Book Club -- Bad Boys: Public Schools in the Making of Black Masculinity

One of the disruptions that I had while reading this book was the fact that so many of the kids who were considered "at risk", or trouble makers were African American, and that so many of them were being tracked to a prison cell from such a young age.  No 10 year old should have their future decided like that.  I think that if you're hearing things like "There's a jail cell in your future" from so early on, you start to think that there's no other option for you, because no one's ever told you that there could be something different.

I think that one of the stories from this book that really highlight the media aspect that we talked about in class is where the author is doing a self-description exercise, and two of the students get into a conversation.  One says that there are good kids, and then there are bad kids.  The other argues that there's no such thing as a bad kid, just that TV sets a bad example and some kids want to be like that.  "But nobody's bad, though."  I think that this highlights the identity struggle that the author of this book looks at.  Media and many other things tell these boys that they have to be masculine, and to do that you have to be dominant, and powerful.  But when they go into school, they are punished for that, and taught that you have to submissive to the teacher, and not to cause trouble.  But if they do that, then the people around them tell them that aren't "acting black", and that they're only technically black.  There's a struggle with the hegemonic vs the counter hegemonic culture.  And if the kids do act out, it's seen as "because they're black", instead of as a reaction to something in their environment.  Their behavior gets generalized, instead of being seen as something individual.

Another story looks at the stereotypes African Americans are often subject to.  Some of the parents shared discussions that they've had with their sons about how other people will perceive them.  These kids are taught lessons from an early age to downplay there blackness, and that they will be under more heavy scrutiny than other people based on their race, and that because of this they will have to work harder to make himself visibly different from the image of black males that everyone has in their head.  Things that would be ok for a white kid to do suddenly become more threatening when done by a black kid.  It's alright for a white kid to go to the store in junky clothes, but if a black kid does it, he's clearly up to no good.

I think that one of the ways that this book will affect how I go into the classroom will be to never judge any student as a "bad kid", and to never look at them with the idea that all they have in their future is just to end up in prison.  There not going anywhere, so what's the point in teaching them.  All of these kids need help, and if you treat them like just a bad boy, then that's what they'll be, because it's easier to act the way everyone expects you to, than to try and fight and prove that you're different.

(Re)Imagined Classroom

(Images Courtesy of Google)

I would use a Senatorial setup with the desks.  This way, it encourages discussion, and there really isn't a "back of the class" for students to hide in or get shunted to.

I would hang up historical memes around the classroom.

There would be a row of computers for students to use in their research and projects.

 

I would also hang up historical quotes around the classroom.  I would try to include quotes from various leaders from multiple ethnicities and genders, instead of just a bunch of "dead white guys".  I get the feeling from a lot of students that this is how they see history, and I want to do something to change that, and to have as much representation in the classroom as possible.

I would also use a bookshelf with historical novels and books students could use to do research that the school library might not have.

You are preparing to be a teacher. Imagine a typical lesson that you might teach in the future. Below, create a sketch or a description of a typical lesson in your future classroom. 
We would open up with a Bell Ringer, a person of the day (they will later be tested on these people, or I will use them as bonus questions on tests at the very least), and then an activity to act as a hook to get the students engaged.  Then we would go through the lesson using a mix of lecture and activities to keep the students engaged.  I would make sure that the lesson includes an explanation of the ways that this historical event has influenced them today.  The lesson would end with some kind of formative assessment to make sure the students retained the information.

Imagine the students in the classroom and describe them in more detail. Who are the typical students? What are their backgrounds? What are their interests? Where are they during the lesson?
If I was teaching back in Florida, most of the students would probably be from a rural background.  There would probably be about an even mix of white and black students.  Most kids in secondary education I've found would be more interested in the blood and gore aspects of history, rather than the bills and laws part.  They will probably also be interested in how various events in history affected their ancestors, their cultures, and their lives today.  Most of the students are probably in their desks or sitting in groups, depending on the activity.

Imagine the surroundings in the classroom and describe them in more detail. What does the room look like? What resources are available to the students? How are those resources used during this lesson?

The room has a wall of windows to help the students feel less like they're "in prison", and to give the room a lighter atmosphere.  The desks are arranged in a way that makes it easier to walk around as I teach, but also encourages class discussion.  There's computers and a projector for presentations, and for students to use to do research.  There's also a bookshelf that students can use to do research.

Imagine the lesson and describe the topic in more detail. What are you teaching? What is the main thing you would want students to learn during this lesson? Why are you teaching this lesson?

I am teaching the students about why we learn about history.  I want students to understand the overall objective that I want them to learn over the course of the year, and that it's important, but I want them to come to that conclusion relatively on their own and with little nudging.  I feel like a lot of students feel like history is extremely boring and unimportant, and something that they can overlook, or that it's just a bunch of dead white guys, but it's not.  I want to show them the influence that many cultures have had on world history, and why it's important that we know them.

Imagine your work as a teacher during this lesson and describe it in more detail. What are you doing during the lesson? Where are you in during the lesson? 

I start off at the front of the classroom, but as the discussion goes on, I'll start walking among them.  I'll have a ball or some kind of stuffed animal that I can toss to different students as a way to "cold call" on them.  This makes sure everyone is paying attention and is contributing.  I want students to present their ideas and opinions on whether or not history is important.

Imagine the various lesson activities and describe them in more detail. What are the students doing during the lesson? Why have you chosen these activities?

For this particular lesson, students are discussing why they study history.  This would probably be the first lesson of the year, and it helps give purpose to what they're studying.  I would also probably have them toss the ball or the stuffed animal (probably the mascot of the school) around to each other.  It would help the students get to know who's in the class, and I've found that students are pretty good at calling on people who need to be kept alert.

Reflection

I noticed that I lot of the changes that I made to this Imagined classroom had to do with representation.  A lot of students that I have talked to criticize the fact that history classes tend to focus more on what the "rich white guys" did, and that they don't even look at how African Americans, or any other culture for that matter, had an influence on history until they get to the Civil Rights movement, after which they promptly fade into the background again.  I want to do something to change that.  I want to show these students that they have role models, and heroes in history, which is part of the reason why I want to do the Person of the Day activity.  This way, students can learn how people from different cultures, backgrounds, and genders had an influence on history.  I want girls to be able to see that women played a hand in history before the suffrage movement, and after, too.  I want African American girls to have more heroes than Harriet Tubman and Rosa Parks.  I want the Asian students to know that they existed outside of the Transcontinental Railroad, or the Internment Camps.  And Hispanics outside of the Mexican Revolution and Pancho Villa.  These students are more than what they see in the media, and I want them to know that.

I kept my classroom setup the same for a variety of reasons.  These are reasons that I hadn't thought of when I originally included it.  Before, I just liked that I could keep an eye on students easier, and that it would be good for class discussions.  But now, I've thought up several other reasons why this setup would be beneficial for my students.  The Senatorial setup operates in a way similar to the Round Robin.  It creates equality.  There's no front of the class students, or back of the class students because it's basically one big circle.  Kids who would normally hide in the back and not participate are drawn into the discussion and lesson.  It's more open, and less crowded.  Hopefully, I will get a classroom with the space to permit this setup.

Personal Cultural Artifacts

Ask anyone from Florida, and they will tell you that Florida can be split into two parts, North and South.  South Florida is materialistic and full of tourists.  They're not real Floridians.  Whereas the more north in Florida you get, the more southern it gets.  North Florida has it's own separate culture from the rest of Florida.  Matter of fact, the two are so different, that a lot of officials want South Florida to break off and become it's own state.

In the summer in Florida it's too hot and humid outside to do anything that doesn't have to do with water.  Tubing the many springs and rivers in North Florida is one of our favorite pastimes.  You get together with a big group of friends and family, either rent tubes, or bring some of your own, and float down altogether, relaxing.  Going down in a thunder storm is considered a bonus.

I've tried to explain the concepts of Hurricane Parties to people outside of Florida, and they just look at me like I'm deranged.  If you live on the coast, then it's more serious, but for those of us more inland, when we hear a hurricane is coming, we shrug, make sure none of the trees are going to fall on our house, buy extra batteries, buy lots of junk food, and break out the board games.  There's nothing else to do.

Boiled peanuts, or rather "bawled peanuts", are considered a treat in North Florida.  You'll see them at every big get together, and you'll see signs advertising them on every road.  Most of the time, you buy them from friendly road-side vendors like this guy.

Give him a couple of bucks, and he'll hand you a styrofoam cup full of "bawled peanuts".  All they are really are whole peanuts that you throw into a huge pot, usually full of salt water, and then boil until the shells are nice and soft.

If there's a body of water, however shallow, there either is an alligator in it, there was an alligator in it, or there will be an alligator in it.  And Florida is about 20% water.  Alligators are everywhere in Florida, and they come in all shapes and sizes.  from the little four footers that hide under your car, to the 12 footers that take over golf courses.  They teach you how to avoid alligators in school (Just sprint, running zigzag will do nothing for you.  Also climbing trees is useless, they'll follow you, right up).  Before we go swimming in the river or lake, we always have to try and guess whether or not that's really a tree branch, or an alligator.  We don't really start getting worried until the tree branch disappears after we've already gotten in the water.

We have the weirdest place names in Florida.  Things like Kissime, Hypoluxo, Loxahatchee, Okeechobee, Chatahoochee, Ichetucknee, Okefenokee.  We could always tell whether or not someone was from around here if they could pronounce those names.

I was in a psychology class here in Utah, and the teacher was doing a lesson on symbols, and he asked the class what the confederate flag represented to them.  I didn't think much about it.  The confederate flag has always just sort of been there to me.  But then one of the students stated that it represents "ignorance", and "prejudice", and "bigotry".  And I was surprised how offended I and another fellow southerner sitting at the back of the classroom got.  The confederate flag to southerners represents southern pride.  It represents our heritage, rebelling, and standing up for ourselves.  It represents all of our southern values, like common courtesy.  There are those who use it to symbolize their racist bigotry, and everyone in the South hates them for it.  The confederate flag has come to rest in the same category as the Swastika.  It used to represent something good, but in later years people turned it into a symbol of hate.  It doesn't represent that to people in the South because we seem to be the some of the few that understand that the Civil War had nothing to do with slavery, and everything to do with state's rights.  People in the South need something to represent their pride, because in our very biased education system, every unit on the Civil War is geared towards making southern kids feel guilty over something they had nothing to do with.

The Olustee Festival is a huge deal in my area.  It celebrates a battle that was one by the confederates near my town.  There's a massive battle reenactment, camp reenactment, beauty pageants, parades, fun runs, arts and crafts, singing, fairs, and so much more.  It sort of represents southern pride, and southern victory.

And then for the Fourth of July we have a fireworks show.  And that's it.

We have a lot of sayings and colloquialisms in North Florida, and in the South.  One of my favorites being "bless yer heart".  It's the polite southern way of saying, "I love 'em, but they're dumber than a sack of potatoes."  Or "Well, they try."  Or, "At least you're pretty."  If anyone from the South tells you "bless your heart", they are politely calling you an idiot.

The South is big on good manners.  "Good manners are never out of style."  Ma'm's and sir's, please's, and thank you's are considered common courtesy, and those who don't are considered to be extremely rude.

This plate is very special to me and my family, because it represents times of celebration.  Every time someone has a birthday, or got big news, or made an amazing accomplishment, my mom broke this bad boy out.  

History is a big part of my culture.  And so the oldest city in America, St. Augustine, holds a special place in my heart.  It was always our favorite field trip growing up, because it was so big, and so old.  We learned about Spanish explorers, and pirates, and strategic defenses.  It's part of the reason I decided to become a history teacher.

Camping has always been a tradition in my family.  We go every year as a sort of unofficial family reunion, and our extended family is always invited.

Disney has played a huge role in my family.  We have a large collection of Disney movies at home, and there are very few Disney movies we haven't seen, including the old live action ones, like 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea, or The Apple Dumpling Gang, and we're always shocked and surprised when people tell us they haven't seen them.  Disney movies represent to me times when the whole family got together with a giant bowl of popcorn.

Board games are a big pastime with my family.  We have huge shelves full of every type of game you can think of.  To me, these board games represent rainy nights, and summer afternoons, when the family could all be together.  Living in a place where the power goes out frequently due to thunder storms, these board games are well used.

I've been swimming competitively since I was eight years old.  I practically grew up at the pool.  For ten years, my perfume was chlorine and sunscreen, and I counted in 25's, listening to my coach shout out "Five one hundreds on two fifteen.  Go!"

My family has a habit of searching out bad or crazy movies on Netflix like we're looking for buried treasure.  A few of the titles that have become classics in our household are A Town Called Panic, Creature, The Swamp Thing, and Chasing the Kidney Stone.  These nights are times for our family to get together, and laugh until we cry.

Every year for our birthdays, my parents cook us our "birthday dinners".  Every year I get potstickers, so this particular meal holds a special meaning for me.

My brothers and I love playing video games together.  Our schedules are always so busy, that it's very rare that we're all home together.  But when we are, video games like Mario Kart, and Smash Bros.are great ways for us to spend time together.  And to scream at the TV.

Being a Mormon in the South was always an interesting experience.  We were definitely the minority in a sea of Baptists, Methodists, and Pentecostals.  CTR rings were our way of subtly standing out.

Reflection

I noticed two things while doing this.  The first was how important family is to me.  Most of the artifacts on here have to do with bringing the family together.  The other thing was Southern pride.  This, to me, seems like it would be the biggest issue in the class.  Most of America has a very set view of Southerners: ignorant, racist, obnoxious.  The fact that I'm from the South might make students outside of the South view me as different.  In the South, it would make me be more accepted by the class.  However, being Southern gives me a unique perspective on much of American history that I would be able to share with my students.  

Community Experience

I went to a meeting of Narcotics Anonymous.  One of the things that stuck out the most to me from the moment I walked in was the feeling of community.  The people overseeing the meeting made it abundantly clear that this was safe place where they could share anything and everything.  Everyone was so friendly with each other.  They were all hugging and saying hi.  They applauded for every newcomer.  They celebrated those who had been clean for years.  They took turns sharing personal stories of success, and talking about their hopes, fears, reservations, and worries.  I bring this up because this is the kind of environment that I want my future students to be in when they enter my classroom.  I want them to feel safe enough to share without being afraid of being judged.  I want my students to feel like they can come to me for understanding.  That's part of the point of these experiences is to gain an understanding of other groups.

One young man at the meeting shared with the group that one of the reasons staying clean was so hard for him was that he was the only one in his family who was clean.  But one of the reasons he wanted to stay clean was that he didn't want to pass his sickness onto his son.  This ties into our discussion in class about social capital.  The social capital this young man carried was that his family were users.  He was under a lot of pressure, because of how people saw his family, they expected him to be the same way, and treated him as such.  The way you treat someone has a big impact on how they act.  I feel that this is something that can and will affect my students.  If their family is known for something negative, or if their race, religion, or socioeconomic status carries with it a negative stereotype, then that is how people will view them.  This oftentimes will pressure a student to behave that way, since that is what everyone already expects of them.

Going to this Narcotics Anonymous meeting was a good thing for me.  Drugs and alcohol are something that students have faced for years, and it is something that they will continue to face.  They're a quick and easy way of dealing with the stresses of school and home.  My goal is to make my classroom a place where they don't need to.  I want them to feel like they can share with me and find the same understanding that I saw at the NA meeting.

Being the Other

For my experience, I went to the First Baptist Church.  When I first walked up to the door, the people were very friendly.  They shook my hand, and introduced themselves, then showed me inside to the chapel.  When I sat down, I noticed that the people there were dressed in a mix of casual, and what I would consider church clothes.  T-shirts and jeans were mixed in with dresses and ties.  I'm used to people dressing just shy of formal when they go to church to show respect.  If I was to make an inference based on that, it would lead me to believe that they don't put as much stock in using their wardrobe as part of their worship.  Another thing that I noticed was the fact that there weren't very many people at the service, at least, not as many as I am used to.  What I can infer from that is not as many people in the area share their beliefs.

Another thing was the music.  They had a variety of instruments.  What I am used to is just a piano accompaniment, and occasionally a flute or a violin for special musical numbers.  Those are considered to be reverent, appropriate instruments.  At this church, however, they had a piano, an electric guitar, a bass, and even a clarinet mixed in with all of their music.  I would say that perhaps they are not as reverent with their songs as Mormons are, but they stood for every song.  In the Mormon church, we usually save that for special hymns on special occasions.  And a large amount of the service was spent standing.  There were eight songs in the program!

 Their hymnal was also much bigger than what I was used to.  Some of the songs were modern Christian songs, and so weren't even in the hymnal.  It was a little hard to sing along, since I didn't know any of the words to the songs or the tune, but what made it easier was the fact they had the  words to every song projected up on the screen, which I didn't notice before, because I was so busy looking for the words in the hymnal.  When I did look up, I noticed that hardly anyone was using the hymnal, making me stand out.  With all of this, it makes me think that singing and music are a very large part of their worship.

They also used a different version of the Bible than I was used to.  Where I expected a leather-bound King James Version, they used paperback and water-stained copies of the English Standard Version.  At first I thought that they didn't hold the Bible in as much regard as Mormons, but then I noticed how well-used they were, and I realized that they do respect it, just in a different way than I'm used to.

The thing that stood out the most to me was the fellowship.  They were a small community, but they had such love for each other.  In the Mormon church, what often happens when someone in the ward has a family member pass away is that the Bishop will ask for the congregation to keep the family in their prayers, and then move on with the service.  At the Baptist church, after it was announced that members of their congregation had experienced a loss, they called for a group prayer, and a large number of the congregation stood and went to the front of the chapel, and stood in a group as different members took turns saying a prayer for the family.  The sermon was even about acting as a community to keep each other on the straight and narrow.  After the service was what they called the Fellowship Meal, which they were quick to tell me was every three weeks, and I was more than welcome to come back.

When I first got to this church, I was so nervous, and everything about me made me stand out.  The clothes I was wearing, the fact that I looked in the hymnbook, and that I didn't know when to stand and when to sit.  There were even spoken cues I didn't know to look out for and recognize, let alone what the reply was meant to be.  What made it better was immediately after the service, One of the members came up to me, and after introducing herself, and getting to know me, she walked me around to different members and introduced me to them.  And they were all so friendly.  They invited me to their Fellowship Meal, and the table I sat down at was quick to fill up.  They asked me about school, where I was from, my family.  I was nervous about telling them that I was going to their service for a class, and not because I was actually interested in joining their church, because I didn't want them to make me feel unwlecome, but their attitude towards me didn't change at all.  They asked me what class it was for, and which professor I was taking it from, how the class was going so far, what I liked about it, and what other classes I was taking.  They were so welcoming.  I feel like this is something that we as Mormons always say we should do, and try to do with new members and visitors, but I think that we sometimes fail to do it.

In my class, I'm sure there will be at least one student who doesn't feel like they fit in, or doesn't know what's happening or what the routines that we often take for granted are, like standing to say the pledge of allegiance.  If this experience has taught me anything, it's that the best way to make them feel comfortable is to be as welcoming, and understanding as possible.Fellowship can go such a long way in making someone feel at ease.

Cultural Snapshot

In the wake of Mike Brown's death, there has been a lot of controversy about the way that blacks have been portrayed in the media.  The hashtag #IfTheyGunnedMeDown became increasingly popular as people posted photos of themselves asking which the media would use to portray them/justify their death of they were shot by police.  This hashtag came about after the media started using a photo of Mike Brown looking slightly threatening, and throwing up a "gang sign" as opposed to a more innocent photo of him in his high school cap and gown.  I think that this Twitter movement says a lot about how the media influences our perception of African Americans, especially young male African Americans.

It would seem that a lot of people are fed up with the way African Americans have been portrayed in the media.  In researching news articles about white Americans, and then comparing them to articles about black Americans, I found that most of them use very different terminology.  In the case of Justin Bieber, after assaulting camera men, insulting fans, and allegedly using drugs, news articles state that he "behaved inappropriately".  But in the case of Richard Sherman, a cornerback for the Seattle Seahawks, who started trash talking after running one of the biggest plays of his football career, was called a "thug".  This video from The Daily Show  talks about this after Justin Bieber and Rob Ford were described in news outlets as "Canada's Bad Boys", and "you kind of have to love them anyway.  We still love them."  But the guy who yelled too loudly at a post game celebration is a thug, as opposed to the people who committed actual felonies.

African Americans also have a distinct lack of representation in television.  I went and looked at cast photos of some of the most popular television shows of the last couple of decades.

What I found was startling.  I had watched all of these shows before, but I had never noticed the distinct lack of African Americans in the cast before.  Earlier shows, like Friends and Seinfeld, have none at all.  But it's nice to see that in our more recent shows we've managed to increase the number of African American (or POC) actors to one per show.

Marvel's new cinematic universe has become one of the most popular franchises today, with dozens of movies, and more on the way.  Kids look up to these characters as their heroes, and aspire to be like their favorite icons.  And yet, to date, we only have two African American heroes, Nick Fury and Sam Wilson/The Falcon.  

African American children need black heroes to look up to.  These heroes inspire kids to do better, to be better, so that they can be like their heroes.  Being constantly flashed with images of shiny white heroes sends a message to these kids that they can't be heroes.  That's not their job.

The same goes for girls with the Disney Princess lineup.

To date, there has only been one African American Disney Princess.  

Kids look fr heroes who look like them.  Those are the heroes and characters that they identify with.  Being bombarded with images of whitewashed media gives them a perception of who they are, and what role they're supposed to play.  It also influences how others see them, further influencing their behavior.

It's important for teachers to be aware of how the media is portraying different groups and how that portrayal effects the children in their classroom.  It's important that teachers give them positive examples to look up to, especially in a history class.  If the media won't give them heroes, then I will.

Survey Responses

(Images Courtesy of Google)

I would use a Senatorial setup with the desks.

I would hang up historical memes around the classroom.

There would be a row of computers for students to use in their research and projects.

I would also hang up historical quotes around the classroom.

I would also use a bookshelf with historical novels and books students could use to do research that the school library might not have.

You are preparing to be a teacher. Imagine a typical lesson that you might teach in the future. Below, create a sketch or a description of a typical lesson in your future classroom. 
We would open up with a Bell Ringer, and then an activity to act as a hook to get the students engaged.  Then we would go through the lesson using a mix of lecture and activities to keep the students engaged.  The lesson would end with some kind of formative assessment to make sure the students retained the information.

Imagine the students in the classroom and describe them in more detail. Who are the typical students? What are their backgrounds? What are their interests? Where are they during the lesson?
If I was teaching back in Florida, most of the students would probably be from a rural background.  There would probably be about an even mix of white and black students.  Most kids in secondary education I've found would be more interested in the blood and gore apects of history, rather than the bills and laws part.  Most of the students are probably in their desks or sitting in groups, depending on the activity.

Imagine the surroundings in the classroom and describe them in more detail. What does the room look like? What resources are available to the students? How are those resources used during this lesson?

The room has a wall of windows to help the students feel less like they're "in prison", and to give the room a lighter atmosphere.  The desks are arranged in a way that makes it easier to walk around as I teach, but also encourages class discussion.  There's computers and a projector for presentations, and for students to use to do research.  There's also a bookshelf that students can use to do research.

Imagine the lesson and describe the topic in more detail. What are you teaching? What is the main thing you would want students to learn during this lesson? Why are you teaching this lesson?

I am teaching the students about why we learn about history.  I want students to understand the overall objective that I want them to learn over the course of the year, and that it's important, but I want them to come to that conclusion relatively on their own and with little nudging.  I feel like a lot of students feel like history is extremely boring and unimportant, and something that they can overlook, but it's not.

Imagine your work as a teacher during this lesson and describe it in more detail. What are you doing during the lesson? Where are you in during the lesson? 

I start off at the front of the classroom, but as the discussion goes on, I'll start walking among them.  I'll have a ball or some kind of stuffed animal that I can toss to different students as a way to "cold call" on them.  This makes sure everyone is paying attention and is contributing.  I want students to present their ideas and opinions on whether or not history is important.

Imagine the various lesson activities and describe them in more detail. What are the students doing during the lesson? Why have you chosen these activities?

For this particular lesson, students are discussing why they study history.  This would probably be the first lesson of the year, and it helps give purpose to what they're studying.  I would also probably have them toss the ball or the stuffed animal (probably the mascot of the school) around to each other.  It would help the students get to know who's in the class, and I've found that students are pretty good at calling on people who need to be kept alert.