Gender and Education

(Hyperlinks)

While surfing the web for videos and articals about gender and education in 2010 I came across this artical called Girls think they are cleverer than boys from age four, study finds

Teachers' expectations may reinforce gender gap in school performance 

This study was done in the United Kingdom  the arical was published 1 September 2010. In the artical it showed that girls do better than boys in school because of their teacher belife in them and for the boys the lack there of so by age 7 or 8 they have come to believe this. So on tests the girls profrom better as statsics show. "The findings come just over a week after exam results revealed that the gap between boys and girls at GCSE is widening. This summer, the pass rate for girls was 72.6% at A* to C, compared with 65.4% for boys. Last year, the rate was 70.5% for girls and 63.6% for boys."

But as I countued to read the artical started to talk about a expariment silmlar to that of  the doll expariment. Except this time the children were give a picture of a girl and of a boy and asked who was clever. The girls always said the girls. At age four to seven the boys were evenly devided on who was clever but by age 7 and 8 the boys would agree with there female peers that girls were clever and more susseful.

I just found this astoudning and now there encourging teachers not to use phrases like "silly boy" or "schoolboy pranks." so the boys have a more even chance.

In class I would like to discuss ways for us to keep a gender nutral classroom and how to prevent this from happing. This just goes to show that it not just race we should be worring about but about how we speak to boys and girls in general.

Between Barack and a Hard Place

(Connections)

I thought the videos were interesting and I might read the book. I picked up on one thing Wise talked about which was because Bush was white he was more likly to be taken seriously. This reminded me  of  McIntosh article  White Privilege:Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack in the article she talks about  how being white is a privilege even if we don't know it. "I have come to see white privilege as an invisible package of unearned assets that I can count on cashing in each day, but about which I was "meant" to remain oblivious special provisions, maps, passports, code books, visas, clothes, tools and blank checks." in this she saying because that because she white it gives her privileges that she did not even know she had but made her life easier. The author makes a comment about how a African American president must work harder than that of a white president for one main reason the person is white. The author calls Bush a bafoon but he was white. I don't remember who said this but this quote has stuck in my head through out all these reading we have done. "My son knows how to be black. You need to teach him how to survive in a white man world." (Not word for word)  This just helps to show that even though we are equal and segregation is gone  it is still harder for African American  to find a job because of the clor of there skin.

In class I would like to talk about why it hared for a African  American person to get a job when there just ad highly qualified as that of a white person.
I found a article I thought was interesting it talks about the loss of jobs and how it might be harder for African Americans to find jobs again in the upturn of this job market.

In The Service of What? The Politics of Service Learning By Joseph Kahne and Joel Westheimer

(Extended Comments)

In the Service of What? by Kahne and Westheimer

In Darlene's blog "In the Service of What? by Kahne and Westheimer" She talkes about the main arguments that they make which are "  here seem to be two main subjects to the argument, service learning for charity, or service learning to identify and respond (change)." I think she right as I read the article those were the two things that kept poping up.

" If we are doing it because we have to (charity) or that we are learning about how to live like other people and becoming more aware of social issues (change)." I think the two actually blend together.  you can do Charity work while being able to take a walk in another persons shoes and see what it like to live there life. and once you witness these issues  hopefully you will want to learn more about the issues at hand.

I think the idea of service learning is not a new idea in the into the author quotes two form presidents from two different decades. John F. Kennedy and Ronald Reagan. I think John F. Kennedy  famous quote from his inaugural address "... ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country." I think this summons up service learning because in this quote he telling the people of the united States to be selfless and to help someone in need because it the right thing to do rather than be selfish and ask what a person can do for you.

In class I would like  to talk about what it means to participate in service learning and what are the benfits of it. But more importantly what the differences between now and say the 1960's when Kennedy was promoting this.

I found this video It about UCF students what it means to do service learning for the people doing it and the people befitting.

Unlearning the Myths That Bind Us by Linda Christensen

(Hyperlink)

The video is called Disney and the dark manipulation of the young mind  and it relates to the artical we read because in the video the director talks to different profisoals and kids about what they noticed in the disney flims that shows what they want reality to be and not what reality is. Such as one child who was seven said they never saw a black person in the films. Christensen students say something simlar. "A Black Cinderella? Give me a Brake." She wrote "Have you ever seen a black person, an Asian,a Hispanic in a cartoon? Did they have a leading role or were they a servant? What do you think this doing to your child's mind?"

and it true. Maybe not intentional but Disney does either skim over or but people in roles that socity at the time dubs they fit in.  Like at one point they talk about Tarzan and how it focus on  a white man in Aferica and not on the aferican people.  I talked to my mom about that and she said you got to remmber Trazan based off a book written by a white author. So with that one Disney could not really change unless they want to change the entier concept of the book which is a white baby raised by gorilas.  But others I do agree there are message but it also the culter we live in as Carlson but it there a war were waging betwwen new age thinking and the "Father knows best" way of life that soscity is.

I think in recent times since the mid 90's till today Disney has tried to make more a effort like make films like Mulan were a asian girl was the main lead. Or the recent release of Princess and the frong were the lead lady was a black girl. Though I felt it was a ok film it shows that finally Disney is trying to get with the times. It showed not only a bi racela relationship with the leading man being possible hispanic  and the leading lady being black. Maybe they are trying to make up for there ways who knows.

In class I would like to talk about how skin color plays a role in where you fit into a movie and how though unintetional at time I feel. Thighs like Disney movies shape the early years of our children and the soscity they grow up in.

Gayness,Multicultural Education, and Community By Dennis Carlson

(Argument)

In the article Carlson is talking about how in schools we should be teaching our children how to create and to live in a democratic community were we are to be the teaching the values of supporting and respecting people. But for some reason it seems that when it come to gay people we always seem to shove them under the rug. "gay people have for the most part been made absent,invisible, and silent within this community and at the same time represented as the deviant and pathological "Other."  

Carlson sees the struggle between the "new right" and the tradtional family were father always new best.

Former President Bill Clinton created a rule for the military called "Dont Ask Dont Tell" In terms to gays in the miltary. It allows people who are gay or lesbian to be in the military but they are not allowed to admit to it for fear of being discharged. Again this is just another example of making them invisable.I think Carlson is implying that the rule of "Dont Ask Dont tell" Applies to school also though they take more drastic measures to make sure it insured.  "account of the specific techniques and apparatuses of power that have been employed om the school tp keep gayness "in its place" as an invisible presence.  Three techniques of normalization and (hence) marginalization have been of primary importance in this regard: (1) the erasure of gayness in the curriculum, (2) the "closeting" and "witch hunting" of gay teachers and (3) verbal and physical intimidation of gay teacher and students."

Even though were suppose to teach kids to treat everyone evenly when it come to being different we always find someway to cover it up and make it like it never there when it fully is.
Carlson argument is basically this in a nutshell.  there is a war waging between new age thinking and the old fashion thinking of "Father knows best." and the simple fact that the society we live in is a white heterosexual male dominated society. So instead of letting the fact that people maybe gay lesbian or bisexual be know in school were supose to be teaching them to respect  vaule people in a democratic society but when we make it in schools that gays and lesbian basicly dont exsit from not hirering gay and lesbian teaches to take storeies about gay and lesbian off the school reading list how is this going to be possible.

In school on Tuesday I would like to talk more about the "Dont Ask dont tell" rule and why it seems that it not only applies to the military but to the school too and also why school fear the potential knowledge or is it influence of gay and lesbians on our classmates you children. After this it got me wonder why because I remember things like that in school. No of the books we read had a bi gay or lesbian tone to it. I'm not sure if any of my teachers were bi, gay, or lesbian but from the ones I got to know really well they weren't, And I really would love to know why what so wrong with them that we have to make it so there not exsitant as much as possible.

I found a article that shows them trying to make it easier for Gay and Lesbians to have a better  school experience but at the same time give reasons why people are against homosexuality being taught in schools.