I would just like to make a comment in reference to today's discussion concerning the movie we are watching. I would just like to say that while I feel it is so important to embrace who you are in terms of societal class, I do not think you should let that limit your goals and what you accomplish. I think Matt's mom, from the movie is wonderful because she is doing what she knows to do to provide for her family. However, I also feel that she should encourage her children to strive to live a better life than she feels she did. Any parent should want their children to lead a good life and get what they want out of it.

I agree that a parent should be supportive and want the best for their children, but just like said in class, the possibility that a child might exceed their status can make them jealous or scared. The fear of the unknown that lies in another class when you haven't actually been a part of it can cause people to withhold their ambitions. Acceptance is something that most all people try to find within a group and if they rise in class they fear that someone might find out their background and "expose" them.

I also feel that as teachers we can help students strive for the best by our expectations. We all know that if you have high expectations of a student they will perform better than if you low expectations. The problem is that other students, teachers and even the media give off feelings of low expectation, or portray similar situations , to "under-privileged" students. Throughout school, if students are constantly bombarded with people that expect little of them, they will become conditioned to this. Someone has to break that mold of expectation and plant the seeds of high expectation and the drive to make better of their situation. That person has to be us, the teacher.

Chris, I absolutely agree. I too feel that teachers should always hold their students to high expectations and prove to them that at least one person believes they can do well. I feel that it is so vitally important to stress to each child how important they are and that we believe in their success. Without that support, how far can a student get alone? I am saddened at the fact that there are teachers out there who believe that a person's class or cultural background will determine their success. When teachers stereotype and base their assumptions of a child's ability solely on how they were raised, their initial predictions will come true because they will ultimately not hold that student up to his or her highest expectations. It IS our job as teachers to ensure that each child is getting the most out of their education.

I also agree that is it our job as teachers to make sure that our students are all treated the same and encouraged to succeed. But at the same time I wonder how I will be able to overcome the ingrained prejudices that I have grown up with. I would like to say that I do not have them but we all do because we are a product of the thinking and philosophies of our social and economic class. This subject makes me think of the first article we read "What's Wrong with America's Teachers" that said that we teach who we are and who we were taught to be. It makes me wonder how you can overcome these "hidden" prejudices that we don't even realize we have to be able to have an open and welcoming class for all of our students.