Reflection on the movie Finding Forrester

I had seen the movie Finding Forrester before, but it was definitely good to watch it again with a teaching perspective. I think one of the lines in the movie, unfortunately sums up many perspectives of inner city males, “Basketball scores are more respected than test scores”.

When Jamal was given an opportunity to attend a prestigious private school (Mailor) the school said it would not hurt if he joined the basketball team. On his way to the private school on the subway the scene was very awkward; Jamal was the only African American male on the train among a sea of white middle aged professionals. There were many racial aspects to the movie.

I thought the movie did a good job with having Jamal connect with the girl at school. Her background story was that her father had gotten elected to the board and changed the rules at Mailor that initially was an all-male school, so his daughter could attend. She and Jamal could connect and relate on being outsiders in the private “2-comma” boys club.

I liked the comment that Jamal made to William about how Mailor did not want him there because he was not a 2-comma kid. Jamal meant he did not come from a family worth over a million (or 2-commas in the number). That was another very authentic topic that is related to providing gifted programs. Gifted students are assumed to be from white affluent families. In one of the lines in the movie Professor Crawford stated that Jamal could not possibly have written his submission for the writing competition. Professor Crawford said that a basketball player from the Bronx could not be that good of a writer.

The movie’s climax was when Jamal’s future at Mailor was left up to his ability to will the basketball championship for the school and then the board could forgive his lying and allow him to continue attending on scholarship. They (the board and Professor Crawford)just want the best for the school. The game comes down to a final set of foul shots that Jamal needs to make to win the game, he looks at his girlfriend and then at Professor Crawford and misses the shot. I interpreted this as Jamal’s statement that he will not be their pawn, he did nothing wrong and did not want to give the school the easy way out to “forgive” him for indiscretions that he did not do.

This is the perfect time of year to discuss this topic also being the ending of March Madness. As a country we do not offer many gifted services to the urban inner city schools, we spend a lot of time and resources on sports and many young African American men think that it their only way out of the inner city and many times poverty If they are intellectual many do not see that as being an asset and try to hide their intellect like Jamal did in the movie.  With the current scandal at UNC with their student athletes either not being able to read or reading at a 4^th grade level. There are no colleges that would admit a student into their program that read at a 4^th grade level or less. We, as a country, need to work on the role models for our young. We need to make intelligence look glamorous and cool and just because a kid is a basketball protégé, give him a college scholarship. There are many intelligent basketball players that balance intelligence and athleticism.  We could then possibly see a shift in younger inner city kids to try to make the grade and the hoops instead of sacrificing the grades for the hoops. This then could begin to break the stereotypical image of an inner city African American athlete.

This movie also is a great starting point to talk about how to get academically gifted programs in to the city schools. Most people assume that inner city kids are average to low on the intelligence and testing scale. This image is reinforced by peers at the school, media, and celebrities in the movies. You very rarely hear about inner city schools achieving high scores on standardized tests or producing academically gifted students. If you hear positive stories coming from the inner city schools it is probably related to sports or art (music, acting). Finding Forrester breaks that stereotype and gets its audience to realize that intelligence is colorblind and does not care how much money you have. You may be extremely rich, but not have the intelligence or extremely poor and very intelligent. Unfortunately wealth and race will be the deciding factor on if your intelligence will be nurtured. We need to change that. Everyone that has the ability should have the opportunity. 

Picture References:
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c4/Finding_Forrester_logo.jpg
https://www.flickr.com/photos/aadl/6923807319/
http://pixabay.com/en/basketball-sports-teams-players-95607/

Reflection on the movie Girl Rising

The movie Girl Rising was very moving.  I knew that girls in developing countries did not always have opportunity for education, but I did not realize all of the hardships they endured to try to obtain this education. Being a mother this movie really touched me. My child is a daughter too, and while she was growing up I used to work two jobs to be sure she had all of the opportunities she could and be sure she got a college education.  So listening to Suma and Amina broke my heart. To hear the girls talk about the cruelty and abandonment they had to endure so young.

As far as seeing and connections between the girls in the movie and my class,  I guess I can see some like Wadley, determined to learn and Rusana, the artistic learner. I think I can see them in my students because the stories had happy endings and the girls were young, like my kindergarteners. I think it is hard to see young children in those dangerous and terrible conditions and then to imagine your students in those situations here in the United States is even more unthinkable.  Although I do believe that unfortunately I do not think American girls are immune to the tragedies of the young girls in the movie.

I think the movie is a must see for anyone working with girls. I think the stories will open issues that are unthinkable in our safe middle/ upper class neighborhoods. Similar to other topics we have studied this semester, knowledge and awareness of these hardships to be on the lookout for signs of human trafficking of young girls and mistreatment of girls.

The other topic the movie shed light on was sex trafficking and sexual abuse of girls under 15. There has been a lot of local media lately about sex trafficking. The movie shed light on some stats on sexual assault and sex trafficking of young girls. This epidemic is not limited to developing countries. Teachers and other adults that work with girls also need to be on the lookout for signs of these abuses.


 And to end on a positive note, the movie did have very inspirational stories, although some did not have the fairy tale good endings, the girls were still strong to share their stories. The determination of Wadley to attend the new school after the earthquake destroyed her brick and mortar school. Suma’s escape from a life destined to be a “salve girl” and then to use her new found freedom to help other girls escape their life of servitude. Ysmin’s story of her awful experience of being raped, told as s super hero story with her overcoming in the end, even though reality was not as happy. Azmara’s story of her brother defending her right to attend school and to not leave to become someone’s bride. Rusana’s very inspiration aspiring young artist story and her parents determination to ensure she and her sisters can continue to get an education. Senna , the young poet from Peru. Her story was heartbreaking also seeing how her family suffered and she used that suffering to fuel her ambition to succeed. Mariama was another very motivating young woman who is already realizing some of her dreams by being on the radio. Although she has suffered tragedy in her young life, she uses that pain to drive her to help other young girls. Finally Amina’s tragic story about being a girl born in Afghanistan was very encouraging. As she put it girls are not worthy their birthdates are not even recorded. Girls are destined to a lifetime of servitude. Amina however is going to night school, regardless of the risks, her goal is to become an educated woman and change things in her country so women are people and not just resources.


 Picture References:
 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Prachtig_meisje.jpg

 http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/41/Andrea_Dondolo_-_Activists_for_change_%288550822157%29.jpg

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9f/Mali_-_Bozo_girl_in_Bamako.jpg 

A Couple of Engagement Factors That May Cause Distraction from Learning

There are seven factors that can potentially cause distraction from learning for children from poor families. I have seen the first two in my classroom experiences. The first is regarding health and nutrition. The illustration from class was that low birth weight could lead to the lack of brain development. Low birth weight is generally due to poor nutrition or pre-natal care of the mother.  Poor families are less likely to exercise, have access to regular healthcare, or be able to afford recommended prescriptions or other interventions. According to a study of two neuroscientists, intelligence is linked to health (Gray & Thompson, 2004). Health- related factors can affect attention, reasoning, learning, and memory.

Good nutrition is essential for children to develop both physically and mentally. Children who grow up in poor families are exposed to food with lower nutritional value. This can adversely affect them even in the womb (Antonow – Schlorke et al., 2011). Also, poor nutrition at breakfast can affect children’s brain development (Taki et al., 2010). Missing breakfast is widespread among intercity youth, and it negatively affects students’ academic progress by negatively affecting perception and increasing absenteeism (Basch, 2011).

When students have poor nutrition and limited or non-existent healthcare, its harder for them to listen, concentrate, and learn. Children are prone to ear infections.  If the children suffering form ear infections have limited access to healthcare, they will be more likely to suffer from complications from them, resulting with hearing difficulty, making it difficult to follow directions and understanding the teacher. This can lead to trouble learning to read and other basic learning foundation skills. Students lacking proper nutrition may also appear lethargic or restless.

In the class I am currently in there are signs of poor nutrition. Many of the students receive free or reduced breakfast and lunch. I personally have not witnessed the complications of hearing loss, but understand the importance of hearing screenings. If a poor student suffers from hearing (or vision ) loss in kindergarten they probably do not realize it, because that is how it has always been. In my class I will be sure to have all students screened for hearing (and vision) if they are struggling. I have seen many examples of the lethargic or restless students. In my classroom, I will get the students moving doing slow stretching while taking deep breaths (similar to yoga) to get their metabolism a kick start and hopefully level them out by increasing their oxygenation.  As far as access to healthcare, hopefully the country is moving in the right direction now and we will see a change in our schools.

The other factor I see a lot in the class I am working with is the lack of vocabulary.  The more words a person knows the more likely they will be successful. Children raised in low- income homes usually have a smaller vocabulary than middle-class children do, which increases the risk for poor academic performance. Children from low-income families hear, on average, 13 million words by age 4. In middle-class families, children hear about 26 million words during that same time period. In upper-income families, they hear a staggering  46 million words by age 4, three times as many as their lower income counterparts (Hart & Risley, 1995). A child’s vocabulary is their key to the world around them.

Children need words to express their needs and ask questions to learn more. Students form low–income families are less likely to know the words a teacher uses in class or the words that appear in reading material. When students don’t understand the vocabulary in class, they don’t want to read. Also as a result of the frustration of not understanding the class materials, students don’t want to look stupid in front of their peers and won’t participate in class. This may ultimately lead to the students dropping out of school.

In the class I work with, I see this often. I’m in a kindergarten class, so I see the frustration starting. I also see the great divide through out the school year of the students that are grasping the concepts of the alphabet, letter sounds and sight words, and the students that a struggling and can’t quite put it all together.  If students do not have the foundations of the alphabet and the ability to read sight words and basic reading strategies by the end of the school year, they will be more likely to continue to fall behind in the higher grades.  One positive observation is that in kindergarten they are not yet concerned with peer pressure or getting embarrassed by asking a “stupid” question, they ask all kinds of questions and try to answer questions, even if they have no idea what the answer is. They are not yet afraid to be wrong, if only we could keep that innocence a little longer so they would continue to try. They do get frustrated and give up sometimes.  I think encouraging struggling students is probably one of the most difficult parts of being a teacher, because you may be the only one encouraging, with no support form peers or home.  When I get my classroom my goal will be to promote vocabulary every chance I can. I will tag everything (that doesn’t move) in the classroom as we learn the words so students can begin to decipher the letters and make meaning of the combinations.  The only way to combat lack of vocabulary is with MORE vocabulary.

References:

Antonow-Schlorke, I., Schwab, M., Cox, L.A>, Lic, C., Stuchlika, K., Wittea, O.w., et al. (2011). Vulnerability of the fetal primate brain to moderate reduction in maternal global nutrient availability. Proceedings of the National Academy of Science of the United states of America, 108(7), 3011 – 3016.

Basch, C.E.(2011). Breakfast and the achievement gap among urban minority youth. Journal of School Health, 81(10), 635-640.

Gray, J.R.< & Thompson, P.M.(2004). Neurobiology of intelligence. Discovery Medicine, 4(22), 157 – 162.

Hart, B., &Risley, T.R.(1995). Meaningful difference in the everyday experience of young American children. Baltimore: Paul H. Brookes Publishing.

Taki, Y., Hashizume, H., Sassa, Y., Takeuchi, H., Asano, M., Asano, K., et al.(2010). Breakfast staple types affect brain grey matter volume and cognitive function in healthy children. PLoS One, 5(12), e15213.

Poverty in the Classroom

What is Poverty? 

Poverty has a profound impact on how students perform in school. To understand the effects one needs to understand the definition of poverty. According to our text, Teaching with poverty in mind

“Poverty is a chronic and debilitating condition that results from multiple adverse synergistic risk factors and affects the mind, body, and soul” (Jenson, 2009, p.6). 

There are many types for poverty and as a teacher it is important to understand the cause.   

• It may be temporary as a result of a change in family dynamics due to new adult in the household or an adult leaves the household.  This type of poverty is referred to as situational. A natural disaster such as Katrina or Hurricane Sandy could also cause this type of poverty. 
• Another type of poverty is generational. To be considered generational it occurs in at least two generations born into poverty. This is often what is depicted in the media, families that have been poor and don’t know any different. 
• Other types are absolute (when a family does not know where they will get their next meal or where they will be able to find shelter), relative (when a family’s income is not enough to cover the standard cost of living in their region. This is not the same in all places), urban and rural (based on location of families and resources available). 

A teacher does not just need to understand the type of poverty; they should also understand the effects poverty has on the student. Poverty may impact their behavior and their learning ability. As our poverty reading stated:

  “One of the social issues facing children of poverty is emotional trauma. The emotional climate can often be very stressful and emotionally depriving. The lack of emotional nurturing can lead to feelings of alienation, inadequacy, depression and anxiety.”  

These students need an adult role model to  provide them a view of the future available for them that is not stressful, traumatic, nor depressing.  These students need to have hope.

I volunteer at a Title I school this year (Johnson Street Global Studies). Although according to the Department of Ed’s definition of a Title I school does not necessarily correlate to poverty, this school does. There is a high percentage of students who qualify for free or reduced lunch based on their parents’ income. In the 2010-2011 school year, 234 students qualified for free lunch and 16 qualified for reduced lunch prices (NCES Johnson Street 2011-2012). There are a total of 344 students , so that is over 73% of the students qualify for free or reduced lunch. This is a stark contrast to the school I volunteered at in Davidson County (Wallburg Elementary) last year.  The statistics for Wallburg  had only 30% of the students (267 of 888 students) qualifying for free lunch. (NCES Wallburg Elementary 2011-2012)

My Experience:

There was a stark contrast when I first entered the Kindergarten classroom at Johnson Street to the second grade classroom I volunteered at last year in Wallburg. The students in Johnson Street were not as focused. One student in particular (I will call Charlie ). Charlie is a 5 year old African American male. After talking to him and his teacher over the past few months, I have seen the impact of poverty on his young school career. Charlie had a very hard time focusing and learning his letters. When I talked to him about books, he said “I don’t have no books”. He loves when I read to him and his teacher appreciates my time to spend one on one with him. That helped a lot with his learning the letters.  He is the lowest reader in the class. Lower than even another little girl (I will call Sarah) that English is a second language for. She is also suffering from poverty. I believe Sarah’s poverty is situational and will probably result in generational if Sarah doesn’t excel in school. She is very bright; she just does not have enough support and reinforcement at home. Charlie I believe is situational, but not temporary.  

During the holidays I found out from the classroom teacher that neither Charlie nor Sarah’s parents were able to provide Christmas for them. Charlie’s mom had also just suffered a miscarriage and had no insurance so she was having problems scraping enough money together for food. I fortunately was able to coordinate colleagues to collect gifts and cash for food for Charile’s family and gifts for Sarah. I could not imagine 5 year olds not having a Christmas.  We tried to make the gifts educational (books, Legos,and Leap Pad). That was before this class.

Since starting this class and reading about the different scenarios and approaches, I realize it is more important to identify the type of poverty and no pity the children (as I initially did) but empathize. It does not help the students break the cycle with pity and hand outs only. Although handouts have their place in the solution it is important to promote the students self worth and confidence. Although life may not be fair monetarily, they are not doomed like in the cast system. They have strengths and can learn to use those strengths to excel.

On of the effects of poverty that I believe I as a teacher can control and help my students suffering from poverty deal with are poor diets and lack of energy. Both Charlie and Sarah get very distracted and tired just before lunch (which is quite early 10:55am). When I asked them if they had breakfast Sarah shrugged her shoulders like she did not understand what I was talking about and Charlie said no there was nothing to eat. First try to get them to eat breakfast (the school offers free breakfast) and get the students up and moving periodically throughout the day.  I found a great article on line How Poverty Affects Classroom Engagement that talks about having students engage in slow stretching while taking slow deep breaths can increase their oxygenation. Yoga training has been shown to increase metabolic controls so children can better manage themselves.

Another is helping encourage students. Charlie is a little problem child at times. He acts out looking for attention and once he gets it he does not want to lose it. He has potential and understands letters and words , but there are times he just refuses to say them. Then he will ask if I am going to hit him because he is naughty. Charlie just needs encouragement and a positive adult role model. He is only five and has an outlook that he is naughty and will be hit. As a teacher I would want to let Charlie know it's alright to make a mistake, and there are no physical or mental consequences. I want to encourage my future Charlie’s to embrace learning and love coming to school because it’s a safe structured place of encouragement. 

pictures:http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/08/Summer_kids_eat_lunch_-_Flickr_-_USDAgov.jpg
http://www.hpe.com/news/x402898598/School-bus-routes-under-review
http://otherwords.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/poor-child-196x300.jpg