![]() Why is this important during the first six weeks of school? Because the story we as teachers tell ourselves about who our students are and what they are capable of will guide our instructional decision-making for the rest of the year. For rebels Morpheus and Neo, they are helping others see the real world (the counter-narrative) over the master narrative that programs the Matrix.Ĭounter Narratives Support Student Identity and Agency The counter narrative is a form of identity development and affirmation that has a long history among different communities of color, growing out of colonialism. It’s simply a narrative that counters or reframes the master narrative by highlighting other parts of the story, by telling the story from another perspective, or rejecting misconceptions or half-truths in the master narrative. Then there’s what we call a counter narrative. There are explicit negative stories about certain groups of people such as “Those people don’t care about education.” (Fill in the blank about who “those people” are). It sells us on the idea of being a meritocracy while playing down the impact of racialization and implicit bias. It spins a story about why some people experience social and economic advantages and why others are disadvantaged. It’s the national myths like “America is the land of opportunity” that we a all grow up hearing and believe even when we know its true in reality. This is the explanatory story society tells as to why things are the way they are. First there is the dominant culture’s master narrative. There are two types of stories in operation is society. We all know a narrative is just another name for a story. Trust is the source from which the culturally responsive teacher draws her authority, compassion, and cooperation.Ĭonventional wisdom then tells us that the next step is establishing rules, norms, and routines so that there’s order in the classroom.īut when teaching for cultural responsiveness, I believe the activation of a strong counter narrative is the second thing that should happen in the first six weeks of school. ![]() In my last post, I shared that trust is the secret weapon of the culturally responsive teacher and it is the first thing that needs to be cultivated in the opening weeks of school. This is the second in a series of a six part series on setting up the school year to be more culturally responsive. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |