tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4720154522729513418.post2512062631881268552..comments2023-07-08T02:32:23.793-07:00Comments on Teaching Matters at LU: Teaching at an HBCU: How Do/Should We Do It?Nancyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04917082233981368034noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4720154522729513418.post-75450331469547610832010-04-26T09:26:42.535-07:002010-04-26T09:26:42.535-07:00As a former religious HBCU white faculty member I ...As a former religious HBCU white faculty member I can relate to Bill's situation and add that there was a bit more judgemental tone to the similar questions I received in the classroom. I will take the discussion a step further - What do you do when students say they don't want to learn about other races but just "their history" and you are teaching an American History survey or equivilent? The problem I had was not making students aware of their black heritage or culture, but rather trying to get them to step out of that culture and understand and engage a different point of view. The situation was so bad in some segements of the student population that white and non-white faculty members were beginning to whisper that the school was becoming a "black cocoon", insular and closed off from the world at large.Jonnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4720154522729513418.post-92227828469594030232010-01-27T23:02:29.245-08:002010-01-27T23:02:29.245-08:00I believe sometimes I teach different content as w...I believe sometimes I teach different content as well as (sometimes) teach content differently primarily because of the students I have and only indirectly because I'm teaching at an HBCU.<br /><br />Here is an interesting quote:<br /><br />"In the 21st century, one of the best anti-poverty programs is a world-class education. In this country, the success of our children cannot depend more on where they live than their potential." (President Obama's State of the Union Speech, Jan. 27, 2010)Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04738925154661156525noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4720154522729513418.post-38106714944262335902010-01-27T06:16:49.834-08:002010-01-27T06:16:49.834-08:00It all depends on your overall goal; because it is...It all depends on your overall goal; because it is possible that the means justify the end or the end justifies the means. I assume your priorities and approach would be different if you wanted to produce missionaries for Africa, which may have been part of Lincoln University's original goal, or (instead) produce graduates who would compete with graduates from predominantly white universities for American jobs or (rather) compete with graduates from universities around the world (including China and India) for global jobs.Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04738925154661156525noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4720154522729513418.post-5683237054084294602010-01-26T05:10:06.379-08:002010-01-26T05:10:06.379-08:00Linda, I had similar thoughts to yours upon readin...Linda, I had similar thoughts to yours upon reading Dr. Dade’s essay. I am even including some of her reflections in my Blog Post next week that will speak more about writing reflection than pedagogical reflection, but in my position as an academic and compositionists, the two go hand-in-hand.<br />I approach grammar in mostly the same way as you do. The students are very attuned to “code switching,” even if they lack deep critical thinking on other subjects. I don’t find that students are resistant to learning “Standard Academic English” as much as acquiring that knowledge is difficult for many students. As someone who has teaches almost exclusively the four FYC composition courses (ENG 098 and ENG 099 both developmental and ENG 101 and ENG102), I find that teaching ENG 098 is the most difficult.<br />As a white professor, I find the issue of my race coming up at some point in the semester. In reference to Dr. Dade question about a curriculum “centered in a ‘Black’ reality,” I am not sure. But, there are certainly essay and book selections that are centered on a “Black” reality. I have been asked on more than one occasion in more than one class, what I, as a white male, think about a racial issue being raised in the text. One aspect to this question is that my explicit opinion is left out of class discussions as I am focused on having the students understand what the text is saying or playing “devil’s advocate” to invoke thought. The students make a point to inquire about what I “really think.” Once I qualify that I can’t speak for all white people anymore than any one black student can speak for all black people, the question/answer/dialogue is a chance for honest dialogue about race in a real way that I think is beneficial to both students and myself in the critical pedagogy that I subscribe to uphold in the classroom.Billhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08578921992799332394noreply@blogger.com