Wednesday, March 7, 2007
Does Race Take Away From The Real Meaning of Teaching
Today I was watching TV, and though the show was good but it was a concept that I had seen before. It was called Fighting the Odds: The Marilyn Gambrell story and it was similar to the Ron Clark story and others like it. It was a white teacher in a black school playing a superhero role, so I feel. I think I feel this way because when minority teachers go in and teach minority or white students, they arent on TV for it. I read an article where a white teacher left a school less then a year after he started because he felt disillusioned by pupils who struggled, parents who weren't involved and the constant pressure to meet state achievement standards. "It's not because of race issues," he says. "It's about where you feel comfortable." I did not choose this career path because of money, I chose it because I want to make a difference. Schools that have students that struggle and parents who arent involved is not going to make me feel uncomfortable. So was his reason for leaving not really a race issue? He felt more comfortable teaching high-performing fourth-graders at a wealthy, mostly white Atlanta school. Now, not all white teachers leave, in this same article I read, one teacher said, "I really see no difference in what my job is, whether the students are black or white. They're children. It's my job to teach." There are also black teachers who grow up in this poor, low-income areas and they "sellout" by going to this schools where it is easier for them to teach. I feel if your not working hard, if your not making a difference, then your not doing your job. But I do wish that these "based on a true story" shows would stop showing white teachers as superheros, it makes me feel like black teachers, or minority teachers in general aren't out there doing what they are doing to make a difference and I beg to differ. Whether they're white, black, rich or poor, they all have needs and as a teacher, white, black Asian or Chinese, you are suppose to be there, not cop-out.
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5 comments:
I agree, Nikki. There have been very few portrayals in the popular media of teachers of color who are doing good work in schools--urban or otherwise. The idea of the (usually young) white teacher who goes into a "ghetto" school and supposedly turns kids' lives around single-handedly seems to have limitless appeal for mainstream white audiences. Every couple years, the same familiar story is trotted out.
That's one of the reasons I decided to focus on young teachers of color in my book, See You When We Get There (which we'll be reading after the break). I wanted to counter the familiar narrative and shine a spotlight on a few of the many amazing teachers of color who work diligently every day to provide their students with a relevant, engaging, and quality education. I also wanted to show that, as dedicated as these teachers are, they still struggle to connect with some of their students and to fully realize the sort of classroom they're striving for. Real teaching--no matter how amazing the teacher--is a lot more messy and complex than the Hollywood version.
I totally agree with what you said. It usually is always the same scenario in each of the movies that we see on TV or on the big screen. I for once think that it would be nice to see a new scenario happen. And you are right, teachers who are a minority can make as much of a difference as any white teacher can. So I guess I don't understand either why it's always the white teacher "saving" these kids when any person of any race could do the job as well.
And as for that teacher who left the school because he wasnt "comfortable"? I mean maybe he really does have his reasons for leaving but at the same time arent all of us teachers going to to feel uncomfortable at some point in our teaching career? I mean as future teachers we are prepared and taught that we should be ready for anything and everything that happens. In the classroom things are obviously not always going to go our way. But I do believe that "uncomfortableness" will fade away with time but we have to accpet it like we have to accept all the unplanned things that come up in the classroom. So whether or not this teacher really did leave because he was "uncomfortable" or not, I guess I would have tried to suck it up and keep moving. Just getting up and leaving is not going to always solve a problem. What if this teacher later on decided that he didnt feel comfortable at this next school? Would he get up and leave again? I dont know, just something to think about I guess.
The idea of a successful minority teacher having successful minority students might be too much for some people to handle. *hehe sorry just teasing*
I sincerly believe that of course minority teachers do make a difference but minority adults with minority students are not as markable as white adults with minority students. With all this talk of white people oppressing minorities perhaps this is a way of making up for it..by helping our children succeed (at least depicting it).
Again I believe this portrayal of a white teacher going into the ghetto to teach underprivileged students is a story for the movie theaters. From what we have discussed in class and going off the actual documentaries that were not based on a true story, it is obvious to say that these movies are far from reality. Those types of documentaries seem to always start with a dramatic portrayal of a school gone bad that drastically changes into a perfect school setting where nothing goes wrong. No matter what race the teacher is this story could not happen in a real setting. So to bring up the issue that there are only white teachers in these types of movies further show a false setting in a public school. All these types of movies tend to run together but may include different scenarios. What I’m trying to say is if the issue is to change these movies so that the teacher is not white, then there would be no real big change on the accuracy of the movie. If there is going to be a change, the whole story in general should be changed. The whole reason for these movies is to make money and not to give a better understanding of an urban school.
I agree as well with you Nikki. If I was getting into the teaching profession to have a nice cushy job that pays well, I would have taken myself down another career path, not this one.
Don't get my wrong, teaching isn't for everyone, and when some teachers jump into the poverty, low-test score schools, or as Golden Apple would define them, "School of need" most teachers who are just teaching because they think that this is just an easy gig are sadly mistaken and leave. When those students in those schools see those, white teachers leave, they understand the deal here.
With that said, I think that it is up to us as the future educators of America, (cheesy, I know) to show that race shouldn't make a difference. It is how we teach our students, how to make them feel, how validated we make their life and their work is, and how we can help them be the best that we can be. Now, I'm saying this as aa white female, sterotypical Hollywood character, but I don't care. I want to inspire my future students that, yes race does matter. If we were all the same, man this world would be boring as hell if that were the case. So, yes, I do agree that it is important for there to be minority teachers out there who do make a difference and help to change the lives of their students, but I also feel that all teachers should do that. That is why we are here. We are not just teaching them Math or Science, but in our class, there is always something more to be learned and stiven for.
Does that make sense?
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