Other People's Children

"First, they should recognize that the linguistic form a student brings to school is intimately connected with loved ones, community, and personal identity. To suggest that this form is "wrong" or, even worse, ignorant, is to suggest that something is wrong with the student and his or her family." (pg. 53)

This particular passage stood out to me, because it specifically identifies the importance of celebrating all forms of language, and the individuals who identify with them. As I read this quotation, as well as many of the dialogue rich passages, I felt sad. I felt sad that children are directly, or indirectly, made to feel that the culture and community that they identify with is not acceptable, and therefore a barrier is created between the child's reality and their experiences in school. I enjoyed the passage on page 50 and 51, where the teacher requested that the students add the phonetic element "iz" to the end of every word, while describing to a partner why they decided to become a teacher. This made me think about how forcing a child to modify their language not only insults their identity and family, but can diminish their self esteem and confidence in their ability to be active in their own learning. "Forcing speakers to monitor their language for rules while speaking, typically produces silence." (pg. 51)
In addition, I agree with the opinion of needing to have a balanced education, where diversity and unique identities are encouraged, but where children are also equipped with the skills necessary to be competitive and successful in a culture full of stereotypes and biases. In a perfect world there would be no prejudice and racism, but that is unfortunately not the reality and it would be a disservice and elitist attitude to create that false reality for children. I feel the author wants us to be conscious and critical of different teaching methods. I believe she wants us to critically analyze the messages being sent to children, either intentionally or unintentionally, through ethnocentric attitudes and processes in teaching. She wants teachers to realize how language is used for self discovery and creativity, and that the emotions attached to language are very personal and sensitive.
Part one of this book has really made me think about my own language and the way I have spoken to children. I became very self conscious when reading the passage on page 34, where the author discussed mixed messages through different perspectives on phrasing requests. Such as asking in the form of a question, with the expectation that the child will know that it is not really a question, and phrasing your intentions as a direct command. I have a feeling that I am guilty of using the more passive, questioning version of phrasing in the past, by trying to make it sound less authoritarian. I hadn't thought of how unclear that was, or even how I began to speak that way? I am going to need to be as conscious as possible of my own language, and never stop trying to analyze deeper.