Semester Reflection

 Overall, I’ve enjoyed my time in this course, and I’ve learned a lot about different concepts that affect education. The reading that taught me the most was “Aria” by Richard Rodriguez. English is my first language, so I’ve never experienced what MLL students go through. I understood that there were challenges that came with having to learn a new language while also completing work in that language; however, I didn’t realize there were other struggles outside of adapting to school. In Rodriguez, he speaks about how he had to give up Spanish in order to learn English, and I never realized that was a trade MLL students needed to make. After my experience at Asa Messer, I was encouraged to see that not all schools required this of their students. At Asa Messer, both the teacher and students I worked with communicated using English and Spanish. This experience and “Aria” have shown me the importance of linguistic inclusivity and encouraged me to try to learn Spanish.

Another source that stood out to me was the film Teach Us All. This film touched on many things we talked about in class, including SCWAAMP, Delpit, Troublemakers, and the 4 I’s of oppression. It broke my heart to watch students talk about a lot of the internalized oppression they experience and how they don’t always believe there are options for them. In addition, hearing how segregated both schools and resources are infuriated me. Although, as a teacher, I may not be able to change segregation in schools, I hope to expose my students to many different cultures and viewpoints so they can see that they can do anything they choose to. In addition, I hope to provide students with the resources they need to achieve their goals. Throughout the semester, I have learned not only from the sources but also from my classmates, and I’m optimistic about becoming an educator. There is still a lot I don’t know, but I am sure that I have made the right choice for my career.