In Class/OutClassed

My reflection revolved around my ability to "edit" my ideas and rethink many opinions about our educational system that I once firmly believed in. Prior to being in this class, I had a strong belief that every student should go to college and those who didn't were destined to be failures. Even though I saw students who simply weren't raised to beleive college was even a remote possibility, I felt comfortable telling myself that these students simply weren't ambitious or motivated enough to reach college. Essentially, I was blaming these students for something that, in many aspects, was out of their control. Since being in this seminar, my views on the topic have changed tremendously; and I realize the adversity that disadvantaged students have in our educational system that promotes "fairness." My ability to really grapple with issues like these has been the area where I've seen the most growth in myself over the course of this seminar. 

Throughout this class, I have had my expectations challenged, my perspectives broadened and my writing matured. The in-class discussions that have been facilitated by our reading of many different educational theorists have brought into question for my peers and me what we really believe about education when it comes to voicing these attitudes, and often taking one side or another in our Barometer exercises. I have heard from many students whose educational experience seems to have started a world away from mine, but is now converging as we share the classroom. And, through reflection and conference, I think that my writing has improved, or at least that I have been made more aware of the sort of pratfalls I have been conditioned to make by the way I’d been taught to write prior to college.

This Esem class teaches me to put myself in someone else's shoes. The more open-minded I am to new ideas, the less confident I feel about education. I am not sure about the purpose of schooling. I am wondering about the class issues in class. I am questioning myself about the meaning of education. It is much harder for me now to reach an absolute conclusion. I started raising more questions and getting a more balanced point of view. It is useful for me not only in this class but also in other matters I have in my life. However, I don't confidently admit that I am totally impartial. Sometimes my prejudice prevents me from acknowledging others'opinions.Seeing things through somebody's lens is an ongoing learning process. I haven't finished but I am confident that I am improving.

I also realize that our thinking can't just be stopped in a 3-page-essay each week. Three pages are a limitation for our writing but not an end to our thinking. Hence, more questions should be raised in my conclusions.

I always have a great time in class discussion. I encounter many new and unconventional ideas thanks to my classmates. They also contribute to my balanced point of view. I become more confident and overcome my fear of people's judgement. I am glad to be a part of the class where I can exchange my ideas and rethink my opinions.

Today while we were discussing Traub's idea that "in the inner city, social capital barely exists", I was able to make a connection between the reading and what I have learned thus far in my Urban Sociology class, but I wasn't really sure how to fit it into in class discussion, so I'll put it here. 

What we didn't talk about is that the very nature of cities limits the social capital (as defined by Traub) between its residents. Louis Wirth, who wrote Urbanism as a Way of Life describes the physical structure and layout of a city and how this affects people. According to Wirth, a city can be defined as a large, heterogenous, high-density dwelling. He continues to assert that because there are so many people in cities, primary ties are replaced by secondary ties, and those moving about through the streets are more isolated and lonely because they are less likely to know everyone. This is the idea of the "metropolitan man" and although it's been almost 75 years since Wirth's work was published, we can still see our modern metroman in the city today. 

What I gave here is a very general summary of some of Wirth's points, but you can read the whole essay here: http://www.sociology.osu.edu/classes/soc367/payne/Wirth_1938_AJS.pdf 

I am really excited, but at the same time, i am nervous about what it is that I really will be bringing to the table. Throughout everything we've discussed in class, through readings, and simply through the opinions shared in class, I've learned that this visit will be a two-way learning street. However, no matter how excited I am to be meeting with these students and interacting with them through dialogue (as Noguera says is the best way to learn and to teach) I feel as though the experiences that these students have had will be far more expansive than many of those that I have encountered. I wish that I can in some way engage in conversation regarding their thoughts of class and stereotypes placing a threshold on not only their education, but the education system in general. I feel that by visiting this high school, I will be inspired, shocked, awed, and amazed and all the while I will want to question what it is that makes the differences between more urban schools like this one and the well-to-do prep schools.

Through our readings in class, I understand more about the schools in American cities. Therefore, I have some expectations about the school we are going to visit. Pictures about the high school we saw in class on Thursday somehow fostered my expectations. I guess most students are black and from working class. I expected that the quality of education is not up to the US standard as Traub described in his article. However, I desire to see something that challenges to what I expected. I want to have a different point of view in the future. I want to know whether this high school is one of a few successful stories about public education in the US.

I'm not sure if I'm more excited or scared to visit the high school. For one, its a selective public school, the kids must be smart and I sometimes feel like I'm just bumbling through education. I expect to meet interesting people and also to be able to connect on an issue with at least one person. However I'm scared to expect anything too fantastic and then be disappointed when perhaps the visit does not go as planned. I mean no offense to the high school students but I don't know what to expect personality wise. I would probably ask what parameters were put in place for admission and also what drew them to the high school specifically (just like customs week haha).

The environment will definitely be different from educational environments I have personally experienced, but I don't believe it will definitely not be any major culture shock. Having worked with at risk youth at People TV in Atlanta and through my theatre company, I have some perspective on what is typical of an urban public school environment. Additionally it is one of the better public schools in Philly; the students are selected. Primarily I am hoping to compare and contrast Philadelphia public schools and Atlanta public schools. Georgia is one of the lowest ranked educational systems in the nation, so it will be interesting to observe public education in a higher ranked state.The capabilities of an educational system provides insight about the community, so my expectation is that learning about education in Philly will educate me about my new community.

For me, the upcoming trip will be a great opportunity to gain new understanding about the topics we covered during the class.  What I really want to learn about is the students’ expectations about education. What kind of education do they want to gain? Do they like the way teachers teach? Why do or why don’t? Is “school smart” more valuable or “streetwise”? What their dreams are? Do they believe access to education can lead them to where they want to go?  A lot of questions pooped in my head. But I feel quite unsure about how to start the conversation and make it both enjoyable for me and the high school student.  I want to talk to them, not just ask questions and make it like an interview between a college student researcher and a high school volunteer. I hope I can find a certain point to begin the conversation. But as an international student, I grew up in a totally different background as they did, which makes it harder to have enough common experiences to develop the sentences.  I understand that these differences, on the one hand, may make our conversations more interesting and beneficial for both sides, but on the other hand, I am worried about saying something that offensive or impolite. I don’t know whether I have enough chance to make a deep conversation, but at least I think I will try my best to bring something new to them.