Conclusion

Final thoughts on Gary R. Howard's We Can't Teach What We Don't Know: White Teachers, Multiracial Schools


I've had a wonderful experience reading Howard's text in addition to teaching in a multiracial classroom. Howard talks a lot about working with African American students. In my placement at Reavis, I would say that the majority of my students are Latino. But when Howard discusses working with African American students, we can translate this into working with students of all races. I have never considered the idea of White dominance and how it pervades the minds of all cultures. Through Howard's explanation of this, I am beginning to see how I must become a White Transformationist teacher and make it a life-long goal to teach others about the importance of celebrating diversity.

There are a number of questions that I still have a hard time wrestling with. I have come across some wonderful insights as to how I will be able to better work with my multicultural students, but some ideas, feelings, and beliefs will come with time. I know that I have dedicated my life to being the best teacher that I can be, but there are still some things I am unsure about. Here are some questions:

• What if there are not enough White teachers who intend to become Transitionist teachers?
• If bad things/experiences keep happening to our multicultural classes, then how can we teach our students that we as White teachers care for and believe in them if this idea of White dominance continues to persist?
• How can White teachers and teachers of other cultures work together to show students to importance of diversity?

I have a plan as to where I want to go next in developing my professional growth for the future. 

1. Because I am working toward my ESL endorsement and studying to teach English Literature, I have begun thinking about what I can do for readers of all ages. I have already begun writing a children's book where I will blend pictures with words and teach students about different cultures. The book I am currently working on does not have a title yet, but it will go further into explaining one Mexican folktale focusing on a young girl, Isabella. By the end of this semester, I will have created a binded and completed hardcover book that I will use in my classroom library. I will also have submitted my manuscript to at least five multicultural-center children's publishers. 
2. I plan to read the following books over the summer to further my understanding and my beliefs on how to better work with diverse students: The Flat World and Education: How America's Commitment to Equity Will Determine Our Future by Linda Darling Hammond, Other People's Children: Cultural Conflict in the Classroom by Lisa Delpit, The Trouble with Black Boys and Other Reflections on Race, Equity, and the Future of Public Education by Pedro A. Noguera, Courageous Conversations About Race: a Field Guide for Achieving Equity in Schools by Glenn E. Singleton and Curtis Linton (eds.), and Start Where You Are, But Don't Stay There: Understanding Diversity, Opportunity Gaps, and Teaching in Today's Classrooms by Richard Milner. These books were all suggested to me in my Education 380: Novice Teaching course, and they all focus on diversity. Since Howard's book has changed something within me, I can only imagine how I will feel when I have finished reading these additional five books. 
3. I have already begun creating a Reading Group for ESL students of all ages. My best friend and her family are from Mexico. They run a music program out of their home where they teach the violin and piano. Since I am at their home quite frequently, I have been asked by some of the students' parents to teach their children how to read better. When summer comes and some of the students are at my friend's house for lessons, I plan to read with these students in hopes of strengthening both their reading skills and their love for reading. 
4. On Saturday, April 14th, the Moody Bible Institute will be holding its 7th Annual Chicagoland ESL Conference. I was invited one year, but was unable to attend due to a busy schedule. I may try to attend it this year since it seems very interesting to me. 

Reading Howard's text has been very rewarding to me. I have thought about and struggled with a number of concepts he presents in his text. I also encouraged you to read his book We Can't Teach What We Don't Know: White Teachers, Multiracial Schools, especially if you are considering working with diverse students. 

Chapters 7 & 8

Chapter 7 - White Teachers and School Reform: Toward a Transformationist Pedagogy & 
Chapter 8 - Our Unfinished Work: White Educators and La Tierra Transformativa 


How do we prepare a predominantly White teacher population to work effectively with radically and culturally diverse students?

This is the question that Howard poses and answers in the last two chapters of this text.

Howard presents this idea of teachers as being transformationists, people who intend to change their lives so that they can better work to change the lives of others. Howard gives three beliefs of transformationist White teachers: race matters, change begins with us, and beliefs determine outcomes.

Race Matters: When a White teacher first walks into a culturally diverse classroom, the students are going to notice one thing: the teacher is White. Students enter our classrooms with preconceived notions about who we are based upon the color of our skin. One of Howard's teacher friends explains how she teaches her class: "I teach a color-blind curriculum, so race is not a factor in my classroom" (122). Howard himself writes that "to be worthy of our students, we as transformationist White teachers know that we must be intelligent and real about issues of race" (123).

Change Begins With Us: School transformation begins with the teachers' willingness to change their classroom structures, school structures, and themselves. It is crucial that White teachers make the commitment to look deep inside themselves to see how they can better their attitudes, practices, and beliefs related to race and cultural differences.

Beliefs Determine Outcomes: Student failure "lies not in the students themselves, but in our capacity to believe in them" (124). If we think about it, how many of our students, despite the color of their skin, receive little to no support in their home environments? Oftentimes, many students find consolation and comfort only in their classrooms. Teachers have many roles to fill, such as educators, parents, counselors, doctors, advisers, etc. If we make the commitment to be there unconditionally for our students, we must offer endless support and care in our classrooms.

Teaching is a Calling, Not Just a Job


"Transformationist White teachers know that our work is a life-long journey in the service of a larger vision, a relentless and passionate quest to undo the tragic impact of White dominance, and thereby free our children to enjoy the full fruits of their own intelligence and success" (125). Parker Palmer reminds us that true vocation joins self and service. Teaching is more than a job; it is a vocation in which we must dedicate our entire self.

Nationally-recognized teacher Timothy Bunch says this about teaching: "I believe I am called to teach, from a spiritual standpoint as well as a professional standpoint. I think like a teacher; everything is a lesson. I want kids to love learning as much as I do" (124).

Another teacher, John Morefield, explains why he chooses to teach mainly in diverse schools: "Deciding to go into teaching must be a decision from the heart. It must come from a moral imperative to ensure the success of all children, and from a deeply held commitment to social justice...Our children cannot afford anything but the best from us" (124).

In my placement at Reavis, I always keep in mind that school may be the only safe and supportive place in my students' lives. Over the course of the semester, I have spoken with a number of students about troubles that were taking place outside of school. This is an instance when I remember why I teach, when I take off my teacher face and put on my listener, my adviser, or my friendly face so that I can best be there for my students. I love all aspects of teaching, especially the ones that surface when I am not even standing in front of the class.

Worldview: Throughout the entirety of this text, worldview has surfaced time and time again, especially in these last two chapters. One viewpoint that we can view diversity through is that of Christianity. Just as Howard's friend explained that she teaches a color-blind curriculum, so too does God run a sort of color-blind world. Since all human beings were made in His image, then all human beings have the potential to do good and to be good because they are good. Sometimes, the events we experience change our lives, both in beneficial and harmful ways. But because we are humans constantly seeking to do the right thing, God forgives us again and again because he truly loves us. This is how I plan to work with my students: I plan to love them unconditionally no matter what color their skin is because we are all created to live good and successful lives.

Chapters 5 & 6

Chapter 5 - Mapping the Journey of White Identity Development &
Chapter 6 - Ways of Being White: A Practitioner's Approach to Multicultural Growth


When I was a child, I spoke like a child. I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became an adult, I gave up childish ways.
 - 1 Corinthians 13:11

Howard begins with this verse from Corinthians. As children and young adults, we pick up ideas, perceptions, and beliefs that may not correctly fit into the scheme of real life. Our ideas about certain things may become distorted and cause unfortunate ripples to travel around the world. What we do affects not only ourselves; what we do affects everyone.

Howard explores the stages of racial identity for both Blacks and Whites, and it is interesting to see the differences and similarities that both groups go through to achieve racial identity.

There are five stages of Black racial identity development:

1. Preencounter - African Americans tend to distance themselves from their own racial identity. During this stage, African Americans have the mindset that White is right while Black is wrong. They feel that the things that happen in their lives happen solely because of their black skin.
2. Encounter - The transition to this stage takes place when African Americans are stimulated by events or experiences that "lift the mask of Whiteness and point out the significance of racial categories" (90). 
3. Immersion/Emersion - African Americans experience feelings of hatred toward Whites or anything that seems White. During this stage, "Everything of value in life must be Black or related to Blackness. This stage is also characterized by a tendency to denigrate White people" (91). 
4. Internalization - This stage begins when the Pro-Black attitude becomes more open and less defensive. Internalization is characterized by a want/need to interact with people of other cultures, especially Whites. 
5. Internalization-commitment - This last stage "is evidenced by the individual's willingness to proactively engage in work that supports and strengthens the Black community" (91). Individuals in this stage are securely rooted in their own Black identity.

In White racial identity development, Whites focus more on overcoming their racism that finding a love of their culture. There are six stages divided into two separate phases:

Phase I: Abandonment of a Racist Identity
1) Contact - Through an encounter with "the other," this process begins for White people. This stage of contact sparks when Whites first encounter people of different cultures. There really is no color to separate Whites from "the other," and Whites will begin questioning whether or not they are abandoning their Whiteness.
2) Disintegration -  "We enter the stage of disintegration when we acknowledge our Whiteness and begin to question what we have been socialized to believe about race" (93). To make up for our seemingly wrong thoughts about other cultures, Whites may begin thinking better about races they are not too familiar with and question the authenticity of their own.
3) Reintegration - During this stage, Whites may fully embrace the notion of White superiority. Whites will think and act in ways that are beneficial to themselves and may be harmful to people of other cultures.

Phase II: Establishment of a Nonracist White Identity

4) Pseudo-Independence - This stage begins when "we acknowledge White responsibility for racism and confront the fact the White people have intentionally or unintentionally benefited from it" (96). We attempt to overcome this by trying to help people of other cultures. 

5) Immersion-Emersion - This stage begins when Whites  move away from helping other cultures, much in the same way that parents would help their children, and move more toward an internalized desire to change oneself and one's fellow Whites in a positive way. 

6) Autonomy - "When a new and positive definition of Whiteness has been emotionally and intellectually internalized, we begin to enter the stage of autonomous racial identity" (97).

I can attest that this process is very real because I can place myself in some of the steps. I have also defined which stage I fall into at this point in my life, and honestly, I think I am in the Pseudo-Independence stage. I intend to reach Stage 6, but I suppose it will come with time. I am learning that I do not need to make up for the wrong that my culture has done to other cultures. I am White, but I am a White individual who acts and thinks for myself. Rather than trying to make my race better, I am learning how to better work with different cultures to better both my life and the good of the world. I think about this every day when I enter a room full of multicultural students. I ask myself: How can we work together? How can we bring our cultures together? What can we share with and learn from one another? 

Until we truly figure out our racial identities, 

at the end of the day, we need to ask the question,

Who am I?

Chapters 3 & 4

Chapter 3 - Decoding the Dominance Paradigm &
Chapter 4 - White Educators and the River of Change

"Despite decades of civil rights activity, it is the subtle and often invisible nature of White dominance that has proven to be so resistant to change in Western nations. The challenge now facing us in education is to dismantle the deeper nature of racism and dominance, a challenge that will require a more rigorous analysis of the underlying dynamics of dominance than we as White educators have achieved" (53).

Howard explains that White dominance has not only permeated the United States but also many places around the world. He discusses how official knowledge is constructed by those in power in all major social institutions, including education. Howard gives a clear example of how this official (and ultimately dominant) way of thinking stems from places of power: "Personal truth may be in the mind of the beholder (a function of individual perception), but official truth is in the hands of the powerful (a function of group control)" (54). Authoritative cultural groups (I'm thinking specifically about the White race here) tend to construct reality in ways that reinforce, protect, and legitimize their position of dominance.

Howard gives three major processes that function together as "the dynamics of dominance":  the assumption of rightness, the luxury of ignorance, and the legacy of privilege.
1) The assumption of rightness claims that dominant groups tend to hold truths as their private domains. These groups do not consider beliefs, values, traditions, or attitudes to grow from the influence of a particular cultural background. Whites do not usually think of themselves of having a culture; rather, they are just right. "Dominant groups don't hold 'perspectives,' they hold 'Truth'" (54). The assumption of rightness has been a driving force in the establishment of White dominance for centuries.
2) Ironically, for dominant groups who hold this all-knowing Truth, they tend to know very little about other cultures. For example, a person in America who is not White is known as "the other." By keeping the knowledge about other cultures in the dark, members of the dominant group are able to stay disconnected from these cultural groups, thereby feeling no remorse when they treat the others badly.
3) For centuries, the White race has had privileges based simply on the color of their skin. In addition, Whites are seen as real Americans, while children who are born and raised in America but do not have White skin are continuously referred to as immigrants or foreigners.

I cannot be too specific in this instance, but in the school where I am novice teaching, I heard someone just today say that if President Barack Obama is re-elected, he is going to open the borders and allow "all of these Muslims and Mexicans and aliens in to our country." This person also claimed that by letting in people of diverse groups, we are going to "lose the American culture." To say the least, I was blown away by what this person said, especially when this person is modeling ways of thinking for students of numerous cultures every day. This is a perfect example of how the White people disregard diverse cultures and claim to be the most dominant group in the world.

As teachers, we must take on the responsibility of working towards bringing all cultures to work together as one. We must work together toward change. We are all human beings. We are all conceived and born without our choosing. We all have the same basic needs that must be met in order to survive. Why does the color of our skin, the sound of our languages, and the lands that we come from play such a huge role in how we live out our lives? Howard further explains: "Teaching confronts us with an enormous responsibility to help young people learn to navigate the often treacherous waters of racial identity development and inter-group relations. Regarding issues of dominance and cultural diversity, we need to know the nature and location of the many obstacles on the river, and we must have the awareness, knowledge, and skills to help our students enter the journey of life adequately prepared for both the dangers and the thrills of the ride" (72). 

Chapters 1 & 2

Chapter 1 - White Man Dancing: A Story of Personal Transformation & 
Chapter 2 - White Dominance and the Weight of the West


The majority of this first chapter is a simple, yet meaningful, biography of Howard's life. Howard describes how he grew up in White suburbia. In fact, he did not even meet a person from a different culture until his friend asked him to double date with him and his girlfriend (who was African American) during his senior year of high school. He goes further to explain how he enrolled in Yale University and became a big brother for a group of inner-city Black and Hispanic young men six blocks away from the school (these six blocks felt like several light years away from his familiar surroundings). Two years into his education, he married his wife, Lotus, and the two of them moved to "The Hill," the ghetto where the boys from his YMCA group lived. During this time in his life, he experienced Martin Luther King, Jr.'s death, riots and fires across the country, and the emergence of the Black Panthers, historic events that all added to his growing worldview which related to how Howard could better love cultures different from his own.


Howard presents the first of a number of concepts that speak extensively about the many divides that exist between cultures. He talks first about a period of "cultural encapsulation" (14), a period (which begins at the beginning of one's life and may last for a number of years) in which a person is so encapsulated within his own culture that he has no knowledge or understanding of other cultures. Howard refers back to his senior year of high school and further explains: "This one connection I made in high school with a person outside my own race symbolizes an essential step for any dominant culture person who wishes to grow beyond the limits of encapsulation" (15). He also refers to this encapsulation when he discusses an experience he had. While he and Lotus were living in "The Hill," a number of riots had broken out and fires were surrounding their apartment building for endless blocks. Their apartment was not burned down, and Howard explains that he quite enjoyed watching the fire take over "The Hill": "It was fire that burned away the walls of my encapsulation" (17).

In his section entitled "Adventures of an Anti-Racist Racist," Howard argues that African Americans are not to be blamed for cultural barriers, but rather that Whites (Howard's own people) are to blame: "These experiences in New Haven led me to a profound shift in consciousness that has guided my career for the past four decades. Helped along by some strong feedback from Black Power leaders and friends in the Black Panthers, I came to see that my real work was not in the Hill neighborhood but back home with my own folks. The core of the problem was in White America, and if I wanted to help excise the cancer of racism, I had to go to the source of the tumor. In the spring of 1969, my Black colleagues and neighbors challenged me to take what I had learned from them and find a way to teach those lessons within the context of the White community" (19). As I read this, I was completely introduced to something I had never thought of before. The core of the problem was in White America. This fascinates me because in White America, there are generally only White people there who are oftentimes completely disconnected from other cultures. I sat with this insight for quite awhile until I realized that yes, Howard is right: If we want to fix this, we have to go to the source of the tumor.

Howard also provides us with research, theory, and findings to "prepare White educators for the work of understanding and unraveling [social] dominance in educational settings" (31). He touches on the Minimal Group Paradigm, Social Positionality, Privilege and Penalty, and Social Dominance Theory, which I want to talk further about. There are four basic assumptions of social dominance theory:

1. Human social systems are predisposed to form social hierarchies, with hegemonic groups at the top and negative reference groups at the bottom. 
2. Hegemonic groups tend to be disproportionately male, a phenomenon that social dominance theorist call the "iron law of andrancy."
3. Most forms of social oppression, such as racism, sexism, and classism, can be viewed as manifestations of group-based social hierarchy.
4. Social hierarchy is a survival strategy that has been selected by many species of primates, including Homo sapiens. 

Howard adds that "social dominance theorists suggest that human beings are inherently predisposed to create group-based systems of categorization and discrimination" (35). According to this theory, the dominant groups in society are the ones responsible for creating boundaries between cultures. 

During my placement so far at Reavis High School, I see a number of things going on. I see Howard's concept of cultural encapsulation in some of my students. This year, I am teaching all freshmen. They are new to high school. They are in a new environment with new people, people they have never met before. I do not know each and every one of my student's back stories, but I can tell from my observations that many students are experiencing things they have never experienced before during their interactions with students of other cultures. For example, a quiet female student I have is being bullied by a number of Hispanic girls, and she does not know how to handle her current situation. Because this student knows nothing about this culture, she may take this experience and apply it to the entire Hispanic culture, which would not be a good thing. In fact, I am trying to think of a way in which I could talk with this student about the beauty of diversity, but due to her traumatic experiences as a bullied student, it may be hard to reach her. This is an example of how one's cultural encapsulation works to make the barriers between cultures stronger. I also see cultural barriers come between my students on a daily basis. I do not mean to say that all of my students are racist or refuse to associate with students of other cultures, but for example, when my students are given the opportunity to work with partners of their choosing, they tend to choose partners who share their same culture. When students are given time to socialize, they generally stay within their own cultures. And everyday when I walk down the crowded hallways, I see students grouped together according to their ethnicity. Despite Reavis' efforts to celebrate diversity, I am having a hard time seeing this in my students.


Worldview: "I wanted to invite other White folks into the worldview that had been given to me. Rather than beating my students and colleagues over the head with their Whiteness and their ignorance, I wanted to find ways to help them break out of their own encapsulation" (21). This worldview which Howard speaks about deals with the way in which White people 1) do view people of other cultures and 2) how our viewing of people of other cultures can change if we make a genuine effort to learn about and engage with people different from ourselves. As Howard explained, he did not meet his first non-White acquaintance until his senior year of high school. He was afraid to meet this young African American woman that we was going to go on a date with because he had never socialized with a person of a different culture. But because he had this strong fear to meet this young woman, he knew he had to do it to get over that fear and also to begin introducing himself to different cultures. Because he made the decision to dedicate his life to working with different cultures, Howard was given this new worldview that enabled him to see other cultures just as equally valuable and treasured as his own.

Introduction - We Can't Teach What We Don't Know

I am a Secondary English Education student at Trinity Christian College in Palos Heights, IL. As a part of my Novice Teaching course, Education 380, my classmates and I have been instructed to choose a book that will guide us to work better with a diverse group of students. Diversity is not something that can be learned completely from a book. We need to have experiences with diversity as well. Therefore, I intend to read this text, We Can't Teach What We Don't Know: White Teachers, Multiracial Schools by Gary R. Howard, alongside the teaching I am doing this semester at Reavis High School in Burbank, IL. 

I chose to read this book because I plan to work with multicultural students throughout my life. In addition to English Education, I am working on my ESL endorsement, so I hope to learn extensively about teaching multicultural students by reading this book.

This book is written from the perspective of a white teacher. It tells of how all white teachers must learn to work with multiracial students. There is no way for a white person to learn completely about the lifestyle of another culture without experiencing it himself. As a way to learn, we can get to know our students and learn from them. This book also talks about the dominance of white people in this country and how we can break down these barriers so that all students feel equal (because we are all equal).

In case you'd also like to read this book, here is the information:
Howard, G. R. (2006). We Can't Teach What We Don't Know: White Teachers, Multiracial  Schools (2nd ed.). New York: Teachers College Press.