2. Street also argues that literacy is “always contested, both its meanings and its practices, hence particular versions of it are always “ideological”, they are always rooted in a particular world-view and in a desire for that view of literacy to dominate and marginalize others” (p. 694 in reader). How might our discussion of Friere and/or racial power dynamics play into his conception of literacy?
3. Richardson writes that “African American females’ language and literacy practices reflect their socialization in a racialized, genderized, sexualized, and classed world in which they employ their language and literacy practices to protect and advance themselves” (p. 637 in reader). How does this intersectionality create a unique linguistic practice? How does Richardson see these affect African American female students?
4. Newkirk writes about the role that Bourdieu’s “cultural capital” plays in what is considered valid reading and writing subject material in school. What does he mean by “cultural capital”? How does this tie into power in our classrooms?
5. Last week, we read Mahiri and Sablo who indicate that “real life” subjects such as drugs, murder, and abortion are not considered socially acceptable topics. Newkirk highlights the unacceptable genres of comic books, horror stories, etc. Why do you think classrooms are such restrictive spaces for student creativity? Who benefits from restricting the canon? Think about out of school examples highlighted by Hull & Schultz as ways we can problematize these limitations.
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ReplyDelete2. Street’s argument that literacy is “always contested” (because it is rooted in a particular world-view) echoes Freire’s claims about literacy. In our previous reading, Freire lists out four approaches to literacy (academic, utilitarian, cognitive development, and romantic), and proceeds to say that, although these approaches differ, they “ignore the role of language as a major force in the construction of human subjectivities,” (Freire 103). Opposed to this ideological model is the “autonomous” model of literacy, which treats literacy as an isolated concept that can be simply introduced to the poor to help them. Street argues that literacy is inherently a social act, and so the autonomous model ignores the variance of literacy from one culture to another. Freire critique is very much the same: the standard autonomous literacy models “ignore the way language may either confirm or deny the life histories and experiences of the people who use it,” (Freire 103).
ReplyDelete3. The intersection of multiple cultural categorizations acting simultaneously creates a unique linguistic practice as each person fits a different set of categories. In particular, Richardson examines the situation of the African American female student. The role of the African American female student is influenced by the role of African American women as “nurturer[s] and protector[s] of life,” (681), as well as the history of African American women having to work hard to survive. As a result, instead of emphasizing academics for the African American female student, she is “reinscribed as Mammy in the classroom,” expected to take on an “enforcer” role and is encouraged to help the teacher maintain order. Other influences on the African American female student include self-fulfilling inferiority in that they are perceived as deficient if they ask for help. In sum, the African American female student must “make a way outa no way” in order to advance herself.
Street argues that literacy is a “social practice.” Using examples from Hull & Schultz, Richardson and/or Newkirk, explain what Street means.
ReplyDeleteA: In his article “What’s ‘new’ in New Literacy Studies? Critical approaches to literacy in theory and practice”, Brian Street defines the term “New Literacy Studies” to represent a “new tradition in considered the nature of literacy, focusing not so much on acquisition of skills, as in dominant approaches, but rather on what it means to think of literacy as a social practice” (693). He goes on to describe this “social practice” as including the “recognition of multiple literacies, varying according to time and space, but also contested in relations of power”. With these ideas in mind, we can see how this definition could fit with literacy. For example, in Richardson’s article “‘To Protect and Serve’: African American Female Literacies”, she describes how the African American female literacy (let’s just use AAFL for short) differs from even black male literacy based on the simple social bounds previously described. From history, Richard notes, AAFL has been constructed and manipulated through AAF’s various roles and perceptions. From stereotypes of AAFs being stereotyped as “heartless nigger bitch[es]” (676) to a history of acting toward survival, AAfs have since endured a sexualized and simplified image in society. Through a history of racism, classism, and womanhood, AAFs literacy has been socially constructed through these relations of power throughout time.
Richardson writes that “African American females’ language and literacy practices reflect their socialization in a racialized, genderized, sexualized, and classed world in which they employ their language and literacy practices to protect and advance themselves” (p. 637 in reader). How does this intersectionality create a unique linguistic practice? How does Richardson see these affect African American female students?
A: I wasn’t exactly sure what the word “intersectionality” was referring to in this question so I tried to look it up on dictionary.com, but it wasn’t there. I found a definition elsewhere that defines the term as “the combination of traits, influences, knowledge and experience that create each unique individual.” With this in mind, I believe the question is asking how does the fact that African American females deal with a racialized, genderized, sexualized, and classed image create a unique linguistic practice? While I feel like this question sort of answers itself in a way, I’ll try to elaborate on the idea. While some other groups may have to deal with part of this equation (like black males also having to deal with the racialized image), AAFs in particular have a unique history and makeup that in turn create a unique linguistic practice. The article focuses on the relationship of literacy related to “the mother tongue” - the form of literacy that individuals grow up with from their parents or whoever looks after them. In this case, many AAFs grow up learning a very unique literacy that takes on the role of the protector and the nurturer. This stems from the history of AAFs having to work hard and do whatever it took in order to protect and advance themselves and their families. AAF students now must overcome these images and fall out of this category. She notes that “the strategic use of silence is also a communication strategy used by AAFs to resist perpetuation of [these] distorted images of Black female sexuality and womanhood”. Similar to some of the previous articles we’ve read like the black man that moved to France and had to drop his vernacular and learn French in order to fit in, AAFs now must use silence as a strategy to take a step forward.
2. Street’s argument about literacies being part of a particular perspective ties in with Freire’s concept of power in the classroom, in which teachers are dominant and students are passive. Freire argues that the dominant culture is forced upon students by teachers, that learning in school only goes one way: teacher to student. For Street, this could be an example of the dominant culture’s attempt to marginalize those students who do not share in the dominant culture. Street also says, “The ways in which teachers or facilitators and their students interact is already a social practice that affects the nature of the literacy being learned and the ideas about literacy held by the participants, especially the new learners and their position in relationships of power.” (p. 694 of reader). According to Street, the social dynamics of the classroom set up students to have a particular response to the literacy being taught. For Freire, this can lead to entirely passive learners and non-critical thinkers, or students who cannot function “well” in school, “well” being defined by the person(s) in power. For minority students who do not share in the Westernized and essentially White culture of power, this dynamic can lead to unengaged students who cannot relate to the material being taught. Their own world-view, their literacies, are not accepted in the classroom.
ReplyDelete4. Newkirk and Bourdieu use the terms cultural capital or social capital to describe the sense of superiority one gets from reading “serious” material. Of course, the written material that confers this superiority is defined by those already in power. This cultural capital allows those who have it to exert power over others who do not have it; in the classroom, this can be applied to the dynamic between teachers and students. Teachers have cultural capital, which is usually Westernized literature, and students do not have it. Teachers then force this culture upon students by having them to read literature that has been “approved” by the dominant culture.
1. While literacy is obtained in an academic setting, by learning to state mandated standards and following a specific curriculum, literacy is also greatly social. People of varying racial and cultural backgrounds possess different forms of literacy depending on what they are exposed to outside of the classroom. According to Richardson, “Every language represents a particular way of making sense of the world”(677). A person’s language and overall literacy is morphed to reflect their understanding of the world. This concept is reflected in Hull and Schulz’s vignette about Jacques. According to Jacques’s teacher, this 13-year-old student has “great trouble with literacy”(33). However, while disobedient and seemingly unintelligent in the classroom, out of school Jacques is both greatly involved in literacy-related religious activities and an aspiring businessman. “Jacques’s out-of-school identity as an aspiring businessman and the social practices that support it, so obvious at home, are invisible in school, where he appears unengaged and less than competent”(34). In order to bridge the learning gap for these under served minority groups, a bridge must be developed to link out of school social literacy with the world of academia.
ReplyDelete3. Stemming from times of slavery and oppression, language and literacy practices of African American women have come to reflect their position in society. A native tongues has been developed and adopted widely through the black community. While acceleration and success in early stages of literacy is often attributed to the exploitation of one’s mother tongue, often time the mother tongue of African American women is suppressed in fear that it will “stunt the acquisition of academic discourse”(678). As result of this discontinuity between the classroom and reality, African American students are conflicted whether to speak their mother tongue, which is a “fundamental element of their development”(679), or to follow the discourse associated with academia. The question arises, “Should we respect our language and ways of knowing as little girls or in our homes as we develop into women? Or should we gradually have our minds (our mother wits) erased with each passing year of schooling?”(679)
3. Intersectionality examines how various aspects of your identity contribute to systematic social inequality. In her article, Richardson explains how this creates a unique linguistic practice for African American females. As a group, they have found alternative forms of literacy in order to develop and convey their knowledge. According to her article, African American females have utilized many forms of literacy, namely, “storytelling, performative silence, strategic use of polite and assertive language, style shifting/codeswitching, indirection, steppin/rhyming, and preaching” (644). These aspects of language are used by African American females in order to be “successful in environments where White middle class values dominate” (648). In schools, African American female students often meet resistance. They are labeled as “having bad attitudes, and are, subsequently, tracked into lower ability courses” (653). To adapt, many of them employ silencing- “words that could have been said, talk that should have been nurtured, and information that needed to be announced” (654). High achieving African American females “work hard, they are silent; when they vocalize they speak in a different voice” (654). African American female language is unique, and is used to their advantage to advance academically.
ReplyDelete4. In his article, Newkirk evaluates literacy in the classroom and primarily, the use of written stories. We have created a very narrow form of literacy that, in Newkirk’s opinion, fails to support “or even allow… the tastes, values, and learning styles of many boys.” He explains that we have created this exclusive literacy in our classrooms because of long held beliefs that popular culture is “wasteful and maybe even dangerous.” One’s sensitivity, refinement, and moral discernment are based on a readers “taste”. Literature in the classroom is ranked, and what you choose to enjoy apparently says a lot about you. According to Bourdieu, “this taste for seriousness confers social capital to a class of readers…” This social and cultural capital puts a powerful hierarchy on reading in the classroom and puts genres boys love at the bottom of the list. We need to stop discriminating against different forms of literacy because it leaves students who might only connect to those forms out. Education needs to be all-inclusive.
3.
ReplyDeleteRichardson proclaims " Young Black females often struggle to invent themselves against the distorted images of "money hungry heartless bitch," "Jezebel" and good ole "Mammy" among others, many which were created during slavery."(676) Black women seem to be fighting some kind of stereotype created by society determined to limit a whole community by a few characteristics. Moms who protect their African American daughters from these distorted images have been know to do a list of literary and linguistic practices( described as the Mother tongue). Without the interaction between mother and child, children will often identify themselves through outside sources and will learn bad habits. In a society where black women are perceived as sex objects, and are constantly disrespected and taken advantage of, maternal education knowledge gives the power to be superior which is the affect Richardson sees in these African American female students.
4.
Cultural capital in Bourdieus text is seen as the attempt to construct explanations for things like differential educational achievement by means of combining various influences. In this case, Newkirk is stating that influences such as video games, sports and movies shouldn’t be seen as bad influences but rather ways of getting boys to read more. Naturally boys think of reading as a feminine thing but if we attempt to open up literacy learning to include graphic novels, popular culture, television, and even video games then boys will spend more time reading. The cultural capital is what Newkirk is reinforcing in the text; all types of literature( even the stereotypical “bad/dangerous” pop culture books) should be present to target these boys. Understanding what types of literature will attract boys is a necessary element to getting them to read. This concept also ties into the power of the classroom. Since most schools stereotype pop cultural as being a poor influence on students, they aren’t presenting many of those types of books which results in lack of interest towards reading in many boys.
Thomas Cycyota
ReplyDelete3.
The defense mechanisms which African American females must utilize in order to “protect and advance” not only themselves but also their social category in general, differ from those of other ethnic and gender groups. They include such diverse practices as “storytelling, conscious manipulation of silence and speech, code/style shifting, and signifying, among other verbal and nonverbal practices.” These trends, however, do not always agree with what is promoted as literacy in schools, an academic setting where much knowledge is expected to be transferred through written text. The sphere that many African American students inhabit, therefore, is one where it is easier to succeed in verbal exercises than those tasks presented in school. Complications arise from this disparity between the “home culture” of these students and female African American students in particular and what is expected of them at school. Literacy has different levels of acceptability between the two, and certain aspects of one’s socialization are revealed by other aspects. A student cannot be successful by American standards in a classroom if they, for example, exhibit “conscious manipulation of silence and speech” by remaining silent every time a question is asked of them. They are likely to fail in this case, further reinforcing the inadequacy with which African Americans students are sent to school with.
5.
Classroom spaces tend to be restrictive, in my opinion, because they must cater to the lowest common denominator of the students. It is easier to set a low standard that every student can reasonably obtain rather than to challenge all students and watch many fail to rise to those challenges. Classrooms must also conform to what is seen as the “acceptable,” “politically correct” forms of literature given the thumbs up by those in charge. It turns out, however, that those in charge are often conservative, upper class, Caucasian Americans setting the standard for all students. It is in the best interests of these people in charge to maintain the status quo of education by restricting the potential of students through limiting creative potential. This practice evidences itself in only allowing certain canon in the classroom such as “the classics” instead of more relatable forms such as “comic books” or more enjoyable yet equally challenging texts such as “horror stories.”
3. Richardson writes that “African American females’ language and literacy practices reflect their socialization in a racialized, genderized, sexualized, and classed world in which they employ their language and literacy practices to protect and advance themselves” (p. 637 in reader). How does this intersectionality create a unique linguistic practice? How does Richardson see these affect African American female students?
ReplyDeleteAfrican American women’s intersectionality includes structural racism, but also gender bias. The media image of African American women is unfortunately highly sexual and generally degrading. Richardson argues that traditionally, African American women have had the role: “to protect and serve”—their families, close friends, and others in general. And more often than not, African American women are brought up by mothers who speak forms of AAVE, therefore they come to understand the world through that language. And in school, they must learn to re-understand the world according to the dominant language. And they are usually very aware that they’ve missed a privilege that their white counterparts have, in coming to school more accustomed to norms of the classroom. African American women are forced to have “multiple consciousness” if they hope to succeed. While their traditional forms of literacy include “storytelling, performing silence, strategic use of polite and assertive language, style shifting/codeswitching, indirection, stepping/rhyming, and preaching.” (p. 687). Often, African American women do not successfully develop both voices, and so do not succeed in school, and will not succeed in the dominant world. Furthermore, teachers can take advantage of their “protect and serve” nature in a way that eventually leads to further oppression, as they cannot escape their traditional, marginalized role. Richardson argues that because their mother tongue is the way in which they learn to see the world, it must be included in education.
4. Newkirk writes about the role that Bourdieu’s “cultural capital” plays in what is considered valid reading and writing subject material in school. What does he mean by “cultural capital”? How does this tie into power in our classrooms?
Cultural capital in the classroom, as defined by Bourdieu, is what sets those students with “superior moral discernment” apart from their peers. More specific to Newark, this cultural capital is bestowed upon students who choose to read more traditional “literature,” as opposed to students who chose to read simply for plot (or students who do not read). In education, the norm for literacy teaching is “literature,” heavy in character development, rhetorical devices, etc. However, Newark claims that there is substance in what many young boys especially choose to experience, such as sci-fi, mysteries, comics, and even video games. Further Newark argues that room should be made in the classroom for these modes of literacy. Last weeks readings had a similar theme in terms of power in classrooms; students whose interests fall outside what’s expected in the classroom can easily fall behind, and be deemed bad students. Furthermore, those students who are accustomed to more traditional forms of literacy (often middle and upper class whites) come into classroom settings with an advantage, with cultural capital.
Lorna Porter
ReplyDeleteThe intersectionality of both an African American and a female creates a linguistic practice that reflects their adaptation to society. Their African American heritage has given them a linguistic practice based in adaptation to a racist society, and the role as a female intersects with the discrimination to create a linguistic practice unique from that of the African American male. The African American woman uses storytelling, performance art, manipulation of silence and speech, code/style shifting, and signifying to communicate in a world dominated by male, white figures. These practices stem from the cultural identification of the African American woman as a nurturer, an agricultural head, and their linguistic practices of adaptation mirror their struggle to assert their humanity and their families’. Their communication is based in familial love, but paradoxically, the importance of autonomy. This has created a unique and rich linguistic practice, but it has been used against African American female students. The role as a nurturer, with the goal to protect and serve, has led to the students to fall into roles of service jobs in the classroom, rather then professional positions. Her communication skills are often also seen as entertaining, not validated, and often leads to African American females being silenced by the culture of oppression.
5. Classrooms are restrictive because it is their job to “stand against these antisocial narratives”. Schools are symbols of culture and values, and if society doesn’t value comic books or horror stories as cultural capital, there is no room for them in the classroom. By restricting access to such unacceptable topics, those in power are benefiting, because they are perpetuating their vision of what is good, and they are creating the social hierarchy that requires ‘good’ acceptable knowledge for success. The examples given by Hull and Schultz show that often times, the dominant culture is the one who restricts creativity, and therefore can limit the success of those who do not subscribe to what is ‘acceptable’.
4)
ReplyDeleteBourdieu describes “cultural capital” as the social assets obtained through social experiences, resources, and education, which promote social mobility. In the context of Newkirk’s essay, “Misreading Masculinity”, Bourdieu discusses cultural capital, suggesting that “a particular type of literary experience leads to a ‘fuller more thoughtful, and more informed members of the world-in both life and literature’” (77). This essentially means that those with finer taste in literature and media will have a higher social capital, and thus more success. In terms of “power in our classrooms”, this suggest that those with less “refined” taste, and those who prefer literacy outlets like comic books and cartoons, rather than non fiction novels, will be regarded as less intellectual and moreover taken less seriously. This therefore, undermines student’s creativity and in some cases discourages their interest in literacy as a whole. If teachers acknowledged these less traditional means of literacy, and lessened the division of taste between “serous” and “vulgar” media, students would be more willing and more likely to pursue education without being forced to. Moreover, the traditionalism of education discourages many students who would be more interested in studying topics that actually had interest to them. There is no difference in reading a comic book or a novella, if in the end they will both achieve the result of improved reading skills.
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”Intersectionalality” refers to characteristics of ones identity and the stigmas attached to those aspects of ones identity. These assumptions made given these characteristics, ultimately result in social inequality. African American women face severe challenges in school because of their different upbringing and language skills. Richardson suggests that the mother tongue is the way in which children learn to speak and ultimately see the world. It is hard to distance oneself from this, while adopting the dominant cultural language. Thus if they hope succeed in terms of this dominant culture, they must concede to traditional forms of literacy. They do this by “storytelling, performing silence, strategic use of polite and assertive language, style shifting, codeswitching, indirection, stepping/rhyming, and preaching.” (687). Ultimately, it is unfair for African American women to face difficulty due to cultural differences.
3. Richardson states that African American females have developed unique linguistic practices that reflect on their long history of socialization in a “racialized, genderized, sexualized, and classed world” (637). These linguistic practices can be considered as strategies to “overcome her situation” (637) and are different than the Black male literacies, which are similar but constructed around the view that African American men are the providers and protectors of life. The African American woman, on the other hand, sees her role as a “nurturer and protector of life” and this social construction influences her unique linguistic practices. For example, one linguistic practice that African American females incorporate in the classroom is silence. The act of keeping silent can be seen as a speech act in that it functions in not only “[negotiating] their racial and sexual status situation” but also in “truth seeking” (646).
ReplyDelete4. In regards to what is considered valid reading and writing subject material, teachers and educators possess “cultural capital” in this academic sphere, and therefore have the power and authority to decide the “proper” methods to incorporate in the classroom. By cultural capital, Newkirk and Bourdieu mean anything that “[serves] as a marker of membership in a professional social class” (84). Students can obtain this cultural capital in the classroom when they follow the traditional literacy practices set forth by the teachers. For the most part, these educators reinforce the dominant discourse within their classes, not taking into account the many different cultural and socioeconomic backgrounds of their students. As such, Newkirk argues that these teachers, belonging to the professional middle and upper-middle class, “set up a hierarchy of cultural experience” (84). He thinks that television and other media outlets could serve as a useful resource in the classroom, but that there is a bias against these modes not only in the American classroom but also within the American social-class system. Consequently, literacy teachers see TV watching as unsophisticated and place it near the bottom of the hierarchy. However, for minority students TV watching plays a significant role in their cultural experience. These students could therefore benefit if teachers are willing to acknowledge these non-traditional means of learning and incorporate them into the classroom.
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ReplyDelete3. Through the lens of literacy in relation to African American females, Richardson expounds upon the fundamental concepts that shape today’s Black female student. Through employment of African American Vernacular English (AAVE), these females take innate, and culturally pedagogical, experiences to create a unique linguistic practice. It’s important to recognize the different ways in which African American women use “manipulation of literacy” (680) to advance and protect themselves and their loved ones in society. Richardson holds that “Black females are programmed to love, support, and protect our brothers, sisters, children, friends, and lovers” (683). However, this has an adverse effect in a literary context as teachers recognize an African American female’s role as enforcer to promote socialization, “rather than academics,” as “Black female students are encouraged to help the teacher maintain order in the classroom” (695). In an effort to jettison this practice of ignorance, African American women make use of several techniques to define their educational discourse: storytelling, codeswitching, steppin, rhyming, and “doubleconsciousness.”
ReplyDeleteExerting to protect their heritage, African American females “must learn the language and literacy practice of codeswitching” (691); this portrays a sense of strong cognitive ability and cultural know-how, it also “allows them in writing or speech to direct their audiences to a wealth of shared knowledge, to take the conversation to another level more expeditiously” (693). One could surmise that this explicit shift in speech style demonstrates an acute awareness of stereotypes. Rhymin provides scaffolding for early development in literacy; by way of dance routines and rhyming words, students learn homonymy between physical activity, intellectual stimulation, and vocalized expression. It’s important from a teaching standpoint, as Richardson notes, “to be curious: ask about the rhymes, spellings, and explore underlying patterns” (699). I think that’s a good place to start.
4. Tom Newkirk’s brief mention of “cultural capital” would imply that a person’s intellectual being and membership in the “American social-class system” (83) is predicated upon his or her propensity to engage in unorthodox educational methods; in this case, TV watching. Newkirk discerns how people are expected to act in order to serve “as a marker of membership in a professional social class” (84) by articulating that, “while all sectors of the population watch television, the professional middle and upper classes take pains to minimize that fact” (83). That is, lower-class members have an expectancy to watch a lot of television, whereas middle to upper-class members may choose to watch if not preoccupied with other “cultural and social activities” (83). This sociological trope carries with it a stigma that could have a positive effect on the way students learn in the classroom if not met with disdain. A simple attitude adjustment can help structure a systematic boost to pedagogy methods that “build upon existing narrative preferences” (85). The boy is not a passive dupe of the media. The boy chooses the “popular culture venues that [feed] their fantasies of power” (83). Educators must embrace this new age aesthetic for the betterment of transactional ability in schools.
4. Cultural capital is what activities are considered to represent the lower class and what activities are meant to represent higher class (and also a smarter, more refined person). The example given by Newkirk is of watching television. He explains, “While all sectors of the population watch television, the professional middle and upper classes take pain to minimize that fact.” Therefore admitting to watching television frequently, and having one on display in your living room, is evidence of low cultural capital. These opinions are often held about books as well, and create the division between “literature” and “fiction”. In the classroom, teachers try to instill cultural capital in all students, as a means to help them achieve. The issue with this is that it marginalizes many students. For example, Newkirk notes the average white child watches 2 hours and 47 minutes of television a day, the average black child 4 hours and 41 minutes and the average Latino 3 hours and 50 minutes. That means telling a black child that they can not read or write about the television shows they spend almost 5 hours a day watching, is telling them that a major part of their life is not acceptable. This separates them from the classroom and also creates a lack of interest in learning. Instead, the teacher should accept any interests as part of the child’s world and not create an uneven power balance between students who already possess cultural capital and those who do not.
ReplyDelete5. Student creativity is restricted, so to say, because of outdated ideas about pedagogy. Our current system of education is based on a tradition of teaching classics in order for the student to function in the academic world and in high society. A canon was created to define what these classics would be. Now hundreds of years later, these ideas remain in tact in academia’s rejection of allowing newer forms of literature into the classroom. Whether the books deal with “real life subjects” or fantasy, they are pushed away in favor the classics, in the theory that they are superior. As English major I am often confronted with this notion of the canon (or “literature”) being superior to normal “fiction”. What results is having professors and students trash talk Twilight while they exult Shakespeare, Dickens, and Joyce. This then trickles down and a fifth grade student is told to put down his comic book and instead read The Hobbit. The result is that students who do not find the canon reflective of their life or interesting are excluded from the education system.
In Hull and Schultz’s piece they introduce Denise, a student who does not engage in learning in the classroom but writes a play outside of it about her struggle to survive in a neighborhood plagued by poverty, violence, and drugs. Hull and Schultz’s note her not wanting to be involved in a mock constitutional convention but what if the debate had not been about the original writing of the constitution but on what created the problems in her neighborhood? What if instead of reading The Scarlet Letter she read The Rose That Grew From Concrete by Tupac? Instead of being disinterested in her education, she may very well have taken an active role.
Question 2:
ReplyDeleteRichardson says that African American females use what they have to “make a way outa no way”. This means that African American women are able to use their history, such as storytelling, as a way to make it through school and help out their community. As Richardson points out, the African American female does not put herself first, is not individualistic, rather is always looking out for the good of her community. Because she is genderized as the protector and nurturer of the group (in classrooms) she is able to use that to serve those she cares about. Through these practices that the African American female faces she is able to create a different type of environment in which she learns. They are able to use storytelling, stepping, and other forms of literacy to learn and can later use these same cultural traditions as ways to teach others. This affects African American female students in that they are sometimes undermined because these forms of literacies are not part of the “right” culture that is learned/used in the US. However, some teachers like Marva Collins use the experiences of African American females to help them learn in the classroom.
Question 4:
“Cultural capital” is seen here as the assets that someone has because of their knowledge. The knowledge is knowing that serious literature is better than the “vulgar” or popular genres of reading. This creates a hierarchy in classrooms, and thus power, because serious literature is seen as offering more to a student than other types of books that boys might find pleasing. The reading and writing that relates to personal experience is seen as less valid while the serious type offers “writers ways to assume power—or mock power.” When students chose what type of literature they want to read, they are judged upon that, creating the power hierarchy that was established by those who are already in power. Students might not be able to relate to the “serious literature’ because of a lack of cultural capital, which puts them at the bottom of their class.
2. According to Street’s ideological model of literacy, literacy as a social practice is not simply a technical and neutral skill to enhance illiterate people's cognitive ability, improve their economic prospects, and ultimately make them better citizens, but it is always embedded in social practices. In other words, particular literacy should be produced in particular social and cultural contexts. Literacy is ideological in that particular versions of literacy are always defined by particular cultural and social views held by those in power. In the case of colonialism, for example, oppressing countries impose their own conceptions of literacy on their oppressed countries. Thus, literacy learners in a colony have no choice but to think about and do reading and writing according to their subjective position in relations of power. In his oppressed slave's condition, Douglas's literacy only gives him "a view of my wretched condition, without the remedy." Street's ideological view of literacy can also be applied to Freire's critique of the banking model of education, which is inappropriate in contemporary multicultural contexts.
ReplyDelete3. Coping with the intersectionality of multiple cultures, African American females have to meet not only “the needs of navigating life in a racist society”(637) but also the needs of survival as Afro-American females. For their survival in this intersectional cultural position, they have to create a unique linguistic practice, which will help them to protect and advance themselves in the oppressing racialized, genderized, classified society. They have to create their own literacy practices to “make a way outa no way” (637). So, in the case of African American female students, they have to adopt a voice of the cultural hegemony, mostly keeping silent and giving up their Mother tongue, or exhibiting the linguistic affectations of a higher-classed Caucasian male, if required. They also have to play both the role of a nurturer and protector in their class as they do in their home. So, they are even expected to play the role of Mammy in the classroom, just as they are in their home. This is how they can adjust themselves in their cultural intersection.
3. This intersectionality creates a unique linguistic practice because all these components are the cause of the “Mammy” role for African American females. This role is perpetuated by society. It is what is expected of them. If African American females are not exemplifying this role, that they are “not backed by society” and have to keep their “guard up” against others. They have to learn how to “codeswitch” in order to be more successful in life. Richardson is quick to mention that she understands the importance of “playing the game,” but does not want to loose her “voice.”
ReplyDeleteRichardson sees the affect of this Intersectionality, because it seems as if black female students “reinscribed as Mammy in the classroom.” They are encouraged to help maintain order in the classroom and not focus academics. When African American female students pursue higher education, especially in the sciences and engineering they are met with “resistance.” They are less encouraged to pursue more than their “Mammy” role in life. These women constantly have to deal with the consequences of not living up to this “Mammy” role. At the same time African American females are also hyper sexualized, which leads to their always having to deal with this notion of not being as school oriented as others in society are expected to be.
4. In describing “cultural capital” he is referring to the idea that economic privilege comes from “one’s perceived sensitivity and refinement, one’s superior moral discernment.” Basically, the idea of superiority reigns the realm of what is considered valid reading. This concept can be applied to the power dynamic in our classrooms. The teacher has “cultural capital” on the students, because they are the ones that have the higher education and know what is considered as “valid reading.” Teachers are always superior to students. The students have to follow whatever the person deems as the most appropriate subject material. Ideas like cultural capital are what exemplifies the “banking model.” The level of superiority leads to people, in this case students not questioning what they are taught. Students start to become filters for this type of teaching and then carry this throughout their lives, so it keeps spreading to future individuals.
3
ReplyDeleteThe intersectionality of all these elements of society which serve to classify the African American woman into the partition formed generates a unique linguistic practice through the myriad cancelling and addition of values attributed to each category. The African American woman is of the position where she must guard herself as "...the object of some man's sexual-economy program" because she is a woman, but she is also in a position of vulnerability as an African American due to historic mistreatment. The effect the combination of these elements has is to foist the mantle of caretaker and protector upon the backs of these girls, who must become literate in those roles to protect their society, children, and themselves, with the result that roles like messenger, hall monitor, and negotiator are given to these students at an early age
4
"Social capital", or "cultural capital" is a natural result of the moral heirerarchies conferred upon different forms of (in this case written) media or genre. Capital is gained by the student as he becomes more literate in the specific forms of written literacy required in the classroom; the teacher is the determinant in choosing this. Historically the literature of capital would be "quality literature", i.e. novels and fiction written in a realistic manner by "expert" writers. Power is clear in the oxymoronic statement of a student making "a good choice" when choosing what to read, "good" implicitly defines the teacher's tastes as having power over the student's own. In practice, even teachers who choose more popular forms of literacy, like comic books, as still imposing their own choices onto the students, as some students may not have experience with them.
3.This intersectionality creates a new linguistic practice by forcing African American females to navigate within and around preexisting stereotypes. Two creative outlets that Richardson describes are steppin and rhyming, by which African American students are able to find creative ways to express themselves and use language outside the boundaries of institutional control. This article reminded me of the previous article we read ( I don’t remember the name) that discussed cultural differences that African American students face in between their home lives and how they’re expected to act in school. These cultural differences are often read as behavioral problems which lead teachers to treat students as though they are unable to cooperate within a classroom environment. In the same way, Richardson describes stylized sulking which is one method female African American students may use to navigate their environment. In this way, the unique linguistic practices used by female African Americans are similarly read as behavioral issues rather than self-expression
ReplyDelete4.Cultural capital refers to the sense of legitimacy that is provided to more traditional works of literature. This idea excludes and diminishes the credibility given to literary experiences provided by works such as comic books that Newkirk argues are equally valid tools for literacy. This ties into the notion of power in our classrooms because it falls into Friere’s notion that students are often treated as vessels that are to be filled. Teachers are able to maintain this position by being the authorities over which works are valuable and which works are not.
Question #2
ReplyDeleteWhen Street stated that there will always be particular versions of literacy that are ideological, it brings the whole literacy discussion back to Freire when he talks about the theory of “banking model”. Street’s argument about literacy relates back to the theory of the role of power in the banking model; the teacher always has the ultimate power in deciding what is the right “knowledge” to be given to the students. There is already a certain structure of literacy that is strongly embedded in the social practices, and the teachers will be the ones that provide this certain structure to the students. “The ideas about literacy held by the participants” (Street: 78), which means that the whole interpretation of literacy depends upon how the teachers understand it to be, and therefore, the students will only be an “empty mind” that receives the knowledge from the teachers. It clearly shows how the more dominant participants in the learning process will be able to emphasize its opinion or view about literacy into the less dominant participants, just like how racial power works. The minority group needs to learn the literacy concept that is embedded in particular worldview, and since the dominant group controls the world, the minority group needs to learn “literacy” from the interpretation and view of the dominant group.
Question #3
Not only that they are females, they are also African American, and it put them in the lowest position in the hierarchy status in the western society. Women always placed lower than men, and to be a woman with a slave racial background, it basically means as having no right or no power to say anything or even to do things they want. But, from these kinds of situations, African American females are able to turn “silence” into a creative “literacy”, for example storytelling. Storytelling is a way that Black women arise from their silence and try to find a way out from their current situation. The African American females are associated with “life protector, nurturer, and independence” (Richardson: 695), and it affects how they act in the classroom. They will help the black students to “survive” in the classroom by having friends from different racial backgrounds and act as the messenger to the black students. Also as to be the enforcer, they help the teachers to maintain the situation of the classroom. They are fulfilling the role that community put on them in the classroom.
3: Richardson writes that African American females are generally seen as inferior in the western social hierarchy because racial and gender stereotypes based upon background. Richardson talks about how they will speak in a "Mother Tongue" that is meant to protect themselves; however, she talks about different methods that African American females use to express themselves such as rhyming and stepping. Moreover, They are often associated with the attribute of "life protector, nurturer, and independence"; therefore, they are often treated as "Mammy" or and an "enforcer" that will help keep the classroom in line. Richardson basically says that they are fitting into the stereotype given to them by enacting them in the classroom setting. I, however, do not see African American females as the sole "protector, nurturer"; instead, I see females in general take upon this role as seen by how they interact with those that are younger and take upon this mother/older-sister role even at school.
ReplyDelete4: Newkirk describes cultural capital through the lens of a male-based observation. He defined it as "cultural experience," which is the education and intellect that one receives outside of the classroom setting. He argued that students who had more cultural capital were less likely to do well in class as compared to those who had learned things through a more traditional approach. He notes that boys often become more literate in areas like video games, sports, and media; however, he says that these are considered low-literacy areas because of classroom power. The teachers control what literacies are proper for students to learn, and those items outside of that sphere are looked down upon as low-literacy. This gives much more power to the teachers to chose what is deemed high-literacy and should be taught in schools. As for me, I can see that the teachers really do get to decide what is considered proper for a student to learn; however, reading material that will not encourage students to continue reading (i.e. Steinbeck and Shakespeare) hurt the students more than help them. If teachers want to keep students interested and attentive, connections between class material and hobbies need to be made.