Classroom Environment & The "Success Frame"
In Chapter 9, “Creating a Culturally Responsive Community for Learning,” Hammond emphasizes the importance of creating a classroom that supports our students socially, emotionally, and intellectually (2015). Hammond gives us ideas on how exactly we can build an intellectually safe classroom. She mentions how teachers can use authentic rituals and routines to focus on the ethos of the classroom. This really surprised me because when I think of routines I think of day-to-day activities that help build structure and classroom management. I did not know routines could help students connect to each other and build social bonds. I also loved Hammond’s suggestion to invite students to create the procedures or routines with us. This involves the students and shows that we value their opinion and input. It also ensures that students have a part in developing the classroom environment. This will allow students to feel a sense of community.
Also, Tatum provides wonderful insight into Asian Identity. I learned about the history of immigration and how the different laws impacted their lives. It is heartbreaking to learn about how Asian Americans were and are being treated. This is why it is necessary to learn about our implicit biases and common stereotypes. For example, Asian Americans are stereotyped to be very smart in math and science, to graduate college, and become successful, which is called the “success frame” (Tatum, 2017). Even though this can be seen as positive, teachers assume Asian American students are smart and do not provide them with the instruction they need. Tatum also mentions that when Asian Americans do not follow this “success model” they feel outcasted and alone. As a teacher, we should not assume that a student may be proficient in a subject just because of their ethnicity. Teachers should also show students that there are many different opportunities and types of success available and that they do not have to follow the “success frame.”
Lastly, Tatum brings up the idea of mindset and shares that Asian children have grown up with the idea that effort is more important than ability (Tatum, 2017). This was very interesting to read about because in Chapter 7 in Culturally Responsive Teaching & the Brain, Hammond talked about growth and fixed mindset. I think it would be interesting to further explore the mindsets of different ethnicities. (Word Count 387)
Hi Jillian,
ReplyDeleteAll of the reading this week was surprising to me and I'm glad you found it as interesting as I did! I've never thought about using the class routine or the décor to build a rapport and to build trust with my students. In high school, my classroom walls were covered with uninviting posters or things that just made the classroom dreary. I think as a synthesis of this advice and how those classrooms made me feel, I have a very good basis for how to conduct both a class routine and handle my classroom.
I, too, found the writing on Asian Identity in this week's reading interesting. One of the most eye- opening experiences of this class has been seeing the different ways cultures are affected in the classroom and the ways those cultures are affected by stereotypes. I came from a school where I never really interacted with many different cultures, so it is very eye opening (especially as a hopeful teacher) to understand these issues and how I can responsibly combat them. Having this mindset and knowing how these stereotypes and issues affect students around me will surely make me a more effective teacher. (Word Count: 199)
Hi Jill,
ReplyDeleteI love the title of the blog because I think that creating a culturally responsive community for learning is super important. As it allows us to become equal with all cultural differences of create a good learning community. I would have to agree with you when you said that the teachers use rituals and routines, in my mind a routine is a day to day schedule of things that need to get done. I love how you said that Tatum provides great insight in Asian identity I feel this is important for the growth of each cultures in knowing that teachers are aware of all cultures ad their backgrounds
Jill,
ReplyDeleteI really like the point you make about how you did not know that routines could help to build social bonds between students and help them connect to each other. I also had not considered this previously so I think that it is a very important topic to take away from the chapter. It does make sense though that having students contribute to the routines that are built in the classroom would help build a sense of community because everyone is working together. I also like how you consider the point Hammond made about Asian stereotypes because it causes us to think about how even when stereotypes are “positive” they can have a negative impact on the student. We often focus on stereotypes related to low-income households, blended families or other negative stereotypes that we can forget how stereotypes about a particular race being smarter can cause students of this race to be overlooked. In addition to being overlooked, it can cause feelings of isolation. You brought forward a lot of crucial points from the chapter that contribute to being a successful educator that creates a classroom with a sense of community and without implicit bias. (word count, 196).
Hey Jill,
ReplyDeleteI appreciate your insights into the mindset during education. Discussing growth and fixed mindsets makes me remember Ed 208 where the concept was a focal point and seeing it’s cultural applications in this class has made the concepts sink in for me. Your curiosity on how different cultures utilize growth and fixed mindsets would make an interesting research topic for Education Majors or even History Majors. I had the same thoughts when reading about the cultural application and I’m glad someone wrote about it! Would understanding these mindsets and cultures help us as teachers create better lesson plans? I most definitely believe so. This leads me to wonder about another thing, could we design the classroom or lesson structure in order to encourage the type of necessary growth and maintain cultural values simultaneously? And if so, how could we as teachers accomplish this task? This would be an interesting topic to dive into more as the semester goes on.
Word Count: 151
- Liam Bergin