My View on Racism & Discrimination
You know every week that we meet for class I always walk is wondering if the class will be boring or interesting, boy did I enjoy this class. The crossover game seemed to be very effective because it allowed each of to see how different people share the same beliefs, with similar traditions. When Professor went down the list of questions it was surprising to see how many students shared the same problems and hardships. I learned that even though all of us may look different on the outside, we are quite similar on the inside. I have accepted who I am, what I stand for and what I believe in, it’s common nature to think mentally that I am different and will always be looked at as an Indian girl but at least I know that there is more to me than just the outward appearance. (Celena Ragkaswar, EDI 600 Psychological Foundation of Education, Sep 24, 2008)
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Last night was such a great class! The crossing over activity was very intense. I was nervous while listening to Dr. Boyanton read some of the things I identify myself with having experienced. There was a real sense of vulnerability while I “crossed over” to the other side. It is so true the saying that I believe goes, “You really don't know a person til you've walked a mile in his shoes.” This activity really showed just how alive racism is.
Being a white Christian female, I definitely don't give the issues of racism the attention it deserves. After last night however, I feel very fortunate. I even feel somewhat guilty but as expressed by some of our classmates, “You can't feel guilty for something you can't change.”
Along with this, the movie “A Class Divided” was a real eye opener. It was so disturbing to see how easily the children compliantly fell into the role of either the superior or the subservient. Even more disturbing was when Dr. Boyanton said the adults placed in the same conflicted situation behaved much worse than the children! It really gets one thinking as to what “labels” really do to people. How much potential is being crushed? How much can be achieved through a positive label? It seems the sky is the limit for anyone who is labeled in some sort of superior category.
One thing for sure, I don't think the concept of race will ever disappear. Not only do people feel more secure when they identify themselves with a group but also they discriminate against others to hide their own insecurities. Don't we see this all too often with the school bully? I believe people feel threatened too easily by not only what is different from them but also their own misguided assumptions. The concept of race as well as racism will be here always. ( Patricia Selock , EDI 600 Psychological Foundation of Education, Sep 24, 2008)
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Class on tuesday opened my eyes to a lot of hiden "elephants in the room" that I did not see before. I knew before we began the crossover game what it was. I have heard this is an excellent way for people to get closer and know the intimate lives of their peers. I was unpleasantly surprised to see the hardships my fellow peers have to endure. I have never had to deal with race issues since I am a white catholic suburban female. I do not know what its like to be followed in a store or ridiculed for my ethnic background. I was nervous to cross over when the eating disorder question was asked.
Due to my small body frame and extremely youthful appearance, I am often questioned about my eating happens. Ironically, I am NOT the one with the disorder, but because I have been ridiculed for so long, I was nervous my fellow classmates would think I was the one with the problem when they saw me standing across the room. I thought that personally it was interesting to realize how I want other people to think or not think certain things about me.
I was also very impressed by the film we watched. It is frightening to see how innocent children begin to behave when they believe they are better than others. It would be interesting to try experiments like that in the classroom today but unfortunately I feel many parents and adminstrations would object. It provides a great inside into racism, and it seemed as though the experiment really got the point across. (Trisha Zuvich , EDI 600 Psychological Foundation of Education, Sep 24, 2008)
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I really liked todays class. The activity was one that i felt made me somewhat nervous/proud. Some of the things that i had to "crossover" for i was very proud to be part of. I felt that they are things that define me as a person and there is no reason for me to be ashamed about them. The video was also something that was very eye opening. I did really feel bad though for some of the children who were getting depressed and upset because they were told that they thought they are not good enough. This was a good experiment in teaching discrimination. I feel that unfortunately, discrimination will somewhat always be in todays people. Hopefully in time it will calm itself down and we can see to look past most things but everyone i feel has some discriminatory thoughts in the back of their head. (James Avila , EDI 600 Psychological Foundation of Education, Sep 24, 2008)
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Today’s class raised the issue of race/ethnicity in the classroom. We talked about many aspects of discrimination in a classroom setting and life. I thought most of the lesson would be based around racial discrimination, but I was mistaken. Gender and religious discrimination were sub-topics in our lesson. Professor Boyanton raised the issue of Affirmative Action and let the class express their opinions. I was surprised that most of the class was against Affirmative Action. Most students felt that Affirmative Action was unfair to Caucasians and Minorities. Many students felt if they were a minority, they would want to be admitted into college, or hired for a job, based on their hard work and character. The only problem with this thought is racial discrimination still plays a large role in today’s society.
I work in two professional settings, with one supervisor who has his masters and another with a PhD, and these supervisors often express negative connotations toward minorities.All my co-workers are Caucasian, which I believe is not a coincidence. Would you feel you had an equal opportunity, if you were a minority, interviewing for a job in front of supervisors like this? Although most of the class said Affirmative Action was unfair, I think this law is not about fairness, I think this law is necessary to help minorities overcome discrimination in a professional setting. (Christopher Conterelli, EDI 600 Psychological Foundation of Education, Sep 24, 2008)
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At the start of the Cross Over I was nervous about what things were going to be said. I had already learned my class is not quick to judge so I was not scared about further being judged. I guess I’m happy that I did not crossover many times. I see no reason to be ashamed of being a Jewish White Male who has to work to pay for grad school. I feel lucky to be in the situation I am currently in. Because I’m White I didn’t face some of the judgments some of my peers have had to face. I feel lucky to have grown up in a very Jewish area so I didn’t have to feel like I was a minority.
I think the experiment in A Class Divided was a great way to teach the students about racism and prejudice. The best way to learn how something feels is to experience. I believe that hands on methods are great teaching tools. It did surprise me to see how fast the students took to their stereotype. I know children at that age are very impressionable but I that was far beyond how seriously I felt they’d react. I would be interested to see how this experiment actually changed their thinking for the future. I’d also like to see how this year compared to the other years she did this project. Was it as successful? Why did she stop doing it?
I felt today was a very interesting class. I will take a lot from it for both life in general and for my own classroom. ( Matthew Unger, EDI 600 Psychological Foundation of Education, Sep 24, 2008)
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Wow!!! Cross-over activity!!! It was very impressive to me. According to Dr. Dengting’s questions, if yes, we cross over to the other side of classroom and look at other classmates at the opposite side. When I was asked if I experienced getting mocked of my accent or pronunciation, I crossed over alone and looked at the others in the opposite. They all looked at me at the same time. At that time, I felt like a stranger who is different from others. All of a sudden, I was ashamed and started to think about myself. I hardly had experienced ‘being different’ from others. This is because I’m from Korea where linguistically and culturally homogeneous society. Moreover, I am a teacher from middle-upper class and have some privileges in that society.
I learned how the underprivileged felt about their ‘being different’ in any way, compared with the privileged. It could be a feeling ashamed, or humiliated. Based on my today’s experience, I’ve got a thought that it would be hard for younger student to deal with that feeling without prior education. Therefore, I believe teachers should play an important role in helping the students who feel ‘being different’ from others, accept it, and we all have equal values, although we are different. (Ok-Hyun Jo, EDI 600 Psychological Foundation of Education, Sep 24, 2008)
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Although Tuesday’s are my longest days (work and classes) I was looking forward to tonight’s class because this class is usually more than just a regular lecture. I was quite happy to see that I was proved right when Dr. Boyanton told us we would be doing something known as the “crossover activity”. I enjoyed this activity but at the same time felt that it touched some sensitive issues among our classmates and some of the times when people had to “crossover” either by themselves or with one other person, I felt as though it was almost too personal. However, the activity did get its point across to us and showed that we will always have similarities and differences to those around us; this should not change how we view each other. I do not believe the concept of “race” will ever disappear, however I do feel as years pass, many traditional views are being thrown out and more open minded views are being held. Personally, I grew up with an array of friends from different races and cultures and feel as though this has helped me through experiences my entire life. I feel less sheltered and I think more people should accept and be aware of the fact that our world and society is a multi cultural one which can have significant benefits if discrimination is not practiced. (Jacqueline Silverman , EDI 600 Psychological Foundation of Education, Sep 24, 2008)
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Last night’s class was very interesting. I was nervous about the crossover game, since Dr. Boyanton said some of us may leave crying. The crossover game made me realize how minorities may feel inadequate among others. It was like an adult version of the brown/blue eyes game. The movie with the teacher separating brown eyes from blue eyes was a very powerful lesson. That is a good way to teach it to children, so they experience it for themselves. Although you said this was done with adults, I don’t think it would work with them.
. I gave some thought to affirmative action and I think we need to do something like that to help minorities. They usually have it much harder than the average white person. I have been a stay at home mom for most of the time for my kids. If I had to struggle just thinking about how to feed and clothe my kids, their education would have been greatly affected. The minorities may have many more obstacles to overcome. We should lend a helping hand. (Grace Thornton, EDI 600 Psychological Foundation of Education, Sep 24, 2008)
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I am a Caucasian male living in the United States. I reside in Long Island, New York. I am of German and Italian descent. My grandparents were immigrants and came to this country like many others for equal opportunity. I definitely think my ethnicity has had a lot to do with who I am as a person. I am very family oriented and have learned a lot of my values and traditions from them. As an Italian family we always eat together and spend a lot of time with one another. I know that this is typical of most families but I think it is more of a stereotype for Italians.
I personally believe race does affect your learning in some ways. It helps to create familiarity among cultures in a diverse community. Also it allows us to find a common ground. However, I do believe when I am in a learning environment I put aside that aspect of my life. I focus on the environment and find the best way to absorb the information.
In a perfect world we could all coincide. Unfortunately there will always be good and bad. It never has to do with your ethnicity but more your values. Your upbringing affects your attitude. Exposure to your environment and your ability to react affects your lifestyle and choices. I do believe it is possible that people of different ethnic backgrounds can live in harmony. The more exposure you have to diversity the more informed you become. Hopefully, the concept of race will be put aside. However, race will still help to identify us. People will begin to see each other as individuals getting rid of any preconceived notions based on ethnicity.
The video shows how children learn these preconceived notions regarding race. How quickly their minds could be shifted into thinking blue eyed people were better then brown eyed people. Something as simple as eye color could turn these children against one another. They identified how that related to racial discrimination and realized the error in their ways. Depending upon your type of disability you may need more attention then other students. (David Dimola , EDI 600 Psychological Foundation of Education, Sep 24, 2008)
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