Bad Boys

I'm not sure what to think of chapter 20. I agree with part all of it, I'm just not sure whether it is a good thing or a bad thing. An example is the fact that many African -American children are see to have an "attitude" problem, and are often chastised for it. I have heard this first hand from AA teachers that they see this as a problem in schools. They believe that it is a cultural problem. If it is what it is, than I'm wondering if chapter 20 has a subliminal message saying that the children that are called out for their attitude problems, are disproportionate in color. If this is the case, I might agree. I do not believe that it is a cultural problem among black children, I believe it is a problem with children in general. many have not been taught by their parents that there is a time and place to roll your eyes or scoff. And school, just like any other disciplinarian institution, does demand that these behaviors be put on hold. It is normal for children to question authority (especially adolescents), and I do believe that they should be called out on it privately. So much of school culture is about showing "who you are" off to everybody, down tothe clothes you where and what kind of notebooks you have in tote. This is not a new concept, so to say that giving an attitude is merely subjective to the teacher, is simply not true. Students are fully aware that the way they wear their ball cap shows what they stand for and they also know exactly what copping attitude looks like and who it is going to cause a problem. they shouldn't be surprised when they get in trouble for it.

group project

well, our group isn't going for three weeks, so we aren't exactly in a rush. Our goal is to create a comprehensive presentation that demonstrates our desire to create an anti alcohal/drug environment in a missle school classroom. WE are thinking that we would like to have a conversation with the class about what deterred, or didn't deter, them in middle school, from these kind of behaviors. We also would like to focus how teachers can use books in their classrooms and incoorporate them into the material that would be along these topical lines. WE are going to try to engage the class in book talks etc... Hopefully it will go well!