Chapter+12+Culture

=CULTURE=

//**Homesick**// by Jean Fritz //Homesick// by [|Jean Fritz]is a book I read frequently as child and as a teen. I found it comforting to read the words of someone who had experienced similar events. This book describes the pre-adolescent years of author Jean Fritz. She was born the only daughter of two American missionaries to China. The only culture she has ever known is the Chinese culture that surrounds her. Throughout the book, Jean continues to try and find her identity as an American citizen. At the end of the book, Jean and her family are forced to return the United States due to the communist uprising in China. Santrock describes culture as the behaviors, beliefs, and patterns that are generated by a particular group (p. 418). Fritz demonstrates the impact that culture can have on a particular individual and how this is magnified when an individual is trapped between two cultures. In the book Jean also discovers the ethnocentrism (Santrock, p. 419) of the American culture when she returns to the United States. Many the peers that she meets have little concept of the cultures outside of rural Pennsylvania. Jean is asked several degrading questions about the Chinese culture and traditions. This book also gives clear examples of the differences between a culture that is more collectivistic (China) and culture that is individualistic (USA), (Santrock, p. 420). The Chinese people Jean interacts with have a sense of family and cultural traditions. Even the Communist uprising demonstrates the focus the group. In the USA, the people Jean encounters are more self-focused with more individual goals. I would highly recommend this novel to anyone who wishes to gain insight into the lives of third culture kids. (Emily Grace)

Quinceanera
media type="youtube" key="G75S9397a8c" height="390" width="480" As an 8th grade teacher, I would often overhear my Hispanic female students making plans for their Quinceaneras. When I finally got curious enough to ask, I found that they were excited to tell me all about Quinceaneras including some of the symbolism behind this rite of passage. As the name implies the Quinceanera takes place at a Hispanic teen's 15th birthday and symbolizes her becoming a woman. These ceremonies are usually very elaborate, often costing upwards of $10,000 or more. As the clip shows, there are often both male and female attendants--with the female attendants playing pivotal roles at the beginning of the festivities and the male attendants being their to facilitate her transition to adulthood for the latter part of the ceremony. One very important practice during a Quinceanera is when the girl's oldest brother removes her shoes and replaces them with a pair that is more deserving of the woman his sister is becoming (this is depicted in the clip). There is also several choreographed dance routines that the girl participates them, some of which are done solely with the male attendants and are sexually suggestive, symbolizing the transition to an age of adult sexuality (Santrock, 422). (Jason)


 * Individualism v. Collectivism**

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One website/blog I found this week, which I think would be useful when teaching about Individualism and Collectivism in the classroom is called Culturally Teaching, more specifically the page titled, [|“I or We? How Individual or Group Orientation Influences Cultures and Education]. This website discusses the two concepts which Santrock writes about in the culture section of Chapter 12 (p.420-421) in simple easy to understand terms. This site also gives some background and history of the two different cultural approaches of Me or We and includes a short video of Geert Hofstede, a Dutch Anthropologist who researches different cultural dimensions. Another post on this site called [|Individualism and Collectivism :: Personal Examples]gives relatable examples students can use in their own lives. Finally, the third post is titled [|Individualism and Collectivism: What Does Cultural Dimension Have to Do with Education]. This posting really helped me to understand all the details and I believe would be useful for all educators to refresh their memories of Collectivism v. Individualism. (Caitlin)=====

=SOCIOECONOMIC STATUS AND POVERTY= media type="youtube" key="m0PRB4YsXn4?version=3" height="390" width="640"

FREEDOM WRITERS There may not be a better film demonstrating the concepts of "Diversity and Differences" along with "Prejudice, Discrimination, and Bias" than Freedom Writers. Erin Gruwell, the daughter of a wealthy attorney, does what she can to provide a caring attitude to her students in her class. In our classroom text __Adolescence__ (Santrock), these concepts are discussed throughout pages 444-445. __Prejudice__ is the unjustified negative attitude towards an individual because of the individual's membership in a group. All of the students in Erin Gruwell's class are either African American, Hispanic, or of Oriental descent. All of the students were viewed by the school as problem-students because of where they lived and their supposed association with gangs. Recent studies show African American and Latino adolescents experienced discrimination at school. This discrimination was shown throughout the movie with negative attitudes from Ms. Gruwell's peers and co-workers. (John)

media type="custom" key="9132844" Poverty and its many factors which effect development and performance in the classroom are addressed by Santrock in chapter 12 (Selection 14490). Among these were psychological effects and increased statistical probability for failure in school. The chapter also speaks of ways to counter poverty (sel. 14552) including community programs. The author that is seemingly the most referred in schools on this subject is Ruby Payne. This video (though somewhat dry) has some basic tips to help deal with poverty in a school setting. (Joel)
 * Ruby Payne**


 * Separate and Unequal**
 * []**
 * Bob Herbert is a columnist for the New York Times who addressed the issue of poverty and low socioeconomic status in schools. While Brown vs. Board of Education revoked "separate is equal" in education, Herbert argues that the issue of race has remained the fundamental cause of low performance in schools attended by students suffering from poverty and low socioeconomic status (p. 424). His research demonstrates that the majority of lower achieving schools are predominantly composed of black or hispanic students living in neighborhoods with a similar culture. Herbert also argues that the only chance students from lower achieving schools have at improving their performance in school is through their integration into more affluent schools. Herbert states, "If you really want to improve education of poor children, you have to get them away from learning environments that are smothered by poverty." To support his argument,Herbert provides data from studies that demonstrate the improved performance of poverty students in middle-class schools in comparison to their disadvantaged counterparts. Herbert also suggests a couple of methods for better integration of students in schools. One of his suggestions is the placement of a high-achieving magnet school in a high poverty neighborhood. The other suggesion is the deliberate transfer of low SES students from high poverty schools to more affluent ones. (Mary)**

**[|Poverty and dropout rates high locally]**
This news article is from the Daily Comet, Houma Louisiana and tells child poverty and wellbeing. Kids Cout Data Book tracks the status of children across the United States, and Louisiana ranked 49th in front of Mississippi for overall child wellbeing. In Terrebonne Louisiana the number of abuse and neglect cases increased nearly 40% to 100 last year compared to two years earlier. Santrock mentions those in poverty can live with more conflict, violence, instability and chaos in their homes (pg 426). This news article also highlights high school dropout rate and the comparisons with the nation’s rate. National dropout rate is about 25% where as Louisiana’s rate of 33%. Also in Terrebonne there are 67 teenagers out of every 1,000 that will become pregnant while nationally the rate is 43%. Also the infant-mortality rate is much higher amongst these teens. (Melanie)
 * Daily Comet**
 * By Nikki Buskey**

[|The Coalition for Cultural Competency]

Santrock states that "Many ethnic minority individuals continue to experience persistent forms of prejudice, discrimination, and bias." (p. 434) One way to deal with prejudice and bias is education. Education, such a Cultural Competency training, opens the minds of the trainees to understand the cultural experiences of those cultures that are different than yours. Cultural Competency education consists of broadening awareness, awareness of one's own attitude toward others, knowledge of the diverse realities and the skills to apply this opened understanding in a context that doesn't offend or ridicule. (Brad)

Rites of passage are usually thought of in countries. We often do not make the correlation between Americans and this concept. "The absence of clear-cut rites of passage makes the attainment of adult status so ambiguous that many individuals are unsure whether they have reached it or not" (435). I used to teach my 10th grade students a book entitled "The House on Mango Street". This book's major theme was "coming of age". It is about a pre-teen Latina girl (Esperanza) growing up in a harsh poor socioeconomic section of Chicago whose residents were predominantly of Latin decent. Cisneros speaks of Esperanza's struggle to fit in with her peers who seem to want to grow up the same way most Latina girls grow up (having sex too soon, dressing inappropriately, and even getting married too young). Esperanza does not agree with the low-expectations of her and her peers simply because they live in that neighborhood with their ethnicity. (Malinda)

=MEDIA AND TECHNOLOGY=

Prior to the advances in technology, a parent's worries and fears about their child's welfare centered upon influences of peers, television shows, basic video games, and awareness of strangers/predators. Today, these worries and fears increase as a result of a child's access to both people and situations through technology that can influence them in a negative manner, endangering their mental well-being as well as possibly their lives. In John Santrock's textbook __Adolescenc__e, several graphs are provided revealing the drastic change in the number of students that spend their time playing video games, listening to music, using computers, and watching television (Santrock, p. 438). It is interesting to note that television watching and video game playing peak in early adolescence and then begin to decline due to other media resources (computers and internet). For parents, computers, cell phones, and the internet create another aspect of worry and protection. Adolescents are easily learning how to communicate with peers through text messaging, social networks, and email. As a result it becomes very easy for adolescents and teens to become involved with situations that parents are not aware of; situations that can cause self-harm or even harm to others if bullying is occuring. The media has become active in sharing stories of the harsh effects of cyber-bullying which has educated society about the dangers of today's technology. Schools are creating more awareness in hopes of educating teachers to prevent such forms of bullying. Parents also need access and reminders regarding resources that can help prevent their children from being consumed by the use of technology. The website __[|Chat Danger]__ provides a resource for parents and children that share scenarios and real life stories about conflicts that develop as a result of today's technology. It is a great website to use when educating one's adolescent about the proper use of text messaging and email. Another website titled __[|The Center for Safe and Responsible Internet Use]__ provides numerous resources for educators and administrators. Overall, according to an article titled "Electronic Media, Violence and Adolescents: An Emerging Public Health Problem", from the journal of //[|Adolescent Health],// the term electronic aggression refers to the behavior adolescents display as a result of of their access to technology. According to Santrock, "one recent study revealed the presence of more than 400 self-injury online message baords....also there has been a substantial increase in youth harassment and cyberbullying on the Internet (p.444). Media and Technology are one more fear that parents and educators must monitor to ensure the safety of our children. (KERRY)

Digital media and social networking have become a way of life for many adolescents and emerging adults (pg. 442-443). From many young adults, it has become their primary form on communication. Research states that nearly 1 in 3 adolescents will self disclose more online than in person. In the Hulu vido provided below, you can watch The Facebook Obsession, a documentry that chronicals the rise of Facebook and follows the stories of several young adults and their positive and negative experiences with Facebook. (Katie) media type="custom" key="9091722"

Another interesting movie about Facebook is "The Social Network," which came out last October. The film won numerous awards, both Golden Globes and Academy Awards, including best director, best screenplay, and best score. The film was produced by a number of talented people with reputations based on their previous work. The film was written by Aaron Sorkin, who created the TV show The West Wing and wrote movies like A Few Good Men and The American President. He's well-known for his clever dialogue, often delivered by characters while they walk. The director was David Fincher, who, oddly enough, is better known as a horror movie director. His debut was Alien3, and he also director Seven, as well as action movies like Panic Room and Fight Club. The film's score was composed by Trent Reznor, who has recorded numerous albums under the name Nine Inch Nails. It's an interesting collection of people, who combined their efforts to tell the story of Facebook. Facebook has had significant impact on our culture by uniting people who may be hundreds or thousands of miles away. This film explains the circumstances that led to Facebook's creation. Oh, and the acting is good too. (Zak)

__**The Boy She Met Online**__

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Technology has influenced adolescents these days. Internet consumption seems to be a very big issue. A study shows that one out of three adolescents feel comfortable talking about themselves online (p.443). There are many adolescents go on dating sites to talk with strangers. As parents, they should be concerned what their children use the internet for. Adolescents should be reminded about internet dangers. "The Boy She Met Online" is about a teenager who talks to a random guy on a dating website. The guy is in prison, but he lies to her that he is a college student. They finally meet and there are some problems going on.This movie is a very good example for parents as well because the girl's mother gets suspicious about her daughter's behavior and tries to find out the truth.(Gik)

**__California Students Fighting a "Dropout Factory"__** The media plays a huge role in the lives of teens today. Most of this chapter describes the negative aspects of media, especially television when it comes to violence, behaviors, sex and academics. This chapter also talks about how SES status affects schools and the resources provided to them. I would like to tie both of these sections together because the media can produce negative effects on today’s teens but it can also be a huge resource to schools if used properly. The problem is, many low SES schools don’t have the money for technology and it is taking a toll on graduate rates. The clip you will watch down below is about “Dropout Factories” which are schools who have low SES and have a 50% or higher dropout rate. The students at this particular school are banding together to fight the dropout rate. They are researching the problem and they found that one of the dropout factors is because there is not adequate technology for students to use.

*This video clip is from [|www.channelone.com]. Normally you have to have an account (it’s free and a great resource to have). I use this website to watch current events with my students every Monday and Friday and I don’t have to worry about the content or long commercial breaks. ** (LeAnn) **

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Differences and Diversity []

race/ethnicity, school features." //ScienceDaily//, 16 Nov. 2010. Web. 18 Apr. 2011.

**Social Costs of Achievement Vary by Race/Ethnicity, School Features. ** Doing well in school and alienated by their peers (Santrock p.433) are both important trial during adolescence. The two don’t always go together, as when adolescence are left out of their circle of peers for being smart. One study states that these challenges differ for different ethnic groups. While being smart in school may earn scholarships and good citizenship awards, there are considerable differences in the price of academic success across and ethnic groups. What school corporations, administrators, teachers and other staff members can do to aid these students is to “create an environment of 'identity safety' in which students of different ethnic backgrounds feel accepted and respected,” Science Daily. P. 433 Miranda