What does it mean to be 'civil?' How does civility impact cultural differences in education and even the opportunity gap? These controversial and interesting topics were explored in two readings: "Creating Classroom Civility" and "Student and School Cultures and the Opportunity Gap." In the first reading, civility is understood to be a factor of culture which operates in "the interest of privilege and power" (164). In the second reading, the opportunity gap is explained through the misunderstanding of cultural differences in school environments. After watching The Class, these readings give insight of why students and teachers act uncivil towards each other and ultimately the cause of an increasing opportunity gap.
In Megan Laverty's discussion, "Creating Classroom Civility," she addresses the concept that schools are places where civility is taught; "Schools are responsible for shaping society's immature members" (164). So what does it mean to be 'civil?' Well, arguably civility depends on the cultural context but in general civility is a socially accepted way of interaction that is appropriate and sincere. Laverty discusses sincerity as well for she claims civility eliminates the sincere expression of unpopular beliefs. This made me question the relationship between civility and sincerity. In terms of my own experience, sincerity is a cultural virtue that is encouraged. Although, what if someone is sincere about their beliefs but is acting uncivil? Where is the line between being sincere and civil? Civility and sincerity are reflections of societal norms and impact education standards. Since schools are essentially institutions of teaching civility and sincerity, how does one address inappropriate/unwanted behavior in classrooms? The Class and Laverty beat-around-the-bush with the answer but never address it. Punishment is a common resolution in which teachers and schools address uncivil actions but as seen in The Class, punishment has little to no beneficial impact on the students. Rather, positive reinforcement is the most successful and accepting of ways in which to teach people. Positive reinforcement strengthens a behavior by providing a consequence an individual finds rewarding. For example, if your teacher gives you a high-five or positive acknowledgement each time you complete your homework (i.e., a reward) you will be more likely to repeat this behavior in the future, thus strengthening the behavior of completing your homework. With positive reinforcement, parents or teachers or whoever is trying to teach someone, will encourage good behavior and in tern, decrease unwanted behavior. Along these lines, positive reinforcement encourages the idea that everyone is worthy no matter the cultural background.
Here is a short video about B.F. Skinner's theory of reinforcement
In Prudence Carter's reading, "Student and School Cultures and the Opportunity Gap," he addresses how the opportunity gap is strengthened though the lack of acculturation and understanding of different ethnicities for he claims; "...cultural inequality, both in wider society and within schools, exacerbate that gap" (145). Carter mentions the concept of cultural mismatching, that is, the mismatching of socio economic status and education levels of teachers and students. In The Class, Mr. Marin is a caucasian male who clearly has more education level than his students for his teaching style is described as "bourgeois" and not relevant to the way students actually speak. Meanwhile, his students come from a diverse ethnic background and are struggling to stay in school and receive good grades. According to Carter, this is due to the lack of understanding each other's cultural backgrounds. This lack of understanding is reinforced in curriculum. Particularly in U.S. schools, the teachings of other cultures and ethnicities are limited and often only discussed during certain times of the year. Along with that, when different cultures are rarely taught there is an underlying understanding that those cultures are not valued nor worthy enough compared to "white" culture; "...incongruence Anglo-American cultural purview, tis understood by many of these children as stifling, dehumanizing, degrading, and antagonistic" (151). The lack of exclusivity in school curriculum reinforces the idea that children from minority ethnic backgrounds are not worthy and therefore, their lack of interest and effort in school settings increase.
What does it mean to be 'civil' then? Civility is related to understanding different cultural backgrounds and the levels of respect that are present in each. With that, civility is a matter of sincerity and no matter who you are, you are subjected to uncivil and insincere actions. The only way to teach civility is through positive reinforcement of what ever is deemed socially appropriate.
Laverty, M.J. (2015). Creating classroom civility. In D.P. Liston & I.P. Renga (Eds.) Teaching, learning, and schooling in film: Reel education (pp. 130-144). New York, NY: Routledge.
Carter, P.L. (2013). Student and school cultures and the opportunity gap: Paying attention to academic engagement and achievement. In P.L. Carter & K.G. Welner (Eds.) Closing the opportunity gap (pp. 143-155). Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press.
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