Youth

The chapters for this week were very insightful.  When I was in school I remember hearing things about "how terrible the youth of America are" and "kids are killing kids everywhere, what is going to happen when they are adults, if they make it there?"  The press made it sound like armageddon.  That has about as much credibility as some of those 1950s ads about how cool cigarettes are.  My favorite was this one:  "Of all leading filter cigarettes, Kent filter's best.  If you try Kent with that in mind, I think you'll agree with many other thinking people that have hanged to Kent.  They find it makes good sense to smoke Kent, and good smoking too."  Sorry that was off topic and may foreshadow how I will be as a teacher, but this is a blog.  Back to the topic.  I have wondered for awhile now and was reintroduced while I was reading, did all of these kids actually kill each other and not reach adulthood, or did they all go to prison, or did they not commit violent crimes they were supposed to?  Sarcasm aside, it is refreshing to get a perspective that runs counter to the tired argument that has been pushed for the better part of the last 3 decades (although, unless I have not been paying close attention over the last 8 years, it appears that this issue has taken a backseat).

Usually I am not one that pushes for media bashing, but it was certainly necessary in this case.  The repeated references to Newsweek, Time, and the Los Angeles Times were insightful.  When this article was written it appeared that they lacked a certain journalistic integrity.  They were and continue to be wrong to overlook the role that poverty plays in troubled children.  Politicians (unfortunately neither Presidential candidate seems to mention issues that do not affect middle class white people) and the press needs to increase awareness about the constraints poverty puts on children.  

In our classrooms, it is imperative that we create a positive environment for these children.  If they are going to be in schools, we need to make it worth there while.  Education can be the silver bullet in fighting poverty.  If we can provide young people with the opportunity and confidence necessary to succeed we can overcome not only teenage violence and pregnancy (which has been greatly over hyped), but more importantly poverty.

The chapter that focused on parents that basically decided to literally and figuratively pimp out their kids was also very informative.  I know Giroux was just using pageants as an example of how far society has fallen, but there are certainly other examples.  When I was reading this, I could not help but think of that stupid show that was on Bravo a few years ago, Showbiz Moms and Dads.  For those of that have not seen it, it was about these crazy parents that drove around New York and Los Angeles with their kids bringing them to auditions, rehearsals, and pageants.  Here is a description of one family's experiences (it is not pretty):

THE NUTTERS 
Duncan Nutter relocated his wife and seven children from their rural home in Vermont to a tiny two-bedroom apartment in New York so the family could pursue acting careers in the big city. But not everyone made the move willingly, and tensions in the Nutter home are high. With acting gigs being few and far-between, Duncan is forced to take a low-wage job as a theater usher to support the family. Living on top of each other in cramped quarters, tempers reach a boiling point and some family-members openly rebel, determined to leave acting behind and return to their old life in the country. 

Are you kidding me?  He moved his entire family into a 2 bedroom apartment in New York?!?!  I lived in a few one-bedroom apartments in Chicago and if the Nutter's were anything like my apartments, I could not imagine living in a 2 bedroom with 8 other people.  Whenever this show was on I wanted to leap through the television and strangle these idiotic parents.  Enough with the rant.

As evidenced by Giroux's article and other examples the kids really get screwed here because their parents apply all of this unnecessary pressure forcing them to grow up, then when their body clock catches up with their actual age they have to go to psychiatrists as adults (I know that is a leap, but really what are the psychological repercussions of forcing children to become adults long before they are ready?).  As a teacher, what is our role if we confront situations like this?  I understand we have a responsibility to the children, but is it ethical to call parents out on their obvious mistakes?  I realize society does not say they are committing child abuse in the traditional manner, but they are certainly harming their children.

http://www.script-o-rama.com/movie_scripts/g/good-night-and-good-luck-script.html

http://www.bravotv.com/Showbiz_Moms_&_Dads/Extras/About.shtml

Adolescence

Chapter 2 by Jeanne Brooks-Gunn and Edward O. Reiter was an interesting and very useful examination of the pubertal process. While I was reading the first part of the chapter, I thought it was going to be a struggle, but once the authors got beyond some of the physical changes and into the results of the changes it began to take on a new meaning. I must say that I was initially a little shocked by the lack of research that has been done on this topic. However, it does make sense given the willingness of many adults to shun the topic. It is too bad because that sort of behavior is then passed down to their children, so they begin to believe puberty is taboo and are unwilling to talk about it.

There were some obvious parts to the chapter. Specifically about girls maturing earlier than boys and the fact that boys are only really willing to discuss their changes in the abstract (typically within the comfort of large groups in the lockeroom setting), while girls are willing to speak more openly, but only with their mothers or close friends. However, there was a lot of information I was unaware of. Particularly interesting is the section devoted to explaining the challenges encountered by early-maturing girls and late-maturing boys. For instance, I was completely ignorant of the fact that early maturing girls are more likely to suffer from an eating disorder because they go through the weight-gain stage before their classmates that have not begun puberty. Or how late-maturing boys suffer from low self-esteem levels. But given the emphasis put on sports among young males it makes perfect sense. Related to this is how early-maturing boys are much more likely to be misogynistic because they achieve the "prestige" of physical and emotional growth. Then as a result, they develop sexual-stereotypes. Obviously I did not think about this when I was in middle school, but now when I do think back to some of the people I went to school with and their behaviors and experiences, it crystallizes.

I have not started teaching in middle school, but I will try to keep some of this information in the back of my mind when I am in the classroom. I remember I had a music teacher (I think he may have been a long-term substitute) in middle school that had absolutely no clue how to handle young children. He was completely unaware of and insensitive to the changes young people experience. When there were outbursts in class or casual "immature male" conversations, he would react by losing his cool, then the rest of the class fed on this. It was as if he expected us to be much older and mature than we were. It is important for teachers to understand what sort of changes her/his students are experiencing and react sensitively.

Oppression

Kumashiro's article about oppression was quite eye-opening. As someone who has just been introduced to some of the challenges teachers must confront (I have a BA in History and just returned to school this semester), oppression appears to be as significant, if not more, than others. It was honestly not something I put a whole of thought into when I was making the decision to become a teacher.

The author offers 4 methods to mute oppression in the classroom. On the whole, I agree with Kumashiro's idea to use the classroom as an opportunity to change minds and push students to approach diversity from a fresh perspective. He argues that teachers have a responsibility to educate all students about the dangers of continued oppression, but he paints a somewhat bleak picture educators. After each section of building up his argument, he tears it down by stating the weaknesses of the method. I realize this is important, but it is not exactly a ringing endorsement. I almost feel like to implement these ideas, I will have to (sorry for the cliche) walk on eggshells in the classroom.

Final thought about the article: Reading this article from the perspective of a future Secondary Ed teacher, the one point that the author did not discuss (or at least, I did not catch it) is the timing. I understand that this is important for teachers of all levels to understand, but this should be a primary focus of Elementary Ed teachers. If they do not energetically combat oppression in young children, stereotypes and prejudices can become ingrained their minds. Thus, creating a much steeper challenge for Secondary Ed teachers.

One final thought: To confront oppression, I would try to weave some of these issues into my curriculum. Most "otherness" can be addressed in a U.S. History course. The author uses many examples, but repeatedly discusses Asian-American oppression. In a U.S. History course, we could discuss the internment of Japanese-Americans during World War II. Then we could pivot to a discussion about not only some of present-day issues confronting Asian-Americans, but how this sort of behavior by the powerful is a pattern.