CROSS CULTURAL ISSUES IN EDUCATION: LEARNING THROUGH LISTENING

by Delia Costley Jones for:

Ehnic Studies 499/599
Ethnic Studies Spring Field Course 2000

Hello, my name is Delia Costley Jones and this term I had the great opportunity to take this class during my spring break.  I experienced a chance at learning through a non-traditional approach and came to understand issues that minority groups experience and benefits that other ethnic groups take for granted.  The primary reason that I took this class was that, for several years now, I have served as a multi-lingual interpreter but I have always recognized that knowing another language is not enough to understand what goes on in the heart of an immigrant or minority group until one understands the culture.

We had a total of 20 students in our class and we each played a vital role because we were all collectively involved through the opportunity of interviewing guests speakers whom we referred to as "Stakeholders" by being either the facilitator, the recorder, or the observer.  In total, we had twenty-eight guests speakers, many of whom traveled quite a distance to help us understand something that is often swept under the rug.  I came to the conclusion that minorities continue to be slaves of injustices that are inexcusable and should put each of us to shame either because we are subtle participants or simply close our eyes to it and expect someone else to take care of the problem.

I had the occasion to facilitate during the visit of two of our "Stakeholders," and as a team, a fellow classmate, Heidi Hanson and I interviewed both Carolyn Leonard and Geoffrey Brooks.  Later another classmate, Roxana Aguila and I interviewed three wives of migrant workers, and I had the special privilege of serving as a simultaneous interpreter for our class.  Although these two groups of "Stakeholders" were coming from  two separate directions, the message we heard was exactly the same:  "We need to have people that care, we need respect, and we need to have compassion."

The broader theme of our week long study revolved around issues of:

Additionally we had a packet with course readings that correlated with the themes presented to us by our "Stakeholders."  An article that really had an impact on me was written by Jonathan Kozol titled "Savage Inequalities."  From there I quote, "For children of diverse needs in his overcrowded rooms, he says, you need an outstanding teacher.  And what do you get?  You get the worst."  There is no denying that the message here is simply that those who need the most get the least.  He further says, "What is fair is what is determined...to be fair." And who decides what is fair?  The word 'hegemony' which was coined by Antonio Gramsci,  an Itatian philosopher of the 1930's, is quite descriptive of this behavior, the subtle and coercive power people have in our society in which the dominant group keeps control.  Our stakeholder, Geoffrey Brooks said, "You get a premise of who you are by what you have been told."  Carolyn Leonard continued on that note with, "When you are socialized in an environment that emphasizes the color of your skin, it never leaves you."

The three mothers of minority students kept repeating that, the most important thing that our society can do for  migrant children is to care for them.  They want their children to have opportunities that they were not able to have.  They recognize the importance of a good education and they are very supportive in doing whatever is possible to help them attain that education.

Yet, something is missing.  A dangerous consequence results when we allow deprivation of education or allow education in deprived conditions.  While we may be eager to say that drugs are always connected to a child not doing well in school, the truth of the matter is, drugs are not the cause, they are the symptom.  In Kozols' article we read that today, as we strip a child from his or her rights to a good education, we are victimizing them.  Tomorrow, when we have created our future adults who were denied their right to a proper education that leads to healthy lives, we may be their victims--a tragic irony.

Our course readings, our classroom discussions, and our stakeholders presentations all helped us to understand that it is not just one single thing that creates success.  It is a number of things and they come down to these points:

We do not want to forget the message that we heard from Carolyn Leonard when she said, "The three ingredients that help children to succeed are feeling: The message that we received from the three mothers of minority students was, "Language is a barrier that can be overcome -- but -- it starts with teachers that love their job...with teachers that love the children that they work with."

We all share a UNIVERSALITY of human experience.  We acknowledge parental devotion to culture...to family...to our children.  Diversity does not have to be an issue of negativity.  Respect is a must  -- for each other  -- for our children.

Listening.  Really listening to our children and what they have to say can never be put aside.  This fact cannot be said enough: we must recognize that knowing another language is not enough to understand what goes on in the heart of an immigrant or minority group.  We need to understand the culture...and we need to care enough to listen with the heart.