Transcript Chapter Fifteen

School & Society: Chapter 15
The Cultural Contexts of Children and Youth
Chapter Fifteen
The Cultural Contexts of
Children and Youth
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(c) 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.
Tozer/Senese/Violas, School and Society, 5e
School & Society: Chapter 15
The Cultural Contexts of Children and Youth
The student’s multiple cultural contexts
• Family
 nurturing, socialization, cultural learning
• Local community
 peer groups, community values
• Wider culture
 language and values of society; goods and services
• “Youth culture”
 national and international influences
 music, values, clothing
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(c) 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.
Tozer/Senese/Violas, School and Society, 5e
School & Society: Chapter 15
The Cultural Contexts of Children and Youth
Three perspectives on youth culture
• Descriptive
demographic information
• Interpretive
making sense of youth culture through study
• Reciprocal
learning about kids, from kids
mutual respect and desire to communicate
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(c) 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.
Tozer/Senese/Violas, School and Society, 5e
School & Society: Chapter 15
The Cultural Contexts of Children and Youth
A Low-Income Latino Community as
One Cultural Context
• The hope of college matriculation and
compensation of family
 fear of dropping out and menial jobs
 expectations of taking care of parents
• The limits of family knowledge
 no “procedural knowledge”
• Schools’ limited influence on students’ future
concepts
 too much freedom, not enough structure
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(c) 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.
Tozer/Senese/Violas, School and Society, 5e
School & Society: Chapter 15
The Cultural Contexts of Children and Youth
Myths about parent-teacher relationships
• Teachers automatically have the skills to work effectively
with families and community.
• Parent-teacher interaction is the same at all grade levels.
• Parent-teacher interaction is the same at all schools and all
communities.
• Teachers are secure enough that working with parents is
not threatening.
• Family structures don’t change for children.
• Parent-teacher relationships are shaped by rational,
objective adult behavior and have nothing to do with the
child’s relationship to either adult.
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(c) 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.
Tozer/Senese/Violas, School and Society, 5e
School & Society: Chapter 15
The Cultural Contexts of Children and Youth
What is parental involvement?
• Definitions can differ among parents: it
might be getting a child to school on time
ready for the day; it might be serving on
governing councils
• Definitions can differ between teacher and
parent: what is “appropriate” involvement?
Who decides?
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(c) 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.
Tozer/Senese/Violas, School and Society, 5e
School & Society: Chapter 15
The Cultural Contexts of Children and Youth
Epstein’s typology of involvement
• Communicating
• Parenting
• Decision making
• Volunteering
• Learning at home • Collaborating
with community
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(c) 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.
Tozer/Senese/Violas, School and Society, 5e
School & Society: Chapter 15
The Cultural Contexts of Children and Youth
Barriers to Effective Relationships
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Differing expectations of involvement
Lack of teacher training
Time
Cultural and class barriers
Psychological impediments
The “disconnect from democracy”
What else?
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(c) 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.
Tozer/Senese/Violas, School and Society, 5e
School & Society: Chapter 15
The Cultural Contexts of Children and Youth
Knowledge, skills, and dispositions of
effective teachers
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No one single set of strategies
Make room for positive interactions
Ask for parents’ help and expertise
Cultural curiosity and awareness
Teachers as learners about children and
families
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(c) 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.
Tozer/Senese/Violas, School and Society, 5e
School & Society: Chapter 15
The Cultural Contexts of Children and Youth
Concluding Remarks
• Teachers who want to understand students
must understand the multiple contexts that
influence students.
Youth culture—peers and shared values
Community—impacts students’ perceptions of
themselves
Family—students’ first and most enduring
teachers
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(c) 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.
Tozer/Senese/Violas, School and Society, 5e
School & Society: Chapter 15
The Cultural Contexts of Children and Youth
Developing Your Professional
Vocabulary
• consumerism
• family culture versus
school culture
• parents in school decision
making
• parent volunteering
• students’ expectations
versus fears
• students’ future aspirations
• students’ hopes versus
expectations
• teacher-parent
collaboration
• varieties of parent
involvement
• youth culture
• youth markets
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(c) 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.
Tozer/Senese/Violas, School and Society, 5e