The Personal Side of Bias, Prejudice, and Oppression: Continued

The Personal Side of Bias, Prejudice, and Oppression Continued

“What is one hope that you have when you think about working with children and families who come from diverse backgrounds?”

My one hope I have when I think about working with children and families who come from diverse backgrounds is that they feel welcome, safe, and nurtured in my classroom. I want them to feel that my sincerity is real and not just a smiling face.

“What is one goal you would like to set for the early childhood field related to issues of diversity, equity, and social justice?”

One goal I would like to set for the early childhood field related to issues of diversity, equity, and social justice is genuine acceptance. All children and their families should feel worthy and they should have the same advantages as the dominant culture. I love the quote from Raffi that Louise Derman-Sparks used in this week’s media segment: “Every girl and boy is entitled to love, to dream and belong to a loving village and to pursue a life of purpose” (Laureate Education, 2011).

I want to thank each one of you for sharing your stories, thoughts, and experiences with me. I have learned so much from all of you through our discussion boards and blog posts. It has also been refreshing to see that through our experiences, we have grown into our roles as early childhood educators who will ensure the future will be brighter for the little ones in our care. I am happy to have all of you as my colleagues. Hope to see you in a future class!

Trish

References

Laureate Education (Producer). (2011). Diversity and equity work: Lessons learned [Video file]. Retrieved from: https://class.waldenu.edu

Welcoming Families From Around the World

You are working in an early childhood setting of your choice-a hospital, a child care center, a social service agency. You receive word that the child of a family who has recently emigrated from a country you know nothing about will join your group soon. You want to prepare yourself to welcome the child and her family. Luckily, you are enrolled in a course about diversity and have learned that in order to support families who have immigrated you need to know more than surface facts about their country of origin.

India

I chose India because I realized most of what I know about people from here are highly stereotypical views you see in movies or on television. From the charts and some research I discovered that they are mostly Hindus and speak Hindi. Many also speak English.

Considering the many different languages and dialects and the many different religious affiliations, I would have to learn more from the family. Other than the preliminary research I have done in preparation for their arrival, here are five other ways I would prepare myself to be culturally responsive:

1. Ensure I have elements from their culture in the classroom such as pictures, toys, and artwork (Derman-Sparks & Edwards, 2010).

2. Offer resources about their new community and have them translated into their native language if necessary.

3. Meet with the child and family to learn more about them, such as culture, goals, and anything else they feel is important for me to know and to also answer any questions to alleviate any fear or anxiousness they may be feeling. I will also make sure they feel welcomed, nurtured, and safe in my school environment by building a positive relationship (Derman-Sparks & Edwards, 2010).

4. Be respectful, caring, and understanding of their culture, norms, goals, and wishes.

5. Work on dispelling any stereotypes I have heard from the media by being open to learning about a culture I have not been exposed to by collaborating with the family to share their culture in the classroom (Derman-Sparks & Edwards, 2010).

I feel that these preparations will benefit both me and the new family through open communication and cooperation. All children and their families in an early childhood setting should feel safe, nurtured, and respected. These preparations will help to ensure that they feel welcome in their new community. 

References

Derman-Sparks, L. & Edwards, J. O. (2010). Anti-bias education for young children and ourselves. Washington, DC: National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC). 

The Personal Side of Bias, Prejudice, and Oppression

The Personal Side of Bias, Prejudice, and Oppression

What memory do you have of an incident when you experienced bias, prejudice, and/or oppression, or witnessed someone else as the target of bias, prejudice, and/or oppression? Keep in mind that one can encounter such incidents in real contexts, including online environments, as well as in fictional ones, such as movies, books, television shows, and the like.

I can think of many instances of bias, prejudice, and/or oppression over my lifetime. Most of them have to do with sexism. A few were instances of ageism. I decided to talk about a memory where I experienced ageism. My experience with ageism was not because I was too old, but because I appeared to be too young. I was in a store shopping and had my oldest child in the shopping cart. At the time, she was about 12 months old I was almost 27. I was pushing the cart towards the check-out and was talking to my child when I heard someone make a sucking in sound/cluck of disgust/disdain. When I looked up, an older woman was shaking her head with her clear disapproval of me having a child. She made a comment to her friend about young people having children too early and out of wedlock. I not-so-kindly showed her my wedding ring and let her know my age. I was angry and hurt over the incident.

In what way(s) did the specific bias, prejudice and/or oppression in that incident diminish equity?

Besides being hurt and angry, I also did not enjoy the feeling of needing to defend myself to a stranger about my personal business. It diminished equity because I felt I needed to defend myself over the hurtful comments due to my appearance of looking “too young”. I can also say that it diminished equity through sexism due to “mom-shaming” or the stereotype that younger women are not or cannot be good mothers.

What feelings did this incident bring up for you?

With the above feelings of hurt, anger, and the need to defend myself, I also felt inadequate. Looking back on how I felt during and immediately after the incident has helped me to see how internalized oppression can affect a person by making them question experiences versus abilities. Although I know I had the ability to raise my child, this experience made me question whether or not I could or would be a good mother. Being a new mother is scary enough without the messages I received over ageism and sexism. Internalized oppression is not only when a person begins to believe the message they receive from others but also when people from the marginalized group begin to believe these messages and turn against one another (Axner, n.d.)

What and/or who would have to change in order to turn this incident into an opportunity for greater equity?

Several things would have to change in order to turn this incident into an opportunity for greater equity. First, many females, including myself, would have to stop internalizing stereotypes we receive every day through messages we hear in everyday talk and media. Both ageism for young and old and sexism in the form of “mom-shaming” is harmful to women/girls. Secondly, I feel that “mom-shaming” can be more harmful than the messages we receive from men. With these two thoughts in mind, I feel a stronger “sisterhood” between females would form a united front against sexism from the opposite sex. This stronger “sisterhood” would also alleviate the ageist stereotype that young women are not or cannot be good mothers.

References

Marya Axner (n.d.)  Healing from the Effects of Internalized Oppression.  Community Toolbox. Retrieved from: https://ctb.ku.edu/en/table-of-contents/culture/cultural-competence/healing-from-interalized-oppression/main