University Student White Heterosexual Female Will be the first in her family to graduate from college Q: What do you have in common with your teachers? On the surface, I’ve been lucky. I have the privilege of being white and identifying as heterosexual. I am also a woman, and so in an educational setting, I have had the privilege of connecting with most of my teachers who have also been white and female. I can also connect with my teachers because I know we both appreciate a good education. I’ve always enjoyed working hard and putting forth my best effort. I struggle, fail, but then succeed. To me, school has been everything. Throughout high school and continuing into university life, I have dedicated myself to my school work and what I felt being a “good” student meant. I was in the top 5% of my high school graduating class, and I have been on the Dean’s List every quarter at the University of Washington. For me, these accomplishments weren’t just about a title, but instead were my gateway to a promising future. In the same way that I have prioritized my education, I believe that a lot of teachers have done the same, as they have chosen school as their career, which is a huge aspect of their lives. Q: Does it matter that students and teachers have things in common? I grew up as a low income student raised by a single mom in a predominantly high income community of two-parent households. Any information on low-income assistance was something that my mother and I had to find for ourselves. This was true when it came to AP testing fees for my high school classes. I was in a lot of AP classes and wanted to take the tests as I knew this may help me obtain college credits in the future, but every test cost $90. $90?! That was too much for my single mother to afford, especially with multiple AP tests every year. My mom looked into it and found out there was a low-income option that would make the tests affordable for my family. This was great until I found out this information was not provided by my teachers. In class, I went up to my AP Government teacher very quietly and asked if I could have a low-income form for the AP test. He didn’t give the response I was expecting. In fact, it was quite the opposite. He looked at me confused as if he was questioning if what I had just asked him was real. He said, “Oh? You need the form for low-income support on the test?” His voice was louder than I had wanted. I could tell from the eyes of my classmates that a lot of them had heard him. The embarrassment set in. “Yes.” “Oh, umm okay well...I actually don’t have those because I don’t normally have to hand them out. You’ll have to go to the office.” As if I wasn’t already feeling alone in asking for this form, he just confirmed that I was indeed alone. Apparently, I was one of the only students he had ever encountered that needed the form. I went to the office and asked for the form. The lady at the front desk laughed at me. Yes, laughed. She then pointed at a basket filled with papers and said nothing. Then the Athletic Director (who had nothing to do with the situation) felt the need to pipe in. He suspiciously asked me how I would possibly need the form for low-income students if I was able to participate in cheerleading. Not that it was any of his business, but I explained that I actually was very fortunate to have a family member that had offered to help me continue in this extremely expensive sport. He didn’t respond and walked away with a smug grin on his face. On that day “connection” was the last thing I felt with the adults I had encountered. I felt alone, embarrassed, and ashamed for something I couldn’t control. No student should ever have to feel that way, which is exactly why having things in common with our teachers is so important. The role of connection between our students and educators is one that we must place more value on. For students, connection is what makes us feel safe, accepted, and validated. It’s what developing humans need. If even one of those adults had been empathetic that day, I wouldn’t have had to feel ashamed for growing up with a single mom in a low-income household. I would’ve felt accepted for who I was and everything I had been through to get to where I was that day. In our education system, it’s not only important that teachers connect with their students, but that all adults in our education system better support kids who are going through life experiences they themselves might not have experienced. We are thrilled to share that Hailey is ROLL CALL's 2020-21 intern! She is in her final undergraduate year at the University of Washington, and she is also a tutor with the Riverways Education Partnership (formerly The Pipeline Project) serving rural and tribal K-12 students. Connect with her on Instagram @haileybrumley. Photo (c) 2020 Jen Kistner
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Middle School Student White Male Q: What do you have in common with your teachers? A: I unsurprisingly don’t have much in common with my current teachers. I mean, obviously everyone has some things in common with their teachers--we're all human, right? However, things like being human, and being alive, those really broad and abstract things really do not matter. For nearly all of my teachers I have not been able to connect on a personal level to find out things we may have in common. I am male and I have only had three non-substitute teachers who were male. I am also white and nearly all of my teachers have been white from grades K-6. I cant quite grasp how much that interferes with the education of my friends of color. So the two teachers I think Identify with the most would be my 4th and 5th grade teachers. Both of them are male and Caucasian, like me, but there are other things that connect me to those teachers too. One of the best memories I have that bonds me to my 4th grade teacher was when everybody was sharing what they had done over a three-day weekend and once the people who wanted to share had finished, my teacher said, “Who spent the whole weekend playing Halo the Master Chief Collection?” He raised his hand and obviously expected nobody else to raise their hand. And nobody did. Not one single hand was in the air out of the 48 hands in our class, except my teacher's, and of course mine. This small memory seems kind of small and unimportant, but this has meant a lot to me because at that moment I just felt so connected to my teacher and it really helped me pay attention and just realize class is actually worthwhile. Q: Does it matter that students and teachers have things in common? A: I personally think that having things In common with your teachers in absolutely critical. Words cannot explain how important I think this is. I definitely believe that the teachers who have things in common with their students are the ones who have the biggest impact on students' education and, just as importantly, who the students turn out to be. I also think that it is way easier to teach somebody who you are able to identify with them. One thing that I think is the reason that having things in common with your teachers enhances your education (and basically your life) is that having things in common with somebody helps you humanize them. Instead of seeing them as just another random person you see them as an actual human. Instead of seeing your teacher as just another person trying to tell you stuff, you see them as a human with human qualities and an interesting personality. If you are able to see the humanity in your teachers it will help you understand them so much more. There is so much to say about this but it’s hard to put it into words. As somebody who has had many teachers I have not related to, I really think this needs to change. There are a LOT of students who have their education and life limited by the fact that their teachers/mentors don’t seem even that human. Middle School Student Chinese + Caucasian Female Q: What do you have in common with your teachers? A: As a mixed race student, not many teachers reflect my cultural background. When my teachers and I can relate in other ways, I feel as if being a minority doesn’t matter because we connect in other, more important ways. You don’t need to have the same race or gender to understand another person, and even a small commonality can mean the world. I had an amazing 4th grade teacher; she was always extremely enthusiastic and loved teaching. Near the end of the school year, my class had an assignment to write about an important keepsake. Although at the time I had no idea what a keepsake was, I had known for a while that I wanted to write about my cello. I had never really struggled with writing before, but I was very apprehensive about how to put the connection I felt with my instrument into words. I knew it was just a hollow block of wood, but it meant so much more to me. Not many of my peers understood, and the thought that I had to funnel a tornado of thoughts into just five paragraphs was maddening. No words I knew could express my feelings. When it was time to present my essay, I was scared that my teacher wouldn’t understand exactly how I felt, and that I wasn’t precise enough in my explanation. Luckily for me, she had played the violin since she was a kid, and knew exactly what I meant. My teacher understood, and she helped me make my writing clearer. She helped me concentrate and explain my tornado of thoughts coherently. That similarity with music helped me with my education. And although my writing is nowhere near perfect, the fact that I had something in common with my teacher helped me build my skill. Q: Does it matter that students and teachers have things in common? A: Absolutely! I believe the most important part of student teacher relationships is empathy. The ability to see others point of view, and feel with them. If a student understands that their teacher respects them and knows what they’re going through, they are much more likely to respect and understand them back. Although students and teachers can be different, even the smallest commonality can make the biggest impact. Middle School Student Caucasian Female Q: What do you have in common with your teachers? A: I do not have a race. All of my friends have different races though, which has made me learn so much. My best friend Laura is Asian and my other best friend Megan is Filipino. Because I am a white female like many public school teachers, I have had things in common with teachers. It is good I have things in common with my teachers, but they are not diverse, like all of my friends. I would also like my friends to have things in common with their teachers. Also, my parents are divorced, and my brother has moved away to Utah, so my family is somewhat broken apart, but we make it work. I rarely see my dad, only every other weekend. I am with my mom during the weekdays, and every other weekend. None of the teachers I know have had divorced parents, or at least don't speak of it. Students are so diverse. Teachers are not diverse. It is not fair for the kids to not have any teachers like themselves. Teachers and students need to be equally diverse. People should have things in common with the people they spend the most time with and learn from. Q: Does it matter that students and teachers have things in common? A: Yes. Very, very, very much. Even though few students may have things in common with teachers, very many do not. Kids have to have someone to look up to, and teachers can have an impact on that. If teachers were more diverse and kids had things in common with them, then kids would look up to their teachers more, and trust them. If a kid is going through a tough time, the teacher could help a lot more if they had things in common and they went through the same experiences. You have things in common with your friends, which is why you are friends, right? I think that may be why kids do not like school, because they have nothing in common with their teachers. It is easier to learn with a teacher that you have things in common with. There are so many people on this earth that are diverse and most public school teachers in America are white women and public school students in America are diverse. I find that something is wrong there, and we need to fix it so more kids can have things in common with their teachers. High School Student Male White Heterosexual Q: What do you have in common with your teachers? A: We are all trying to get out of this place as fast as possible. Despite the large initial differences seen between teachers and students including race, age, economic status and upbringings; in my opinion and experience what makes the bond between teachers and students tight ends up being much mores simple than one would think. In my experience, it's the attitude of the teacher and their approach to students that really creates a strong relationship, not a "young, hip, relatable" teacher. Even the oldest teachers, with the right attitude have kept it real, and have made class that much more interesting. There's no petty complaining or nagging, it's reality and they understand that kids will either do work or not, and it is really up to the kids to do their work. This ends up making the whole atmosphere of the class more relaxed and casual. In my opinion, this realization is more important than any knowledge that is taught throughout high school. While younger teachers generally have been easier to work with than the older teachers I have had to work with, I have come to the realization that the way the teacher addresses the students, as equals and real people, not children, adds respect into the classroom and allows the students and teachers to be eye-to-eye and have a greater understanding for each other. This helps both teachers and students achieve what they have set out to while being at school. This respect has increased as I worked my way to higher grades, as one would expect with the students becoming more mature. This has allowed me to have more respect for the teachers and the class, and has therefore allowed me to have greater success in their classes. Q: Does it matter that students and teachers have things in common? A: Not necessarily. While commonalities make it easier for students and teachers to level, it is not needed in order to make students and teachers relate. In suburban Bellevue, at my school, I don't believe that race or sexual orientation plays a huge role in how people are treated in our classes. Yes, there are issues with some people in some places, and no I wouldn't honestly know about how this feels or really know what happens because I am a white, straight male. However, based on what I've seen my with friends of color, or those of varying sexual orientations, they are treated equally by teachers and others at our school. From what I've seen everyone is treated fairly equally and the only thing that would initiate being treated differently was any attitude or work incompatibility that might cause issues between students and teachers. But these can just as easily be seen with any white straight student as with any student that is part of any minority group. Photo (c) 2017 Kristin Leong |
ROLL CALLHumanizing the gaps separating teachers and students. Archives
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