What are you Willing to do to Educate all Children?

     I believe that one of the most important aspects of schooling is that you learn to respect and work with people of all different backgrounds. I am willing to do whatever it takes to ensure that each of my students regardless of their race, gender, sexual orientation, etc. are educated and prepared to function in a culturally diverse society. I think that the first step in effectively educating each of my students is making sure that I am educated and well-versed on every topic that I bring forward. It is impossible for me to teach topics, especially those that are sensitive to certain groups of students, if I am uneducated on the topics myself. I certainly wish that some of my teachers from grade school would have taken the time to educate themselves on sensitive topics before engaging in conversations that played into stereotypes or "single stories." 

     While typing this blog, a story from fourth grade comes to mind. One day after school, I was sitting with a group of other fourth graders as we waited to be dismissed from school. To cure our boredom, we played the game "sticks." I remember playing a round against a boy in my class and I won this round. He became infuriated and told me that he wanted to enslave me and "my people" again. Ten-year-old me did not quite understand how harmful that statement was, but I knew it was inappropriate, so I told a nearby teacher what happened. She replied by saying "Kristian, he has a black best friend, so he would never say something like that." I did not challenge her because she was the teacher, so I thought she knew best. When I got home that day and told my mom what happened, she was livid and could not believe that the teacher would suggest something like that. Looking back on that experience, I wish that this teacher would have been more educated and had taken the time to educate the boy that had made the hateful remark. 

     Going into a career field that is mostly dominated by middle-aged white women, like the one I mentioned in my story above, is a big motivator for me. I feel like because I have experienced racially motivated stereotyping, I will be able to use my experiences to educate every child that walks into my classroom in a way that they can relate to. With that being said, I am willing to put in the work to educate myself in all aspects that will affect any student in my class. I will find ways to make connections to the backgrounds of my students so that they feel comfortable participating and most importantly, so that they feel seen. 

Kristian Pogue