Taking Time for Students: Doing What is Right for Students Given New Constraints in Education

Am I teaching content to students, or am I teaching students how to access and learn content?  

This is the fundamental question that guides my teaching practice on a daily basis.  

If I decide that I am teaching content to students, it means that the material I am teaching is more important than the students I am teaching.  I might find myself rushing through lessons so that I can prove to my administrator that I "finished" them and am ready to move on to the next, regardless of how well my students were able to acquire the skills and knowledge taught through that lesson.  I might overlook the fact that several of my students failed a test, and chalk it up to the fact that they just "didn't try hard enough."  Or I might send students off with homework that they are unable to complete independently, leaving them to fend for themselves, hopefully finding an outside resource to help them learn what I should have taught them during their school day.

Recent trends in education reform are pushing teachers to teach more with less, at breakneck speed, and without depth or responsiveness to individual students' abilities. This is encouraging many teachers to teach content to students instead of teaching students how to access and learn content.  Tragically, this is also resulting in lower student performance, higher teacher turnover, and overall public dissatisfaction with their local school systems.

If we are going to reverse the current trends in education, we have to re-focus on why we chose to teach in the first place: to teach students.  

Creating a student-centered classroom in the fast-paced, dehumanized world of standardized tests and Common Core scope and sequence is a challenge, but I know that we professionals are capable of rising to the challenge.  

We might not be able to control the curriculum that comes our way, but we can find ways to inspire our students to make connections and investigate topics outside of the classroom.  We cannot control the standardized tests, with their "trick" questions and cultural bias, but we can humanize our students by working with them to set reasonable goals for themselves, being transparent about what their scores mean and what skills they can work on to improve their performance, and celebrating their individual accomplishments.  Ultimately, we cannot control the time demands set upon us, but we can choose to take the time we have to be student-centered educators and to share resources, strategies, and ideas to support each other in this work.

As a student-centered bilingual educator in the new world of Common Core, I have created opportunities for my students to access and learn content in several ways.  I am taking the time today to share with you some of these strategies so that you might find yourself empowered to continue doing so as well.

  

First, I take the time to provide a safe environment for students to try new things and express new ideas, where they feel comfortable making mistakes and trying again.  This is done through community-building activities and creating classroom working agreements that facilitate a collaborative culture in our room.  I continuously ask students for input into topics of study or activities we could do as a class, and I have a suggestion box for students who want to communicate with me anonymously about anything that is happening in class.  I also celebrate student work and frequently use their writing as exemplar texts to analyze as a class, teaching students how to provide and receive constructive feedback.

I also take the time give students plenty of reasons to trust me to guide them in their learning, allowing them to see me as an advocate for them as learners.  This means that I am open and honest with students about what it means to be an English Language Learner, using examples of my own status as a Spanish Language Learner to show challenges that even I encounter as a bilingual person who is fluent in two languages. I empower students in their education by teaching them about the history of laws surrounding bilingual and ESL education, highlighting stories from people who were English Language Learners in classrooms before ESL became a right.  We confront stereotypes about English language proficiency and intelligence, and I have taught my students that, as their ESL teacher, I am teaching them language and study skills that they need to access their core education when they leave my classroom.  I am not a "remedial" teacher and they are not "remedial" students.  In fact, they are highly intelligent because they are "doing school" in a language that is new to them!  I also encourage them to maintain their other languages knowing it will provide them with greater opportunities in life because the world needs more multilingual/multicultural people.

Finally, I take the time to get to know students as people so that I can spark their fire for lifelong learning.  This process is much less concrete, and can be affected by so many other life circumstances, but my purpose as an educator is to make connections to the students' lives.  This means finding a real-world application for everything we ask students to do in school, so that when they ask why they have to learn something I always have a real-world answer.  Does the student want to own his own auto shop?  Then he'll have to know how to use language and problem-solving skills to write a business plan, read invoices, communicate effectively with clients and workers, and understand and apply knowledge from auto manuals.  Does the student enjoy writing, but not see it as a viable career?  Then show her real world examples of authors who did other jobs while building their craft and getting published.  Does the student feel lost, not knowing what he wants to do in life?  Help him explore all kinds of topics, independently and collaboratively, connected to what he enjoys doing in his spare time.

In closing, if we are going to teach students to access and learn content, we must first get to know each of them as people. We have to know what their interests and skill sets are, what their future goals may be, and how they see themselves as learners.  We then must build a climate of trust so that they will see our instruction and methods as valuable learning opportunities that utilize their input and will help keep all options for them as they become more independent.  We must also empower them to challenge existing stereotypes and know their own history so that they can advocate for their own learning.  

If we want students to achieve, we need to provide the right environment for them to do so.  This means trusting that by taking the precious time to do so, we will cultivate high achievers and lifelong learners.  I believe we can.  And I know that we will.

*Umoja*Unidad*Unity*We Are One*

Dear Friends,

As our school district goes through the latest round of administrative restructuring, it is becoming more and more clear that we are being guided by the principles of the corporate education reform movement.  My school, with all my wonderful, bright, caring and diverse students, has recently been officially labeled an "intensive intervention" school.  This is because our students are supposedly not making enough progress on their standardized tests.  When we look at the data about who is testing poorly, we see that they are generally all English Language Learners and students of color who all happen to be living in poverty.  Coincidence?  I think not.

I can send you copies of examples of this standardized test to prove my assertion that the tests are written with a Eurocentric, monolingual focus, that presumes access to a wealth of literature and information outside of the classroom, but suffice to say that there are reading comprehension questions on it that require extensive background knowledge about things like blacksmiths, classic literature, advanced mythology, and "bake pasta," whatever that is.

As a result of our scores, teachers are now required to teach an extra class at the end of the day that is either an intervention for struggling learners, an extension for advanced learners (i.e. the white kids), or something in-between that they need to create on their own for the kids in "the middle."  They are being told that the materials for the interventions are "on order," so the teachers are frantically spending their planning time (or being put in a position to ask their student teachers to waste their apprenticeship time) making copies of curriculum books and teacher guides so that they are ready to teach these classes starting next week.  They have been given no standards or goals for the students to reach to exit out of such classes, and the children's parents have not been notified, nor has permission been sought or given.  I could tell you all about how absurd this curriculum is, but will spare you the pathetic details.  The teachers are also not trained in how to use this curriculum, and had to take "crash courses" in it yesterday afternoon.

The "extension" course for the "advanced" kids is already packaged up, sparkling new, and ready to go! Each teacher has his/her own kit full of brand new books and teaching materials.  They don't really have to prepare much because, by nature, the "advanced" kids love school, feel positive about being there, and are excited about learning.  Wouldn't you if you were always getting positive reinforcement?  There is absolutely no equity in this situation.

I'm watching school closings from around the country, and can't help but make the connection that I, too, will be shut down, and my students will have their civil rights taken away from them.  I don't know what to do, except continue to teach and write about what is happening.  Maybe someone, somewhere will care, and I will be inspired by a new generation of civil rights leaders.

Here's the latest on what happened in Philadelphia.  Give us a couple years, when our "interventions" don't lead to student progress on standardized tests, and I will be sending you the same kind of video with my face on it.

http://www.mediamobilizing.org/ourschools

Sincerely,
Scholastic Chaos
*umoja*unidad*unity*we are one*

Building Relationships, Respect, and Literacy Through a "Faces of Learning"-Inspired Project

If we think of our schools as volumes of books filled with the vignettes of every person whose presence has graced their hallways and classrooms, we are left to wonder what stories are being told? What are the major themes and how have they been developed? What is the plot structure and how do problems find resolutions? Who are the characters and how do they change over time? How are stories told through multiple points of view and what effect does perspective have on the interpretation of events and their outcomes? Most importantly, what lessons are learned from reading these stories?

Unlike books that can be simply picked up and read, people, particularly young people, are not easily so.  To get to know a person (to "read" the story of a person) takes time and often a lot of nurturing through building relationships founded on mutual respect and appreciation.  Knowing that stories are often shared in good company, among those with whom we feel most comfortable, we teachers become the hosts of the events that will bring our students together to tell their stories.  What might these events be?  How will we set the tone to make sure that all stories are heard and appreciated?

It is with this in mind that I have designed a first quarter standards-based unit that revolves around storytelling and community-building. Inspired by the "Faces of Learning" website, this multi-layered performance-based project follows the Language Arts scope and sequence outlined in Curriculum Companion, the tool some Wisconsin districts have chosen to guide our implementation of the Common Core State Standards, and is embedded with English Language Development standards for my ESL-focused class.  

First and foremost, I want to build respectful relationships with each of my students and teach them to respect themselves and each other as we get to know about who we are as a community of learners.  My goal is to show them that I see each one as a unique person, worthy of respect and value, who has her/his own strengths and weaknesses.  I also want them to see me as a lifelong learner with my own strengths and weaknesses who is also worthy of respect.  We are doing this through an investigation of our own multiple intelligence, learning styles, and language proficiency (added intentionally for ELL's).  This information will be compiled into a learner profile and used to help students set individual goals for their intellectual and social growth.  

I also want to empower students to respectfully advocate for their own learning.  To do this, I am modeling for them ways that I, as a teacher, advocate for their collective learning, and I am transparent about how I adapt my instruction to fit their individual needs.  As students discover more about themselves as learners, we practice ways for them to advocate for their own learning in my classroom and beyond.  Through discussions of formal versus informal register in communication and learning about cultural expectations for showing respect, the students will be equipped with the skills necessary to communicate respectfully with a diverse group of peers and adults in our community to advocate for their needs and be responsive to the needs of others.  

The most important element of this project is the humanization of students.  Not only do I want to create a safe space for students to investigate themselves as learners and respect and appreciate themselves, each other, and me as their teacher, I also want them to share this "data" in a human way with others in our school community.  This is why they will be using this experience to write their own learning story to share with families and staff via a classroom website.  

As this project grows, I believe that it will continue to foster a climate of strong relationships, as people find similarities with each other and learn to appreciate differences.  It also cultivates respect for individuality, as each person's learning story reflects her/his own unique perspective.  I look forward to seeing the growth our students will make this year as a result of this strong foundation of self-awareness, respect, and relationships we are building through this project.  I also look forward to seeing the growth our staff will make this year as they hear directly from students about their learning experiences, their challenges and successes, in our schools.

The Simplicity of Appreciation

"The roots of all goodness lie in the soil of appreciation for goodness."

-14th Dalai Lama

"Thanks!  Have a nice night!"

I heard those words from the assistant manager every time I clocked out from my shift at the job I had in college.  I always replied with the customary "You're welcome!" but would walk away secretly puzzled that I was being thanked simply for doing the job that was expected of me (I mean, it felt nice to be thanked, but didn't he realize I got paid to be there?).  Now that I am a classroom manager, however, I see what he was really doing every time he thanked me. He was modeling respectful behavior and expressing appreciation for my contribution to our workplace so that I would take pride in my work and act the same toward him, our co-workers, and our clients.  And it worked.

I've taken the same principle and applied to the way I interact with my students.  Just like that manager, I believe that respect is both earned and taught, and that it is my responsibility to model respectful behavior toward my students so that they will learn how to be respectful toward me and others.  I, therefore, thank them at the end of every class so that they are left with words of appreciation from their teacher.  I use the word "please" when asking them to complete challenging assignments, and consistently point out their strengths and good character as they go about their routines in our classroom.  I explicitly teach them how to use respectful language and we practice using formal register in our language-focused classroom.  We work together to establish norms for respectful interactions, agree to positive behavior expectations to hold each other accountable, and we do community-building activities to learn to appreciate one another. When disrespectful behavior happens, we address it and practice strategies for fixing it.

Once expectations for respect are established, taught, and practiced, I spend the rest of the year reinforcing these interactions.  I try to greet each student individually as s/he enters the classroom, and take a genuine interest in each of their lives often asking them questions to see how they are that day, what the latest news is, and how their family members are.  I work to learn about their culture, in terms of both their youth culture and their home culture, and am honest with them about the fact that I value what they teach me.  In turn, I teach them about my own culture, sharing stories about my own family or my adventures as a lifelong learner. 

My goal as an educator is to consistently be a role model for these young people as they are learning to become positive members of our larger community.  I want them to know what it feels like to be appreciated and treated respectfully so that they develop a high sense of self-worth.  I also want them to know how to show appreciation and respect for others so that they can be models for them.  When we show young people our appreciation for their goodness and teach them how to be respectful, we are making wonderful progress toward creating a more appreciative and respectful community for generations to come.

Three Reasons to Be a Teacher

3 Reasons to be a Teacher:

1)  June

2)  July

3)  August

Ah, the dog days of summer.  Time to sleep in, enjoy coffee on the porch, take the kids to the beach and the park, travel, barbeque, camp, catch up on the latest gossip on daytime television, read novels from this summer's best seller list, and generally be responsibility-free for the whole season.  For many, this is what they think of when they think of teaching:  working a job that has the incredible benefit of three months of absolute laziness a year.  While this may sound enticing, anybody who has spent any time either with a teacher or as a teacher knows that this rosy picture of luxury is far from the reality of what summer is like for many people in this profession.

Summer vacation for me meant 80 hours of curriculum development work, confined to a windowless library at one of our district's high schools.  Thankfully, they were kind enough to assign us to one of the few air-conditioned places in our buildings.  We spent the first week being re-trained on the newly-adopted Common Core State Standards and were discouraged from working at our own pace.  What was touted as time for us to write curriculum turned into lecture upon lecture about how to create performance-based assessments, write standards-based units and lessons, and identify mentor texts and resources that we might use to support our instruction.  We then broke for the summer, planning to return to the table in August for the second half of this work, where we would reconvene in the confines of yet another windowless conference room at our district office, rested, relaxed, and ready to crank out all of the units we would need for the upcoming school year.

I then traveled to Minneapolis for five days to attend a conference on dual language immersion.  In the comfort of a conference room with light refreshments, we learned about the fundamentals of dual language immersion, the research that supports this type of instruction, and the effective strategies for pedagogy in this program.  Our focus was on using standards to design units, creating and sustaining the space for students to use language in our classrooms, and lesson planning in the DLI classroom.  My co-worker and I had brought our curriculum-writing resources with us to this conference, fully intending to continue our work back in our shared hotel room; however, after a long day of learning we were too mentally exhausted to get much of anything accomplished aside from dinner and a quick phone call home to our respective families.  "Don't worry," we assured each other, "the curriculum will get written soon.  We will just have to do it when we get home."

Well, now we're home, and now it's almost August.  In three short weeks, I need to have unit outlines, lesson plans, performance-based assessments and rubrics written, as well as identified mentor texts, graphic organizers, and protocols created for goal-setting and progress-monitoring for five different classes:  6th grade ESL, 7th grade ESL, 8th grade ESL, 6th grade Spanish Language Arts, and 7th grade Spanish Language Arts.  All of these courses need to be complementary to mainstream, core academic classes, and they need to be creative enough to engage the reluctant learners that I often find in my classroom.  Furthermore, the Spanish Language Arts classes need to follow the same scope and sequence as their English Language Arts counterparts without doubling-up on instruction or translating the ELA content.  As I'm sure you educators can imagine, this is truly an art form that requires constant collaboration with the ELA teachers--collaboration that may or may not happen this summer based on scheduling conflicts.

What could cause such scheduling conflicts, you ask?  Aren't the other teachers just lying around waiting for September?

Not exactly.  

Most of the teachers with whom I need to collaborate are teaching summer school.  Others are attending graduate school or taking classes--paid for with their own money and not reimbursed by the district or tax-deductible--to maintain their certification or to earn a small raise of less than $100 a month.  You might find teachers traveling to gain experiences they will take back to their classrooms, attending annual data retreats to discuss disproportionality in our schools and develop strategies for addressing specific needs in the upcoming school year, participating in school improvement focus groups, or tutoring children who need extra summer support.  Maybe they have other summer jobs that help pay the bills, or they are taking the time to catch up on professional reading that gets ignored during the hectic academic year.  As I created this list, I just realized myself that I need to update my Professional Development Plan (PDP), something I am sure many others are also writing this summer.  And, speaking of professional development, there are hundreds of hours being volunteered right now by educators in my district who are attending PD's on becoming Middle School Math Specialists, receiving training in Developmental Designs, and learning about how to use hip hop to design culturally-responsive units and engage students in their learning.  One of my friends actually organized an Edcamp here in the area for professional collaboration, and routinely learns in online forums as well.  Whatever they are doing, you can rest-assured that there is plenty of work being accomplished during the months of summer.

So why did I become a teacher?  Was it really for June, July, and August?  

In some ways, perhaps.

In June, I reflected on the beauty of a full-inclusion education, which is what my school offers.  I asked my students for feedback about what I, as their teacher, did that worked and how they thought I could improve.  I was reminded of the fact that I became a teacher to provide young people with a high-quality education that met their needs, respected their diversity, and challenged them to think critically about the world around them.

In July, I reflected on the power of a bilingual education, which is the direction in which my school is heading.  I asked questions and challenged existing systems in our school to help create the framework for high-leverage Dual Language Instruction in our building.  I was reminded of the fact that I became a teacher to advocate for student learning, to facilitate cultural and linguistic fluidity, and to prepare young people for our global society by giving them the opportunity to learn academic content while simultaneously developing fluency in two languages.

In August, I plan to reflect on effective pedagogy as I spend the last few weeks of summer writing the fall curriculum that will be taught in my school.  I will ask myself what students need to know and be able to do to be successful in the upcoming year.  I will remind myself of the fact that I became a teacher to design units of instruction that engage students to the highest level of their ability and beyond, reflect their interests, and teach them to respect themselves, each other, and their environment, while preparing them for higher learning or careers beyond high school.

In short, yes, I did become a teacher for June, July, and August, as these months provide me with the time I need for personal and professional reflection so that when the chaos of the academic school year begins I am well-prepared for everything that comes our way.  Cheers to all you other educators who also take this time to become better practitioners.  Our students and their families are grateful for your dedication and fortunate to have you as their educators.  Enjoy the rest of your summer and best of luck getting ready for the fall.

Harumph! Kids These Days! On Changing Our Tone About Young People

"There can be no keener revelation of a society’s soul than the way in which it treats its children."

- Nelson Mandela

A lot has been said in the media lately about the degeneration of our youth and their seeming lack of moral character, their resulting destructive behavior, and their defiance.  I, personally, was involved in a conversation recently where the woman with whom I was talking mentioned how much she appreciates people like me who have a heart for educating middle school students because, if left up to her, "I would just want to smack those little brats around if I had to teach them!" she exclaimed.

Really?  Smack them around?  For what? 

Anybody who has gone through formal training to be a teacher and anybody who has worked with young people for some time knows that during these formative years they go through an incredible amount of changes, rapidly and chaotically, generally without a lot of understanding of what is happening to them.  The early adolescent phase (roughly ages 11-14) is exceptionally difficult for students physically, chemically, socially, and emotionally.  As their bodies grow faster than sometimes their brains can keep up, they begin to care about what others think of them and start to select friendships based on common interests or perceived identities.  They get very insecure about new physical developments--voices cracking, acne, clumsiness, becoming young women or men, newly discovered physical attractions, body image, self-esteem--you name it, they are confronted with it, all for the first time and all during these years. Intellectually, these people move from what developmental psychologist Jean Piaget terms, "Concrete Operational" thinking to "Formal Operational," which means that they go from seeing the world in very obvious, clearly defined ways to thinking in more abstract terms.  Ever try to use sarcasm or irony with an eight year old only to be left with crickets chirping or hurt feelings?  Walk into an eighth grade classroom, on the other hand, and it's practically the standard form of communication.  

All of these physical changes lead to further complications in terms of young adolescents' social/emotional development.  It is during these years that they begin to question the world around them, exploring their own beliefs and identities, and forming their own opinions based on their new experiences and brain capacities.  They become sensitive to issues of equity and social justice, often challenging disciplinary decisions they believe to be unfairly administered or advocating for some type of change in their community.  They squabble, goof around, fidget in desks that they are quickly outgrowing, and make and break friendships almost on a daily basis.  The mantra for middle school tends to be the idea of defining oneself and then defending that identity in the midst of peer pressure, cliques, "in" crowds and "out" crowds.  These are the years when bullying is heightened as insecurities flare and cause these young people to judge others they perceive to be different.  The irony is that all these young people really want is to be accepted, and in fighting for that acceptance, they often scramble over each other in the race to "coolness."  Anybody will tell you that the simplest way to define who you are is to identify who you are not.  Bullying comes from insecure people who target others who are not like them.

So what do we do to confront issues of bullying in our schools?  What do we do to guide these young people toward the kind of behavior that we adults deem "socially acceptable"?

Most of the time, we model exactly what we do not want them to do.

Turn on network television and you will see "judges" on tv shows using their position of power to berate people in their courtrooms; you will see politicians and talking heads demonizing teachers and launching vicious attacks on good people's character, all while yelling over them in interviews; and you will see an explosion of heated conversation about the story of a young person who was essentially stalked and killed by an adult for walking through the "wrong neighborhood" while wearing a hoodie.  Go to your favorite social media outlet and watch threads of people dehumanizing each other, name-calling and personally attacking people they don't even know for their opinions or beliefs.  Read how complicated issues get simplified, and people argue with each other using 140 characters or less.  Witness the rise of social media "trolls," whose sole purpose is to act as internet bullies.  All around us, figuratively and literally, wars are waged and lives are lost as bullying rages on a global scale.

We adults can't seem to figure out how to get along, yet we have the audacity to blame young people for their behavior? 

I suppose it's easier that way, for us to define who we are based on who we are not.  Being fixated on the woes of the younger generation keeps us distracted from looking at ourselves and challenging our own behavior.  When we disconnect from our responsibility for raising our youth, it becomes second nature to find someone else to blame for their behavior.  If it's not me, it must be the teachers.  If it's not me, it must be other parents.  If it's not me, it must be poverty.  If it's not me, it must be atheists.  If it's not me, it must be...well...anybody but me.

My challenge to you today is to begin to reflect on your own behavior, language, and actions.  How are you modeling the behavior you expect to see from young people today?  How are you actively engaged in being a positive force of change in our society?  Most importantly, how are you challenging your own beliefs, digging deep to find and address hidden bias and agendas, and possibly working through your own insecurities or fears?  Our young people need you to be there for them.  They need to see consistency in appropriate behavior to clearly understand and act on what is expected of them.  Above all else, our young people need you to love them, care for them, be kind to them, and give them the benefit of the doubt as they grow and make mistakes along the way.  Remember, you were once a member of the proverbial group of "[harumph!] kids these days," and you probably frustrated a lot of older people who did not understand your generation.  Treat these new young people how you wish you had been treated, and I guarantee you will see that just like you, they have many wonderful things to offer the world.  They just need our guidance to help them get there.

When the Spirit Catches You: On Finding My Path to Exploring and Teaching Hmong History and Culture at the Middle Level

“The Hmong have a phrase, hais cuaj txub kaum txub, which means 'to speak of all kinds of things.' It is often used at the beginning of an oral narrative as a way of reminding the listeners that the world is full of things that may not seem to be connected but actually are; that no event occurs in isolation; that you can miss a lot by sticking to the point; and that the storyteller is likely to be rather long-winded.” 

Anne Fadiman

My introduction to the narrative of Hmong culture came from reading the book The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down:  A Hmong Child, Her American Doctors, and the Collision of Two Cultures, by Anne Fadiman.  It is the emotional tale of how the family of Lia Lee, a gravely ill Hmong child, wrestles with the conflicts that arise when they try to treat their daughter medically according to their own cultural practices while navigating the system of Western medicine and American expectations.  The book was assigned to me in my undergraduate Medical Spanish class as a way to teach us about language translation and cultural sensitivity in the medical field, but what it really made me ponder on a deeper level was the question of how we could all become more culturally proficient in order to enhance our understanding of the human experience and to respectfully navigate the edges of cultural conflict and communication.  More importantly, I began to wonder what I could do, personally, to learn more about this interesting group of people that I had never known existed, even though many lived in my own state.

These questions resurfaced when I found myself interviewing for an ESL (English as a Second Language) teaching position at a diverse middle school where the two largest groups of English Language Learners were Latino and Hmong students.  The movie Gran Torino had just come out, and watching it made me believe that I had established a decent amount of background knowledge about Hmong people.  When the principal asked me to discuss my experience working with Hmong students, including what I understood about their history and culture, I felt rather confident in my textbook answer: 

"The Hmong people are a group of people who helped the American soldiers in the Viet Nam War, and in exchange for their support in fighting the Viet Cong, our government promised them asylum in the United States when the war was over.  We didn't exactly deliver quickly on that promise, however, and  there are many Hmong people who are still waiting in refugee camps in Laos and Thailand to be brought here.  I worked with Hmong students at a different school on this side of town, and learned that their major settlements in the U.S. are in California, Minnesota, and Wisconsin.  As fairly recent immigrants to our country, Hmong students often deal with cultural, linguistic, and racial conflicts.  They also struggle with the push to become 'Americanized,' yet their families want them to maintain their own cultural and linguistic identity.  As a teacher of Hmong students, it is important to understand how to support their language development as well as their cultural identity, including being sensitive to the great deal of stress that they may be experiencing as a result of culture shock or trauma from being in refugee camps their entire lives." 

I might have answered that question well enough to get into my first teaching job, but I knew it was a far cry from getting me to teach with the kind of cultural responsiveness I knew it would take to do the job well.  At that moment, I made a professional commitment to get to know these students and their families as best I could so that I could teach them in a way that resonated with their lives.

For four years, I read and responded to my Hmong students' essays and stories about their identities and dealing with stereotypes.    I listened to them chat about attending the annual Hmong New Year festivities and asked them to share their experiences with the class.  I learned about the mysterious ancient history of the Plain of Jars in Laos, and made explicit connections to the mysterious Olmec heads from our integrated Latin America unit.  I also taught a unit that involved our class researching their own immigration history and sharing what they felt comfortable telling others, and I continued to build a trusting environment where everybody felt welcomed and appreciated.

By Year Five, I had decided to take a leap of faith and actually teach a quarter-long unit about Hmong history and culture.

I had no real idea how to start or what resources I would use, but I trusted that my students would help guide the way, and they absolutely rose to the occasion!  I wrote a rationale for the unit, typed up some Essential Questions (to guide the instruction), aligned Learning Targets with academic English language development standards, and away I went.  The most important step in this process was when I shared my overview with my eighth grade Hmong students and asked them if they thought this was something they felt comfortable with me teaching.  As soon as I had their blessing to continue with the unit, I asked them for their input about what I should make sure to include in a unit about their history and culture, and what topics I might need to avoid. 

As I tracked down resources, I continued to check in with my Hmong student "advisory council."  I previewed all materials ahead of time and made note of particular conversation topics I wanted to be sure to address and got my students' approval before introducing the materials in class.  I taught the class how to have a circle discussion, and how to ask and answer questions in respectful, productive ways to move our conversations along.  By the end of the unit, I had managed to find a way to blend realistic fiction, non-fiction, video resources, and structured conversation to support students in deepening their understanding of Hmong history and culture as well as finding cross-cultural similarities that they never knew existed.  I watched as our Hmong students eagerly led discussions, answered and asked deep questions, and wrote profound reflections of their learning.  The tone in our classroom, always positive, became almost familial as students shared mutual respect and appreciation for each other, and this led to increased English language development for all students.  Everyone learned how to read and take notes on academic texts, respond to literature by making connections and asking questions, and they became adept at contrastive analysis of fiction versus non-fiction text.  They wrote essays about their interpretations of the "American identity," and when it came time to choose a topic for the documentary I asked them to make about our school, many students chose to investigate diversity in our building.

All in all the Hmong unit was a success!  I believe it was a wonderful learning experience for all students and I am committed to refining it over time.  Moreover, I hope to extend this unit beyond my own classroom and collaborate with other educators to integrate these themes across the disciplines.  It may not be much, but I know it is a step in the right direction towards enhancing multicultural education and cultural proficiency for all.

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~

Rest in Peace, Lia Lee, 1982-2012.  The world truly is full of things that do not appear to be connected, but really are.  Your story sparked a flame that eventually created this unit, which was brought to fruition in March of this year, 2013.  In honor of your courage and your family, thank you for catching my spirit and inspiring the next generation of Hmong leaders, visionaries, and teachers. [http://www.mercedsunstar.com/2012/09/08/2523532/subject-of-fadimans-spirit-dies.html]

Resources used in this unit:

Cha, Dia.  Dia's Story Cloth.  Stitched by Chue and Nhia Thao Cha.  New York:  Lee and Low Books, 1996.

Cha, Dia, Mai Zong Vue, and Steve Carmen.  Field Guide to Hmong Culture.  Wisconsin:  Madison Children's Museum, 2004.

Deitz Shea, Pegi.  Tangled Threads:  A Hmong Girl's Story.  Boston, MA:  Houghton Mifflin Harcourt; 2003.

Wisconsin Public Television.  Being Hmong Means Being Free [DVD].  United States:  Corporation for Public Broadcasting.  2000.  (Available from http://video.wpt2.org/video/1726513324/) 

On the Plain of Jars:  Various internet travel blogs and videos from the region found through search engines