cultural competence

What A White Man Could Do, That I Couldn't

Submitted by NikkiBarnes on Mon, 09/01/2008 - 9:21pm.

Well, my saga with Jaramis continues...FINALLY, in this second blog.

"Nikki, there is this kid that you need to meet." Mr. Lenny Carson, the math teacher on our 7th grade team, shared this with me during our many conversations about our students after school one day.

"He's smart, competative, and he can hold a conversation with an adult".

"But, he's got a bit of an attitude that you've got to get through; he's tough". "His name is Jay Whitaker."

While his name didn't ring a bell, I trusted Lenny and his judgment. We knew one another's strengths as teachers, and we constantly tag-teamed with students to try to get the best out of them.

Lenny invited me to stop by the Friday Afterschool Basketball Game that he and our Social Studies teacher, Mr. Lane, coordinated on their own. They created this after school event to give students a "reason" to behave in school. Students who wanted to particpate had to have a positive week of behavior. In addition to a game, Mr. Carson and Mr. Lane provided pizza. It was a hit with all the guys and several of the girls....especially those who tended to have behavioral problems.

When I stopped by the game that Friday, I saw several familiar faces and a few I did not know. I instantly zoomed in on the young man with whom I'd had the "confrontation" in the hallway. Hmmmm, how did HE get in? Then I heard Mr. Carson call him "Jay," and I dropped my jaw...inside my head.

I saw how easily Mr. Carson and Mr. Lane interacted with this young man with whom I'd had such a negative experience. When Jay got rough, they called him out on it, and he got back in line. He smiled with them and genuinely seemed to enjoy playing basketball with them. There was no back talk or disrespect. There was just a good game of basketball.

When I left, I wondered what Mr. Carson saw in Jay. He seemed like an ordinary student to me...with a smart mouth, of course. But, why did Mr. Carson think I needed to get to know him? Jay and I did not get started on a good note. I thought...what can I learn from these white men who seem to have been able to connect with a young, competitive, African-American male when I could not?

Next Blog: Super teachers are for television! It's teamwork we need!

Proud, stubborn, and down right mean....a diamond in the rough

Submitted by NikkiBarnes on Mon, 04/14/2008 - 10:05pm.

Jay almost 10 years later - Never Give Up!

When I first met Jay, it was not a good experience. He was in the 6th grade and walking on the "wrong" side of the hall in a middle school that prided itself on tight, controlled student movement. I happened to be coming down the hall and said to him, "Young man, you're supposed to be on the right hand side of the hall." He looked behind himself and all around the hall as if it was impossible for my comments to be directed at him. I then clarified that I was speaking to him and that he needed to move, at which point he looked at me with great defiance and began to mumble under his breath. Because I did not know him, I did not go full "authoritarian" on him, but I did move closer to him and added some "stern" to my tone of voice to which I believe he said, "She ain't talkin' to me". So, I turned on my warm-demander. I moved a little closer to him. "Son," I said in a lower voice, "you know you are supposed to walk on the right hand side of the hall and that's what I want you to do." Jay made a point of not looking at me, yet he certainly did not lower his eyes...he just looked anywhere else. My eyes stayed focused on him. He never acknowledged me, but he did move to the other side of the hall and headed on his way with much swagger. I believe he even looked back at me and scowled a little.

I did not have much interaction with Jay after that as I was a 7th grade teacher and my classroom was located in a different part of the school, but I did not forget him nor the aura of defiance that surrounded him....and something else I could not quite identify.

Little did I know that my my teammates, Mr. Carson and Mr. Lane who taught math and social studies respectively, were building rapport with Jay through their Friday-Good Behavior Basketball Games & Pizza Parties.

On the next blog...What a white, male teacher could do that I could not.