Identity and Education: Part 1
Identity is a major contributing factor in one’s life, it
shapes who we are and what we aspire to be.
Identity and education affect each other on many different levels. Often young black men struggle with education
in its modern institutionalized form. This leads to an understanding that
education in its modern form does not fully lend itself to the recognition that
most young North American black men are looking for. Moreover, it questions its validity creating
an educational divide between institutionalized education and the education
that is provided just around the corner through everyday life experiences. Often
young black males seem to value street recognition as opposed to recognition
through our existing educational system.
Young Black men are frequently caught in a struggle between
societal recognition of success; as these ideals can be in contrast with what
is recognized as successful amongst their peers. The route and means of achieving
this success is at odds. The commonality of the two at first glance is to be
wealthy and powerful; however, as Bracher believes, “Even wealth and material
possessions are not an end in themselves but a way for us to be assured of the
recognition identity, motivation, and recognition of others” (22-23). As a
result we come to an educational divide, respectively leading in two opposing directions.
Following the socially excepted norms leads to a more modern
form of education in which academics and scholasticism are of ultimate value. However
academic success, as it seems can oppose ideological definitions of what it
means to be black. A young black male achieving academic excellence can be perceived
as a traitor placing him in a position where he must defend and even vindicate
his blackness. In which case, as explained by Tom Fox in Bracher’s, “Radical
Pedagogy: Identity, Generativity and Social Transformation”, “Success in school
means joining the opposition, threatening their identity as black Americans”
(34).
An alternative form of education is to go against social
norms and become informed by means of everyday life. Although academic success
is seen as a positive thing to the societal majority, it can also be seen as
obsolete to the young black male because the success most common to him is not
always found through school or academics; it is achieved by way of monetary
endowment accumulated through alternative means. The young black male gains knowledge through
observation and understands that for him, the more practical way towards money,
power and respect does not subside in academics but through an alternate
education only acquired through an unconventionally attained knowledge. A form
of awareness not found in the classroom but found on the corner, on the block
and throughout the buildings that compose their neighborhood.
Politicians, lawyers and police officers are visible;
however, pimps, drug dealers and hustlers seem more tangible and are undeniably
more benevolent. Although viewed by
mainstream society as degenerate, the latter provide a formula that delivers
recognition and a form of success that young black males may possibly model
their lives after. As Bracher postulates, “While such forms of recognition can
be an impediment to education, they can also provide motivation to learn in
cases where the system itself does not, or motivation to acquire knowledge that
the system ignore or excludes” (26).
The educational divide that many young black males face is
like a fork in the road, each with benefits and setbacks. To choose academic success may ostracize an
individual from their culture and community and to choose the alternate route
goes against societal values. “Each form
of recognition can either support or interfere with learning. When students seek recognition as being “a
good student” or “intelligent” and such recognition is not received, they may
feel depressed, anxious, or angry and as a result be less effective in their
learning, or pursue noneducational means of achieving recognition” (24). As an
educator the dilemma still remains; how does one enforce positive recognition
of identity through the modern institutionalized educational system?
Trevor, reading your statement of how “[t]o choose academic success may ostracize an individual from their culture and community and to choose the alternate route goes against societal values”, really touched my heart. I found that it was so hard to read, although true, I don’t want to accept it. As teachers, I find that we are always in competition with the street life. How can I make students (especially black males) see that there is an alternative to the life that they see on the street. Being successful academically does not make you a “sell out”. At my school we often have presenters, Black males especially, that try to show the students that they do not have to be a stereotype or that there are alternatives to the street life. I thank you for being a Black male that others can look up to and see that formally educated Black males do exist and that it is a possible path to follow.
ReplyDeleteAs a black male who grew up in an environment where we all aspired to become doctors, lawyers, engineers, politicians and the list goes on, it is rather perplexing to see a reverse situation where young men will embrace the life of crime because it is "tangible and undeniably more benevolent".
ReplyDeleteGrowing up, it is not uncommon to see those living life on the fast lane also embracing the importance of education. It is no surprising therefore to find those involved in crimes that would have ordinarily be ascribed to the low life of the society with one university degree or more! So, essentially, from a very early age we were indoctrinated into the culture that says, without education, you will amount to nothing.
Bracher asserts that people tend to be resistance to learning if their identity is not been validated in the context of learning or is been validated elsewhere (p. 5). No surprise that we can find black males excelling on basketball court where their peers consider them gods, and the same individual are being labelled as having learning difficulties in the classroom. This parallels your assertion that if the respect they seek is being provided out on the street, where they sell drugs or are involved in other nefarious activities, what then is the point in sitting in classrooms where they feel nothing but contempt?
For an individual who grew up not experiencing this, I have come to accept the fact that perhaps we received the identity validation going through the school system. Our teachers encouraged us to aspire for greatness, no one ever told us that we couldn't become a doctor or lawyer. No one ever told me that I would not be an ideal candidate for academic math or that I should go learn a trade rather than going to university. We were encouraged, and we were seen as being capable of becoming someone in life.
It's very interesting that you discuss this Trevor. I see this everyday, especially when it comes to our Black Males and it kills me to see and hear it. Our Black males are becoming a product of the "gangster society". We want to best for our children but in the same breath many of us get jealous and tell those who want to better themselves that they are outcasts and think they are better then us. Why, so we fight amongst ourselves? It brings to mind working with young black males several years ago and asking them what they wanted to me be when they grew up. It killed me to hear to a 6 year old tell me he wanted to be a gangster and have lots of money. I asked him what he would do with all his money if you couldn't count it or read/write his name on his bank account. He said I can't become anything else so why even try? Why do we have this defendest attitude against ourselves?
ReplyDeleteTrevor, all too often this is the experience of many young black students. Both female and male students looking to make a living and feeling overwhelmed and unappreciated by our education system will easily be seduced by the “street life”. I can speak to my own experience growing up in t North End Halifax, the majority of my friends both male and female eventually succumbed to the self-fulfilling prophecy (imposed upon them by others) that they would spend their lives collecting a welfare cheque, become a professional criminal, or objectify themselves in order to make their living. When you hear time and time again that you aren’t smart enough, disciplined enough, or valued by those around you; you will look to other means to gain validation. The unfortunate truth is that the vast majority of my friends that I began school with, ending up living a life of crime as a means of survival. In most instances in order to make a decent living, you need some form of post-secondary education. We live in a society where value is placed on obtaining an education, but for those who struggle to learn in the traditional manner, and have difficulty achieving a diploma, what options do they have? We must get to the root of the problem to help rectify these disparities, and thus allow our young black men and women the opportunity to have success in education and refrain from criminal means of economic prosperity.
ReplyDeleteTrevor, I think you hit the bull’s eye by your concluding question that, “As an educator the dilemma still remains; how does one enforce positive recognition of identity through the modern institutionalized educational system”? This is the dilemma that faces the black communities outside the continent of Africa.
ReplyDeleteYou rightly assert this dilemma. Young black males want to have the attributes that society, in general, judges as successful. Even in their often illegal activities, a few things stand out clearly: they love to take risks – risk of imprisonment and death. They also like to be property owners and present to the world the fruits by which progress is judged. These qualities make for a great entrepreneur. It is no wonder that a lot of young black males aspire to this because, in a sense, their masculinity has been degraded so much through the centuries of slavery and racism. This get-rich-by-any-means-necessary, becomes a form of compensation for these years of degradation of their identities. How we turn these attributes into successful citizenship becomes the crux of the matter, and there are no easy answers. Great job Trevor