Activity Three

     In my opinion these three subjects, language, literacy, and power, all link together which causes a relationship. The language one speaks is a vital marker of class-membership and social class withholds a disclaimer over individuals' will to learn. Power intertwines all of these. It is important for educators who plan to teach the Appalachian region to understand that relationship because although the students in this area speak a different dialect they are not incorrect. The way they speak is how they were raised; teachers need to intertwine the three subjects and allow students to speak the way they were taught. "I knew she was ignorant just as soon as she opened her mouth!" (Purcell-Gates) I chose this quote because after reading the entire chapter I still felt it was the most important sentence within the article. I was so surprised that someone could be so judgmental over language. Where would the world be today if we judged every person based on their dialect or accent? The nation we live in today is constantly growing in population and diversity! Teachers along with others should never judge "a book by it's cover". Just because someone speaks or looks differently than yourself does not mean they are ignorant or uneducated. Teachers can overcome cultural deficits perspectives of their students by getting to know and understand where they come from. As stated in Luis Moll's Research, "The home investigations revealed that many families had abundant knowledge that the schools did not know about..." (Funds of knowledge) This quote proves that no matter what people look like they are always capable of anything; they may just simply need to retrieve the information in a different form.

      Elementary reading instruction can contribute to poor literacy attainment and instruction because the emphasis on processes of how to read can crowd out attention to reading for ideas, information, and concepts—the very skills needed for literacy attainment. Also teachers and schools can contribute to poor literacy instruction because of a cloudy judgement pertaining to cultural deficits and or cultural differences. For example, a teacher who may move to China to teach math may have the cultural difference perspective that all students from this culture are mathematically inclined which may not be true. An example for a cultural deficit perspective could be that a teacher from Pittsburgh may move to the lower area of Appalachia and immediately assumes that the students lack elements to succeed in education because the area is different than Pittsburgh or may seem to withhold a lower class. Again, power and social class definitely affect these theories and outlooks. "Ogbu claims that these variables and others create barriers for involuntary minorities and keep them in a position of subordination" (Bolima). It is important to allow students to speak their personal dialect. This is who they are and with these terms they will perform best. Students who learn to write in their own dialect first have a better chance of grasping English literacy skills. By allowing students to write and talk in their own dialect teachers are showing them that although the languages are different they are similar and okay to use. Some strategies that can improve literacy instruction for speakers of non-standard English include building bridges of meaningfulness between home and school experiences or acknowledging the legitimacy of the cultural heritages as worthy content to be taught in the formal curriculum. With these strategies the teacher again is showing that the students' cultural capital is important and that although their dialect may be different it is not wrong; they are capable of learning!

     The "Where I Am From" project supported culturally responsive teaching because it allowed each and every student to be themselves and share their individual cultural background. This project showed the class that everyone is different and similar. The photo stories helped build bridges of meaningfulness between home and school experiences. The class created an encouraging and supportive environment by watching each others' videos and making positive comments on them. This project also showed the students that the teacher acknowledged the legitimacy of all the cultural heritages as worthy content to be taught in the formal curriculum. I plan on implementing culturally responsive teaching practices in my future classroom by creating instruction that centers around all learners. In my opinion the curriculum should be active, inquiry-based activities that engage reluctant academic readers and writers. I would also use inquiry based writing that connects writing practices with real-world experiences and tasks.Technology will be used within my classroom as a tool to engage and motivate students. A strategy I would implement to support literacy learning for all learners would be to allow students a choice in writing tasks and genres because this will cause better motivation and engagement. I would also be sure to use texts that relate to students' cultures to alleviate cultural deficits and to keep students engaged. (Adolescent literacy)

 Citations:

• Adolescent literacy. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.ncte.org/library/NCTEFiles/Resources/Positions/Chron0907ResearchBrief.pdf 
• Bolima, D. (n.d.). Contexts for understanding: Educational learning theories. Retrieved from http://staff.washington.edu/saki/strategies/101/new_page_5.htm 
• Epstein, P., & Harring-Harris, L. (2011, September 15). Honoring dialect and increasing student performance in standard english. Retrieved from http://www.nwp.org/cs/public/print
• Funds of knowledge: A look at luis moll's research into hidden family resources. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B38BSV_Zo7aHSGVoMWEtOFRGMVE/edit
• O'brien, J. (2003, May 10). Tall tales of Appalachia. Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/2003/05/10/opinion/tall-tales-of-appalachia.html 
• Purcell-Gates, V. P. G. (n.d.). As soon as she opened her mouth!: Issues of language,literacy, and power. In The skin we speak. Retrieved from https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B6DFAmexYq7vMGQxMjI1OTEtMjAyZS00NzJmLTg1OTUtODlmMGQ0ZDIxOTVk/edit?hl=en_U