An Introduction

Twenty-first Century schools are complex places in the United States. Literally hundreds of ethnicities, races, languages and dialects, religions, cultural distinctions, sexual orientations and socioeconomic factors exist among students, faculty, staff and administration. These are differences that should be embraced in a perfect world, differences that are what give public schools and institutions their greatest potential source of strength: wide and varied perspectives.

This is not a perfect world, however, and often a school's greatest source of strength is its greatest source of contention; all of these distinctions between people are sites where ignorance, misinformation and bigotry raise their ugly heads in the form of stereotypes.

stereotype

noun

1

: a plate cast from a printing surface

2

: something conforming to a fixed or general pattern; especially : a standardized mental picture that is held in common by members of a group and that represents an oversimplified opinion, prejudiced attitude, or uncritical judgment

— ste·reo·typ·i·cal \ˌster-ē-ə-ˈti-pi-kəl\ also ste·reo·typ·ic \-pik\ adjective

(source: Meriiam-Webster Dictionary)

Whether you are aware of them or not, stereotypes likely existed and still exist in any school environment you were in. What varies is the extent to which stereotypes make themselves manifest, and the effect stereotypes and stereotyping have on the culture and psychology of a school. These are the questions I pose (to myself, and any interested readers/responders): the "how", the "why", "to what extent", and finally "to what discernible effect." Only with these questions answered can we theorize about what, precisely, we can do about it. As a person who has both been affected by stereotypes and who has let unfair and ugly stereotypes inform my interactions with various kinds of people, I am invested in this process of self-awareness and positive change, as should be anyone who interacts with a heterogeneous group of people.

Look to your left; look to your right. You are all different, and all of you have misconceptions about those differences that inform your interactions to some extent.

Ponderings for next time:

• How long have stereotypes existed?
• Are all stereotypes negative?
• Who can be stereotyped?
• Who is stereotyped (more often than others)?
• Where do our preconceived "truths"about people come from?
• What research is there that supports/refutes the existence, prevalence and/or effects of stereotyping?
• Are stereotypes static or can they change over time?

Future posts may be a bit bulkier than this, as I intend to shed some light on the "ponderings" posed at the end of the previous post, and as we progress, questions will become harder to answer. I will support my assertions, when possible/necessary, with current and dated research, for validity, and as a glimpse into the assumptions that even the supposedly "most educated" among us have and are unaware of.

Feel free to address issues/concerns, pose further questions and comments as you see fit. I only ask that you be civil. Critical analysis is a party, and everyone is invited, but we have a bouncer, and he is one mean cuss that never hesitates to evict a rowdy customer if need be.

Since you jsut pictured a bouncer and rowdy partier, what did he (she?) look like? How do you think stereotypes influenced either of those looks like in your mind's eye? How complete and/or detailed was the picture? These are the kinds of things a critical analysis will ask you to think about, not only about yourself, but about the information and images you are inundated with on a regular basis. Almost any image presented to/in/for American culture was constructed purposefully, with particular goals in mind, and with decades of research to support their decisions. Our job is to unpack all this, and simply ask, WHY?

Here's some practice:

this video is a series of racial stereotypes from the popular TV show "Family Guy." Think about what the stereotypes are, how they are supposed to portray a race or culture, and who the intended audiences are. Even in jest, stereotypes can set a bad precedent for children who sometimes misinterpret and misapply their "humor." How plausible is it that among that audience, there is an adolescent contingent who doesn't quite grasp the absurd elements of adult humor, and carries those stereotypes onto a school bus, or into the classroom? And on a deeper level, why are these things funny to us at all?

So long, for now, and happy thinking,

P.