Rodriguez- Connections

I absolutely loved this article because I firmly believe that this is an important and common issue that we are going to experiance as teachers. I would like to briefly talk about how language barriers effect the classroom? A perfect example of this would be one of the students in my Music Ed. Classroom. Shes Chinese, and everytime we have to sing, everyone stops and stares at her. I always feel sooooo horrible and its so evident that it inhibits her comfort in the room, her ability to learn, and I always get agrivated when people just stare at her waiting to hear how shes going to pronounce something, but then again, I did it the first time we were singing too. We as people, I feel, have at some moments the most barbaric of instincts and impulses. But in this example, we can see that her feeling of safety in the classroom is affected and that is not ok. So a connection of this would be how do students try and take back power in a classroom setting i suppose. It appears that collier moments (a student should be allowed to express how they feel and their cultural identity free of uncomfort) can quickly lead to Christensen moments (eventually you may take actions against the fact that you can’t speak your language), and even that these feelings of being unsafe in a learning environment can affect the students ability to perform in the classroom, and cause the teacher to have a quality Delpit moment with correcting the students language. 

I notice Rodriguez moments all the time in my placement. Its a simple fact that when you work in an innercity school, you are GOING to have these moments they are impossible to escape. And its just so beyond morraly wrong to shut down a students culture and first language. Heritage should be embraced and placed in an environment where it and the child can flourish, not neutralized.