Creating Spaces for Black Adolescent...-Ashley Heath
Creating Spaces for Black Adolescent Girls to “Write It Out!”
What is this?
There was a 5-week writing institute course created specifically for black adolescent girls ranging from ages 11-17. The institute took 16 participants based on their unique perspectives of growing up as black young females within society. This idea of these literacy writing groups is based all the way back to the 1800s. They were made to improve and advance literacy development through individuals who differ in identities’, experiences, and literary abilities. This 5-week writing institute’s goals was to give these girls a voice and allow them the ability to find their own self-identity. A wider goal in which the institute aimed to achieve was to benefit and shift the conditions of our society. What happened during the Course?
One of the girls, Iris, was focused on greatly during the course. Before the course, she wrote the following: “I have so many issues with it [identity] and I feel like no one really understands or at least not anyone I have encountered so it makes me self-conscious and I don’t like to talk about it and sometimes I cry about it because not knowing who you are is the worst feeling in the world.” (Muhammad, pg. 207)
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This seriously struck me. So many of these girls are socially sent messages from society to hate their skin color, or if you're black you need to ‘talk like a black girl’. So, when they don’t conform to this stereotypical figure, then who are they? Like Iris said, she doesn’t know who she is. So how we expect this girl to prosper and reach their own full potential. According to Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, in order to reach your full potential and self-actualization, you must first establish positive self-esteem. (figure 1).
As the study continued, Iris was challenged to talk about what identity meant to her. As she reflected herself through her writing, she used a beautiful metaphor comparing her identity as a pair of glasses in which you see the world through. She has one pair to reflect her African American lenses, and another pair to reflect her identity as a female. As she writes, Iris’ writings take on a “multivocal” approach which also fosters the idea of black girls as a sisterhood.
Iris, like others, used this 5-week writing institute to use writing as an escape. “There are limitations in the physical world that there aren’t when you write. You can become whatever want; you can say whatever you want… it's like my truest self-came out when I wrote. I didn’t fear political correctness or judgment… it’s like liberating” (Muhammad, pg. 209).
How This can be Incorporated into the Classroom?
Iris mentioned that the writing course and her writing inside the classroom were a complete contradiction of each other. While the institute used writing as a powerful tool to uplift, and give these girls a voice, Iris said that in school, she feels that there is a lack of even recognizing her identities. She feels as if schools are mainly focused on one thing and one thing only, the cut and dry curriculum. This curriculum is failing to bring in aspects of these students lives, instead it is using a one way fits all approach. As we have learned, this should not be the case at all. Iris claims that she feels as if she must put on a mask in order to make the teacher happy and get good grades. This is problematic because students need to find their voice in order to reach their full potential. These students’ cultures should be cherished within the classroom. And that does not just mean choosing texts with different cultures being represented, but it means choosing texts which honor different students’ identities and perspectives. If not, then these students may begin to feel negative about who they are, and whether they are cared for in the classroom. This will ultimately lead to disengagement.
Questions?
- How do you think you could use a program like this in order to foster a culturally sustaining classroom?
- When Iris said that she has two different glasses in which she sees from (one pair as an African American, and one pair as a female), do you think she understands that both of those can mold into a whole different lense together? or do you think she only sees one or the other?
- If you were to be teaching in a primarily white school, do you think that you can modify this course to fit a different group of students, How?
First of all I wanted to point out that I LOVED the metaphor Iris used when comparing her identity to glasses. I think a lot of kids can relate to this, specifically African American girls. Also, I think writing is an escape for everyone, some just don't know how to use it. Writing can be a way to personally tell your feelings while keeping it private and sincere. For me, it's much easier to write how I feel then to say it out loud. I think as teachers we should implement writing into their own lives, making it relevant and promoting activism. Giving writing prompts that help support this rather than writing just to receive a grade. This is how we can use writing programs to foster culturally sustaining classrooms. Using the curriculum as a way to promote our students to develop a self identity, work through personal problems, or promote activism. If I were teaching a class with predominantly white students, I could make a writing prompt where you put yourself in someone else's shoes. This could help develop writing skills while also helping children dive into the lives of other cultures. I think you could take this writing program in multiple ways and I love the idea of it!
ReplyDeleteMayson,
DeleteThanks for your response. I didn't even think about using writing in that way, but now that I am reading what you typed, I too use writing to full explain my thoughts as well. This for me is both in schools, and outside of schools as well. lol Dr. Taylor actually told me that I reflect really well when I am turning in my homework, but I don't raise my hands a lot of the time in class. This is because I feel more confident fully gathering my thoughts. I also like when I get angry or mad, not yelling at someone, but walking away and writing my thoughts down, and it is for me a sense of calm. I can get all my thoughts out and down, but in a proactive way. I agree I think using writing as a tool to help produce a very culturally sustaining classroom can be done anywhere!
Mayson,
DeleteI really like how you said teachers should give writing prompts that aren't given to students simply for the purpose of receiving a grade. After being on the other side of this as the student, I completely agree that this is what our students need. My literacy teacher in high school diminished my love for writing when she would give me bad grades on pieces that I felt proud of. Nothing I wrote seemed to be right or what she was looking for, and I became afraid to let myself go and have the freeing experience that comes with writing. I am so happy that Iris got to have a different experience with this writing group. We should encourage creative thinking with our prompts where students feel comfortable to not hold back and explore themselves with their writing. Like Iris said, writing is unlike anything else where there are no limitations in what you can do. This is how I want all of my students to feel about writing!
Mayson, in my response I shared something along the same lines of encouraging our students to not focus so much on the grade. In my freshman (college) english class (W-131), our professor guaranteed us a B in the class if we showed up and clearly gave 100% effort. I think this would be beneficial for us to use in our writing classes as teachers because we want students to be able to express themselves however they see fit, rather than them focusing on whether or not they are going to please us to get a good grade. That sounds so twisted but unfortunately that is the reality for some students, and even for me when I was in school. I would agree that writing is a great outlet and also a great way for students to get their real thoughts out of their mind and on paper. Writing is also a great way for self-reflection. You can really get to know yourself better through writing, as things may come out of your unconscious as you put things into words. Great discussion going on here.
DeleteMayson,
DeleteWriting is such a powerful way for self expression. I used writing often growing up because I couldn't talk to anyone. Giving students that self expression is so important for their growth and self confidence. I love that you talked about writing prompts. This a way to help guide them to their own self expression. Some kids are so assimilated that they don't think they have their own voice. Pushing students to find their own voice will only help them grow positively. This will then push them to make decisions based on their voice, not the voice of others, and that is what every educator wants to see.
I also really liked the metaphor. I think that it is a pretty common one because that is how we learn about our positionality and perspective in Dr. Cosby's class. Our viewpoint is established through our lens. We need to deepen our understanding in order to expand our perspective and get a better lens. I think what is most powerful about her saying that is because she probably came up with that all on her own. She did not need anyone to tell her that our viewpoint is like a pair of glasses. This just really goes to show that kids are a lot smarter and perceptive than people tend to give them credit for.
ReplyDeleteI think this could be used to foster a culturally sustaining classroom in many ways. The first would be that it allows students the opportunity to explore their own identity. This is an amazing thing to be able to do because it will engage them and also allow for them to develop a critical mind. Another way this could help is by allowing the teacher to gain a better understanding of what the students viewpoint and perspective is. This will lead to more engaging activities that connect to their everyday life. This will also offer an opportunity to deepen student understanding of academic lessons.
I think that it is very hard to understand the idea of intersectionality. I think that we tend to view the world as binary and think in black and white. It is hard to understand that there are many levels to privilege and perspective. Society tends to put a focus on one or the other when discussing issues and this makes it hard to see how the layered lenses form into one set. For example, we tend to talk about men getting paid more than women but we generally don't look deeper at the idea of women of color being paid even less. The same issue can be said for pay disparity for people of color. We look at the big picture of people of color being paid less but not necessarily women of color.
I think this type of writer's workshop could be fashioned to fit any group of people. White people need to think about their own identity as well. This can lead into bigger conversations about privilege, gender inequality, LGBTQ+ rights, etc. I never had the chance to address my own bias until college. This was really difficult at first. It has gotten easier for me but I feel that if I had started doing this younger, it would have been much easier and not so much of a difficult task. It would have been normal for me and became second nature.
I appreciate how you brought intersectionality into the conversation. Our students experiences and lives are so much complex and they way that they interact and experience the world goes beyond the context of one narrative. We must take into account all the identities our students occupy and how the intersection of these identities changes their positionality uniquely in each situation. The narratives that you discussed can allow for our students to express, investigate, and understand how the intersections of these identities and positions are contingent on one another, and how it affects their level of citizenship and interactions in their communities!
DeleteMelissa and Kristen,
DeleteI also agree! I know that this was just a creativity writing course which allowed these students to do their own investigation and their own writing, but had it been more guided, I would have loved to see if Iris recognized that intersectionality. She recognizes that being a black female is like being in a sisterhood, but does she recognize the other aspects to the intersectionality's as well? Which includes how African American are seen in ads, and being represented in make up, and like you say the pay? Had Iris been in my classroom, this is something that I might have brought up the following day.
Melissa,
DeleteThank you for bringing in intersectionality! Like you stated Melissa it is important we do not think in binaries. Kirsten hit the nail on the head when she commented on the importance of bringing up how African Americans are seen in ads. As well as asking them WHY they see these things implemented into society what message is trying to be displayed?
Ashley,
ReplyDeleteYour post was so thoughtfully written in alignment with our focus of equitable teaching in public schools. I really appreciated how you brought into your blog Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs, because as teachers we are education the whole child, not just the curriculum mandated standards. To answer your question, I feel as though creating programs like this throughout all of our classroom activities and lessons would benefit our students academically and socially. Students need the opportunity to address, explore, and understand themselves and how the social issues of the world affect the way that they live in their communities. The classroom is the perfect space to be cultivating and safe enough for students to do so. Iris's experience shows how many classrooms negate the needs of our students and their development in the world of social issues. Iris expressed the urge to conceal herself to meet standards expected by classroom teachers. "Iris expressed the urge to conceal herself to meet the standards expected by classroom teachers...She spoke of not getting many opportunities in school to write about painful and real experiences that happened to black women historically, to black girls presently, or to her personally because of teachers requesting that she censor her language and description of these experiences" (Muhammad, 2012). Iris's teachers neglected her as a whole person. They didn't allow her to sort through the messy and conflicting parts of life that Iris was experiencing, doing an injustice to her education. I want to center my classroom around helping students understand their lives and interactions, rather than censoring out the truth of the world and social issues that exist. I think a lot of this can be done through narratives and student choice around what social issues that they want to explore through literacy. I know that in my personal narrative, I had not realize that my experience with education that we wrote about with Dr. Taylor was as meaningful as it was until we put it on paper and really reflected on it. Now I have an outlook and passion for advocacy for my students that runs deeper and stronger. I want my students to feel this sense of connection in urgency in their writing as I have, and I will most definitely provide the opportunities to do so.
Kristen,
DeleteI LOVE your response here. This made me think of the students' preamble that they all created together. I thought it linked directly back with your response, and to me when I read it, it was so uplifting and powerful. As stated, "We the sister authors write for then, now and later to respond to honor those before us and to inspire those who are yet to come. We write because we will not allow those who aren’t us, speak for us, judge us, or tell our stories. We all bleed blood but society has chosen to look only at our skin color. In order for the world to hear our voices, we must be brave enough to let them be heard,
so we write to advocate for change. While we are young, black, and female, we are individuals. Our stories are uniquely beautiful. We cannot hold it in, we write it out!" (Muhammad, pg. 203).
Ashley,
ReplyDeleteThank you for your insight with this post. I particularly appreciated the quote you included from Iris, explaining how “there are limitations in the physical world that there aren’t when you write. You can become whatever want; you can say whatever you want… it's like my truest self-came out when I wrote. I didn’t fear political correctness or judgment… it’s like liberating” (Muhammad, pg. 209). This stood out to me because I think it encompasses the beauty in writing. This is why we need to encourage our students to become writers-- writing is such a powerful way for students to express themselves that is unlike any other. There truly are no limitations, which encourages students to just let go and find themselves as they go.
While I was reading this, I felt incredibly thankful that this group of young African American got to have an experience as powerful as this one was. I absolutely believe there are benefits to having writing groups dedicated to certain groups of similar people where they feel comfortable, understood, and encouraged to be themselves. Although this is something every student could benefit from, this is particularly important for "minority" groups that have been subjected to a curriculum not designed for their success. With that being said, if you were teaching in a predominantly white school, I still think there are ways you could modify this course. As Melissa mentioned above, we need to keep in mind the concept of intersectionality. While many students are white, they may have other aspects of their identity that would benefit from being around others who are similar. At the end of the day it is our responsibility to build an environment that encourages the success for every child, and I think these writing groups could play a big role in supporting that.
What great conversation going on here in this blog post! It was eye-opening, yet much needed to read about Iris's experiences and her feelings towards her writing class. This program was a great idea in theory, but it is unfortunate that Iris was made to feel the way she did about it. I think that Iris definitely saw through separate "glasses" as separate identities. I'm not sure that she actually realized that those two could be molded together to create her whole identity. It is sad because she was made to feel like she should act a certain way or write a certain way to please her teachers. This is what we want to stray away from in our classrooms. We indeed need to create a culturally sustaining classroom and a classroom in which students feel comfortable to bring in their own personal feelings and be themselves. An idea I have on how we could do this is that we could take the focus of the class on the grade. Iris mentioned how she was worried about how she would be graded so she wrote what she thought her teacher wanted. What would be better is to implement what was done in my freshman (college) english class. Our professor guaranteed us a B in the class if we showed up, and actually gave 100% effort. That was his only requirement. I think doing in this in the classroom will help students to focus less on the actual grade and more on expressing themselves through their writing.
ReplyDeleteAnna, I think your thinking may help many students be more focused on the content of what they think about a topic or event instead of their grade. If students are guaranteed at least a B for showing up, I think students will take much of the pressure off themselves to write a paper perfectly. Instead, students will seek to write what motivates and/or concerns their position of various topics. Having the opportunity to know or learn new information will encourage students to work toward a goal they have set for themselves and achieve it excitedly.
DeleteAshley,
ReplyDeleteI think that using writing in the classroom to help strengthen students' sense of identities and what those identities mean for them in the world is crucial. Helping students assess and understand their positionality involves examining and breaking down the injustices occurring in the world. Rather than ignoring such issues, by acknowledging the issues occurring, we are practicing to value these many aspects of a student's identity, as well as encouraging students to do so about themselves. In order for students, especially students who are African American females, a safe space to explore and understand their identity has to be established (Muhammad, 2012, p. 210). These students must have the opportunity to "openly and unapologetically" express themselves. Far too often are students, who are African American females, experience a great demand to mask themselves and the uniqueness of their identities. In a sense, it is a form of assimilation to the dominant culture. To combat this assumed assimilation, teachers can connect writing to students' lives to help form and/or strengthen their identities.
Ashley, I really think it is wonderful what the 5-week institution did for black adolescent girls to gain a voice, be comfortable with it, and have an identity. There should be more opportunities to help encourage people of color to learn about themselves through writing. I think a program like this could foster a culturally sustaining classroom by offering students an opportunity to express themselves through many types of writing. The teacher and students could work together to come up with topics that are relevant to all students in some way. Whether it's about race, gender, religion, personal events at home, school, family, self, social class, or any other topic that students may be interested in to bring light to difficult topics or topics that are unfamiliar. This type of program could also be adapted in a dominantly white school to educate students about important events that have taken place or are taking place around them. Often, students are interested in topics that are not addressed in schools or are addressed but know part of the events are missing. If there was an opportunity for students to have a choice in content the programs to educate white students about issues students/adults of color have to face will help white students see the injustices that are taking place and choose to help advocate for positive actions for the present and the future. Students need to have a voice and educators need to help students, of the present and future, be heard. Great job!
ReplyDeleteAshley,
ReplyDeleteI really loved the quote you put in, "There are limitations in the physical world that there aren’t when you write. You can become whatever want; you can say whatever you want… it's like my truest self-came out when I wrote. I didn’t fear political correctness or judgment… it’s like liberating” (Muhammad, pg. 209). I think that speaks for itself more in today's world. But, I think that a lot of teachers are quick to dismiss even written words too. I feel like the world is turning too much and not stopping to really think about the issues of today world.
For your last question, yes I believe I can change it up. Because, if your black or white something happens in ones own life. Like for example my friend is paying off his college debt and has to work two jobs. But, my other friend had gotten a scholarship for his background and doesn't have to worry about money. Many things are not looked at fully. When it comes to people, they do not see problems others are having. For example people who who for clothing always walk out somewhat disappointed. Because, they never find anything right for them. Or if they are tall or short they have different help problems. Like me for example I am tall and suffer from back pains from bending over to pick things up or when I sleep. I could change it to just about their life and things they live with.
Chris,
DeleteThe idea of the 5-week institute was to help these students who are overlooked in society and completely racialized, and allow them the opportunity to find their own sense of identity through exploring different literary contexts as well as creatively writing. I guess I don't understand how the example you used is allowing for our students to be culturally sustaining? We all go through hardships yes, but personal hardships are completely different than using your writing as a sense of activism in order to make society a better place for all.
Ashley,
DeleteYou asked "If you were to be teaching in a primarily white school, do you think that you can modify this course to fit a different group of students, How?" and I responded. With people who are white, it is hard to do culturally sustaining piece of work. We see things in the media each day stating something about one new group that is bad. Like my own heritage. I am have some heritage in Germany, Irish, Native American, some from Poland and a few mix with the rest. But, I don't deal with that cultural stuff dealing with that with my day to day life. I deal with being white and a male. So, how is the a cultural when the media is saying it is not for me. I am just answering the question to the best of my ability.
Like these people did:
https://youtu.be/zMZxDv74rsk
https://youtu.be/_uuWmH8Fhws
https://youtu.be/odCQhAezB_Q
In this world right now, I do not personally know how to answer your question differently. I am sorry for my own failure in this and hopefully I can give you one more to be less confusing.
As I read this it reminded me of the schools Native Americans were sent to. They were assimilated into the "white" culture. They were told to kill the Indian and save the man. They cut their hair which is a large part of the Native American culture. These Native Americans would come home only not to be accepted by their family, and then would go out into the white civilization and not be accepted. This is what is happening. Schools are attempting to change any child that isn't falling victim to the 'white culture'. These children of color are at a point where they must change in order to get good grades, but then go back into their home only not to be accepted. How difficult could that be for a child? these children are being forced to assimilate ever so slightly that it seems like their is nothing bad happening. This scary spiral isn't going to be stopped easily because not a lot of people see the issue in our schools. Our job is to see that there is something VERY wrong, and DO something.
ReplyDeleteMayson , thank you for discussing how the curriculum can be used in order to tie into the major things we want our students to take away. I find it majorly difficult to incorporate real world issues our kids may face with the required curriculum , I hope that throughout my teaching I can find a way to even out that balance. Over time I believe articles like this can help give me insight and wisdom . Both with those and experience including both into our children’s education will be everything they need to be successful.
ReplyDeleteMs. Health,
ReplyDeleteThank your for such a meaningful blog post Ms. Health.
“I have so many issues with it [identity] and I feel like no one really understands or at least not anyone I have encountered so it makes me self-conscious and I don’t like to talk about it and sometimes I cry about it because not knowing who you are is the worst feeling in the world.” (Muhammad, pg. 207) THIS QUOTE SPEAKS VOLUMES.
Being African American and growing up seeing things on TV that doesn't align with who you're. Playing with babies with long blonde hair and wishing mine could be like theirs. I do believe every student is going through their own struggles. Melissa's post actually touched on intersectionality(thanks Melissa). Therefore, I think it is important to critically reflect on how we as educators can help our students find their voice. Thank you for posing the question Ms. Health. I think we should integrate real world situations into our classroom and pose questions that allow our students to take the driving seat and uncover the greatness they have inside of them.
Olivia,
DeleteI love this part you put more then anything, "Playing with babies with long blonde hair and wishing mine could be like theirs. I do believe every student is going through their own struggles" (McGlan, 2019). I personally hated how Babies did not expand into many others fields. I have thought this from a young age. My two cousin and I always played with them. But, I always noticed no matter which one I picked up, they looked the same. Now, they have gotten better by giving her more jobs. This I hope rubs off on people, mostly to encourage them to try different jobs choices. I had a friend who was a twin from India. I always thought why doesn't she have a barbie looking like her. But, growing up I could see that life chooses for us to much. That we need to choose for ourselves. Stop letting society tell us that we are something we are not. I want to think you for writing that part and letting me express why I dislike companies pushing hurt things to girls and boys in this field.
This program could be used to foster a culturally sustaining classroom because it would be a good way to start discussions relating to students’ thoughts and experiences.
ReplyDeleteIt’s a shame that our education system doesn’t prioritize making lessons relevant to students’ lives and identities. I agree with Iris’ point- many educators are focused only on curriculum, and it causes some students to miss out on opportunities to build self-confidence and express themselves. It becomes a detriment because students gain the impression that teachers don’t care about who they are as people. Our cohort will be prepared to encourage self-expression and intellectual growth for all students, and we will hopefully put a dent in the amount of students who feel the same way Iris was feeling about her public school teachers.
I feel that she probably sees them as two separate lenses during this example. That would be a good opportunity to introduce a discussion the topic of intersectionality and black feminism.
Ashley,
ReplyDeleteYour blog post really spoke to me on a personal level but we won't get into that. This post really made me think about the NCTE writing beliefs. Our students shouldn't only be taught to write because of curriculum. Our job as educators is to better their understanding of the many ways of writing and to improve their skills. The NCTE belief that came to mind was, "Writing is embedded in complex social relationships and their appropriate languages." It is extremely important for us to recognize the different cultures they have and embrace in their own homes and their communities. We should embrace that and allow them to incorporate that in their writing. Our students need purpose in their writing not just the teacher told me to write this. Students need to find their purpose to write and sometimes that includes digital stories and so incorporating culture, language, digital stuff, and even oral stories allows our students to grow tremendously. When there is purpose in our students writing they feel more confident and liberated to write what is on their heart or their mind.
I watched a TED talk a few days ago by Monique W. Morris called "Why black girls are targeted for punishment at school- and how to change that". A lot of your article on creating a culturally sustaining environment for our black female students and your relation to Maslow's hierarchy of needs can tie into this TED talk with breaking some of the stereotypes and implicit biases that are placed on our girls of color (ex. "being loud/aggressive", "angry", "always sassy", etc.) https://www.ted.com/talks/monique_w_morris_why_black_girls_are_targeted_for_punishment_at_school_and_how_to_change_that?utm_campaign=tedspread&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=tedcomshare
ReplyDeleteThese are factors that feed into what our black female students "should be" and derail them away from their own individual identities into an identity that society has crudely curated in order to feed into their own personal system of statistics and further fuel oppressive practices that set back opportunities for our students of color in the future. In allowing content and reflective practices that allow for critical growth and self-actualization/identity affirmation. Many of our students find their own identities through their time in school and as they grow to understand society and how the world works around them, and this can be worse for our students of color when the majority of texts are Eurocentric and/or don't relate to our students' interests and cultural affiliation.
What you quoted from Iris about "not knowing who you are in the world [being] the worst feeling in the world", is very sad! This is so true for many of our students not in the dominant culture group. I can personally attest to having little to no multicultural reflective practices or identity reflections based on my multiracial background, and I grew up finding no confirmation in my racial identity- not until college.
Ashley,
ReplyDeleteGreat blog post! As future teachers, we need to put our students first. They need to be able to talk to us about anything. Our students need to find their voice. They need to be able to express their identities. They need their identities to be represented in the classroom. A student should not have to hide some of their identities or feel as if they aren't represented into their classroom.
To try and answer one of your questions. How do you think you could use a program like this in order to foster a culturally sustaining classroom? I feel that I you could create a library of books that show the different identities. You can't use the one size fits all approach because all your students are not going to be the same. You have to use their different identities in your classroom and let them know that they can show every part of them in your classroom.