A couple of weeks ago COMM 1010 introduced the chapter on Language, Culture, and Power and my student from hell turned another student into a student from hell. Yes, there are two now--both Fraternity members--both white. Together, they are getting worse in regards of disrupting class and becoming more and more disengaged week in and week out.
I prefaced the privilege walk as a special activity the week prior. The day of I instructed my class that we would be doing the special activity outside. I stay behind the class to make sure that the door is closed and just in case students who are late know that the class is outside today, in case they forgot. As I am the last one to leave my two students from hell try to break off from the rest of my class and run up the stairs so that they would not have to participate in today's festivities. I was young and thought I was slick as well once. Little do they know I was 10 times more hard headed and mischievous than they could ever imagine (Still am). I catch them half up the stairs and let out a loud bolt of "Na ha!! Y'all come back down here right now or I'm dropping two letter grades from your final grades!". Both come back down and claim that they "thought outside was upstairs". I reply, "and I thought Obama was the pope".
The class arrives outside and we start the activity. I explain the privilege walk to my students and after we began. While reading the questions extremely loud both of the student from hell start to engage in numerous conversations with one another (I should have split them apart) instead of listening to the questions. They were asked numerous times to stop talking, they couldn't hear hear the questions because they were over there bumpin they gums!
After we finished the activity we debriefed. This debrief expanded far beyond evaluation on whether the student's liked it or not. By engaging in CCP I got to ask question like why they liked it. As you probably would have guessed the students from hell whom were well ahead of everyone else experienced distaste for the activity. I asked them why they didn't like it and one of them responded with "I just think that it was pointless. It's not going to change anything; I will still treat everyone the same". I almost threw the chair at him, that happens to be attached to the desk. His partner and another white student shouted with joy, agreeing with him. I ask the rest of the class what they think, and the class just shook their heads in disappointment, but no words were uttered.
I'm going to honest, I did not know what made even more upset, the student from hell's stupidity or the silence that occupied the room. I counted to 10 in my head and I responded. For length purposes I will not state what I said. the point I want to make here is a tough one. My goal in the class is to disrupt whiteness by denying students rights to abject scripts. How? By holding a mini lecture and a think pair share discussing hegemony and power the day before the privilege walk. After the lecture and think pair share we as a class debrief. During the debrief we interrogate color-blindness and other techniques that reticulates systems of oppression (Another CCP component). Getting everyone involved is a strategy employed so that students hold each other and the teacher accountable and responsible for their responses. I thought their classmates would call the students from hell out, and it did not happen.
As painful as it might seem, if this is to happen I believe it is our job as educators to educate. I was prepared for students who identify as white to balk on the activities and the talk back. No, we do not want our white students to shut down, for they are an important part of your classroom community and the activity itself. But it is so important to address abject scripting and talks of colorblindness. If they shut down, it is important to let them know it's okay to feel the way that they do, but we must challenge them to think deeper and critically about their responses and the possible ways how it affects others. Even if it breaks their hearts. But oh was I happy to respond to my students from hell!! And honestly I am not afraid of backlash, because I taught them to challenge me, and I promise to challenge them (And oh boi did I!) and that's a tactic and a strategy to acknowledging difference. It is within itself a challenge. Ignoring comments that are problematic and not talking about the "R" word only feeds concepts like abject scripts, Dare Education Be Liberation.
#Thosewhocan
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