Final Post

              Lin et al. has one of the truest statements I’ve ever heard, “We are restrained and limited by the kinds of cultural stories available to us.”  In one sentence this sums up American History!  The textbooks are very much workings of Othering.  Many huge historical American events have different actual events than what I thought I knew.  I thought Columbus founded American and later on learned this was not the fact at all.  This is American’s teaching American History!  This narrow view of America is nothing compared to the narrow view of other countries I was taught about.  We are exactly limited to the stories available to us. McKay and Bokhorst-Heng state that because many English bilingual speakers use English on a daily basis with one or more other languages English is influenced by these other languages.   Providing children’s literature rich with cultural varieties is extremely important!  We can integrate children’s literature into all subject areas.  This addition to our classroom alone can make a huge impact on how our students view the world.  It is even more meaningful to our ELL students whom are looking to make connections with their L1. In Wendy Wang’s story she was able to relate the two languages she spoke to each other and that shaped the way she communicated.  We can create a classroom which embraces diversity if we can show the students how to find commonalities among many different cultures.

                One of the biggest things I will take out of the Aprropriating English, Expanding Identities, and Re-Visioning the Field is from Nobukhiko Akamatsu.  He talked about the connection he made with his English teacher.  His continued education and growth in English had nothing to do with content and everything to do with the connection he had with Mr. Okuhara, his teacher.  If this one teacher can make such an impact image what many teachers can do in a lifetime!  This is going to forever impact my classroom environment.  I often skip over some of the “fun” extension activities because of time.  These fun activities are what kids remember.  If I can have more meaningful conversations with my students, and create positive relationships it is going to carry a lot further than the one year I have with them.  Maybe I can be the motivation for one my students to be a teacher and further educate the future.  Lin et. al sums it up best, “it appears that issues of agency, ownership, and identity are closely related to the learner’s investment in English.”   This directly links to CLT teaching method as described by McKay and Bokhorst-Heng.  These series of activities give the students practice on skills they are going to need for the future.  In also gives them the activities in which they will remember in the future.  It gives them lots of opportunities to talk and use English.      

Globalization

Matsuda states, “English has become the dominant language around the world.” The majority of people speaking English have acquired it as a second language.  The thought behind this is the power that is attached to learning English. Kubota mentions that it is perceived as a superiority language.  Many people have the thought process that having English as a first language would be a head step.  I often wonder if English as a first language is a disservice.  Many L1 English speakers never learn a second language.  It’s almost one step ahead because we already know English, but one step behind because we don’t find the importance of having a second language.  More doors open for American citizens that have a second language, but many Americans do not have the motivation to learn one.  I wonder the reasoning for this?    

Matsuda also mentions code switching and the privileges and consequences of this.  The lack of code switching play a huge role on the impressions you make on people.  Code switching and conversation practice is not given nearly enough attention during instructions.  Kubota referred to this as teaching English conversation.   

Kubota says there is a widespread conception that “Because English is the international language that bridges multiple cultures, learning English enables understanding of the world and cultural diversity.”  English is used as lingua franca all over and is definitely used as a bridge.  Matsuda mentions that many residents of the same country communicate using English.  However learning English gives you no understanding of the world and cultural diversity.  There is very limited focus on cultural diversity in our schools.  It is lightly touched upon and moved forward.  The history that is taught to our students promotes the U.S. 

Kubota talked a lot about kokusaika which I am still slightly confused about.  Kokusaika promotes convergence to predetermined norms instead of culturalism.    Kokusaika is being replaced by globalization.  Kokusaika emphasizes teaching and learning a foreign language, particularly English.  Which circles back around to my earlier arguments. 

Kubota also compared Japanese circular logic to English have linear logic.  It is an interesting way to show the differences of the two languages.  The Course of Study has very strict guidelines on using and teaching these separate logics.  The Course of study also has guidelines on teaching a second language, but doesn’t specify what language should be taught.  Interestingly enough English is many times the only option.      

Standard English and Accents

I have very mixed feelings on the topic of accents.  This has always been a topic that I struggle with.  It is very frustrating when having a phone conversation with a parent who has a native language different than I, and not understand what they are asking.  There is only so many times I can ask them to politely repeat themselves, or that I don’t understand.  After a few tries we are both frustrated, and I end up just saying uhh huhh and ok, but not answering the question.  The accent is what inhibits the conversation from flowing smoothly.  I do understand the parent is doing the best they can to get across the point, and I and doing everything I can to understand the question.  Lippi Green describes the individual’s role in the communicative process.  She explains that the listener has responsibilities also.  If the speaker is working hard and the listener is working hard; who’s fault is it that the communication break down happened?  This is where the Standard English argument comes in to play.  If the speaker was using Standard English would this breakdown happen? This is a Language the speaker is new at speaking and the speaker is doing the best he/she can.  Speaking Standard English is not a skill the speaker has mastered yet.  How can you ask them to do something they are not equipped to do?

This conflict brings around the question of What is Standard English?  Merriam-Webster states that “Standard English is English that with respect to spelling grammar, pronunciation, and vocabulary is substantially uniform though not devoid of regional differences.”  Standard English is said to be acceptable wherever English is Spoken and Understood.  Usage is supposed to dictate acceptability, and the dictionary states it attempts to include all variants of a word that are used by educated speakers.  Lippi-Green argues that entries with three or more possible pronunciations are rare.  Lippi-Green makes a great argument, “If Merriam Webster’s Dictionary truly intends to include all pronunciations of the educated, then their definition of who is educated must be very narrow.”   The majority of native speakers must be uneducated according to Merriam Webster.

Is it wrong to ask people to speak Standard English?  I think the answer is unclear.  I think asking a person to speak as clear as possible is definitely ok.  I think asking a person to slow down and think through their speech is ok just as Meryl Streep does when acting.  However asking someone to speak Standard English is ridiculous.  If we can’t even agree on what Standard English is then how can we ask a Second Language Learner to speak it?  And if they don’t have the sound system to speak the language, then they don’t have the sound system.  It was compared to asking a person to grow three inches; it can’t be done on command!    

Language Planning and Policy

Due to the advances in technology and many other attributes which make uniform English more possible.  The question keeps rising, “What is standard English?”  The standard is set by highly educated people.  In my opinion most of the population does not speak this English.  This aligns with the belief of monolingualism.  Everyone should learn to speak Standard English.  We focus on teaching Standard English in schools.  In schools we are teaching students these best practices will give the students the skills necessary to promote higher education.  In turn this will hopefully provide them access to higher opportunities.  How much focus should be spent on drilling Standard English?  There are many debates around making English the official language. English is what is focused on in school and the language that is spoken to communicate in most settings.  In my opinion English is already the unspoken official language.  What would change by making it the official language? 

Politics rule all.  Language politicking often rules the decisions made with language.  Many times the decisions about language have less to do with language and more to do with worldly issues.  I often wonder if those people in the big buildings ever spend a day in the life of the people who are affected by the decisions they make.  It often feels like the people who make such important decisions have no idea what a classroom is like, and all of the issues the teachers and students are facing.  The article said that teachers affirm or disconfirm language policies every day when they allow the use of one language variety rather than another.  We are making such important decisions so regularly.  Where is the support?? 

Bilingual programs were discussed very heavily in chapter 4.  There are so many ways to implement a bilingual program.  Even the same program can be implemented differently in the same building but different classrooms.  How do we know what is best for the students?  Regardless of which method is used it is important to build one what students already know which is L1 in order to become proficient in L2. 

                I have one remaining question after reading all of this information:  It doesn’t matter what language or dialect children are speaking at home.  How can we use what they already know to learn what is not known?  How can we do this without ruining self esteem?  Can we help them be English proficient with encouraging students to keep their mother tongue?  The article states, “one-fifth of the total U.S. population speaks languages other than English.”  This is something every teacher will face in their career.  What has been done to prepare these teachers for these students?

Chapters 2 and 3

I was very surprised to learn that Great Britain and the United States have such a different approach for helping ELL students.  What was even more interesting was the very same rationale was used to validate both approaches.  In the U.S. we  favor pull out programs in the United States (hence the reasoning for needing a TESOL endorsement).  Our programs focus on language and disregard the social aspect of pulling these students out of class.  In Great Britain they argue that pull out classes create social barriers.   I think the approach used in our district works great.  I of course have never seen another program in action.  So now I have this lingering question:  What is better for ELL students pull out or support in the classroom?  Would the students have enough support staying in the classroom?  What would an ELL teacher do to support the students in the classroom? 

Gee (2004) argues that teaching and learning language and literacy is not just about teaching and learning English but also about teaching and learning specific social languages.  Gee also talks about not just learning language but learning the differences in Discourses.  My question is:  How is this taught in the regular education classroom without pulling out?  Right now these are the kinds of things taught in ELL pull out.  There are many things of this nature where native English speaking students understand, but a new speaker of English would not.

Bokhorst-Heng and McKay found that, “teachers cast these students’ ability to communicate in two languages not as a special talent or strength but rather as a disability”.  I think this is a very accurate finding.  I do not think being multilingual is always used to its greatest potential.  How can we change this perception of our ELL students?  How can we support our mainstream teachers to change their attitudes?

Bokhorst-Heng and McKay also learned there is a general belief in some societies that English will provide access to higher education, government, and the national and global economies.  With this knowledge many countries are emphasizing English instruction in their educational institutions.  Many times the teachers have low level English proficiency.  The students also have varying purposes for learning English.  These different purposes for learning English seem to drive the involvement of the students.  With low incentive for learning English; students will achieve a low level of proficiency.  Also if students are only given drill activities and no opportunities to use the language, they will not attain a level of proficiency.  It seems that it’s not simply teaching “English” that allows students to gain proficiency.  The type of teaching makes a large difference.  Are these countries that are mandating English really providing a service to their students?  What changes can be made to enhance learning?

Week 8 EFL

            I found the article by Taylor-Mendes extremely interesting.  I am sure textbook publishers spend an immense amount of time deciding about photos.  I understand creating a positive image of the United States by using professionally dressed individuals for the photos.  There is a large population of Americans who dress professionally for work on a daily basis.  These individuals are not only Caucasian.  There are many African Americans, Indians, Japanese, and many other ethnic groups who dress professionally.  There are also just as many causasians who are blue class workers dressed accordingly.  The textbook publishers should think outside of their comfort zone.  The same pictures could be expanded by showing a meeting of professionally dressed people representing a variety of cultures.  A photo of less professionally dressed people at a different workplace could be culturally diverse as well.  We like to think we aren’t a segregated country any more.  Maybe we ought to be showing the diversity there is in every aspect of the country.       

The textbook publishers aren’t thinking of the audience who will be reading this textbook.  Middle class white Americans aren’t going to be reading a EFL textbook.  Your target audience is going to be culturally diverse, so the pictures in the textbook need to target a culturally diverse audience.  The media producer’s ideal subject isn’t who is reading this textbook.  The pictures are promoting stereotypes.  

I absolutely disagree with the statement that “students of ESL may find it difficult or impossible to challenge the hidden meaning in the materials provided to them.”  If the students are indeed learning English, the first thing they understand are the pictures.  They are sure to have thoughts and feelings about them.  The captions under the pictures should also provide background.  If you are going to try and represent all the great things that can be had in American, then tell the story of how to obtain it!

Have textbook publishers ever been challenged?  Is the photos of tribally dressed individuals an attempt to be culturally diverse?   Do they understand the stereotype they are creating?  

In the readings by Holliday et al. the story about Martha and Reza seems to be following the pattern.  There are many misunderstandings about individuals that have cultures different then their own.  Martha was trying to “help” Reza by empowering him.  Reza’s background did not leave him in the position to need empowerment.  He was simply struggling in a new setting.  Martha was doing what she thought was right as a teacher.  Most teachers try to help their students in whichever manner that seems needed.  So it seems that even when we are trying to help we aren’t.  Now what?

Week 7 EFL

               My initial reaction to this topic was, “Why am I learning about English as a Lingua Franca?  I will never be teaching students who will use English as a Shuttle Language as Baker has explained.”  As I continued to read I learned more and started to think more broadly.  It may be true that right now in my education career I will not come across students who use ELF, but in the future maybe I will.  Who knows where I will be teaching and what types of ELLs I will come across.  It is important to know the difficulties these students face as well. 

                When reading the chapter by Mckay and Bokhorst-Heng I came to a conclusion.  It is not important to correct my ELL students for every mistake when they are speaking.  If I understand what they mean I can continue the conversation without drawing attention to the error, however I might repeat the sentence correctly.  If the student is able to express thoughts and comprehension is made then perfect grammar doesn’t need to be focused on.  The important thing is to maintain flow of conversation, and encourage students to talk!  The authors also talked about code switching.  This is something my colleagues and I have discussed at length.  It is really important for students to know what is appropriate in specific settings.  This is actually important for all students not just ELLs.  Many students do not understand that there is a very important distinction that needs to be made in particular settings.

                The video we watched last week about writing was very interesting.  I never even considered that writing could be so different depending in the culture.  I stand very firm with the statement “Equal is Not Always Fair and Fair is Not Always Equal.”  I guide many actions in my class by this statement.  This is exactly what the person in the video stated about writing.  Holding the ELLs to a standard of what’s good enough but maybe not perfect.  The purpose for writing is comprehension, and if that is met details can be overlooked.    Now I’ve mentioned this overlooking twice, and I don’t want it to sound like I am holding my ELLs to a lower standard.  That is not the case.  I believe it is very important to focus on one error at a time and build confidence.  Imagine how you would feel if someone picked apart everything you said or wrote and told you all the ways it could be better.  Confidence is most important, and then skill by skill can be address.  The biggest aha when watching this video is to ask your students to tell you what will be most helpful to them when looking at his/her writing.  Even at first grade my students could answer that question.  What a novel idea!  

Week 6

                As an educator I have made many of the same errors that Barbara made in the Article written by Kubota.  I too was very sheltered in my education experience.  It wasn’t until my first teaching job that I actually encountered students with different culture backgrounds.   Barbara asked her students what the difference in their country was in compared to the United States.  Without being properly educated about ELL students; this would be a common error.  You are calling attention to the differences the ELL student is seeing.  The drawback to that is the stereotyping that occurs and the overgeneralization as well. 

                I think that all educators should have ELL training in at least a basic level.  It will help students recognize differences and learn strategies to help ELL students.  It will also help make educators aware of what is beneficial and what types of things to stay away from.  How can we be expected to know what to do with these students if we’ve never been exposed to anything of this nature?

                In more than one of the articles the topic of critical thinking was questioned.  In my opinion critical thinking is learned behavior.  I am constantly challenging my students to think outside the box.  This is a skill that is continuously being worked on.  I believe that all students are critical thinkers if they are challenged and taught to think critically.   

Week 5 Stereotyping and Othering

Sometimes I feel like John, Mr. Smith’s neighbor in Holliday et. al Theme 2.  John recognized that his neighbor’s the Smith’s were culturally different than him.  John was picking up information about his neighbor by observing their lifestyle.  Things that were said and done lead John to believe the Smith’s were Amish.  His judgements did not seem stereotypical, he was simply gathering information and making a conclusion. He wanted to associate with his neighbors, but just didn’t know how.  He didn’t want to be disrespectful.  I get new students and observe them to make conclusions about their culture and personality.  While I don’t mean to stereotype or be disrespectful I do.  What is the fine line between stereotyping and gathering information to make an informed opinion about a person from a particular culture?

Kumaravadivelu talks about Asian stereotypes.  Many of the stereotypes generated about the Asian culture were only for some people some of the time.  I wonder how it came to be that people from so many different cultures are all grouped under the one Asian label?  It seems to me like that is true for every culture.  While it may seem that you are drawing upon knowledge of a student from a particular culture, most of the time you are creating a completely wrong set of ideas.  Like we talked about the first weeks of class; every person has his/her own unique culture.  This individual culture is made up of many life events.  No two people will have the same culture.  So really just learning about a student is what will be most helpful.  It is hard to do, but not forming an opinion ahead of time is actually the best practice.

Week 4 Culture and Identity

Holliday et. al used an excellent analogy “A person’s gender identity is more like gold in that it is not highly situation dependent; whereas a person’s occupational identity element is probably more like oxygen in that it is highly situation dependent.((p.103)”  This analogy sums up my beliefs.  Your identity is ever changing and is different in different situations.

I had a hard time understanding the changing definitions of Discourse and discourse.  I did find a huge similarity between the systems of discourse and the many culture groups each individual belongs to: gender, generation, profession, corporate or institutional placement, regional ethnic, and other possible identities (Holliday et. al p.111).  It seems to me that you can interchange the words discourse and culture pretty easily.  I like Hall’s statement of culture identities are like cloaks that individuals can put on or take off (p.32).  I really think this resembles my understanding of how much identity plays a role in day to day life.

I have been learning to think differently since completing the readings this week.  I never realized the complexities of language, and that it isn’t just learning how to speak the language.  There are so many things to take into account such as: frameworks, contextualization cues, inferencing, facework, social identity, and rhetorical devices.  There are so many things to learn in addition to the language in order to understand and be understood.  Hall states that a traditional perspective considers culture is treated separately from language.  I think this is more often the case and language and culture are very combined.  The example of the doctor/patient in Holliday’s Intercultural Communication book really brings to light all of the complications that can arise when communicating in a language new to you.  Wrong conclusions can be made so easily when not understanding the cultural background of each individual in a situation.  Many times an ELL is talked to as they are slow or stupid.  Doctors have made hugely wrong diagnosis’ due to a few misunderstandings.  A teacher can make this same mistake.  I learned this from personal experience.

My cousins biological mother and father lived in Mexico most of their life.  Nancy was born in Illinois.  Her mom was dying of cancer and my aunt adopted her and her two older brothers who were born in Mexico.  The boys were in ELL classes getting help adjusting.  Nancy never received any ELL services;  I assume due to the fact she was born in the U.S.A.  She was just as much of and ELL student as her brothers but was not provided the same support.  It took all the way until third grade with my aunt pushing the school to complete testing, and provide additional help.  The school thought she had a learning disability, and never took into account the fact that she was an ELL student.  After being provided the proper support she ended up skipping a grade which finally put her with students her own age. 

How many times is an ELL misdiagnosed medically or educationally due to a cultural misunderstanding?  How often does ELL lose confidence by being treated as though they were stupid? 

Hall also mentions hiatus developing through the process of social categorization in which we learn to sort the world and the people within it into groups made meaningful by large socioculture forces.  This is so problematic, but is very frequent!  How we act is responsive to contextual conditions.  These are such powerful things that are taken so lightly. 

Log 1 1/24

                Raymond Williams, the author of Keywords: A vocabulary of culture and Society said it best, “Culture is one of the two or three most complicated words in the English Language.”  Learning about different views of culture was interesting.  I enjoyed learning about the variety of definitions people have of culture.  Just the fact that it can be broken up into culture with a capital C and culture with a small c is complex.

                I associated my definition of culture most closely to the Non-essentialist view of culture.  I believe that culture changes, overflows, and is influenced by many things.  In my opinion culture isn’t just about geography, but more about the happenings in the different geographical places. 

                One of the quotes that stuck out to me the most was from Baumann, G. when he stated that someone can reach across two cultures rather than being suspended between them.  This seems to be the pending though process when someone has relocated to a new location.  You have to hold on to the beliefs that you have and add to them as you learn new things.

                The most important thing that I got out of these reading was awareness.  People need to be more aware of the uniqueness each person possesses.  Hopefully with this awareness will come tolerance, and eventually, understanding the different doesn’t always equal wrong.  ?  It seems as though the interculturalists teaching of sensitivity mostly portrays the differences people possess instead of praising the uniqueness of each individual.

My big question of is:

How do you teach about culture for the purpose of celebrating uniqueness?

First Try

I've stayed away from blogging.  So this is my first try...