Wednesday, January 31, 2007
my paper idea...
Well the story we haven't talked about yet , the high school story, I was thinking of discussing that and comparing it to June Jordan's essay. The new high school essay tells us about a day of high school..and how it seems to appear boring. I want to kind of contrast it to June Jordan's essay. In Jordan's essay school was fun and the kids were excited to learn where as in the high school story it came off as boring and just "stuff" you have to learn. I want to make the conversation about how Jordan made school fun and how the author of the high school story feels about regular public high school.
my paper idea...
Well the story we haven't talked about yet , the high school story, I was thinking of discussing that and comparing it to June Jordan's essay. The new high school essay tells us about a day of high school..and how it seems to appear boring. I want to kind of contrast it to June Jordan's essay. In Jordan's essay school was fun and the kids were excited to learn where as in the high school story it came off as boring and just "stuff" you have to learn. I want to make the conversation about how Jordan made school fun and how the author of the high school story feels about regular public high school.
Paer ideas
Well i have been thinking about his a lot and i still kind of not sure what to do. But i do have general idea what i really want to have a conversation with and i think that is going to be on the literacy you have and the way you are perceived by others. I think that I am going to use the essays that were written by Min-zahn Lun and Mike Rose. Also think that I want to talk about how literacy is very important to us in our culture.
Jordan.
Jordan is a poet, playwrite, essayest, and a prof. of English at the U of California, Berkley. She is a talented writer with experience in teaching black English. She uses her talent to combine two stories. Her comunitive power and clarity of black english sets a great foundation for Willie Jordans story.
In the beginging of the story Jordan makes a reference to black english sticking out like a sour thumb in a country of standard english. By making this reference she is tring to get the reader to understand how awful it must feel for something so close to a person (their language) to alienate them.
On page 162 Willie is introduced he is a great student, does an independent study project, he goes above and beyond for the class. Next she goes over the rules of black english and how to inforce them. Then she gives alot of samples of student writing. Then the class finds out what happened to Reggie, Condolences are sent to the family. The class debates wether to use black or standard english. The Letter is ultimately written in black english... and is rejected. Some of the main issues in this paper are: should black english be taught or used, and racism is very real.
The author ties two stories together and ends the story with a bang. The story is told in first person, and there are many examples of student wriing. By using a class in school, and focusing on language the reader can associate and get personal with the story, She takes an activist role.
In the beginging of the story Jordan makes a reference to black english sticking out like a sour thumb in a country of standard english. By making this reference she is tring to get the reader to understand how awful it must feel for something so close to a person (their language) to alienate them.
On page 162 Willie is introduced he is a great student, does an independent study project, he goes above and beyond for the class. Next she goes over the rules of black english and how to inforce them. Then she gives alot of samples of student writing. Then the class finds out what happened to Reggie, Condolences are sent to the family. The class debates wether to use black or standard english. The Letter is ultimately written in black english... and is rejected. Some of the main issues in this paper are: should black english be taught or used, and racism is very real.
The author ties two stories together and ends the story with a bang. The story is told in first person, and there are many examples of student wriing. By using a class in school, and focusing on language the reader can associate and get personal with the story, She takes an activist role.
Tuesday, January 30, 2007
Paper #1--and assorted other fun
Hey all,
I just thought I would jump on here and let you know that the first paper assignment is posted on the blog! You can access it by looking for the "Course Information" section to the right. Click on "Spring 2007 Paper #1: Literacies" and Boom...you'll have the paper assignment.
Please take some time to read through the assignment. Think about it for a while. Look back over the essays we have read. As I said in class today, I would like you to post your paper ideas...thoughts...random ramblings about the paper assignment to the blog by Thursday (before class!). We will look at some of your posts then.
Also, since we spent a good deal of time today on Jordan and some of your posts, we will also discuss Anzaldua and Sizer on Thursday as well.
I just thought I would jump on here and let you know that the first paper assignment is posted on the blog! You can access it by looking for the "Course Information" section to the right. Click on "Spring 2007 Paper #1: Literacies" and Boom...you'll have the paper assignment.
Please take some time to read through the assignment. Think about it for a while. Look back over the essays we have read. As I said in class today, I would like you to post your paper ideas...thoughts...random ramblings about the paper assignment to the blog by Thursday (before class!). We will look at some of your posts then.
Also, since we spent a good deal of time today on Jordan and some of your posts, we will also discuss Anzaldua and Sizer on Thursday as well.
Quien tiene boca...HUh?
They say that a wild tongue is like fire hard to burn out, so how do you tame it?
I liked the way the author started the essay with a metaphor. The dentist was telling her that he was going to rip out her tongue because it was causing her problems with her teeth. The author uses this metaphor comparing it to language. The author tells us how when she was growing up she couldn't even speak spanish!!!! People were giving her wrong conceptions of things of how if she didnt speak proper english she wouldn't get a good job, it doesn't get any scarier than that!. I love the way she used spanished sayings like "Ahogadas, escupimos el oscuro. Peleando con nuestra propia sombra el silencio nos sepulta". ---- Drowning, spitting in the darkness. Fighting with our own shadow, silence buries us. What a saying!!!! If we keep quiet we are only buring ourselves in our own silence. That was a good one.
It's funny how I know exactly how she feels. Puertoricans and Mexicans speak different types of spanish, so when she talks abouts how Mexicans say the same thing whether it is a boy or girl wasn't really a surpirse. In some countries woman are not given importance, not even in language. Sometimes people confuse the wording and many times some words we say are like curse words in thier country!!! it's kinda funny how you gotta watch what you say when you go to certain latin countries because they might beat you for saying the wrong thing!!!
But anyways she is so totally right when she talks about the struggle of identity. It may sound wierd but even though we speak the same language we are not from the same place and if you tell a Dominican hey you look like your Puerto Rican they will get highly offended and vise versa. I think is the fact that people want to take pride in where they come from and thats why they act that way but she is so right when she says that the struggle for identity still remains.
I liked the way the author started the essay with a metaphor. The dentist was telling her that he was going to rip out her tongue because it was causing her problems with her teeth. The author uses this metaphor comparing it to language. The author tells us how when she was growing up she couldn't even speak spanish!!!! People were giving her wrong conceptions of things of how if she didnt speak proper english she wouldn't get a good job, it doesn't get any scarier than that!. I love the way she used spanished sayings like "Ahogadas, escupimos el oscuro. Peleando con nuestra propia sombra el silencio nos sepulta". ---- Drowning, spitting in the darkness. Fighting with our own shadow, silence buries us. What a saying!!!! If we keep quiet we are only buring ourselves in our own silence. That was a good one.
It's funny how I know exactly how she feels. Puertoricans and Mexicans speak different types of spanish, so when she talks abouts how Mexicans say the same thing whether it is a boy or girl wasn't really a surpirse. In some countries woman are not given importance, not even in language. Sometimes people confuse the wording and many times some words we say are like curse words in thier country!!! it's kinda funny how you gotta watch what you say when you go to certain latin countries because they might beat you for saying the wrong thing!!!
But anyways she is so totally right when she talks about the struggle of identity. It may sound wierd but even though we speak the same language we are not from the same place and if you tell a Dominican hey you look like your Puerto Rican they will get highly offended and vise versa. I think is the fact that people want to take pride in where they come from and thats why they act that way but she is so right when she says that the struggle for identity still remains.
Quien tiene boca...HUh?
They say that a wild tongue is like fire hard to burn out, so how do you tame it?
I liked the way the author started the essay with a metaphor. The dentist was telling her that he was going to rip out her tongue because it was causing her problems with her teeth. The author uses this metaphor comparing it to language. The author tells us how when she was growing up she couldn't even speak spanish!!!! People were giving her wrong conceptions of things of how if she didnt speak proper english she wouldn't get a good job, it doesn't get any scarier than that!. I love the way she used spanished sayings like "Ahogadas, escupimos el oscuro. Peleando con nuestra propia sombra el silencio nos sepulta". ---- Drowning, spitting in the darkness. Fighting with our own shadow, silence buries us. What a saying!!!! If we keep quiet we are only buring ourselves in our own silence. That was a good one.
It's funny how I know exactly how she feels. Puertoricans and Mexicans speak different types of spanish, so when she talks abouts how Mexicans say the same thing whether it is a boy or girl wasn't really a surpirse. In some countries woman are not given importance, not even in language. Sometimes people confuse the wording and many times some words we say are like curse words in thier country!!! it's kinda funny how you gotta watch what you say when you go to certain latin countries because they might beat you for saying the wrong thing!!!
But anyways she is so totally right when she talks about the struggle of identity. It may sound wierd but even though we speak the same language we are not from the same place and if you tell a Dominican hey you look like your Puerto Rican they will get highly offended and vise versa. I think is the fact that people want to take pride in where they come from and thats why they act that way but she is so right when she says that the struggle for identity still remains.
I liked the way the author started the essay with a metaphor. The dentist was telling her that he was going to rip out her tongue because it was causing her problems with her teeth. The author uses this metaphor comparing it to language. The author tells us how when she was growing up she couldn't even speak spanish!!!! People were giving her wrong conceptions of things of how if she didnt speak proper english she wouldn't get a good job, it doesn't get any scarier than that!. I love the way she used spanished sayings like "Ahogadas, escupimos el oscuro. Peleando con nuestra propia sombra el silencio nos sepulta". ---- Drowning, spitting in the darkness. Fighting with our own shadow, silence buries us. What a saying!!!! If we keep quiet we are only buring ourselves in our own silence. That was a good one.
It's funny how I know exactly how she feels. Puertoricans and Mexicans speak different types of spanish, so when she talks abouts how Mexicans say the same thing whether it is a boy or girl wasn't really a surpirse. In some countries woman are not given importance, not even in language. Sometimes people confuse the wording and many times some words we say are like curse words in thier country!!! it's kinda funny how you gotta watch what you say when you go to certain latin countries because they might beat you for saying the wrong thing!!!
But anyways she is so totally right when she talks about the struggle of identity. It may sound wierd but even though we speak the same language we are not from the same place and if you tell a Dominican hey you look like your Puerto Rican they will get highly offended and vise versa. I think is the fact that people want to take pride in where they come from and thats why they act that way but she is so right when she says that the struggle for identity still remains.
mike & Min-Zhaun
When we look at Lu's essay we are brought about a girl and her mother and how her mother regrets certains things like the regretting the way she brought Lu and her sisters up. Lu is faced with a challenged, tensions that are growing between home an school. The language she speaks at home is not te same language that is being taught in school, so one might say she is getting the best of both worlds, but to Lu she isn't. In this essay Lu explains her struggles she has with writing nd how she must balance between the two.
In Mike's essay we see a professor, who has worked hard teaching and tutoring students. This essay was taken from his book LIves On the Boundary, and we see his account of what it was growing up in LA. We see him making a point, by explaining and giving examples on school failures. I like the way it started by saying that he thanks Gods for letting him comeback to school and being able to seek the dream he wants. I think that is a powerful statement because here we can see that he is well aware of the consequences of not getting an education. Ironically in Lu's essy she is thankful as well when she says "I am greatful for the overwhelming complexity of the circumstances in which I gew up..." Here we see that instead of regreting her past Lu is embracing it and looking at the good outcomes that have come out of it.
In Mike's essay we see a professor, who has worked hard teaching and tutoring students. This essay was taken from his book LIves On the Boundary, and we see his account of what it was growing up in LA. We see him making a point, by explaining and giving examples on school failures. I like the way it started by saying that he thanks Gods for letting him comeback to school and being able to seek the dream he wants. I think that is a powerful statement because here we can see that he is well aware of the consequences of not getting an education. Ironically in Lu's essy she is thankful as well when she says "I am greatful for the overwhelming complexity of the circumstances in which I gew up..." Here we see that instead of regreting her past Lu is embracing it and looking at the good outcomes that have come out of it.
Teaching Equally
In the Lisa Delpit reading, Lisa explains her troubles with teaching young students of white and black race. Lisa was brought up in a strict catholic school as a child where every wrong saying or mispronunciation was immediately corrected. During the story, she notices that her white students excel in her classes while the black students struggle. She tries to incorporate the skills needed for them to succeed in life rather than them just having fluency. Though the black students struggle, they show extraordinary talent through raps, jump rope songs, and poems. However, these characteristics went unnoticed by the rest of their community.
Throughout this essay, the she shows her conflicts and expresses how she feels about the school system. She uses dialogue and personal stories so that the reader can feel what she is going through. She writes about her early teaching experiences and how she came to a conflict with how she can teach so that everyone can learn the material. The best thing she does is talking about her experiences with Standard English. She is trying to advance the writing process project for her students. Her voice is dedicated and sincere because she continuously tries to find a way.
Throughout this essay, the she shows her conflicts and expresses how she feels about the school system. She uses dialogue and personal stories so that the reader can feel what she is going through. She writes about her early teaching experiences and how she came to a conflict with how she can teach so that everyone can learn the material. The best thing she does is talking about her experiences with Standard English. She is trying to advance the writing process project for her students. Her voice is dedicated and sincere because she continuously tries to find a way.
Teaching Equally
In the Lisa Delpit reading, Lisa explains her troubles with teaching young students of white and black race. Lisa was brought up in a strict catholic school as a child where every wrong saying or mispronunciation was immediately corrected. During the story, she notices that her white students excel in her classes while the black students struggle. She tries to incorporate the skills needed for them to succeed in life rather than them just having fluency. Though the black students struggle, they show extraordinary talent through raps, jump rope songs, and poems. However, these characteristics went unnoticed by the rest of their community.
Throughout this essay, the she shows her conflicts and expresses how she feels about the school system. She uses dialogue and personal stories so that the reader can feel what she is going through. She writes about her early teaching experiences and how she came to a conflict with how she can teach so that everyone can learn the material. The best thing she does is talking about her experiences with Standard English. She is trying to advance the writing process project for her students. Her voice is dedicated and sincere because she continuously tries to find a way.
Throughout this essay, the she shows her conflicts and expresses how she feels about the school system. She uses dialogue and personal stories so that the reader can feel what she is going through. She writes about her early teaching experiences and how she came to a conflict with how she can teach so that everyone can learn the material. The best thing she does is talking about her experiences with Standard English. She is trying to advance the writing process project for her students. Her voice is dedicated and sincere because she continuously tries to find a way.
Monday, January 29, 2007
literacy...
literacy is everything in today's society... even being able to speak more than one language is even better than speaking one... many people take things such as going to school for granted... when in reality it is only making you better for the real world outside... for example many people in my high school would just get by with grades and with me it was different... i took advantage of every opportunity that was thrown at me because i wanted to better myself... without being able to speak correctly will get you nowhere in life... good jobs today will not even hire you without the proper schooling...
June Jordan
Whar is said - June Jordan's essay is a story about a class that she taught in Black English. She had the idea to teach the class because of what happened in another class she was teaching. The class read "The Color Purple," and they didn't like the way the book was written. They said the language sounded strange, but Jordan noticed that the students used a similar style of language all the time in conversation. This gives her the idea to teach a class in Black English, and, with the help of her students, make a list of rules and guidelines for using Black English. She also tells the story of one of her students, Willie Jordan. Willie's brother Reggie is killed by the police, and all of the other students in the class had either known Reggie or known someone else who had been killed by the police. They want to write something to the police in Black English, because it is their language and the language that Reggie spoke. They don't know if they should use standard English, which they call the language of the killer, or Black English, which is how Reggie spoke. They decide to stay true to themselves and write in Black English, and their letters are for the most part, ignored. Racism is definitely one of the main issues in this essay. Reggie's murder by the police and the disregard for the students letter written in Black English are both big examples of this.
How she does it - Jordan starts out with an introduction on the English language, then begins to tell her own first person narrative story, mixed with examples of her student's actual writing, and their list of rules and examples of Black English. She ends with Willie Jordan's essay.
How she does it - Jordan starts out with an introduction on the English language, then begins to tell her own first person narrative story, mixed with examples of her student's actual writing, and their list of rules and examples of Black English. She ends with Willie Jordan's essay.
C.... I.... O....
i think the author was trying to make people want to read his essay by making the title culture is ordinary... by using that title people are intrigue to see what the author has to say... many people believe that culture is not ordinary... saying something is ordinary is saying that it is normal... not everyone across the world shares the same culture... with culture comes different beliefs and ways of living... which make culture not ordinary...
being from a hispanic background i know that my culture is not the same as everyone elses... we have different views and ideas... different foods... different customs... different language... different music... our living is different from other cultures...
being different is not ordinary... i dont agree with the title of the essay
being from a hispanic background i know that my culture is not the same as everyone elses... we have different views and ideas... different foods... different customs... different language... different music... our living is different from other cultures...
being different is not ordinary... i dont agree with the title of the essay
Sunday, January 28, 2007
¿qué?
(Thoughts by Gina and Ellen)
We think that Delpit is confused about what teaching method to use to teach black students. She says that it was a goal of hers to educate young black children. Should she use the open classroom method? Her white students excel using this method while the black students fall behind. This method encourages fluency, but another Black teacher tells her that black children already have fluency. They need to learn skills. Delpit tries a more conservative method of teaching with a classroom full of desks and chairs. She focuses on teaching her students skills in writing and English. Again, her black students fall behind. Why? There must be a delicate balance of skills and fluency that will let her black students succeed.
We think that Delpit is confused about what teaching method to use to teach black students. She says that it was a goal of hers to educate young black children. Should she use the open classroom method? Her white students excel using this method while the black students fall behind. This method encourages fluency, but another Black teacher tells her that black children already have fluency. They need to learn skills. Delpit tries a more conservative method of teaching with a classroom full of desks and chairs. She focuses on teaching her students skills in writing and English. Again, her black students fall behind. Why? There must be a delicate balance of skills and fluency that will let her black students succeed.
Lisa Delpit: The Educator
This post is for the group of Joe, Drew, Cale and me(marc).
Lisa Delpit is the Benjamin E. Mays Chairholder of the Urban Educational Leadership of Georgia. She also was awarded the MacArthur award. Delpit also wrote an instant classic article for the Reading Culture.
What is said?
-Delpit was a firm believer in the open-classroom teaching style. What she found out though was that as the white children excelled in the program, her black students fell behind.
-Due to the failure Delpit changed her style of teaching to try to include all of her students.
-After her "failure" in Philly she went to grad school. It was there that she was told that her teaching methors, the open-classroom, was correct.
-Delpit would eventually return to Philly and when she did she met with her friend Cathy. Cathy told Delpit her opinion of the Bay-Area Writing Project. She beileved it was "a monumental disservice to black children." Cathy also told Lisa that black children were just as fluent as their white counterparts. She said that her students would write rap lyrics that proved her belief, just that most of them lacked the skills to advance to a college setting.
-Cathy brought up one of her students that she said was brilliant. But, she said that, "But he can't get a score on the SAT that will even get him considered by any halfway decent college. He needs skills not fluency."
Main Issues:
-Lisa Delpit believes that it is much harder for an African-American student to advance to the college level. This is due to the teaching practicies and lack of communication between dominant and minority cultures.
What statement would Delpit agree with?
-She would agree that there needs to be a balance between literacy development and a skills oriented program.
How does she do write?
-The kind of writing that Delpit uses is one that includes peer interaction. Everything she says is from personal experience.
-Delpit's structure is that she talks about her life, shares her conversations she had with peers, then develops a more conservative style of teaching, and finally states her beliefs.
-The voice she uses is first person.
Lisa Delpit is the Benjamin E. Mays Chairholder of the Urban Educational Leadership of Georgia. She also was awarded the MacArthur award. Delpit also wrote an instant classic article for the Reading Culture.
What is said?
-Delpit was a firm believer in the open-classroom teaching style. What she found out though was that as the white children excelled in the program, her black students fell behind.
-Due to the failure Delpit changed her style of teaching to try to include all of her students.
-After her "failure" in Philly she went to grad school. It was there that she was told that her teaching methors, the open-classroom, was correct.
-Delpit would eventually return to Philly and when she did she met with her friend Cathy. Cathy told Delpit her opinion of the Bay-Area Writing Project. She beileved it was "a monumental disservice to black children." Cathy also told Lisa that black children were just as fluent as their white counterparts. She said that her students would write rap lyrics that proved her belief, just that most of them lacked the skills to advance to a college setting.
-Cathy brought up one of her students that she said was brilliant. But, she said that, "But he can't get a score on the SAT that will even get him considered by any halfway decent college. He needs skills not fluency."
Main Issues:
-Lisa Delpit believes that it is much harder for an African-American student to advance to the college level. This is due to the teaching practicies and lack of communication between dominant and minority cultures.
What statement would Delpit agree with?
-She would agree that there needs to be a balance between literacy development and a skills oriented program.
How does she do write?
-The kind of writing that Delpit uses is one that includes peer interaction. Everything she says is from personal experience.
-Delpit's structure is that she talks about her life, shares her conversations she had with peers, then develops a more conservative style of teaching, and finally states her beliefs.
-The voice she uses is first person.
Thursday, January 25, 2007
June Jordan v. Lisa Delpit
I thought Jordan's essay was better than the other essay. I felt that I could not relate but feel more from the students in the essay. Jordan's essay gives us an inspirational view point at what she wrote and she also gives us the serious outlook on life. It was great how her students learned what they did, and how they enjoyed doing it. By adding the story about how Reggie got show was kind of a reality check as to how racism and violence is still present today.As Becca stated in her blog, Jordan had a more powerful way of getting the meaning across than Delpit. Delpit focused alot on herself in her essay rather than the kids she taught . Jordan's essay focused very much around her students and like Willie's story, serious issues that happened in their lives.
Threee sentences that caught my eye...
1. '2. Clarity: if the sentence is not c lear it's not Black English.'
I liked the second guidline for Black English. I just thought it was funny how they said if it wasn't clearn then it wasn't Black English. Plain and simple.
2. 'Rule 4: Forget about the spelling, Let the syntax carry you.'
This rule stuck out to me. It made me think, not about spelling, but life. Kind of like roll with the punches. Just go with it. Alot of people make life more complicated than it has to be. It should be more like..'go with the flow.'
3."At the end of one of the longest, most difficult hours of my own life, the students voted, unanimously, to preface their individual messages with a paragraph composed in the language of Reggie Jordan."
When I read this sentence it just made me smile. I was happy to see that all the students wanted to do this for Willie, in memory of Reggie.
Threee sentences that caught my eye...
1. '2. Clarity: if the sentence is not c lear it's not Black English.'
I liked the second guidline for Black English. I just thought it was funny how they said if it wasn't clearn then it wasn't Black English. Plain and simple.
2. 'Rule 4: Forget about the spelling, Let the syntax carry you.'
This rule stuck out to me. It made me think, not about spelling, but life. Kind of like roll with the punches. Just go with it. Alot of people make life more complicated than it has to be. It should be more like..'go with the flow.'
3."At the end of one of the longest, most difficult hours of my own life, the students voted, unanimously, to preface their individual messages with a paragraph composed in the language of Reggie Jordan."
When I read this sentence it just made me smile. I was happy to see that all the students wanted to do this for Willie, in memory of Reggie.
Black English
June Jordan, who is she? Well i am going to tell you, Jordan and done many different things in her lifetime. She was poet, playwright, essayist, and professor of English at the University of California, Berkley.
Throughout this essay she said many of things but we think that the overall topic she was trying to convey to her readers was about Racism. She gave many different issues through out her story, like how "Black English was like a linguistic buffalo", to trying to teach her students how to write the form Black English. But that's not all, she also gave a story on about how one of her students went missing for some time, and came to find out that there had been a death in his family. Throughout all things that she mentioned we believe that it all ties together on the general topic about racism.
She tries to prove her point through every issue that we had listed in the preceding paragraph. When she started this essay out she gave a metaphor of " Black English is like the linguistic buffalo" this here is very strong statement. If you just think about how the buffalo almost became extinct which was because people wanted to force the Indians out of there land, and by killing of their big food supply, which was the buffalo, would drive them from that area. Well here she is saying that by completely forgetting about Black English might push the African Americans out this country, which in anyway you look at is being racist. So what she tries to do about it is to teach here students that they should not be afraid to be who they are, if you talk or want to talk in Black English then do so don't be afraid of who you are. So in order to show her students that she develops and teaches a class that is learning how to talk and write in the Black English, which is so uncommon because in what school anywhere offers this type of course. That just goes to show how our country does not want to support or even accept the different use of language of a different culture. To even more reinforce the topic of racism at the end of the essay she goes into talking about how one of her student's, an African American, brother was killing by the police. According to the story he was not armed but the police shot him 8 times, why would you need shoot anyone 8 times it's like they were being cruel for some reason. So in response they wrote a letter to the police department, which was in Black English, but they paid no attention to it for some reason and just discarded of it. If you would just think about this for a second you can see how racist they were being. They shot a black male 8 times when they really only needed one shot and then they didn't even consider anything about the letter, probably because it was written in Black English. I guess the real question here is, how much more racist can they be?
Throughout this essay she said many of things but we think that the overall topic she was trying to convey to her readers was about Racism. She gave many different issues through out her story, like how "Black English was like a linguistic buffalo", to trying to teach her students how to write the form Black English. But that's not all, she also gave a story on about how one of her students went missing for some time, and came to find out that there had been a death in his family. Throughout all things that she mentioned we believe that it all ties together on the general topic about racism.
She tries to prove her point through every issue that we had listed in the preceding paragraph. When she started this essay out she gave a metaphor of " Black English is like the linguistic buffalo" this here is very strong statement. If you just think about how the buffalo almost became extinct which was because people wanted to force the Indians out of there land, and by killing of their big food supply, which was the buffalo, would drive them from that area. Well here she is saying that by completely forgetting about Black English might push the African Americans out this country, which in anyway you look at is being racist. So what she tries to do about it is to teach here students that they should not be afraid to be who they are, if you talk or want to talk in Black English then do so don't be afraid of who you are. So in order to show her students that she develops and teaches a class that is learning how to talk and write in the Black English, which is so uncommon because in what school anywhere offers this type of course. That just goes to show how our country does not want to support or even accept the different use of language of a different culture. To even more reinforce the topic of racism at the end of the essay she goes into talking about how one of her student's, an African American, brother was killing by the police. According to the story he was not armed but the police shot him 8 times, why would you need shoot anyone 8 times it's like they were being cruel for some reason. So in response they wrote a letter to the police department, which was in Black English, but they paid no attention to it for some reason and just discarded of it. If you would just think about this for a second you can see how racist they were being. They shot a black male 8 times when they really only needed one shot and then they didn't even consider anything about the letter, probably because it was written in Black English. I guess the real question here is, how much more racist can they be?
June Jordan...
Hey. This post is from Brianna, Danielle, and Glory.
June Jordan was a poet, playwright,essayist and an English professor at the University of California, Berkley. She is a very talented writer in many different areas. She has also had politicial essays published in the year 1985. Her essay gives us a sense that she was also a very inspiring and dedicated teacher. She was always willing to teach and determined to make her students want to learn.
Jordan starts the essay off by telling us that Black English is the language depended on by more than thirty five million Afro Americans. She gives us somewhat of definitions of Black English and Standard English. She then gets in to the class she taught ,' In Search of the Invisible Black Woman.' Jordan takes us back to her past and tells us many great detailed stories of what being in this class was like.The class was assigned to read Alice Walker's The Color Purple. With this reading many issues come up with how different people talk and why.This is where Jordan's students start to really be intrigued by the class and start having the want to learn more.In her class, there is one particular student who sticks out to her. His name in Willie Jordan. THis is where we first hear about Willie. Bringing Willie in to the story shows us how Jordan intertwines the two different stories. By telling us so many facts about Willie introduces the close personal relationships that Jordan has with her students. Not only are they her students but they are her friends. When Willia stops showing up for class Jordan wonders where he is. Jordans question about where Willie was, is answered by Willie. He tells Jordan that his cousin Reggie has been shot. Not only is this essay talking about Black English and how many people look at it differently than some, we also have the case of racism in thought now. By getting deep in to the story about Willie's cousin is shows up just how dangerous racism is, not only in language but in real life action. We believe the main ideas in Jordan's essay were that Black English should we given more respect by people because it is a language in itself. Just like most of us speak Standard English, there are many who speak Black English. Also that racism isn't something to joke about. By tieing together Jordan's class and Willie's story about his cousin shows us that not only does language differ in the world but there still is physical racism.
We said that Jordan writes in first person. It is mostly Jordan narating the essay. At times there is dialect but it involves Jordan herself.
June Jordan was a poet, playwright,essayist and an English professor at the University of California, Berkley. She is a very talented writer in many different areas. She has also had politicial essays published in the year 1985. Her essay gives us a sense that she was also a very inspiring and dedicated teacher. She was always willing to teach and determined to make her students want to learn.
Jordan starts the essay off by telling us that Black English is the language depended on by more than thirty five million Afro Americans. She gives us somewhat of definitions of Black English and Standard English. She then gets in to the class she taught ,' In Search of the Invisible Black Woman.' Jordan takes us back to her past and tells us many great detailed stories of what being in this class was like.The class was assigned to read Alice Walker's The Color Purple. With this reading many issues come up with how different people talk and why.This is where Jordan's students start to really be intrigued by the class and start having the want to learn more.In her class, there is one particular student who sticks out to her. His name in Willie Jordan. THis is where we first hear about Willie. Bringing Willie in to the story shows us how Jordan intertwines the two different stories. By telling us so many facts about Willie introduces the close personal relationships that Jordan has with her students. Not only are they her students but they are her friends. When Willia stops showing up for class Jordan wonders where he is. Jordans question about where Willie was, is answered by Willie. He tells Jordan that his cousin Reggie has been shot. Not only is this essay talking about Black English and how many people look at it differently than some, we also have the case of racism in thought now. By getting deep in to the story about Willie's cousin is shows up just how dangerous racism is, not only in language but in real life action. We believe the main ideas in Jordan's essay were that Black English should we given more respect by people because it is a language in itself. Just like most of us speak Standard English, there are many who speak Black English. Also that racism isn't something to joke about. By tieing together Jordan's class and Willie's story about his cousin shows us that not only does language differ in the world but there still is physical racism.
We said that Jordan writes in first person. It is mostly Jordan narating the essay. At times there is dialect but it involves Jordan herself.
Min Zhan- Lu Essay
Reading the essay on Min Zhan-Lu makes me realize how easy it was for me to learn. Lu's learning environment was that to my point of view of everyone learning what was needed. She was raised by parents who stressed learning English was important in the world. When she attended school she was the student that stood out from the rest. Lu must of had the feeling of guilt when her classmates only knew the native tounge. I can understand why she felt that way knowing that only she and the teacher were the only people who know of English. In my point of view based of this essay I think everyone should learn a second language. Yes in the United States 90 times out of a 100 you would only need to know English. What about the other 10 times? What are you going to do? I know what I would do, find a way to at least know the basics of another language.
Joron: Awesome Teacher Woman
Wooowwww. I guess I'll start with my three favorite sentences:
1. "Rule 1: Black English is about a whole lot more than mothafuckin."
This is one of my favorite sentences simply because it made me laugh out loud. Period.
2. "If your idea, your sentence, assumes the presence of at least two living and active people, you will make it understandable because the motivation behind every sentence is the wish to say something real to somebody real."
First, this sentence, in a way, describes what sympathetic reading and responding is all about. It's about understanding and believing what the author is saying. Isn't that why everybody writes? Isn't it true that by writing about living people, REAL people, you want people to understand. You want your message/idea to be understood. Who else would you be trying to write to other than real people? Your ideas are real enough.... why not?
3. "I will never forget the eloquence, the sudden haltings of speech, the fierce struggle against tears, the furious throwaway, and useless explosions that this question elicited."
To me, this sentence PERFECTLY describes what a true argument is like. Not just any argument though. There are a few universal questions, that when asked, people feel very strongly they know the answer to. You stand by your reasoning even though you want to cry. So many emotions running through you at the same same. You are furious. You are reckless at times. You are devestated. Wow, what a powerful sentence. LOVE it!
This story made me cry at the end. During the part where Jordan tells us the results of Reggie Jordan's autopsy. Eight gun shots. The description of where they were and how many there were just yanked the tears right out of me. Part of it was disbelief. Why were EIGHT SHOTS needed to be shot? Eight shots is enough to kill eight men. Think of it that way. This is the best example of unnecessary cruelty; and it disgusts me.
The other story was not quite so powerful to me. It definately did not hit me as hard as this one. Although, Delpit and Jordan are both teachers writing from their first hand experience, Jordan was more powerful in getting his meaning across. Jordan focussed more on the individuals of his class. This let me get to know them and the kind of kids he was working with. I WANTED them to improve. I WANTED their stories to get published. I was more connected to his students than I was to Delpit's students. Delpit talked about herself most of the time. She talked about her internal conflicts on what she thought was the right way to teach black children. She talked about how she failed. She talked about how she hopes educators will do a better job in the future. I don't want to hear about that. I want to hear about the students and where they've gone with Black English.
1. "Rule 1: Black English is about a whole lot more than mothafuckin."
This is one of my favorite sentences simply because it made me laugh out loud. Period.
2. "If your idea, your sentence, assumes the presence of at least two living and active people, you will make it understandable because the motivation behind every sentence is the wish to say something real to somebody real."
First, this sentence, in a way, describes what sympathetic reading and responding is all about. It's about understanding and believing what the author is saying. Isn't that why everybody writes? Isn't it true that by writing about living people, REAL people, you want people to understand. You want your message/idea to be understood. Who else would you be trying to write to other than real people? Your ideas are real enough.... why not?
3. "I will never forget the eloquence, the sudden haltings of speech, the fierce struggle against tears, the furious throwaway, and useless explosions that this question elicited."
To me, this sentence PERFECTLY describes what a true argument is like. Not just any argument though. There are a few universal questions, that when asked, people feel very strongly they know the answer to. You stand by your reasoning even though you want to cry. So many emotions running through you at the same same. You are furious. You are reckless at times. You are devestated. Wow, what a powerful sentence. LOVE it!
This story made me cry at the end. During the part where Jordan tells us the results of Reggie Jordan's autopsy. Eight gun shots. The description of where they were and how many there were just yanked the tears right out of me. Part of it was disbelief. Why were EIGHT SHOTS needed to be shot? Eight shots is enough to kill eight men. Think of it that way. This is the best example of unnecessary cruelty; and it disgusts me.
The other story was not quite so powerful to me. It definately did not hit me as hard as this one. Although, Delpit and Jordan are both teachers writing from their first hand experience, Jordan was more powerful in getting his meaning across. Jordan focussed more on the individuals of his class. This let me get to know them and the kind of kids he was working with. I WANTED them to improve. I WANTED their stories to get published. I was more connected to his students than I was to Delpit's students. Delpit talked about herself most of the time. She talked about her internal conflicts on what she thought was the right way to teach black children. She talked about how she failed. She talked about how she hopes educators will do a better job in the future. I don't want to hear about that. I want to hear about the students and where they've gone with Black English.
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