EDUC 2120 Lesson 5

In lesson 5, I was asked to watch a video about Mrs. Elliott's classroom and the lesson she taught her students. Mrs. Elliott was trying to tach her students about discrimination. I thought that this lesson was very interesting. I didn't realize that children that young could see discrimintaiton like that. I also learned from my research in this lesson how to kind of change how a child believes through three steps.

Describe your initial reaction to this video. What did you learn?
- My initial reaction to the video was that I was caught off guard. I wasn’t expecting this classroom of small children to automatically turn and because racist. I was shocked at how quickly Mrs. Elliott turned her children into bad and discriminating children. If I didn’t learn anything else I learned this that just the simplest of actions can totally ruin a child. I’ll be more careful now than I’ve ever been before when talking to small children.

What scene or scenes do you think you'll still remember a month from now and why those scenes
- The main scene that I’ll remember a month from now is when Elliott asked the students who don’t get treated fair in America and the children began to say black people and the Indians. I’ll remember this because I was amazed as to how the kids at even such a young age automatically picked up on who was being treated poorly in America. Another scene that stood out to me was as to how the one little boy told the teacher to keep the yard stick in case the brown eyed kids got out of hand. I’ll remember this because it was amazing how quickly the kids began to think they were better because the color or their eyes.

Did any part of the film surprise you? Do you think someone of a different race, ethnicity, or religion would also find it surprising?
- I was very surprised that the children were so corporative to Mrs. Elliott’s experiment. I didn’t expect the children to actually keep the trait going, but after the two boys fought on the playground I realized very quickly that it was a serious situation. I believe someone of a different race, ethnicity or religion would also find it very surprising. I don’t believe that humans, in general, really believe that discrimination is such a powerful thing until faced with it in an unprepared state.

What was the exercise that Elliott designed a response to the children's question, "Why would anyone want to murder Martin Luther King?" Did the film provide an answer to the question? Can you answer the question?
- Elliott designed the lesson of having to wear the collar because of the question, “Why would anyone want to murder Martin Luther King?” She designs this lesson because she feels it’s necessary to concrete in her students what discrimination does to people. I don’t believe this video answers the question why someone would shoot Martin Luther King. I also can’t answer the question as to why anyone would want to murder him.

What did the children's body language indicate about the impact of discrimination?
- The children’s body language indicated that discrimination causes people to loss their self-esteem. You can tell by the way that on the day when the brown eyed children were the best that they went through the cards in almost half the time as they did the day before. The children are less happy on the days they have to wear the collars and their posture is different. These children got the pre-set mindset they couldn’t be anything because of their discrimination.

How did the negative and positive labels placed on a group become self-fulfilling prophecies?
- Some of the children stated that they felt like a dog on a leash the day they had to wear the collar. Other students even said they felt like they were in prison. This shows you that the children were doomed to what they were told that they were just because of the color of their eyes. It amazes me that the students were so easily brought down or lifted up just because of their eye color.

In the prison seminar, one of the white women asserts that all people face some kind of discrimination. Another woman challenges her, claiming that whites can't really know what it's like to face discrimination every minute of every day. What do you think?
- I believe that all people face discrimination. I also believe that white and black people both face discrimination, but I don’t believe that all day everyday neither black or white people are discriminated against. I have worked with both black and white people in groups and on jobs and I don’t feel like that person felt discriminated against the entire time. I believe some people are out to get handouts because of discrimination but I believe that in America today people are given a lot of equal opportunities to be what they want to be.

Both Elliott and her former students talk about whether or not this exercise should be done with all children. What do you think? If the exercise could be harmful to children, as Elliott suggests, what do you think actual discrimination might do?
- I believe that this exercise should be done with all children. I believe that this lesson would really help our society to see others differently. I believe that this exercise will cause pain on the day it was happening and then a few years later they would realize how people feel when they’re discriminated against. If something as simple as this exercise can be harmful to children discrimination can destroy a child. Discrimination will destroy children and cause them to become very racist people who don’t care who people are but simply judge them by their skin color.

What features did Elliott ascribe to the superior and inferior groups and how did those characteristics reflect stereotypes about blacks and whites?
- Elliott gave each group of people specific powers and privileges which aided in her experiment. To the superior groups they could go and get seconds at lunch while the inferior groups could only go through one time. She also told the children that the superior groups could drink from the water fountain, but the inferior groups had to drink out of the cup. She done these two because of the segregated eating establishments and the segregated water fountains in public. She also gave the superior children extra time at recess and forbade the inferior children to play with them.

How did Elliott's discrimination create no-win situations for those placed in the inferior group? How did she selectively interpret behavior to confirm the stereotypes she had assigned?
- Elliott’s discrimination creates no-win situations for the inferior groups by making it impossible for them to gain an upper hand. She makes the rules to where only the superior groups can feel like they are important. She gives the superior groups special privileges like extra time at recess and then tells the inferior kids that they can’t even play with them. I believe she uses their behavior to confirm the stereotype that inferior people are more out to use violence and that superior people will constantly feed off of superior people. By the fight she confirms these stereotypes.

It's easy to understand why third-graders might not refuse to obey their teacher, but when the exercise is done with the prison guards, why don't any of the adults object?
- I was very surprised that none of the adults objected to the lesson. I thought the adults would have objected to the teaching. The one guy admitted that he felt that he was backed into a corner and felt like he had no power. It amazed me that the grown people were not even able to fight against Elliott’s claims.

At recess, two of the boys from different groups get in a fight. Elliott asks the one who was teased if responding with violence made him feel better or made the teasing stop. What does the answer suggest about the use of violence as a political strategy? At the time, who was using violence for political purposes and why?
- Elliott asked the boy who fought back after being picked on if fighting made him feel better or if it caused the picking to end. Elliott asked the boy this question because at this time the white people were responding in hostile ways toward the peaceful marches of Martin Luther King Jr. and his followers. By the boys answer it is very evident that violence does not in any way give advantage to any political strategy. At this time there were certain protesters like Malcom X who were using violence to try and promote the black community. You also had some whites who were using violence to keep the blacks from being able to have any political say so.

How is the blue eyes/brown eyes exercise related to the Sioux prayer, "Help me not judge a person until I have walked in his shoes"
- Elliott made her lesson because of the Sioux prayer. She did this exercise because she wanted each and every student to know how other felt. Mrs. Elliott also related this because you can truly never know how someone feels until you understand what makes them feel a certain way. I believe Mrs. Elliott done a great job to concrete what and how discrimination makes people feel.

Summary:

Through this lesson I’ve learned a lot about discrimination and how it makes people feel. I also learned how easily it is to make a child become racist. I would have never thought that a third grade class could be turned into such vampires in such a small amount of time. I also never thought something so simple could turn into such a life altering experience. I hope that I can impact the children in my life in the same way that Mrs. Elliott impacted these children.

Research Question: How can I change the way children believe?

References: http://changingminds.org/explanations/belief/three-stage_belief.htm

Research Analysis:

Throughout this lesson I began to grow very interested into how I could change the way a child believes. I watched Mrs. Elliott take these kids and total change the way they felt about being discriminated against and it made me wonder how I could change the children I come in contact with. On a weekly basis I come into contact with nearly 100 hundred different kids at church. All these kids come from different ethnic background, different home lives, and all different cultures. I believe it is my responsibility to put something into these kids life that will cause them to become the best they can become.

Through my research I found this three step process to changing a child’s beliefs. The first part of this process is to build the children up. In order to do this one must tell the child that they are right and that they are doing well. An example of this is like when a parent tells they’re child how much potential they have. The truth is that they are telling their child they suck but they’re telling that what they can become.

The second part of this exercise is to tear the child down. In doing this you have to

find ways to show the child that what they believe is bad and or not good for them. When we do this we are showing authority to the child. The third part and the most important part is to rebuild the child. By rebuilding the child you are showing them that you are still on their side. This works so well because when you have broken down all a child knows they will grab whatever you give to them next and take it to heart. This works the same as to after a parent scolds their child they then offer a way for them to do it right.

Research Summary:

Throughout my research I had one come question I wanted to answer, “How can I change the way a child believes?” Through this article I found a very useful way to change a child this concept is very true and has been used many different times down through time. The first step the building up gives the corrector a trust with the child. The tearing down part of the exercise is the part that brings the child down to where they can actually be taught. The final stage of rebuilding is the part that makes the lasting change on the child. This part of the exercise is what sticks with the child for the rest of their life