“Children and adults are never solitary individuals, immune to the social and cultural forces around them. Gaining understanding of the cultural norms and assumptions we bring as teachers, as well as those brought by each of the students in our classes, is an often difficult task but is essential to providing a learning space that is welcoming and caring and sets up all students for academic and social success.”(Knoester, 2008, p.154)
This statement really highlights the importance of being self-aware and reflective of the biases and assumptions we bring with us into the classroom. We have all been influenced throughout our lives by our experiences, the ways in which we grew up and were raised, the environments we lived in, our cultural backgrounds, the traditions we practiced, etc. These influences have played a role in shaping our perspectives, ideas, and views, which have ultimately also established biases within each of us. But it can be dangerous if we allow these biases to cloud our judgments within the classroom. Of course, we should not give up the values and beliefs we’ve established through our experiences, but we have to be mindful of how certain biases we may have can be harmful to our students. Our classroom needs to be a community where students feel safe, valued, understood, and listened to. It must be an environment that is free of judgment. Knoester (2008) describes the value in “descriptive review” in that it allows us to really look at our students, gain different perspectives about who they are as learners, and how to better accommodate them in this respect (p. 147). No child, student, or adult is spared from the “social and cultural forces” that surround them, but I want to make sure as an educator that these forces have no impact or bearing when I teach in the classroom or how I view my students (Knoester, 2008, p. 154). I want to make sure that each student feels as though they have a voice and that their opinions and ideas are listened to and respected. Our students are unique individuals who deserve to be treated equally and have access to equal education, with the questions of who they are or where they come from playing no part in their success.
I agree that we as educators have to examine not only our students carefully with a “descriptive review” as Knoester points out, but also ourselves and where we come from to remove as many bias a possible. I don’t think that we as individuals and teachers will always remove our bias 100 percent while doing these reviews, but we need to always try to keep ourselves in check and abide by the protocols that Knoester provides. Also, I think it’s also crucial that we keep each other in check among colleagues to assure that we are in the same page when we create these reviews and presentations of our students to have an open, welcoming, and safe environment not only in our classrooms, but also in our school.