Week 8

Racial stereotypes are often found in textbooks due to the fact that they are not very multicultural and in my opinion the textbooks mirror what the greater population looks like which is white Males in the business world. “A common held notion is that images in EFL textbooks are neutral, apolitical, or even an enjoyable part of learning English” (Taylor-Mendes). I believe that the images represented in the textbooks send a message of who is included or excluded in society and unfortunately it is depended on race. Furthermore, certain images can create opinions and make a statement indirectly and that’s why I feel that images cause conflicts in textbooks. In my opinion it is important for the students to have texts that they can relate to and see themselves depicted in so that they feel included in the classroom.

The article by Cosette Taylor-Mendes, depicted a study that explored how the images in textbooks, which represent English culture(s), shaped students' and teachers' impressions of the target foreign language culture. The study took place in Brazil and there are various schools where English is taught for the purposes of business or travel as we previously stated in our class discussion. The study allowed the EFL instructor to view her teaching differently because her students called her out on her racial privileges and now she views EFL textbook images, her students, and her own position in the world in a different way. She mentioned that she was offered three jobs with in the first week of her arrival and for other Brazil residents they last months or years without jobs.

Some of the results were that the participants “expressed enthusiasm and concern about the importance of English in their work or education; thus, they study English (a) to communicate with foreign management; (b) to further their professional opportunities within their companies, or to apply for positions which require one to communicate in English; and (c) as a personal interest”(Taylor-Mendes).

What does an English speaker look like? What does a Spanish speaker look like? What does a _____ speaker look like? All of these questions can appear as biased or prejudice as the article stated. “What does an American look like? The answer is simple: White, wealthy, powerful, isolated with members of their own race, and free of problems” (8). These are the portrayals that diverse students see in EFL textbooks. They are unable to relate to them because of the difference of appearance among other things.

After reading the article I began to wonder about my own classroom. What can we do to eradicate racial stereotypes in textbooks as well as our own classrooms? 

I personally plan to promote multiculturalism in the classroom and equity by making sure that all students are represented around the classroom. For example, I want to depict every student in bulletin boards and posters so that they do not feel excluded from the curriculum. It will also promote diversity in the classroom and I want to teach my students to accept difference and embrace who they are. Students will understand multiculturalism and equity because of the environment they are in within the classroom and the school.

Week 7

While reading the article The Cultures of English as a Lingua Franca  I thought of our first week of class when we tried to define culture on our own. The article depicted the definition of culture as: “Culture can be viewed as a discourse or discourse community which is dynamic, complex, and negotiated and one of many possible means of interpreting meaning and understanding in interactions that may or may not emerge as relevant” (Baker 573). I agree with the article’s definition because culture is a complex idea that is constantly changing and it can have various interpretations to different people. 

Culture can be problematic because not everyone has the same view or opinion on it. That brings me to my next point on how I believe it adds to bilingual education being controversial because it comes with change in the schools and in the community. Furthermore, in my opinion students who are linguistically diverse learn best when there is a community created within the classroom and there are interactive activities where the students can practice their language skills. I believe that a student should not let go of their home culture and traditions because then they let go of their identity as we previously learned. A student should never be denied to speak their native language; instead we should encourage them to preserve it because I know many Latino students who do not speak Spanish or the language that was spoken by their ancestors. It has been proven that skills attained in L1 transfer to students’ L2.

Moreover, I found it fascinating that in Marra’s article Recording and Analyzing Talk across Cultures they looked into language in the workplace. I had never thought about language in the workplace because I am always focusing on language in the classroom because of my major so I found it very interesting that the research was interested in exploring what people actually did when they talked together at work. The article stated that working with an ethnically different group inevitably introduces challenges and complexities to the research process. During the time where data is collected they record natural talk that takes place and they also use participant observation. The LWP team strives to ensure that “they gather information from a wide range of communication channels and each context within each workplace to provide a basis for a thorough description of the communication practices of workplace participants. Overall, I found this article interesting because it was something that I had never explored and it opened my eyes to different environments of language.

Week 5- Holliday A2.1, A2.2, & A3.3

I enjoyed reading Holliday A2.1, A2.2, AND A3.3 and the examples were relatable. Holliday stated that the “major inhibition to communication by looking at how, so easily, we can construct and reduce people to be less than what they are.” The first example about John and his new neighbors, the Smiths is probably something we can all relate to because at one point we may have judged someone by their appearance or behaviors in addition to categorizing them into a stereotype. “Stereotypes are often infected by prejudice, which in turn leads to Othering” (Holliday 25). However, what prevents us from seeing people as they really are before making assumptions?

This leads me to believe that we need to be aware of our prejudices before going into a situation and it is vital for us to get to know ourselves as well as the other individual. For example, I will use this for when I become a teacher. I will need to be aware of any prejudices I may have so that I do not project them onto my students. I believe that every student deserves to come into my classroom with a clean slate without me having other viewpoints about them because of other teachers or their school records.  I want to be able to form my own thoughts about my students and not judge them based on what I have previously heard.

The third example stood out to me and made me think about my future classroom. The example described Jabu as a student who was black African and Jeremy the lecturer. Jeremy believed to know a lot about black African culture because he had done research in the area and that’s why he felt like he was a good fit to help guide Jabu through school. “The Teacher announced in class that he know her “context” very well” (Holliday 33). Jabu was unsure about what the teacher had meant by that but she disliked being called out in class. She was surprised that he claimed to know her that well and she mentioned that no one would do that, not even her close friends. They only person who she believed to her well was her mother. Later in the example she became offended because “he was having the audacity to be thinking that she might have difficulty keeping up with “white people” (Holliday 33).

While reading this it had a big impact on me since I plan to be a bilingual elementary teacher. My classroom will consist of students who have a similar background to mine and I will need to make sure that I go in with an open mind and not pretend like I know everything or every student. They are all individuals and they will all have different background and experiences that may differ from mine. I like many other teachers will need to take the time to familiarize myself with the students and who they really are. It is crucial that I get to know about their previous experiences and home life so that I can have lesson that they can relate to. i would not like to make the mistake the teacher made in the example but mistakes like that happen often because we sometimes do not monitor our own language or thoughts before acting.

Jabu was insulted because she believed that Jeremy was making assumptions because she was black African. Jabu also explained that there were other students who were also struggling in the classroom and with deadlines but that he was not blaming their “culture” like he was with her.

How should Jabu have handled the situation with Jeremy? And what would we have done if we were in Jabu's place? I think I would have talked to the teacher because I would not feel comfortable in that environment. 

Week 4 Identity and Language Learning

Social Identity has always been intriguing to me. Social identity comprises of the individual, relationships, reputation, and other social roles. Social identity cannot be defined as a single idea; rather it is seen as multiple. In the article “Social Identity, Investment, and Language Learning” by Norton she argues the conception of “investment” rather than “motivation” to grasp the multifaceted relationship of language learners to the target language learners and their hesitant desire to speak it. The notion of investment signifies that the language learner is seen as an individual with social history and they are not perceived as one-dimensional. It should be looked at as an investment because it increases cultural capital. As we previously learned it is crucial to have cultural capital because it characterizes the different classes and groups in relation to specific sets of social forms. Investing in a second language is beneficial because it will give the language learners new resources and in turn they will increase the value of their cultural capital. “It is also an investment in a learner's own social identity, an identity which is constantly changing across time and space” (Norton, 18).

I see being bilingual as an investment and I am appreciative that I was taught Spanish as a child and that my parents still made me speak it at home even once I had learned English. I now have cousins that refuse to speak Spanish or even teach Spanish to their kids. I feel that the children are only being hurt by it because later in their future they will have wished that they were taught it. Nowadays language should be looked at as an investment especially because in other countries people learn to speak three languages and more!

Other theories of SLA focus on social rather than individual variables in language learning. The “social” refers to group differences between the language learner group and the target language group. This will make it easier to interact with the target language group. In my opinion, students learn best when they are allowed to discuss the materials with their classmates or when they are expected to reteach/retell it to someone else to demonstrate mastery of material covered in class. “In the field of SLA, theorists have not adequately addressed why it is that a learner may sometimes be motivated, extroverted, and confident and sometimes unmotivated, introverted, and anxious; why in one place there may be social distance between a specific group of language learners and the target language community, whereas in another place the social distance may be minimal; why a learner can sometimes speak and other times remains silent” (Norton, 11). That quote from the article stood out to me because every child learns  in different way so we cannot have a one-size fits all type of education and we cannot expect each language learner to react the exact same way when learning a new language, new content, and interacting with English speakers. I feel that theorists have not figure this theory out because it is very complex and a lot of variables go into how confident or motivated a student can be in the school environment.

This was probably the article that stood out to me more because it dealt with language learning and investment as well as social identity. I look forward to learning the definition of identity because I feel that it is also a hard term to define. If our identity is always changing then how do we know who we really are? How is that possible since we are different people depending on our surroundings? It truly makes me wonder of how I act different in a professional job setting, at school, at home, and with friends. I feel that this is something that we need to keep in mind when we become future teachers because some students may be shy, problematic, etc. I look forward to seeing other opinions about identity and our class discussions.

Week 3

After reading Pavlenko’s work this was one of the main sentences that stood out to me, “second language learning was transformed into a painful journey, involving a loss of primary identities linked to the mother tongue” (63). We live an America which is full of diversity and people with various backgrounds. Years ago people came to this country speaking a wide range of languages and even the indigenous people had their own language at that time. However, nowadays it is seen as a defivit and students learning English or any other language go through a very rough time because it is not looked at as accepting in the country. Learning a new language should not mean giving up who you are and losing your mother language. Instead, it should be an addition to your identity that is always changing and progressing. I associated the “painful journey” to the education systems that have many controversial issues with implementing adequate services for the language learners.

I believe that students learn in various unique ways and that a one size fits all style of teaching does not work so schools need special programs to help these students succeed. It is crucial that a teacher gets to know her students. The teacher can make home visits and have a meet the teacher or open house at the beginning of the academic year to interact with the students and their families. In a previous class we learned about an identity text. It would be an amazing way to learn about the students’ background. Both the students and they families can work on the activity together and in doing this activity the teacher will learn about the students’ culture, traditions, and overall have a better understanding of who the student is. In addition, education requires equality.

Language minorities in the classroom need support and special services in order for them to be equal with the English speakers. Equality doesn’t mean that everyone needs the same support or help, in my opinion it means offering assistance to those who need it so that they can be at grade level with the rest of the students in the class and not lag behind. In my classroom I will do whatever I can to make sure that everyone is getting an equal education by providing differentiated instruction. I will keep in mind for when I teach that education needs to be meaningful and that I need to make sure that students are able to comprehend lessons whether they are in their native language or English as they progress. This would make their journey of learning English a lot less painful and they would feel cared about in the school that would encourage learning.

One of the main reasons that I would like to be a bilingual teacher is because I know that I can help and advocate for the needs of these students. Fortunately I just learned English in programs I was in that when I started schooling I was in regular education classes. I know that that is not the case with all students so I want to because well trained and qualified to learn to work with English language learners.

Holliday (3-5) (63-75),

Holliday (3-5) (63-75),

We were first introduced with Identity in section A, and it is much like the word culture that may be difficult to define. I also believe that Identity is ever changing just as culture is being redefined. 

As I read Holliday on pages 63-75, I was reinforced about how important it is for anyone, to learn how to speak about cultures. We as future teachers cannot pretend that it isn’t an issue. It is our job to make the students aware of the world and culture awareness. Having a multicultural classroom library where all types of students are depicted will allow the student to feel at ease and accepted in the school community. Learning to be culturally sensitive, especially in the classroom because whether we realize it or not, there are so many cultures around us at a given time that we might say the wrong thing without even realizing. This proves that anything we say can be viewed as rhetoric, thus giving it the capability to be read in many different ways. For instance we touched on this during class and it reminds me of when people say things like “Oh you speak Mexican?” I simply reply with a no, Mexico is a country not a language and I speak Spanish. I try not to get annoyed because it can happen to anyone including me. However, it just proves how we need to be aware of our surrounding and keep up with what is going around in the world.

This time culture is described as two different categories. The two categories presented by Holliday are standard and complex. The standard category states “culture is a complex set of shared beliefs, values, and concepts which enables a group to make sense of its life which provides it with directions for how to live.” I linked this to the article previously read about how culture shapes who a person is and it provides structure in the various aspects of their lives. On the other hand, the complex category is described as when issues arise or when there is a difference in beliefs.

I will continue to try to define culture because I have gained great insight from the readings that I have done so far and I look forward to see what other things I learn in the readings to come. This is all very interesting but also a bit challenging to reflect on because it makes you think a lot. I just know that including culture in the classroom might be tough at first because you want to make sure you include everyone and that no one is left our or disrespected by what is said.

As stated previously it is important to know how to talk about culture so that we as future teachers can create a nurturing and accepting community within the classroom and school so that that it does not cause problems. It would also teach students to be respectful of one another and talking about culture or other hot topics won’t be as challenging in the classroom.

What is Culture? Week 1 & 2

What is culture? In the activity during class I found it quite difficult to define culture. I began to jot down words that helped me describe what culture was. Some words that I included in my notecard were: traditions, food, language, dance, music, media, values, religion, always changing, beliefs, literature, etc. Turns out my definition of culture is widely used by many. As I continued to read the article “Cultural Globalization and Language Education” by Kumaravadivelu I longed to redefine my definition.

I do agree with how the article stated that culture provides individuals with structure that guides them with various aspects of their lives. I have previously read Huntington’s work in previous classes and his work is very controversial. As stated by Huntington, culture is linked to civilization because people can change and redefine their identities as time goes on and as a result that shapes civilizations.

Culture and community almost go hand in hand because they share common characteristics. The characteristics bring together all the members of the group together. Culture and community are both made up of individuals. This takes us to individualism and collectivism. The article stated that collectivism is made up of individuals who see themselves as parts of one or more collectives such as family. On the other hand, individuals view themselves as loosely linked individuals who view themselves independent from the collective. I related this to myself because I do not know what category I fit in. For example, I am very independent but I also see myself as a collective because I love working with other people especially students. I think that it is important to have characteristics of both individualism and collectivism because people belong to both groups. They belong to a family or a nation and yet they are an individual.

The section of culture and language would have to be my favorite because it is something that I am very interested in. I strongly believe that every student regardless of race, background, or economic status deserves a fair opportunity to an education. I want to make this a reality by providing a nurturing environment where youth can learn the importance of culture awareness. I had never heard “Language determines thought” so it definitely made me think about it. I learned to speak Spanish at home first and then English as soon as I stepped foot into a classroom. I now believe that when I think, I think in English. And I do agree with Kumaravadivelu about how the grammatical structure of one’s language determines one’s view of the world.

I trust that language learning cannot be isolated from everything because then real learning does not take place. As a future teacher I need to be aware of the influences that students face when in school that can be due to their specific culture. The reading added to my understanding that I need to be aware of what students are in my classroom in order for them to succeed. For example, I need to learn a about their home life and if they have the support available to them. Students who have support at home are more likely to succeed in school than students with less or no support. In addition, I believe that a student should not let go of their home culture and traditions because then they let go of their identity. A student should never be denied to speak their native language; instead we should encourage them to preserve it because I know many Latino students who do not speak Spanish or the language that was spoken by their ancestors. It has been proven that skills attained in L1 transfer to students L2.

I would like to erase the ideas that the programs like TESOL, ESL, Bilingual education, etc focus on problems and difficulties. Speaking another language should not be looked at as a deficit instead it should be accepted because not everyone is the same.

Culture is hard to define but I look forward to defining it better by the end of the semester as well as learning about language acquisition since I will be a bilingual elementary teacher. I also want to learn to cope with the difficulties or obstacles I may face because of the path I have chosen to take because I know that sometimes bilingual teachers are looked as inferior to regular education teachers.