From Delpit's "Silenced Dialogue"

 

I had to mull around the belief that "Those with power are frequently least aware of its existence" (p.24). Because, especially when it comes to schools and the classrooms, rules set in place are by the administrators and/ or teachers, seldom by students who most probably don't get to have a voice when it comes to the "publishers of textbooks and of the developers of the curriculum to determine the view of the world presented" as Delpit makes clear. If the students' voices are not echoed in these choices and rules, how then can the decision makers not be aware of their power over the children? Too often I have walked by a classroom and overheard the teacher's tone be more than instructional, totally taking advantage of his/her authority before I intervene with a reminder to rationalize and consider another (the youth's) position.

Lisa Delpit's great stance is that "if we are truly to effect societal change, we cannot do it from the bottom up [administration or educational systems to teachers of children and students themselves], but we must push and agitate from the top down" (p. 40).

Delpit's strong argument for thus change is to focus more consideration of other's cultural assets to then consider how to teach effectively. "I suggest that the differing perspectives on the debate over "skills" versus "process" approaches can lead to an understanding of the alienation and miscommunication, and there to an understanding of the "silenced dialogue" (p.24). Not considering the other's culture is a main "Issue of power in the classrooms" of the five aspects that Delpit refers to in what she calls "the culture of power."

When my son was still 4 in kindergarten, I was called to the principal's office. I thought my son had done something severe that he wouldn't tell me about for a request for me to come in to be made.

"He's talking out of turn and easily distracts the others from their work," is what the principal wanted to tell me, deemed important for me to take action of by his classroom teacher.

It had only been a few weeks of school which met half-days (8-11:30). Give me a fuckung break, is what I thought. But I explained to the principal that Gabriel hears everyone in the house talking at the same time while there is music playing loudly and he plays with his cousins, never being asked to be quiet - a cultural thing probably making him feel it's too quiet and still in Miss X's classroom, where none look like him. I tried to make this clear to his teacher after school. In didn't want my son awkwardly silenced. He was going to be 5 in November and knew his shapes, colors, alphabet and numbers. He was writing his first and last name and could tell his house phone and address. He also could share and say "Excuse me" and "Thank you" before asking questions and after receiving a response. He had learned that at home, less for her to have to teach him. I learned to choose my battles.

I grew up being taught by non-colored, I learned about cultural customs and values of the Polish, Irish, English and Canadian-French from them as they didn't "deny me access [of themselves] as a source of knowledge" (p. 32) for me to understand their perspectives. I don't remember being asked about my culture much, although they all seem to respect it. So, they learned little from me and only after I was in early adulthood did I get to name that ache of something missing, which was wanting these teachers I admired to understand that My name is not funny, although I like you calling me Nikki; I don't make those sounds at home; I never knew Cristobal Colon was Christopher and a savior of the new world; and that I go home for a warm lunch and an episode of Chespirito before Math class. But, experiencing this lack makes me keen to exercise patience in trying to learn from others and consider their cultural assets as well as age.

This in itself is a way to continue constructing Interpersonal oppression, where the newcomers (from other countries) "feel diminished" as they are asked to value "the culture of power" Delpit expressed and their own cultural values are not even questioned.

The language becoming familiar to what Delpit explains in Other People's Children is Cultural and Historical Responsiveness. These terms (which are being discussed at professional developments country-wide) connects to Dr. Gholdy Muhammad's literature on the 5 Pursuits of teaching which is just a guide to teaching to students' strengths as people with backgrounds and community understanding so that they can express their natural intelligences while sharpening academic skills. Both authors' literatures support the main point that while teaching, if one uses texts that reflect children's identity and encourages their criticality, one can bring joy to children's learning.

In my own classroom, I try to reciprocate being a source by sharing my experiences and asking about theirs. Often thus happens when there's a reference or an allusion to an event or person far from their time and place (ex. 9/11 or Elvis). Sharing what one knows can better lead them to connect to a familiarity. This puts me in the spectrum of advocacy and self-reflection.

Out of kindheartedness, many teachers do claim "colorblindness." I myself used to think, well that is an awesome outlook or attitude when I heard White peers say "I want the same thing for everyone's children as I want fir mine" (p. 28) because I thought this meant that these teachers would allow students to use their primary language to learn without judgements, and explain the true history of how something became part of an unjust system in America (like Black being a race). Only in my recent academic pursuits am I realizing that "Colorblindness is the New Racism" (Deconstructing Privilege, 2013). In this essay authors Margalynne J. Armstrong and Stephanie M. Wildman make the strong point that "Seeking colorblindness means Whites fail to see how whiteness has privileged them in so many societal interactions. Endorsing colorblind ideology allows White individuals to express egalitarian principles while still enjoying a status quo that advantages them relative to people of color. This white privilege will continue because a colorblind present does not erase the modern-day effects of racism and white privilege" (p. 66).  My new understanding is that White peers do want to build rapport with others without acknowledging that many injustices are still in place by using their colorblindness as a bookmark of the denial White Privilege because "the culture of power is already in place" (Delpit, p.28).

References: 

“colorblindness is the new racism”: Raising awareness about privilege using color insight. (2013). Deconstructing Privilege, 62–79. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203081877-12

Delpit, L. (1995). Other people’s children: Cultural conflict in the classroom. New York: The New Press.

The four “i”s of oppression. (n.d.). https://www.trec.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/The-Four-Is-of-Oppression-v821.pdf

YouTube. (2016, November 19). Peanuts’ teacher calls out Charlie Brown & Linus - “Wah Wa Wa Wah Wa Wa” - 1969. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CxC_AjFxS68