1 Final Individual Reflection on Fieldwork

Final Individual Reflection on Fieldwork Monique Kartchner Dr. Norma Gonzalez University of Arizona

2 Final Individual Reflection on Fieldwork Final Individual Reflection on Fieldwork A Familys Funds of Knowledge is multi-dimensional both historically and socially and contains the skills and knowledge that contribute to helping families and communities function. In the Funds of Knowledge book, funds of knowledge are historically accumulated and culturally developed bodies of knowledge and skills essential for household or individual functioning and well-being (Gonzales, Moll, Amanti, 2005, p. 72). By engaging in two family home interactions with my students family, I gained a better understanding of the formation of a familys funds of knowledge. I found that to develop and maintain positive relationships with a family one must enter the familys home and show interest in their everyday life and their goals for their children. During my two home visits I learned the multiple aspects and depth of the familys funds of knowledge and how the households history, along with their labor history and social networks all contribute to the familys funds of knowledge. The family home interactions taught me how to approach a household while looking at the interaction through the spectacle of funds of knowledge. I had the opportunity to make two home visits this semester where I learned a great amount about my students and their familys funds of knowledge. I had not attended my placement classroom before my first family home visit so I had to call the mother to schedule the home visit. I was unable to reach the mother but decided to leave a voice message about who I was and why I was contacting her. She contacted me soon after and presented some days that would work for her and her family. We settled on a date and I expressed my gratitude to her for opening up her home to me. I am in a P.A.C.E preschool where parents have to volunteer in the classroom each month. After the first home visit I was able to greet the mother and father in the morning and interact with them when they volunteered in the classroom. The mother had been preparing to take the GED test and so I continued to ask her

3 Final Individual Reflection on Fieldwork how she was progressing. This helped me build a positive rapport which helped in setting up the second home visit and maintaining a positive relationship afterward. Before the first home visit my partner and I prepared the questions we wanted to ask regarding the familys household history, labor history, social networks, and how these contributed to their households funds of knowledge. Though we had prepared our questions, we went into the home knowing that we may not have all of them answered, but that making a good first impression and developing a relationship so that the parents would feel comfortable to share family information with us was most important. The interest we had in each of their responses and the personal stories that we shared from our lives helped develop trust between us and the family and showed that we were both there to learn. For the second visit I brought a potted plant to give to the mother to thank her again for opening her home to us. She gratefully accepted the gift and was willing to give us a tour of her home and share more pertinent information with us. The process by which we approached the family helped us develop an atmosphere where we could receive information through a lens based on funds of knowledge. The mother was willing to share about her past life. She explained that before having the twins that are in my placement class, she had two other babies at a young age. She explained how at that time her boyfriend was never there, and that she was a raging alcoholic [and] was too young and immature to be a good mother. Now she has been sober for almost seven years and is a better influence on her young childrens lives. Her past experiences led her to learn and develop the skills to be responsible and supportive of her children by eliminating her past addictions and negative relationships. The father became a father at a young age as well. He explained how he was too young to be a good parent and was irresponsible as he lived the street life. He explained how he

4 Final Individual Reflection on Fieldwork regretted his absence in his first daughters life. Now that he is more responsible and involved in his childrens lives he is proud when he sees their growth and knows that he is helping them to fulfill their full potential as he provides for them. One aspect of the familys funds of knowledge is learning from past mistakes and not repeating them. During my first visit the mother explained the importance of reading to her children. She takes her four year old twins to the library and has taught them how to utilize a public resource to explore things they are curious about. She also uses the library books to help them better understand what she is trying to explain to them. For example, she said Im trying to explain to [the twins] why the weather is changing, and that its getting too cold to swim I checked out a book from the library called Seasons, and I was explaining to them that after summer comes fall which means the weather changes and it gets cold. Yesterday they saw it. One activity that builds the childrens funds of knowledge is using books to answer questions and explore new concepts. The mother did not receive her high school diploma and was taking classes to prepare for the GED test during the time of our home visits. She also explained that she wants to be involved with her childrens education, so I can talk to them about what they are learning when they get home. The example she has set as she studies for her General Education Degree along with volunteering in her childrens classroom has led to the acknowledgement that education is a central part in the households funds of knowledge. The fathers prior work experience at a uniform company and Goodwill helped him develop organizational skills and the ability to work with money as a cashier. While working at Golds Gym he learned how to use exercise equipment and how to fix it. As a worker at Apollo Flooring he learned how to measure and calculate the square footage of a house. In his current

5 Final Individual Reflection on Fieldwork job the father is learning how to interact and help troubled individuals find ways to live a normal or better life. The learned job skills contribute to the father having the knowledge to organize, handle money, understand different equipment, calculate the exact amount of flooring needed for a house, and how to help individuals who are struggling. The family goes on weekly shopping trips together. By going on these weekly excursions the twins are learning shopping skills. The mother explained that they do not budget but are careful and do not go shopping when her husband is off work. The childrens opportunity to learn how to shop along with the understanding that when their father isnt working they do not have money to go shopping contributes to their funds of knowledge. The family eats dinner together every night because the parents feel that it is important for them to talk and eat with their children. The twins understand the importance of eating dinner as a family and are developing this as a part of their funds of knowledge. Both parents were born and raised in Tucson where they have experienced both positive and negative experiences. Drawing from the experiences they have had and their funds of knowledge about Tucson, they feel that moving somewhere else would [give the twins] a better opportunity for life, education, and where they would have more options. The funds of knowledge they have developed in relation to Tucson have led them to believe that it does not provide many opportunities for a future education. The father and mother tell their children that they can do anything. They share with them aspects about their past such as when the mother explained to her son that his daddy went to jail when he was young because he had done something wrong, but that he hated it there and will never go back. The mother was also very open about her struggles during the time when she was a young mother. These stories contribute to the childrens knowledge of things that their

6 Final Individual Reflection on Fieldwork parents regret and dont want them to repeat. Another aspect of the childrens funds of knowledge is knowing that when someone makes a mistake that they can change and become a better person as their parents have. The households history includes events in the past and involvement with the familys extended family. The households history has helped the family develop what is most important to them. The mother explained I didnt have a mom and dad growing up and that her visits to her separated parents homes were not appropriate for a young girl. She exclaimed that her children are fortunate to have two parents who care about them and are mature enough to raise them. The importance of responsible parents is an aspect of the familys funds of knowledge that has been establish due to negative experiences from the past. The mother explained that when she had her first two children their father was never there and that she had not been involved in their lives. Now that she is older and more mature she spends more time with the twins and understand the importance of reading to them, buying them paper to write on, getting memory games for them, and playing with them. When the mother was raising her first son she noticed that he was addicted to video games. She had her husband take the games away from him after he had done something wrong. She and her husband noticed that her son went through withdraws, and they did not want to have their twins have this same addiction. To avoid their attachment to video games they provide opportunities for the children to get out and play at the park or visit the library. Their past experience with her son contributed to their knowledge of how they should raise their twins. Past experiences have helped her to improve her role as a mother now and have helped her see how her involvement is beneficial for her children. The mother also explained how she

7 Final Individual Reflection on Fieldwork fed her children food when they were three months old because she had seen family members give their babies food early on and explained that it is a Mexican or family thing. This aspect of her funds of knowledge came from the knowledge she gained while growing up around many family members who practiced this tradition. The father recently got an offer to work at G and K Uniforms which is a company where he had worked in the past. The job would pay more money than his current job but would require more work. The positive aspect of the job would be that he would work a regular schedule of Monday through Friday and would not have to work through the night or on weekends like he currently does. Even though this job offers better pay and hours, they are knowledgeable about what the job requires and are hesitant about accepting it. The parents have both worked in a variety of jobs which have contributed to their labor history. The father works as a Behavioral Health Technician (BHT) at La Frontera and has been working at this job for five years. By working as a Behavioral Health Technician he has learned the skills to work with substance abusers, the mentally ill, and people with disabilities and disorders. The ability to interact and help these people has contributed to the fathers funds of knowledge. The mother worked at Blake Foundation before studying for her GED and realized that without a GED that she cannot get a decent paying job. This knowledge helped her face her fear of taking the GED test, and now after much studying and hard work she recently passed the exam. The parents social network is comprised mostly by their families. The mother was raised by her grandparents who did not keep a very good eye on her which has contributed to her emphasizing her influence for a proper adult role in her childrens lives. Her experience of not having an adult really care what she was doing has contributed to her knowledge of how

8 Final Individual Reflection on Fieldwork important this role is in a childs life. The mother explained how she and her twins go to her grandmothers house every Sunday for dinner where they interact with the grandmother, her older son, and other family members. The mother explained how she makes an effort to communicate with her siblings but doesnt want her children interacting with their cousins who may have a bad influence on them. The fathers mother passed away recently, and as a result the father is determined to foster a relationship with his brother. The relationships the mother and twins have with her older son, her grandmother, and the fathers brother have developed a social network that contributes to their funds of knowledge. I have learned to identify some of the everyday intellectual, emotional, historical, cultural, and social aspects of a family by visiting this family at their home. This understanding has led me to appreciate the diversity of circumstances that contribute to a familys funds of knowledge and how this is vital in the running of a family and community.