White Teacher Reprimanded

Poplife · #1 05-01-2001, 04:16 PM

Who: Ms. Ruth Ann Sherman. Age 27, white, 3rd grade teacher.

Where: Brooklyn's P.S. 75 in the Bushwick neighborhood, mostly black and Hispanic.

What: Taught her kids about accepting racial differences, as well as accepting their own unique racial traits. Used critically acclaimed children's book in her lesson plan.

Problem: She read "Nappy Hair" - a book about a little girl with the "nappiest, the most screwed up, squeezed up, knotted up" hair. Critically acclaimed as an excellent childrens' book both for (a) black children for teaching about self-acceptance; and (b) all children (and adults!) for teaching acceptance of racial differences.

Sherman said they loved it so much 'they clamored for copies to carry with them'. As an eager new teacher, she made some.

The school board convened a public meeting on Monday, November 23, 1998 at which residents of the Bushwick neighborhood, mostly black and Hispanic, hurled racial epithets and profanities at Ms. Sherman as well as verbally and physically threatening her.

The outraged parents had two things in common: (1) They had not read "Nappy Hair", and (2) They were not parents of Ms. Sherman's students. But they had read the flyer and the note about "the white teacher" that had been distributed throughout the neighborhood.

(Taken from http://www.adversity.net)

So how would you all, as black women and men, feel if a white teacher read this book to your 9 year old child?

[This message has been edited by Poplife (edited May 01, 2001).]

jazbri · #2 05-01-2001, 04:34 PM

I've personally not read the book. (Definitely need to from your description) I would not be offended if the book is as you describe it. One that really reinforces self acceptance of your culture.

As the parent of two daughters who are often mistaken as being biracial, I feel that it's imperative that children are given a sound education in their culture. It is often too easy for them to be mislead into believing that black isn't right, isn't pretty, just "isn't".

This topic is right on time for me because I'm having to seriously educate my daughter on the beauty of our race and what it means to be a proud black female. Her father had told her some really rank crap when she questioned him about her color. He told her she was 'tan'. He completely didn't understand the damage he caused.

Anywho, my point is- No matter the source, I think it's important that children are given an education on self-acceptance.

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"Unless you know the road you've come down, you cannot know where you are going"
~Temme proverb, Sierre Leone~

AKA2D '91 · #3 05-01-2001, 04:48 PM

I agree with CT4.

See, the problem, IMO, stemmed from the IGNORANT parents. The parents were not FULLY informed of what was going on. So it was easier for them to say so and so about this teacher who happened to be "white". Where were these SAME parents when the teacher was reading the story? Instead of the teacher reading the story, why could not the PARENTS have been there reading the story to the children (parental involvement)?

More times than NOT, parents (some) are so quick to jump on the bandwagon when there is an issue, especially if it's RACE related, but when a parent is needed to come out and volunteer, support POSITIVE activities, they are NEVER there.

Yeah, they work and all, but I bet these same parents took off work to waste their time and breath "beating down" this teacher when they didn't know what was going on. Yet, they always will make an excuse as to why they cannot come into the schools to foster a positive learning environment in the classroom and for the entire school.

Sorry for the LONG post....we have ISSUES at school, but only 20-something days left.

[This message has been edited by AKA2D '91 (edited May 01, 2001).]

AKAtude · #4 05-01-2001, 04:51 PM

I noticed CT4 posted the same thing twice and I deleted one. I guess she was deleting it at the same time. I'm sorry CT4.

SO, THAT'S WHY I COULDN'T QUOTE HER?

[This message has been edited by AKA2D '91 (edited May 01, 2001).]

Poplife · #5 05-01-2001, 04:54 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by AKA2D '91:
....we have ISSUES at school, but only 20-something days left.

I posted this because I know there are both teachers and parents on this board!

NYMinute · #6 05-01-2001, 06:03 PM

They say the truth ALWAYS hurts...
What part of "nappy" didn't the parents like?
Was the problem with that a white women read the book, or was it that the book touched on the good/bad hair issue for black women?
IMO it was the latter. The woman did not write the book. The parents ought to be thankful that someone took the time to read to their children. Yes black people DO have knotted up, screwed up (as in tightly coiled) or nappy hair. Our hair is this way because of our indingenous (sp?) climate. Our hair was/is designed to catch the moisture or sweat our bodies would produce if we were still in the Motherland! Our DNA does not know about air conditioning and the 21st Century. It doesn't know knot [sic] to curl up, kink up, nap up anymore because we are just going to process it anyway. The issue is with us accepting our own beauty, not with white people accepting it.

CrimsonTide4 · #7 05-01-2001, 06:25 PM

i was wondering what happened to my posts, that's what happens when i try to be helpful and i am so sleepy and still sleepy to retype it.

But thanks for agreeing to both AKA2D and TUDE

I'm so tired i am using plain smilies.

Shalom2U · #8 05-01-2001, 07:42 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Poplife:
The school board convened a public meeting on Monday, November 23, 1998 at which residents of the Bushwick neighborhood, mostly black and Hispanic, hurled racial epithets and profanities at Ms. Sherman as well as verbally and physically threatening her.
[This message has been edited by Poplife (edited May 01, 2001).][/B]

Let me see if I understand something...did the School Board hold a special meeting regarding this? Or was the monthly School Board meeting held and this was on the agenda?

If the first question the answer, then I wonder what was the School Board's point in allowing such mess to take (the verbal and physical threats)when the teacher (from what it reads), only brought a slice of culture through the form of Literacy into the classroom. I look back on when I was in grade school, I didn't have teachers who cared enough to introduce us to anything but European Culture. I am a child of bi-cultural heritage who was always asked this dum-butt question, "What are you?" and me being both hurt/confused inside along with having a smart-butt mouth, often replied, "Human", just to make the question a lot easier to take. The only time I felt good about myself was when I was with or around my family...because I was being exposed to many cultures not just mine. While I was in grade school, if I would have had just one teacher who cared enough to bring Cultural Diversity into the classroom, I probably would have enjoyed grade school a lot more.

Did the School Board look at this teacher's Lesson Plan/Objective/Goal and see if it aligned with the State of New York's Context Standards? Did it fail to meet acceptable Curriculia? Have any teachers of color used the book as a teaching tool, if they have, what was their outcome? Why did it matter if the teacher was of non-African American Heritage to teach the children about a true, beautiful fact...some of us have nappy hair---what's wrong with nappy hair?

Last question, did the children LEARN anything from it when all was said and done?
Because sometimes, in order to give our children an exceptional education, teachers, facilitators, instructors have to draw outside the box!

Last question for real...the parents who were angry...do they volunteer time in the classrooms (not just their child's class, but classes that need extra help) and have they come up with a BETTER Lesson Plan?

PS....
I have the book, and the cover of the book is too cute!

CrimsonTide4 · #9 05-01-2001, 09:01 PM

I am going to attempt to recapture my earlier statements on this topic.

As a teacher, I applaud this woman and ANY Teacher who attempts to bridge INTERRACIAL, INTRACIAL, INTERCULTURAL, INTRACULTURAL gaps in our students. She had to have stepped out on a limb and while it paid off with her students for some reason other families in the district reacted negatively. I agree with AKA2D, 9 times out of 10 they are the parents who are totally uninvolved with the school anyway. I welcome dialogue on any level that attempts to shed some of the myths that different races hold about another race. For instance, a couple of months ago on the Greek Life section of GC, there was conversation about BLACK HAIR 101 with some of the non Black members of GC. That conversation helped foster dialogue that might not have ever taken place but someone stepped out of their comfort zone to begin to learn more about a different group.

As a parent, again I would appreciate a teacher attempting to help my child and his/her classmates understand differences. Those lessons are the ones that children remember. Those are the ones that children take with them. They could care less about the characters of To Kill A Mockingbird but if I make something in that book meaningful to them then that is where I have succeeded as a teacher.

Finally, if MORE PARENTS (not bashing y'all --thinking of the parents I work with) stepped up to the plate and taught their kids at home to be more accepting of differences, then the classrooms might be more harmonious.

Again no more smilies but I had some clappy ones.

I agree with Shalom (you should have some career in speech writing/giving) and the AKA2D/TUDE tag team

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Advise and counsel him; if he does not listen, let adversity teach him.

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tickledpink · #10 05-02-2001, 09:00 AM

Unbelievable. The school board (and the parents)should've spent more time adressing teachers that apparently have no interest in our children.

The Original Ape · #11 05-02-2001, 10:10 AM

Being a teacher, I could believe her intent was good. I would have to read the book in order to decide what I'd do. From what it looks like here, I'd probably try to defend the teacher. If it made a positive difference in the way the children looked at themselves, their classmates, and people different from themselves; then it worked. And somebody should tell the parents to come to her class, shut up, and learn.

Convinced · #12 05-02-2001, 03:30 PM

I remember when this story came out, I thought it was a bunch of mess. This book is a great testament to the beauty in the diversity of black hair... it's on my coffee table right now. As a matter of fact, when I was getting my Master's, one of my colleagues wrote a ten page paper on the book's use of call and response. I think that if a black teacher had introduced this book, it would not have been all this drama.