preschool.  I would like others to be aware of microaggressions and the damage they can cause.  I would also like to share with my colleagues the information I have gathered regarding social privilege; in the hopes that we all take a critical look at how students from lesser social backgrounds are treated.

Finally, a brief note of thanks to my colleagues;  You have all challenged and taught me in every course we have taken together at Walden.  Thank you for sharing your most personal stories, your ideas, and thoughts on diversity, equity and social justice.  I would have not learned nearly as much as I did without all of you. 

Welcoming Families from Around the World

I have a family arriving to my developmental preschool from Sweden.  I have no knowledge about Sweden.  I know nothing about the culture, the politics, the history, or the people of Sweden. 

5 things I will do to prepare myself to be culturally responsive towards this family will be:

Research the country and learn as much as I can about it

Find Swedish books and toys and have them available upon the child’s arrival.

Research the Finnish, the native language of Sweden and try to learn some phrases to make the child feel comfortable.  I will also find a translator if needed for the child.

Finally, I will invite the child’s family to come to the school to teach the other children and me about the land of Sweden.  I will also speak privately to the parents and conduct a home visit to discover what else I can do to make them and their child feels welcome and comfortable at their new school.

I hope these preparations will put the child and parents at ease.  I also hope that the knowledge I have gained will help me head off any potential behavioral issues that may arise as a result of moving to a new country. 

Incidence of Inequality

I recently became angry over the demand that Ellen Degeneres step down as spokesperson for JC Penney's.  This demand was made by One Million Moms. 

One Million Moms defines itself on its Facebook page as "an online activism campaign which gives mothers an impact with entertainment media decision-makers, and lets them know we are upset with the messages they are sending our children and the values being taught."

A week ago, One Million Moms put out a statement asking that JC Penney remove DeGeneres as its spokesperson, saying in part, "The majority of JC Penney shoppers will be offended and choose to no longer shop there. ... By jumping on the pro-gay bandwagon, JC Penney is attempting to gain a new target market and in the process will lose customers with traditional values that have been faithful to them over all these years." The group asked supporters to make personal phone calls to the company demanding it lose DeGeneres as its new face.  Thankfully the group failed miserably.  JC Penney stood by Ellen and choose not to remover her as their spokesperson. 

This incident made me want to shop at JC Penney.  I never shop there, but I will now.  I think people should live and let live, and the mothers who are worried about what their children are being taught should maybe stop and talk to their children instead of targeting a celebrity who brings nothing but joy and happiness. 

Microaggression

            I recently had an experience with microaggression in the workplace.  My colleague, Lisa, is an openly gay woman, who has never hid her lifestyle from anyone at work.  My work place has 101 employees, 4 of which are men.  One of the men I work with, Bob, walked up to a group of woman including Lisa and greeted us by saying, “Ladies…Lisa”.  In my mind two things happened, first of all Bob gave Lisa a microinsult on two levels.  He insinuated that Lisa was not a lady, and should be greeted separately.  That microinsult made me feel that Bob marginalized Lisa in a very demeaning way.  He greeted her separately almost as if he believes that gay people should be on the fringe of society, not a part of the dominate culture.

            I never asked Lisa about this incident, but I have been thinking about it long before this lesson on microaggression.  I have a brother who is gay, so I am sensitive to stupid remarks from heterosexuals to homosexuals. 

Culture and Diversity

I asked my father who is 83 what is culture.  He told me culture is where you are from, your background.  I asked him what diversity was, and he told me it was people of different raes and cultures living, going to school, and working together.

I asked my friend who is a different race and religion than I am the same questions. She told me culture is your heritage, the way you are raised, and the traditions that are passed down. She felt that diversity was like America used to be.  A melting pot of races, cultures and religions.

Finally I asked my sister what is culture is and she told me it is people with  a common belief system, sort of like religion, who all come from the same place and share the same experiences.  Diversity, according to my sister is people of all different cultures living together. 

These answers are included in the definition of culture and diversity that I am learning in my class.  But the point their answers missed is that culture is all inclusive.  It is not of the past, but of the present and the future.  Culture encompasses the entire being of a person. 

Learning how other people view this topic has increased my awareness of culture and diversity. 

Three Items

If I were forced to leave my home and go somewhere new with only three items that represent my culture, that would be very difficult. 

First, I would take a cross to represent my Catholic faith.  I would just take a plain wooden cross, one that I would not have to worry about breaking.  One that would represent the burden I am bearing in a new land. I hope it would give me strength to persevere. 

Second, I would take my Nook.  I have a strong belief in education.  Having all of my books in one place would be a saving grace.  I would be able to read to find comfort, and I would have my children read as well. 

The last item I would take is a pot my grandparents passed down to my parents, and eventually down to me.  It represents many home cooked meals.  It represents comfort and love.  It represents all that is family to me. 

If I were only allowed to keep one of these items, as much as it would pain me to choose, I would have to keep the Nook.  I can face anything as long as I can read.  Keeping the Nook would allow my family to read about their history and to continue the traditions long handed down.  It would be important to me for my family to be able to read their history, I believe it would make a difference to their future. 

Insights on Research

The biggest insight I gained in taking this course is that the world of education can be very scientific indeed.  Most people think that early childhood education is having snack time, and putting children down for naps.  Not so!  It can be technical, scientific, and make huge differences in the world of research.  That has been the biggest way my thinking has been modified from this course. 

The critical scientific thinking was the biggest challenge for me in this course.  It was a huge shift in thinking for me, and one I am not sure I successfully made.  This course will help me with behavioral analysis within my classroom in the future.  This course will help by enabling me to critically look at problems and to develop scientific ways to solve them through studies. 

I am excited to apply my new found knowledge to my classroom.  This course will continue to benefit me for years to come.