Reflection 7

Rites of passages are important because they are supposed to teach the individuals who is partaking in the ceremonies how to be a proper adult and a good member of the society. Rites of passage ceremonies aren’t the same as formal education but they are similarities. Formal education is meant to teach the individual about their culture and to lead them into the path to become proper members of society. The rites of passage rituals and ceremonies do this collectively. The endurance of these rituals allows for induction or acceptance into the culture or tribe. In the readings of the articles titled The Sambia, Sitting Quietly, and Facing Mt. Kenya are insights to the different rituals from different cultures. In The Sambia, we learn how the Sambian people practice their rites of passage ceremonies. They believe that tingu which is semen, carries the necessities in changing from a boy to a man. The Sambian boys practice fellatio on other boys and are instructed to digest the tingu. They are not considered homosexual amongst their culture since they grow up and lead very heterosexual lives having wives and many children. Our beliefs in western culture would be to first call them homosexuals though they are strongly against be called homosexual. In Facing Mt Kenya, the children participate in many dances and are separated in two huts, boys and girls. In these huts, they learn many of the tribe’s secrets. They then gather in a circle,(the girls) with their legs opened and an older woman comes around with a sharp knife and cuts of their clitoris. The girls must sit and endure the pain without making a sound. This ritual is also followed by the boys who are also circumcised with a sharp knife. Not only is this painful, but it can be medically unsanitary. The kids are sometimes liable to die from infectious diseases. Imagine an old person performing any type of surgery on someone. For one, their hands shake way to much for it to be steady. What if they cut something that isn’t supposed to be cut? Another thing is the excruciating pain theses individuals must suffer. There are circumcisions done in the United States but they are done when at birth when the person is still an infant. These young boys who have already begun to develop biologically have to endure a lot of pain to be accepted as a man and a good standing citizen in the tribe. Honestly, if it was up to me, I would just walk away from the tribe; family and all. The rites of passage ritual in Sitting Quietly aren’t too farfetched. The twins are taken away by a mythical legend into the forest to become men. They are taught the basics to survival in the tribe and those who complete are men. They even get new names. Not bad at all. The author made the story exciting by having the readers believe that the children were actually being eaten. Analogies are wonderful and the author uses them brilliantly. All in all, different cultures have different ideas on what is considered to be norms. These rituals teach loyalty, dignity, respect and teach the individuals about becoming model citizens. These things are done so that the culture can be carried into the next generation. Without tradition there is not culture and these rituals display that.


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Thoughts on Little rock (Reflection 6)

Sometimes when you hear of things that happened you may often wonder how it could really have been like that. Well, at least I know that I do. When I hear and read of all of the ill-mannered people who commit acts of cruelty it amazes me yet doesn’t surprise me. Sometimes I even think that if there happened to be a time that comes to pass that people believe they won’t have any consequences at all for their actions, then the world would be in a lot more trouble than it is now. As kids, I think that the nine students endured more than they could handle. If I had been in the same predicament I would have more than likely cried every day. I don’t think that I have what it takes to stand up to such cruelty. Not only were these kids being teased and taunted by kids their age, but they were also being shunned by parents and teachers alike. The riots that took place as they were walking in the door were enough to make anyone go mad. Having to be escorted to do something as simple as walking in the door to school is outrageous. But at the same time, having guards to escort me into school, knowing the type of person that I am, I would have felt very important and liked the attention. Good or bad, attention is attention and it would be nice to know that I affect so many people to the point where they feel threatened enough to riot at a school. It means that I destined for greatness. If everyone likes you all the time then something has got to be wrong. These people should have at least understood that they were saying these slurs and shouts to mere children who did nothing but desired an education. What if the shoe was on the other foot? I’d like to think that they wouldn’t have wanted to have their child face that type of pressure at such a young age. I remember when first hearing of this story and being so angry that people could be so much anger and filled with hatred for mankind. These children, along with their parents, fought for what they believed was right and doing so led the path to a long line of desegregation within the schools until it was abolished all together. They should really be commended for exemplifying such bravery. As for me, if I were one of those nine, I would have probably been one to want to chicken out at first but after experiencing it once, I would have more than likely realized that the things were saying would have been repetitive and after hearing once, it’s like hearing it one thousand times. Racial slurs, as does anything else, seem to get old and sometimes they get old before we even know it.



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Reflection 4-Diversity

Many students who are studying education would question as to why they are required to take a human diversity class. I have been in different situation that has helped me with both tolerate and accept within diversity. In colonial times, diversity in education was very rare. There wasn’t much diversity in the schools because the students in the school were normally from the same colony and within the same district. Integration had yet to take place. After integration took place in the schools and desegregation took place there were many issues amongst students and the faculty at the schools. It was harder for the African American students to succeed probably because of all of the stress from being the minority at an all white school. The teachers had even responded inappropriately to these children and also contributed to them feeling the way that they did. Had those teachers been trained in how to deal with diversity and not to expect that every child would come from the same type of home they would have understood how to deal with them. Taking a diversity class in modern times will not only benefit the teachers but it will also benefit the students who are being taught. Unlike the teachers in colonial times, current teachers have to do more than just deal with students of different races but we also have to deal with students who may be homosexual or transgender. That isn’t the only contributing factor in diversity. There are children who have different ethnic backgrounds, different beliefs on what some people may consider as norms. There are also many different views on religion. When placed in a classroom after having the training to not only tolerate but also accept the fact that there is a diverse set of students that are going to be taught, modern teachers will be able to handle what may seem like difficult situations with agility. I feel that I am well prepared for many different areas especially in homosexuality. Not only am I tolerant towards homosexuals but I’m connected with them as well. I’ve never been one to disregard someone else religious beliefs for that of my own so I believe that I am prepared to handle the beliefs of others while knowing that I do not have to incorporate them with my own. I’m not certain on whether it is appropriate to say that I was raised to accept everyone for who they are because it wasn’t like there were discussions or anything about them in my household. But I do know that I was raised to not judge others and everyone is going to be different from me. At the completion of this course, I am hoping that I will have undergone a transformation that can better me as a person and will contribute to my success as an educator in the future.

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Reflection 3-Paradigm

Paradigms and paradigm shifts are not a new subject to me being that I was introduced to the subject by an educator a couple of years back. Paradigms are defined as the model that we have for different things. With paradigms, people are able to understand things much more easily and by associating different situations or things we these paradigms that they already have, it is relatively easy for them to handle the current situation. A change or renovations in the models that we have are called paradigm shifts. In one’s life they may experience many changes that will allow them to rethink and maybe even reconstruct some of their ways, values and beliefs. I think it is important for teachers to experience paradigm shifts because not everyone will have the same beliefs as their own. It is important to be able to change and in doing so even develop new outlooks on society. With these new outlooks that have been created, people will e more able to adapt and respond to changes with a quickness and agility that will assist them in their everyday lives. To my knowledge, I haven’t experienced a paradigm shift. Or maybe I have in the past and just didn’t recognize it as a paradigm shift. I am almost positive that I will have one because honestly a shift in paradigms won’t kill anyone; certainly not me. Whenever I do experience a paradigm shift, at least with the knowledge I have now I would be able to take notice in the change that would be taking place. I’ll even be able to use it as an example in my classroom one day when I’m teaching my students. Teachers have to be able to change and experience paradigm shifts because they are educating tomorrow’s future. We all know that a good majority of people learn by example and in this case teachers should be able to lead by example. When the students that they are teaching witness the ease of change in their teachers’ lives, they too will be able to handle things well and be able to go into the world with a new outlook on life. This isn’t to say that these students should throw away what they have already acquired as knowledge but this will assist them with putting the pieces of the puzzle together and utilizing the many different skills they will have retained. If only all of the inhabitants of the world believed that they needed a shift in paradigms in order for their lives to be more abundant and promising with them being receptive of changes.
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Reflection 2

The two articles in question are very informative and at the same time interesting. With previously acquired knowledge, I was aware that transformation was a process that changes one’s thought process and behaviors. I believe that every effective individual had to undergo a transformation at one point or another in his/her life to get to the point where they were able to be an effective person. As an educator, I believe that transformation would be a very important aspect of my career because there are many different things that may not be known to me, but at least with the broaden perspective and point of view it would be easier to accept and to gain new knowledge. In both articles, the author emphasizes that when an individual has sought and reached multicultural awareness/ consciousness they have then reached transformation. Being aware of the differences between cultures, races, people and even gender can assist us with being able to cope and assist the other person when necessary. Being able to understand accept another person’s difference is a great skill. This also goes with the age old saying, Judge not and be not judged. If there were more people who had the skill set to accept other individuals for their differences and not judge them there would be less confrontation and arguments about unnecessary things. It is incredibly easy for us to pass judgment on someone but it is hard for us to learn not to do so. The first article helps to depict what transformation actually is by giving the story of the butterfly. The butterfly starts off as larvae, and then goes into a caterpillar and then moving forward to the chrysalis and then a final result of a butterfly. During the transformation the caterpillar changes and takes on a new shape. Even though the caterpillar and the butterfly have different DNA, scientists have concluded that they are still one. Meaning, as much as a person can change their way of thinking and their behavior, they are still the same person, only renovated. Hopefully, my transformation from being a pre-teaching intern to a certified educator goes as gracefully as the transformation of the butterfly. I’m sure it won’t be too easy, but it’s a path I’m willing and ready to take.



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Reflection 1: New Inventions Impacting the Brain

The material that was required to read for this reflection gives insight to how the human brain developed and broadened with knowledge. With the discovery of fire the prehistoric humans were able to do many things like cook food, scare off wild animals and ultimately became the hunter instead of the hunted. With this change in the food chain, the humans were able to change their diet and add cooked meat to their diet. This change also affected their brains. The result was a growth in the physical part of the brain as well as cognitively. The meat in their diet caused this change. Being a pre-teaching intern, we are asked to read this kind of material because it helps us to more or less understand how the brain works. With the new information learned, the brain grew in size because it changed the way things had to be learned. Having gained this knowledge on the brain, it helps educators learn what they too will be affecting. Educators will also change the way a person’s brain is by teaching that person.. With the new information, the person will therefore go forward with a new insight on things as well as a brain that grew a little more because of the knowledge. Thus after the prehistoric human managed the use of fire, this lead to other changes including the invention of other things such as writing and the wheel. With the both the invention of the wheel and the invention of writing, the mind grew more and more. With this growth, humans were able to think more and also develop better communication skills. At every part in history where a drastic change affected humans, they gained more knowledge and through natural selection the unnecessary bygones were weeded out and then passed on to the future generation or modern humans are the by-products of a lot of growing of the brain and changes in the everyday life of people. As it is to this day, a child growing in modern times has the know how of any average adult on the latest technology because they are born in the technological era it isn’t hard for them to catch on to the new things that are made. This isn’t the same for the older adult who was used to having minimal uses for technology. I’m almost sure that the expansion of our brains will continue to increase because we are inventing new things each day to assist with our everyday lives. Meaning that in the next hundred years or so, humans may undergo another change in life that will expand the capacity of the brain and allow for an even easier and more comfortable way of living that won’t be strange to anyone.



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