I will admit, to begin, that this photo was staged. Do you see the fake terror in my eyes? Do you notice that my acting skills are far superior to my boyfriend's?
This photo was taken from aboard a trajinera in the Xochimilco neighborhood of Mexico City, MX. A trajinera is a small boat simliar to a gondola, which operators paddle through the ancient canals of southern Mexico City. The Xochimilco canals are difficult to get to. If staying in the center of the city, one must ride the subway to a train and then take a bus or taxi the remainder of the way.
Dylan and I thought we had almost arrived when the train we were riding broke down. We were shuffled off the train and immediately approached by half a dozen cab drivers who were shouting at us in a language we didn't understand. We were in a residential neighborhood with no signs, no phone booths, no friendly looking police officers. Following the crowd to a small bus I asked the driver, in my limited Spanish, if he was going to Xochimilco. He said yes so we paid the fare and got on.
An hour later, we were the last people on the bus, in the middle of a desolate shanty town. I tried to explain to the driver that we were lost, but we couldn't communicate. He wanted me off his bus. It was the end of his route. He pointed down a gravel street and muttered something I could not understand. There were people everywhere but we felt completely alone. We stuck out like a sore thumb in this neighborhood and all the horror stories we had heard of kidnapped tourist were resonating in our heads. Luckily, two blocks down the road, we found the entrance to the Xochimilco canals. Once safely aboard we realized how silly our fear had been and decided to capture it in a picture.
In order to function in our environments, we must be literate in the language of its people. Our lack of an ability to communicate made us feel confused and afraid. A person who cannot read or write may go through life feeling just as disconnected as someone stranded in a foreign land. It is for this reason that literacy is necessary.
I have never been to another country so cannot imagine how hard it would be if you aren't fluent in the language of that country. I would be confused and afraid myself if I had a difficult time communicating in an unfamiliar area.
ReplyDeleteThis also makes me think about the times when I call support helplines for computer issues or credit card issues and how it can be very difficult to understand the person on the other line. As frustrating as it is for me, I'm sure they have the same frustration on the other end with not being able to comprehend what my needs are and what I need help with. Sometimes it is hard to communicate and get where you need to be with a phone call or directions, but somehow we use literacy to to get by. It could be as simple as writing something down or using motions to help the other person understand. When you are on the phone, it is more difficult, but people seem to make it work.
After replying to Jenna's post, I realize that a huge overlap exists between Nikki and Jenna's conclusions. While the subjects of their posts are very different, both discuss being overwhelmingly afraid in situations void of contextual literacy. Even with base-level content are knowledge, Jenna's fear of ruining her film and Nikki's fear of being unable to communicate in a foreign land persisted. Can you imagine how terrified a student with no background knowledge would be in either of their situations? This reminds me of students entering math classrooms with little previous knowledge related to the content area. Typically, a lack of knowledge results in a fear of failure in learning--especially if the teacher does not make great efforts to provide the appropriate background knowledge for all students of varying abilities.
ReplyDeleteWhen I read Nikki's post, I was thinking about the definition of a "foreign land". I think Kendra was thinking the same thing; while traveling out of the country is one way to put yourself on foreign territory, we can think of situations we're in much more regularly that qualify as being "out of our comfort zone". You may remember the first class of the semester when I showed you a picture of a totem pole and asked if you knew what it meant. And I wondered if you'd know how to survive in south central L.A. where gang culture can make you feel like you're on a different planet. Kendra wisely points out that math class, for many students, can seem like a place where people are speaking a different language, appreciating a different set of core experiences. So my point is, Nikki's picture and story of traveling in Mexico would be a perfect introduction to the idea that literacy is a "particular set of social practices that a particular group of people values". How we bring our students to understand and appreciate these social practices is at the foundation of teaching ANY subject.
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