As
I read this week, some things jump out at me as I think about my past
experience with teaching bilingual learners in my own community. The
article on Critical Constructivism highlighted the "value of knowledge
traditionally dismissed by academics". I thought about a very
objectivist approach to education adopted by our local schools in which English
is demanded in all activities. They do not value the second language of
our students and believe it gets in the way of their progress. How can
this be when most of the world speaks more than one language? Both the
language used at school and the language used at home are important to the
whole person.
Also
I read about a woman working in Haiti who was more interested in the specific
goal of helping women learn to make money by teaching them to use computers.
"We do not use computers for fun..." she said, as if that meant
her classes were of great importance. I think fun can be just as
important as finding a job, or getting health information or learning to use
e-mail. I think having fun can foster the very best kind of learning.
Finally,
the article on Critical Constructivism helped me to put my finger on one of the
most important parts of gathering information from participants. "Respect
for subjugated knowledge can lead to expected responses rather than authentic
responses." What this means to me is that if people have the
impression that certain answers are the "right" answers because those
individuals have a higher level of educational experience, they may be afraid
to be themselves and communicate in a way that is not real for them.
"Real" is always the best kind of information - no matter who
gives the information - no matter what language - whether it is a stay at home
Mom or a business woman - a girl or a teacher.
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