Critical and Cultural Perpectives in Education

the course, Critical and Cultural Perspectives, provided me with an opportunity to forge new concepts of a bigger picture utilizing the themes of democracy, capitalism, and religion. I hadn’t examined these concepts as a whole unit and their respective contributions to our educational society. Through our class conversations, it became more apparent how not only our democratic process has affected our educational policies, but the religious and corporate powers, despite specific laws excluding them. I appreciated the class input and experiences with the relationships between their schools and the influences they have received from occasionally benign contributions from these powers.

                I feel as if I have gained knowledge of the theories and research related to the multifaceted sociological foundations of education through our readings and class discussions. I enjoyed reading many of the articles and found them to be supportive of my theories and informative in new ideas. I do believe that some of the articles have helped me transition my thinking. I feel more likely to question common beliefs for more evidence as well as be more cognizant of my role in the process.  One example I found to be important to my belief system is the role of our justice system and educating the prisoners. The resounding issue that I heard from the perspectives of the inmates was that they knew no other path. When they leave the prison, they often have few supports, no money, no place to live, and a requirement to hold down a job, have a stable house, and continue to pay fines while not re-offending. This seemed to be particularly difficult for those who were incarcerated for drug offenses. The standard that we are setting for them is that they be positive and contributing members of society, however we don’t teach them the skills to be successful. Instead our response is consequence and a never-ending loop of negative outcomes. The cards are stacked against them, and this gave me just one small example of how our educational system is failing our citizens. It showed me that not only is our income inequality a massive problem in our country, but the government supports the gap growing wider. I was inspired to begin thinking of ways that I could contribute to helping, whether it means that I am teaching in a DOJ facility or simply being a voice that says that this is not the way we create positive change and help our citizens. I would like that some change begins with my actions.

                Through our group project, we were required to work collaboratively and identify our relative strengths and leadership opportunities within the project. Our group as a whole, despite spending the past two years together in classes, we were able to get to know each other better, both professionally and personally. I felt that the project provided a necessary framework for us to end our educational studies with each other and I am leaving with a higher respect and knowledge of my cohort.  Although the outcome of our project was not received positively by all, I felt that each of us were proud to have made the video. Our intentions were not to humiliate or use our colleagues as examples of everything wrong, we put a lot of effort and thought into our project and the simple fact that we were able to acquire so many interviews from our colleagues show that they felt comfortable and invested in our education to have us conduct them. I would be eager to show the video to my colleagues to gain a better understanding of areas for improvement. I heard the recommendation that we remove the text from one interview, and I believe that could be the number one change to shift that perspective. I also believe that delineating the question and answer portion of our interviews may help the viewer gain a clearer understanding.

                Looking forward, I see myself as a behaviorist; however I would be amiss if I did not acknowledge the large role that teaching plays within my career. I work with teaching BI’s to work more effectively with students and changing their behavior for the positive, I work with students to develop more skills, I work with professionals to aide them in better understanding behavior, and I work with my colleagues to forge positive paths and options for our families. All of these responsibilities require that I am an effective and compassionate teacher to everyone that I encounter in my work. I see this as an opportunity promote diversity and encourage personal advocacy and feel honored each day that I make some small successes with my clients and their families.

                Ultimately, the role of education in a democratic society is to teach our students how they can create change, express their views, and participate in the very process that determines the fate of their country. The proof is in the voter turn-out, the quality of living in our country, the feasibility of comfort, the shift in sexist and racist practices in our job markets. All of these things need to be influenced by the citizens of this country. First and foremost, providing the students we serve with as much information and opportunity to practice. The teacher spotlight system that we have now is not student centered and only tells our students that their thoughts are insignificant, they are just one in an entire classroom. We need to revise our approach so that students are the focus point and we are the leaders not because of our paycheck or station but because of our guiding role in their education.