The issue regarding how to deal with race in the classroom and school is a very tough one, but it can't be ignored. I intend on incorporating some literature that deals with issues regarding race, and depending on the types of literature I use, I'll have to plan accordingly to the maturity level of my students. But it is always important to remember that students will be bringing with them into the classroom issues that they face everyday, which includes being exposed to racism (especially for those in an urban environment). In order to successfully teach the literature to my students, I want them to be able to connect to it somehow, that way I know there is a possibility of them getting something out of it. One of the ways to do this could be to include a book in which the characters live in a racist society and are the targets of the racism. I could see myself getting so much out of the students if they can connect their lives to the lives within the literature. From there they can get a different understanding of what it is like to be the target of racism. Also, as I am white, I can get perspectives I have never been exposed to before so I can have a better understanding of where my students are coming from. I think one of the fears in dealing with race in the classroom, especially for white teachers in an urban school, is how they perceive racism, as well as how their students perceive them. Like the article mentioned, just because we don't think our actions are racist doesn't mean they aren't taken that way. If that ever happened to me, that would tell me that I am not connecting with my students, that I don't truly understand where they are coming from, and that they probably don't feel safe.
In regards to the issue of standardization, I have always detested it. I have suffered for years from test anxiety, which I only recently was able to get under control. What was so upsetting about test anxiety is that when I got my scores back, I felt horrible, especially since I knew the content. It was the manner in which they tested us that could never reveal how much I actually knew. I feel as though standardized tests can also only assess a basic understanding, and to me that doesn't really reveal how much a student understands. Also, I had many classmates that always seemed to do well on any type of quiz, test, or standardized test without having to ever really be "present" in the class, nor did they have to study. I always wondered how much they actually knew about the subject. I have usually found that most of those classmates that went onto college ended up doing very poorly, and I think a lot of it has to do with the fact that they just happened to be good at taking tests. That doesn't mean that every student that does well on a test doesn't really know the subject or didn't study or actually learn anything. However, I think that there are just too many factors that can affect how people actually perform on a test, which doesn't always reveal what was learned. Unfortunately, I feel that nothing can be done about it. And I feel horrible for the schools that don't do well with the standardized tests, and therefore don't get the funding they deserve that can improve how well the students learn. I do feel that for the schools that don't perform well with standardized tests reflects that those students aren't getting much out of their education. But because of that, they shouldn't be punished by not getting any help. I also don't understand how schools that do well with standardization should get money towards bettering the education that doesn't need much improving, but I don't see how any of that will change in the near future. But I guess I'll just have to get over my detest for standardized testing and accept the fact that I will probably have to cater my curriculum around standardization, but I won't let it take over what I really want my students to learn from me.
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Sara, I really like your analysis of how schools who do well on standardized testing don't necessarily need the additional funding they receive, and schools who do poorly on standardized testing are punished and don't receive funding that they obviously could use. I've never really thought about it that way, as the rewards for schools doing well on standardized tests are presented as an incentive for teachers to teach better. But there is little thought after the fact for the schools who do poorly. It seems that very seldom is the root of the problem or the real need in schools, possibly for more funding to create programs to help struggling students, is never addressed. The focus turns only to doing better on the next standardized test.
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