I like to think of myself as an ambiguous person that often likes to argue viewpoints that are contrary to my own. The debate that took place in our class was very eye opening as far as how aspects of cultural and language will tie in with our profession. The bilingual school debate seemed to be the most heated for everyone. It is of great importance that we maintain a neutral but empathetic standing with the people that with other professionals field along with the families that who's children are in our schools. Maintaining this position will create a more stable environment to work in and positively influence the environment that children will be learning in; and they are the most important part of this.
Using the examples from class, there are pros and cons to both sides the 3 topics we covered. I hadn't thought of many of them before, and I hope that it gave some perspective to everyone else in the class. It really forced us into the position to argue points and opinions that may have been conflicting for us. Hopefully gaining that perspective will help us interact with people of different cultures in the future.
Having knowledge about multiple facets of issues that can arise in school, you can play two roles: understanding and informing. If a parent is feeling frustration about a certain controversial issue, it will immediately calm the to know that you understand where they are coming from. Hopefully, establishing this will make them feel more at ease. If you have suggestions or other viewpoints to share, then you can communicate those tactfully without as much retort. This can also apply to situations where you need to confront an issue that may be impeding a student's education etc.
Knowing both sides is important for understanding the whole story. I like how you took this and put it in a concrete example. It helps highlight the importance of knowing both sides not only on personal level but also in a practical realm. It's true the psychologically people are more willing to listen to your view if they can see that you understand theirs.
ReplyDeleteI am also on the fence about the bilingual issue we debated in class. Being bilingual myself I see both pros and cons of a bilingual school. Knowing both sides will help me better formulate my argument on the issue so that I can hopefully convince others of my opinion.
Hey Bridget and Dominque!
ReplyDeleteDuring the class debates, I sat totally unsure as to where exactly I stood on all three issues. Lately, as time has gone on and I've thought a little more about pros and cons and in reading peoples' blogs, I have some how managed to favor one side in particular a little more. Still, since the opposite view point always has some strong points (not just in class last week, but in life in general), I don't feel as if I'm too heavy on any issues. As in, my votes aren't absolute; I'm more left of center or right of center :)
Dominique, as always I liked hearing what you had to say. I agree that it is super important for us as educators to know every side of the issue. SInce I think breaking down cultural barriers is so important in the learning process, I like that you see knowing both sides of an issue as a an example of one way in which we can break down those cultural barriers. In particular, when you said, "It is of great importance that we maintain a neutral but empathetic standing with the people that with other professionals field along with the families that who's children are in our schools. Maintaining this position will create a more stable environment to work in and positively influence the environment that children will be learning in; and they are the most important part of this. "
I agree wholeheartedly. I'm kind of bummed I didn't think of this while writing my blog :) The most important thing I'm taking from this class is how important it is to connect with students through means of their individual identities. Since I'm starting to feel this more and more as time goes on and after reading your blog, it became even clearer to me of why understanding both sides of an issue is so important in the classroom. Because with understanding comes empathy, and with empathy comes comfort, and once student and parent are comfortable, cool things can happen.
In my blog, I focused a little too much on the drawbacks of the neutral stance, and maybe that was wrong. Not that it's wrong to be neutral, but maybe that being always neutral comes with a downside. Do you recognize a downside at all?