All,
So, I got busy, and blah blah blah. I didn't write about Valentine's Day, like I promised. I guess, that wasn't really the topic I wanted to win in the poll, and so my heart wasn't in it. If you want my personal views on Valentine's Day and love, feel free to e-mail me, or post a comment, and I'll make sure to get back to you.
So, as the title of this post suggests, I'm going to be trying something new over the course of the week. I'm going to do my darnedest to write a post every day this week, well, at least Monday through Friday. The topic of each of post will be the same: my "rage of the day," or ROTD for short. Like everyone else, I come across certain situations that make my blood boil, or more specifically make me concentrate all my energy into lighting on fire like the Human Torch and burning down everything and/or everyone around me that has caused me such perturbation.
Today was no exception, and it happened early in the day. It was right around 9:05 this morning to be a little more exact. I have class at 9:10, so I was sitting in SAS Hall, waiting for my graduate student professor (or TA, I'm not really sure what his official title is) to show up and begin lecturing. To give everyone a little context, my professor is from Taiwan and so English is his second language. He often mispronounces words, writes the wrong letter/word on the board, and sometimes has atrocious grammar. All of this is well and good, because between what he writes on the board and says out loud, everyone (or at least everyone who I can see or hear) can understand the point he's making. And yet, from the first day of class, the two people sitting next to me take every opportunity to make snarky comments about his, for lack of a better term, "Engrish." Their snide remarks are not loud, but they get under my skin, as they show insensitivity towards people who learn English as a second language, and are uncharacteristic of pre-service teachers (I've seen both of these classmates in education classes and functions before).
I could write a ROTD post about their snarky comments directed at my professor, but instead I'll direct it at an aside one of these "fine" classmates made before class. The three people next to me are all apparently friends, as they often discuss common classes, common professors, and what each did over the weekend, and today was no exception. One of the three asked the other one about his sociology class, and he sighs and says something which I don't remember. Then, he said he was frustrated, because he was growing tired of the topic of homosexuality (my ears perked up when I heard this), which in and of itself is an innocuous comment. Then, he goes on to say something about how his professor is wrong, and how it's "society's fault that people are gay." Now, if there ever really was a facepalm statement made by a classmate, that surely was it.
I can't tell you how that got my blood boiling right there in that lecture hall. I actually felt the blood pressure rising in my temple and that vein in the middle of my forehead. I could not, for the life of me, figure out what possesses someone to say something that, in my opinion, is very insensitive at the least and downright ignorant at the most. So, I thought about how they could have formulated such a bold statement logically, and for the life of me, I could not figure it out. If society really was the reason that people are homosexual, than wouldn't it be logical that our culture would be a lot less discriminating, derogatory, and dare I say, accepting of homosexuals? I think so, but please, as per my mission statement, feel free to disagree. Regardless of the insensitivity or ignorance, depending on how you want to look at it, of that statement, it wasn't so much what was said, but rather who said it, that made me rage the most.
As I said earlier, the person that this statement emanated from is a pre-service teacher. For those not hip on the education lingo, this simply means that he is on the path to becoming a teacher, and is not quite to the student-teaching hurdle. If the debacle of Wake County Public Schools hasn't made it abundantly clear, then let me make it clear: diversity is crucial to public education! I have no clue what level this person wants to teach, but if it is middle or high school, then more than likely (I hesitate to put "certainly," because I don't want to make a sweeping generalization) he will come into contact with at least one homosexual student or co-worker. Is it insensitivity and the drivel he spewed today that will guide his interaction with homosexuals in the workplace? For everyone's sake, I hope not. Classrooms and schools should always be safe places for those of every color, creed, gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation, etc, but the openness of the educational system depends on each of its employees. Without an open
and accepting mind, how can one expect to really reach, teach, and help students? In my opinion, it is impossible.
Any way, my parting shot is this: if I find most of my co-workers share such narrow-minded views in the future, then I will be forced to either find a different school system or a different profession. So, there you have it, my ROTD.
-Jason
Posts
