Bell Hooks

Bell Hooks, otherwise known as Gloria Jean Watkins, is an American author, feminist and social activist.   Her writings focused on race, class and gender and their ability to produce oppression and domination.  Bell focuses on adressing race, class, and gender in education, art, history, sexuality, mass media and feminism.  She focused a lot of her work on racism and sexism towards black women, something she had seem far too often and had enough of.  Racism and segregation was something Bell also discussed.  She grew up in Kentucky and went to a segregated school for much of her life, eventually going to an integrated one, where the majority was white people.  She had experience racism first hand and she wanted to educate people that it wasn't the right thing to do, as well as the right way to think.

Her will to educate people on social justice and attempt to make the world a better place shows how influential and positive Bell Hooks is.  Her most famous book, Aint I A Woman, is an inspiring book which discusses the education system, media roles, sexism, racism and other issues black woman face, and many other important issues people should be educated about.  She has taught at multiple colleges, including the ivy league school, Yale University.  She is a very educated and influential woman who has for years just tried to educate people on racism and other prejudices that go on in the world, specifically black woman.

Learning is Like a Road Trip..

Learning is like a long road trip.. you hit bumps and may brake down along the way.. but once you get there, it was all worth it :)

           
Learning and education does not always come easy, we all can vouge for that, but in the end, we all know it was all worth it.  Getting a diploma, whether it be high school, college, or any education after that, is something that you can look at for the rest of your life and be proud of yourself and your accomplishments.  It's something NO ONE can ever take away from you, regardless of where life may lead you.  I know when I receive my diploma in May, I am going to feel extremely happy and proud of myself.  I did't have to go to college, but I chose to, and that is something that I will never regret.


In this Course I definitely learned a lot.  I had never taken an education class before nor been aware of how difficult teaching can be.  I think many people don't take it as seriously as they should and think teaching is just a simple piece of cake.  In my eyes, it takes a very special person to be a teacher.

1) Teachers have to be EXTREMELY careful about what they say and preach in a classroom these days.  Students are more diverse than ever; so many things said, even if unintentional, could upset many students without even meaning to.  Teachers have to stay neutral in many things and keep their opinions to themselves.

2) Teachers shouldn't be based on test taking results.  They should be based on what type of teacher they truly are.  A teacher has to be kind, caring, respectable, and passionate about what his/her are teaching.  They also need to be sympathetic and realize this isn't a perfect world and unfortunately difficult and bad things happen sometimes to students.  A great teacher looks at ever student equally and has the desire to teach each student as much as they possibly can and have them learn to their full potential

3) Low income areas many times have less experienced teachers who don't care as much about the students and their education.  It's sad because many of these students don't do well in school, and it's really not their fault.  Many come from poor or broken homes and don't have anyone pushing them to do well or go the extra mile in school.  A lot of these schools are unsafe and not up to date at all with technology and design like other schools that are located in upscale areas.  These children from these schools are more likely to not graduate and end up doing negative things on the streets rather than getting a good education and using their full potential.

Overall, I learned teaching is far from easy.  It's a very professional job in my eyes, and I saw that truly come out when I was observing.  It takes a kind, very patient person to be a teacher.  Teachers can change the world because they're educating and changing students in it.  A teacher has to want to help make the world better and have the desire to better children and their education.  :)

Why In Social Justice So Important in the School System?

Social Justice plays a major role in school systems these days more than ever.  There is so much diversity and so many different types of teachers and students, that if we didn't consider and treat each other equally, school would be a constant struggle, as well a very ackward situation.  I think everywhere in the world should preach social justice; the world would be a much better place.


Teachers need to be aware now more than ever, every student may be completely different than each other.  There's so many races, ethnicities, cultural beliefs, values, morals and social statuses.  A teacher has to recognize and accept this, and treat every single student equally, which they are.  Even faculty needs to practice social justice in order to make the atmosphere of the school in general, peaceful and happy.  There is no room for racism, stereotypes, or predjudices in schools and their shouldn't be.  Children learn better when in a comfortable and happy environment, where they can recognize that they may be different than their peers, and that's completely okay!  It makes school more exciting and interesting because they can all learn from each other and see cultural things and experiences that other children may have! :)