Flat Freire

This account is a project by the students of EDCS 3010: Education and Cultural Diversity at Ohio University.

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Pictured above, Flat Freire is bookmarking a page in a teaching magazine called “Teaching Tolerance”. This issue of the magazine focuses on the 2016 tips, tricks, and activities ideas for teaching about and discussing controversial topics in the classroom. In the second picture, Freire is pointing to a specific passage in which a student exhibits racism in the classroom. That particular chapter discusses how and why teachers should handle these tense situations by describing the real example of what Tracey Iglehart, a first grade teacher, did to combat racism in her school. To combat xenophobia in her school, Inglehart mobilized all of the teachers in her school to stage a “Teach In” the day Donald Trump came to their town. They hung up “Black Lives Matter” posters, created positive art abroad immigrants, and created a continually used shared google doc with a list of K-12 lesson plans that focused on teaching tolerance. 

This story, and the magazine overall, is a phenomenal example of progress when it comes to combating racism in schools. While this passage focused on race rather than religion, this article seemed to directly relate to the fifth myth that Ballinger pointed out in her journal “So, You're a Muslim? (Not That There's Anything Wrong With That)”. Ballinger points out that is a myth that teachers cannot discuss religion in the classroom; in reality, it is very beneficial to facilitate these discussion, thus teaching the values of compassion, empathy, and understanding.

Ruby

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These photos were taken outside of Schoonover Center on campus. This particular handicap button stood out to me the most because there are two indications of the building being accessible- the sticker on the door and the button itself. Many of us walk past these kinds of signs everyday and never notice them but for others it is a deciding factor in whether or not they can enter into a building. I am choosing to incorporate a quote from, “Social Construction of Disability” by Susan Wendell. The quote reads, “poor architectural planning creates physical obstacles for people who use wheelchairs, but also for people who can walk but cannot walk far or cannot climb stairs, for people who cannot open doors, and for people who can do all of these things but only at the cost of pain or an expenditure of energy they can ill afford,” (50). I like this quote because it includes multiple scenarios of a disability and does not single one out in particular. Many building nowadays are built with accessibility included but there are still a variety of building that are not accessible. For instance, my freshman dorm on campus did not have an elevator and there were 4 floors with steps leading to each one including the first. It is important to recognize these types of limitations in everyday life. I know I will keep in mind that as an educator I may have to provide certain accommodations for a student with a disability.

Posted by Kendra 

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We’ve talked a lot in this class about the obvious need for equity in classrooms. During our LGBTQ discussions, the topic of “space spaces” was brought up. As a class, I understand that we decided that the general meaning of a safe space was a place, such as a classroom, where people (students) should be able to discuss their feelings and opinions and ask questions without fear of judgment or retaliation from teachers or their peers. As soon as we started talking about race and religion, however, that idea faded into the background. 

Race and religion are two incredibly important and personal topics, just like gender and sexuality. Children who don't have a space to learn about and ask questions about race and religion (as well as gender and sexuality) may very well enter their adult life without a clear understanding of themselves or their peers. 

It’s unbelievably stressful for students to deal with racism in the classroom. I think the most obvious example form our readings would be from the Anderson article, which states that students face ““psychological trauma” [from] constant racial harassment” (Anderson p.5). This article also points out that students who have to deal with racism in schools suffer from “lower grades, less academic motivation, and less persistence when encountering an academic challenge” (Anderson p.3).  

Religious oppression in a classroom environment is just as damaging to students as racism. We have almost all experienced a situation where we have witnessed a student or a peer or a stranger fall victim to a snide remark or cruel joke on the expense of their religious affiliation, i.e. clothing (like a hijab, kippah, turban, or traditional dress, etc.). From a recent reading, we reviewed that turbans (dastaars) “symbolize a devotion to the divine and values like honesty, compassion, generosity, and humility” (Green p.1). If more people understood that, then hopefully there would be a greater toleration and acceptance of people who look and worship differently than we do. 

Long story short, both of these topics revolve around stereotypes that hurt and hinder our students the second they leave their homes each morning. As teachers, it’s our job to make sure ALL of our students get the same maximum benefit from our classrooms, regardless of race, religion, gender, sexuality, etc. 

The picture that I chose was taken in McCracken Hall on the second floor. Obviously, my topic for this post is not related to lactation or meditation rooms. However, this room is multi-purpose and is in a central location in McCracken to all who need access to it. I am using this picture to highlight the need for multi-purpose rooms (a “safe space” if you will) in modern schools where students can feel free to question and discuss harsh topics, such as religion and race, that is smaller and separate from the general classroom. This way, students can speak to teachers, counselors, and other students in a more intimate setting where genuine discussions and learning can take place. 

If students had a place in their schools where they could go to discuss these topics, they would undoubtedly be better prepared to interact in society. Hopefully, they would also have a better understanding of and more compassion for those who are different than themselves. 

-Grace 

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This is actually my bulletin board for the month of November. Our theme was “terms of oppression” and I decided to make a board about rape culture and the oppression and objectification of women. My main motivation was the alarming statistics of sexual violence experienced by women on college campuses and the United States as a whole. Statistics like “ nearly one in three women (31.5 percent) experiences physical violence by an intimate partner at some point in her lifetime” or “19.3 percent of women are raped at some time in their lives, and 43.9 percent experience sexual violence other than rape“ both found on page 14 of “IWPR Status of U.S. Women 2015 Executive Summary”. These are absolutely unacceptable statistics. That is why RA bulletin boards are such an important thing in residence halls, it helps make students aware of topics like this that they otherwise may not be exposed to. 

-Maslin

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One day, Flat Freire decided to visit a good friend in the Cleveland Clinic. While there, he passed by 3 separate places of worship, each for a different religion. “What a splendid idea!” Freire cried, not even being the religious type himself. “Now, people of many religions can come and pray for their loved ones well-being and health!” Most of the hospitals he had visited before only had a Christian chapel, never before had he seen one for Jews and Muslims. Not only were these rooms available, there were priests, pastors, rabbis, and Imams on hand to help with any person in distress. These rooms were all stocked with religions literature and necessary items for worship. He thought it would be an incredible revolution to see this set-up become the standard for all hospitals. What do you think? Do you think hospitals should tend to the needs of all religions and beliefs or should they focus mainly on one? Do you think that hospitals should emphasize this point at all? Do you think it would be possible to see more hospitals become more “religious friendly” or does it seem like a far-off idea that can not be reached?

Posted by Adam

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#FlatFreire #ReligiousLiteracy #EducationFightsMisunderstanding #ToleranceandPeace #ReligiousTolerance 

- Emily A

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 This is a photo of some of the foundations that are offered for people of color in Walmart. I chose to photograph this because the other day, while getting ready to present in my Academic Achievement and Student Engagement class, a girl commented on my new Fenty lip gloss. We began discussing makeup and I mentioned that I wanted to try out the new Fenty foundation line next because I was so excited that Rihanna created a line for EVERY skin tone. My friend explained that she always had problems finding a shade that was right for her because her skin was hard to match. She said that in high school, several girls would comment on how her makeup was “too light” or “too dark” for her mixed colored skin. She told me of the trouble she had finding a shade for her, especially with drug store foundations. It had not occurred to me, before Rihanna and this conversation, to look at the other shades while shopping. There were only a few selections for people of color while there were several shades for those of us with ivory and lightly tanned skin to choose from. While reading Nieto and Bode’s article “Racism, Discrimination, and Expectations of Students’ Achievement”, I particularly enjoyed the “What You Can Do: Start Early” section. The first lines read: “Focusing on human differences and similarities can begin as early as the preschool years, for example, talking about skin color, hair texture, and other physical differences and similarities” (74). These conversations could start in any classroom, at any time. Explaining how every day activities, like shopping for makeup or shampoo, can be drastically different for each student could at least bring light on to how difficult it can be for students of color. My friend said that she never felt bullied, but she never felt like the girls who teased her about her makeup truly understood the struggles that she faced. She said she felt more insecure than anything and she is very excited to try out the inclusive beauty lines that are beginning to pop up. I, too, am excited to support lines in which inclusivity is celebrated.

-Josey

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Today I was scrolling through twitter when I stumbled upon a post by @theGrio. theGrio.com is a news website that "is a community devoted to perspectives that affect and reflect the African-American community.", According to their twitter bio. The tweet said "A teacher joined students bullying a Muslim student and caught on tape pulling her hijab off to see her "pretty hair:"," and had an accompanying link to their website with a video from news channel 4 in Nashville. The video was recorded in a classroom and circulated through social media like snapchat and twitter. The video showed a student having their hijab being taken off by students while she covered her face, and other students were playing with her hair. The teacher is now on suspension without pay. In this weeks reading by the American Academy of Religion (AAR), the  second major premise states: "One of the most troubling and urgent consequences of religious illiteracy is that it often fuels prejudice and antagonism, thereby hindering efforts aimed at promoting respect for diversity, peaceful coexistence, and cooperative endeavors in local, national, and global arenas" (pg 5). I believe that the students were very interested in seeing the students hair, as they had never seen it before, but their religious illiteracy did not allow them to realize that what they were doing is wrong. From my understanding, hijab is worn when women are around men who are not close relatives, and is viewed by some as a way of having people focus on their inner qualities rather than their external characteristics. This action was astonishing to me, but also not that unpredictable. Another idea from the AAR was, "One example of the negative consequences of religious illiteracy is that...in countries where Muslims are in the minority is the widespread association of Islam with terrorism and the consequent justification of individual hate crimes against those perceived to be Muslim." (pg 5-6). While this individual act was not violent, it is still seen as disrespectful to the Muslim faith and could have been solved by a simple conversation about the importance of the hijab in the classroom.

Posted by: Randy S

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While reading Anderson’s article, “How the Stress of Racism affects learning”, I immediately thought of a book I was reading in my Young Adult Literature class. The class focuses on reading YA novels that we could integrate into our classroom and novels that give insight to some of the struggles our students will be going through. We read “The Hate U Give” by Angie Thomas. The novel is about a sixteen year old girl of color, named Starr who is given the chance to excel in her education at a prep school. But her best friend, who is also black,  being shot by a police officer and the daily drama that comes with her father’s gang affiliation makes it difficult for her to feel comfortable and fit in at the predominately white, prep school. I chose to pose Flat Freire with this novel because it shows how present these issues are in schools and as educators how aware we need to be that not everyone is coming from the same home situation and ideal conditions. In Anderson’s article, Agostini, the 15 year old boy, says “It’s not something that is easy to shake. Being a person of color, you’re constantly being targeted just because you’re a person of color. It makes it hard to deal”. This article was a dominant example of the racial stressors put on students of color. I think including reading material such as “The Hate U Give” is an excellent way to give all your students a perspective to consider other than their own and encourage mutual respect and understanding within the walls of your classroom.

-Jen

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This is a picture of my place of worship. I attend Sunrise Baptist Church. Yes, I am a Christian and I am proud of that. However, I do not force my beliefs or religion onto other people. More importantly, I could never look down upon or treat someone with an attitude of prejudice or discrimination just because they do not think, feel, or believe the same things as I do. It is simply just wrong. That is a major problem in America today; especially in our schools and education system. For one thing, just because someone is part of a certain faith doesn’t mean they know it all. Anderson says many important things in her piece The Misplaced Fear of Religion in Classrooms. A couple of them are that “Some parents feared that if their children learned about another religion, they might fall out of love with their own faith,” and “Just because a teacher is Jewish, Christian, or Muslim does not mean they are knowledgeable in that faith.” This is important to keep in mind. We all need to be aware of our biases and keep them buried. Ryan H  

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I was driving on East State Street a few weeks ago and saw a woman driving a car with horrible decorations mounted on top. The picture I posted is not the same car, as I didn’t have enough time to capture a picture while passing in traffic, nor have I seen the car since. The decor this woman chose was a huge confederate flag, which was laid over top of the roof, and a fake black corpse, which was chained to the roof. This woman drove around with her windows down and made eye contact with anyone who looked over at her. It seemed to be an intentional stare, as if she was daring someone to say something to her. I wish I would have said something, but again, we were passing in traffic and I was honestly in complete disbelief. This woman, along with other people who dismiss racial equality, truly believe their way of thinking is the right way to think. In United Shades of America, Season 1, Episode 1, “The New KKK”, it was clear that members of the klan and other white supremacist groups are confident in their belief systems. It is weird to me that people with such horrible and irrational thoughts can discuss their beliefs in an almost rational way. For example, a man who believed society would be better off if whites and blacks were separate, explained an analogy using skittles. He basically said, think about a bag of skittles and all of the different colors/flavors inside. If you take a handful of multiple different color skittles and eat them, it doesn’t taste bad, but it also doesn't taste as good as it would if you were to eat a handful of the same color. He believes the same goes for society in regards to skin color. It’s interesting to discuss racial views and to learn ways to make sure we do not oppress minorities. But I find it even more interesting to discuss why people who are racist and prejudice think the way they do. Who is this lady who drives with a chained up black corpse on the roof of her car? How did she find herself in the position she is now? Why is she unable to see the ignorant, oppressive and horrible way she has chosen to live?

-Morgan

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Many people are familiar with the game of Beer Pong and the rules associated with it. The rules may vary from house to house, but many are the same or similar. The rule I would like to look into is the “Bring it Back” rule. This occurs when a person shoots the ball, misses, and the same person/teammate of the shooter grabs their rebound off the table before the opposing team does. If the original shooter is a male he has to shoot the ball behind his back, if the original shooter is a female she has to shoot with her non-dominant hand. Experiencing this reminded me of Kate Borestein’s article, “Gender Outlaw: on men, women and the rest of us” when she discusses mythic cues. “Mythic cues include cultural and sub-cultural myths which support membership in a given gender. This culture’s myths include archetypes like: weaker sex, dumb blonde, strong silent type, and better half.” (page 29). Looking at how this relates to Beer Pong, there is an obvious difference in how hard it is to make one of the “Bring it Back” shots. Shooting the ball with your hand behind your back is much harder than it is to shoot with your non-dominate hand. So why is it that women are given the easier shot to make and why is it assumed that a shot like “behind the back” is too hard for a girl to make?

Posted by: Jacklyn 

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This is a picture of Ohio University College Gateway taken from the perspective of Schoonover. I chose to have my Flat Freire take a picture with the college gateway becuase of the new wheel chair ramp (as you can see on the right side of the photo) that was installed just this past summer/fall. The University paid to have the entire gateway reconstructed so that a ramp could be added into the design for those students, faculty and visitors that would have difficulty with stairs. The gateway is now accessible to all people including those who can walk up stairs and those who can not. As I was looking through the readings I found one called The Social Construction of Disability by Susan Wendell. Her article talks about the idea that society creates what we consider the “normal” and anyone for any reason that cannot keep up with the “normal” is considered to be disabled. In one of the paragraphs she says, “Much of the public world is also structured as though everyone was physically strong, as though all bodies were shaped the same, as though everyone could walk, hear and see well...” I think that this gateway ramp is a great example of our society pushing to accept all people as the “normal” despite our physical or mental differences. The gateway symbolizes that whether or not you are physically strong, or if your body is shaped differently you are accepted here becuase the University is welcoming you through our gateway. They have set a wonderful example that all people are different, but despite differences we are all people, and Ohio University wants it to be known that we accept people for who they are and with that create a “normal” for our campus community. 

-Megan

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As I was waiting in Donkey Coffee for my order, I was looking at the different art work and posters hanging on the walls and found this Coexist sign surrounded with different religious symbols and decided to take out Flat Friere and snap a picture. This photo represents the acceptance of different religions as existing together as one. As we have progressed our conversations about religion in the classroom, it got me thinking about when I was in high school and the lack of knowledge I had about religion as a whole, as well as different individual religions. In “The Misplaced Fear of Religion in Classrooms” by Anderson, she states, “...in a country of many faiths and beliefs, there is a stunning absence of knowledge of the world’s religions.” In the classroom, religion may be a difficult conversation to bring up to students. In the same article, Linda Wertheimer mentions how some parents fear that if their child learns about different religions then they might lose touch with their own faith and lean towards another. As future teachers, we must be efficient in informing our students of different religions and possibilities, while ensuring that our teachings do not persuade their own beliefs. Growing up, I was not affiliated with any religion, but I had wished that I had learned more about it in school. 

In Adams and Joshi’s article, “Religious Oppression,” they state, “freedom of religion is one of the most enduring and powerful founding narratives about the United States...” For some, it might be feared to express their religions openly for fear of backlash from others. What is great about this poster hanging up in Donkey Coffee, it lets other students know that no matter an individual’s religion, every one is welcome and can exist in a mutual tolerance. One of the best things about being at Ohio University is the overall mutual acceptance of individual’s for who they are and what they believe in. 

Katherine K

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Phil 

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When looking at religion it can be a difficult topic to talk about in a school setting. The picture above is of my notebook from my human geography class. We spent about three weeks talking about different religions in the world and focused on the six “most popular” religions. Those religions are Hinduism, Buddhism, Chinese Faiths (Confucianism), Judaism, Christianity and Islam. While sitting in my geography class I found myself wondering if I could properly teach these religions in my classroom in the future while walking the tight rope between parents and administration.This was the first time I was truly diving fully into understanding different religions, but I constantly found myself bombarded with information about different religions. However, I did not have the ability to distinguish fact from misleading opinion. In “The Misplaced Fear of Religion in Classrooms” reading by Melinda D. Anderson it states “According to a 2010 Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life survey, in a country of many faiths and beliefs, there is a stunning absence of knowledge of the world’s religions.” I found this incredibly thought provoking. As teachers we are supposed to help students to become well-rounded people. Should students know at least the “most popular” religions so that they know how to have religious tolerance? If so, how can we properly teach religion so that it isn’t a teacher pushing their narrative, but a teacher providing all the necessary information to understand people’s beliefs all around the world?

Nick 

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These two readings are for an assignment a friend of mine has to complete. The readings reflect a study of how women in the military were affected by constructive recreation, after they had been through some sort of trauma while serving our country. I felt it prompted a Flat Freire post from the actions of one of the studies. In the second photo, you can see the highlighted section describes that each female participant was given a male pseudonym. When I asked my friend why this was part of the study, she shared, “It’s to protect their identities from anyone who could have attacked them when they were serving. All of the women in that study were assaulted or raped in the military, and on the whole, 1 in 4 women serving in the military will be attacked.”

I was really disappointed to learn this. When skimming “The Status of Women in the States: 2015,″ I was not surprised to see the widespread inequity for women in our nation, regardless of the parameters (e.g. Political, Employment, Poverty, Health). However, to know that worse conditions exist for the women who fight to protect us makes me sick.

Madelyn