Educ 203 Reflection

Samantha Meyer
EDUC 203
Final reflection paper

Education 203 with Dr. Smith has been a very enjoyable and entertaining class. I really liked the teaching style, curriculum and format of the class. I have definitely had a meaningful learning experience from this class. This class has taught me about important topics in life and topics that will be significant to me when I become a teacher. Through out this class I have learned about topics that are important to all people growing up and living in the United States. I have learned about topics like diversity in schools, immigration, racism, gay rights, gay marriage, and attitudes about diversity. Learning about a diverse amount of topics has opened my eyes about issues that are very important
and recent. I am very lucky that I get to take a class that not only forces me to think critically and intelligently but to also learn about topics that are very present in todays world. I am now knowledgeable about such a diverse amount of topics and able to talk and discuss all of these different issues that are occurring in the world. This class relates to me personally because I am a young adult growing up in the United States studying to become a teacher. All of the topics we have learned about can help me learn how to become a better teacher. For example, diversity in the classroom is an extremely important topic for a teacher to understand. Diversity in schools has become a huge increase over the years and it is important to address this change. It is important for teachers to understand that students come from all different backgrounds and to teach them to learn and strive in the diverse and interdependent world we live in. “A reasonable goal in cross-cultural training or intercultural education is to help others develop an ethno relative perspective; that is, the ability to understand that there are other equally valid ways of viewing the world” (Kushner and Trifonovitch, 1989, 318). People tend to view the world from their own perspective, culture, values, and beliefs but it is important for schools to stress the significance of diversity in the world. It is necessary for students to learn to work with a diverse group of people and with people who have views that are different then their own. It is essential for a person to learn about and understand their own culture as well as other cultures. It is difficult to explain a culture and why a person does what they do if their own culture is not understood. Diversity in the classroom and in schools has been a very beneficial topic to learn about. Racism is also another topic that I have learned about and is still very prevalent in today’s world and schools. “Your heart broke, because how many times have you heard it said that, since they are growing up in the era of Oprah and Obama, our children will live beyond the belief that character is a function of color” (Pitts Jr., 2010, 27)”. After reading this I could not believe that even in the 21st century the young girl would still respond to the test in that way. This test shows that children truly listen and hear to everything that people around them say and to the things they watch. “But children are not idiots. They hear us and see us. They watch television, they listen to radio, the read magazines, they live in our worlds. So very early on, they know what we think. And often enough, it becomes what they think too” (Pitts Jr., 2010, 27). I found this statement extremely interesting because even though times have changed, children will always be children and listen to their parents or peers. If a parent or guardian has negative or racist views that are shared in front of a child then it is very likely that a child will also believe the same things. I find this really sad because even those times have changed adults and media can still have such a negative impact on children and the future. If we want times to change then we need our views to change as a whole. “We are more than 40 years beyond the civil rights movement, 40 years beyond a burst of pride and racial consciousness that transfigured our very understanding o what it means to be black, 40 years into a future where Michael Jordan is an icon, Bill Cosby is a national father figure and a Kenyan’s son is president of these United States. Forty years. And still…And still” (Pitts Jr., 2010, 27). It seems crazy that even 40 years beyond the civil rights movement and 40 years of African American people becoming such huge figures in the world that racism still exists. As a future educator I find it extremely important to learn about cultural, ethnic, racial, sexual and religious diversity in schools. I want to be knowledge about the topic and efficient as a teacher. Racism and bullying of any type is a huge issue in schools and I want to be able to stop it in my classroom and school as much as possible. A specific example of progress of learning for me in this class is learning about immigration.
Before I took this class I’ve learning about immigration but was not very knowledgeable about the topic. After learning about immigration in education 203, my views and opinions on immigration have changed. The topic of immigration is a very controversial issue with several different viewpoints but I found the topic exceptionally interesting. “House GOP lawmakers are already warning they intend to oppose any change in immigration policy that doesn’t make things tougher for people who are in the country illegally, despite the fact that immigration is down and the Obama administration is already deporting record numbers of people with criminal records or who are deemed to be public safety threats” (Redmond, 2010, 1). I believe this is completely unfair because lawmakers are not even giving immigrants a chance in our society. The United States wants to make living here impossible for immigrants and plan to just make it harder and harder. We are supposed to be the land of opportunity and yet we give no opportunity to immigrants to benefit from our society at all. I believe it is completely unrealistic to deport the 11 million immigrants living in the United States so instead it is important to move forward and make laws to enforce change and benefits for the country with illegal immigrants living here. Immigration was a topic I enjoyed learning about and would like to learn more about
in the future. I don’t necessarily believe I have had any difficult or negative experiences through out this class.
All of the topics have been relevant, significant, and interesting. If I had to pick one topic that was the “hardest” for me it would be gay marriage. This is because my only and older brother recently told me that he is gay. He shared this news with me about four months ago. It was not the most surprising news but I am still figuring out and learning what its like to have a gay brother. Over the past four months he has been telling family members and friends at times that have been available. Learning about gay marriage hit me on a more personal level since it affects my brother, myself and family. I have always been a strong supporter for gay rights and marriage for as long as I can remember. The scientific purpose of marriage is to procreate and raise children but not all people get married because their priority in life is to have children. Many people get married with no intention to have children and just because they are in love and want to share the rest of their lives together. There are millions of children who are in need of families and allowing gay marriage is letting more options of couples raise and take care of these children in need of families. “Some same-sex couples argue that they want to marry for the same reasons that many opposite-sex couples do. But the personal reasons why any one individual couple chooses to marry are also not the primary concern of
the state” (Sprigg, 2011, 1). This is a great argument because same-sex couples are not asked or able to verify that if they get married, they will definitely have and raise children. If it is not the primary concern of marriage for same-sex couples then it should not be the concern for homosexual couples. Gay marriage becoming legal changes the social institution largely but I do not believe it changes it in a negative way. The United States is a nation that is full of diversity and as the years go on the country will just go through more diverse changes. I believe the sooner gay marriage is legalized across the country then the sooner it will be recognized and accepted. I do not believe this will happen over night but I do believe the sooner it does happen then it will result in a sooner acceptance. Gay rights and marriage is something I feel extremely passionate about and will always support. Since I am going to be an elementary teacher and times are changing I think it is very important to be knowledgeable and open minded about homosexuality. Students can have same-sex parents but should also be exposed to the diversity of different types of love that exists. I believe after taking this course I am changed in a positive way. I don’t think the course had a huge emotional impact on me or has changed me in a drastic way but it has forced me to open my eyes and think critically about present issues and topics that are present today. This course has changed me in a way that has made me more intelligent, knowledgeable and open-minded. I have learned about a diverse group of topics that will not only better me as a teacher but also as a person. Education 203 with Dr. Smith has been enjoyable and I believe I have learned a lot. I enjoyed the open discussions and group work instead of lecturing off of a PowerPoint. I believe this class is important to take for all majors, especially education majors. The topics talked about and taught are important to learn about for any person. I have had a very positive experience in this class.