As I was reading the Kimmel Article, once I came back from my vacation, I found it interesting that the article hinted that masculinity is an effect of nurture, rather than nature, and that it is changes in social ideals that have marked the behavior as appropriate or inappropriate... masculine or feminine. Those ideals change over time. There was a time where identifying as bisexual was completely normal. Shakespeare was bisexual! Then somewhere down the line, that became taboo, and now we seem to be on an upswing where being GLBTQ is slowly becoming more and more acceptable. I suppose even though sexual orientation is not something that is a choice, that the social ideals of masculinity are a result of nurture. How do we incorporate this kind of diversity in the classroom? Through acceptance of students of all walks of life? By pointing it out or treating them all the same. I like to treat them all the same, regardless of orientation. A zero tolerance bullying law within the school seems to help as well. I think in the light of all the suicides due to bullying, school's have become more hip to being more open minded about their student body's differences from student to student.
In the Walters article, I found it highly intriguing about the dynamic between the second generation of children of immigrants to the identities of their immigrant parents. The immigrant parents identifying with flaunting (in a way) their racial and ethnic background to set themselves apart from "Black Americans," when the children of these immigrants have American accents and cannot stand out as a member of their own ethnicity as well. Where does that leave them? How does that effect their ability and time in school? Do their parents realize they are alienating their children?
Hi Erica,
ReplyDeleteI agree with your comments on both the articles. Bullying definitely should not happen in any school. IF children are bullyed, they do want to go to school, which stops learning and in extreme cases teenagers commit suicide.
About children of immigrants, there is always a gap between the parents and them. It is a very difficult situation that needs to be handled carefully.
Bullying is such a tough issue. It's wrong to bully, that much is understood. I was lucky enough to be a part of a conversation at school, where some of the teachers were discussing the bullying procedures candidly. If we step in every time, and stop a bully from harassing the target, is the target any stronger, or do they learn how to stick up for themselves. At the same time, we can't say "let's allow bullying in our schools, so that our students learn to be strong individuals." I think Futurama put it best in the episode where Bender played God for short-lived society:
ReplyDeleteGod Entity: Bender, being God isn't easy. If you do too much, people get dependent on you. And if you do nothing, they lose hope. You have to use a light touch, like a safecracker or a pickpocket.
Bender: Or a guy who burns down a bar for the insurance money.
God Entity: Yes, if you make it look like an electrical thing. When you do things right, people won't be sure you've done anything at all.
While we can't ignore the negative habits of others, protecting the targets comes at a price of their own independence and reputation. It does take a light touch to provide the best care for our students.
Completely agree that all students need to be treated the same and not singled out by the teachers. There are things that the school can do to help out: set up after-school clubs for students to join, implement stricter anti-bullying laws, etc. However, I do think that the majority of the responsibility falls not on the schools, but on the students themselves. Students need to be aware that there are kids in their classes, on their sports teams, and in their clubs that may be different than them. Parents, teachers, and school administrators are (for the most part) trying to educate students on these differences so that there is a wider range of acceptance in the school systems. The students need to listen listen to their message.
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