Costa, Danny

Weekly Summary (1 of 2)
Multiple Voices

The shared value of multiple voices within any given community gives rise to cultural

competency, whereas the closing off of these same voices increases oppression and entitlements.

As Lindsey et al states, “being culturally competent…is exemplified by how educators use

assessment data, deliver curriculum and instruction, interact with parents and community

members, and plan and use professional development” (Lindsey et al, 61). A current events

presentation by peers, titled Embracing Diversity, allowed for an open dialogue on the matter.

The Embracing Diversity presentation group first asked peers to determine student

handbook policies for dress code. Clothing was mutually discussed, but hair was not typically

considered. Some shared that they felt dress code policies were blatantly sexist. Then, an article

was shared with us about an 11-year old female African-American student in Louisiana, who

was sent home for wearing hair extensions. Faith Fennidy and her mother, Montrelle, were

shown on video at the school when the student was told to go home because of the infraction.

“The school’s handbook reads: Boys and girls: only the student’s natural hair is permitted.

Extensions, wigs, hair pieces of any kind are not allowed. Hairstyles that are faddish and deemed

inappropriate by the administration are not allowed” (Jacobs & Levin, 2018). Class discussion

centered around where the issue fell on the cultural competency timeline, as well as how this

issue happened at all. Lastly, classmates discussed the perceived “value” of a school dress code

and what the point of one should be. Upon reflection, I determined that a school dress code must

properly serve all students in order to be culturally proficient, as well as provide empathy to all
shareholders. Policies such as those mentioned above are distinct barriers to cultural respect and

understanding.

The second current events presentation, The Test That Changed Their Lives, focused on

whether the Specialized High Schools Admissions Test (SHSAT) of New York is equitable to all

students within the city. “The SHSAT, a grueling one-day exam, is considered a golden ticket

into one of New York City’s eight prestigious schools, if [students] score high enough. But the

test…has been the subject of public debate over its role in school segregation” (Zerba & Guz,

2018). Before we jumped into the discussion, students were placed inside a simulation to

experience what going to high school in New York felt like. Students were handed cards stapled

to random amounts of paper money. We were told that the SHSAT was coming soon, and that it

would determine what high schools we could apply to. I happened to have $80, so I could afford

to purchase the study guide for the SHSAT. The study guide was very influential to determining

my success on the SHSAT, and I was able to “choose” from one of three specialized high

schools: The Bronx High School of Science, Stuyvesant High School, and Staten Island

Technical High School. Shortly thereafter, we discussed whether this was fair and aligned with

practices of cultural competency. Later, after Professor Vargas’ lecture on Multiple Voices,

students were asked to create their own Diversity Timelines. These personalized timelines were

products of our own interactions with diversity throughout our lives. When completed, students

did a Gallery Walk and then debriefed.

In conclusion, the theme strand of Multiple Voices was clearly evident through the class

materials, discussions, current events presentations, and lecture of the class for this given week.

Without multiple voices, our collective assumption of cultural competency is one-dimensional

and walled-off from true societal growth and change.

 References

Lindsey, R., Robins, K.N., & Terrell, R.D. (2009). Cultural proficiency: A manual for

school leaders. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin.

Jacobs, J. & Levin, D. (2018, August 21). Black girl sent home from school over hair

extensions. The New York Times. Retrieved from https://www.nytimes.com/2018/08/21/us/black-

student-extensions-louisiana.html

Zerba, A. & Guz, G. (2018, September 4). The test that changed their lives. The New

York Times. Retrieved from https://www.nytimes.com/2018/09/04/nyregion/nyc-specialized-

high-school-shsat.html
Costa, Danny
Weekly Summary (2 of 2)

Danger of a Single Story and Lindsey Chs. 4-8

Chimamanda Adichie’s 2009 Oxford, England TED Talk is revolutionary in that it

reminds and encourages us to be multi-dimensional cultural beings, at a time in social and

political history where our collective cultural competence has diminished so quickly. Although

her talk is nearly ten years old, Adichie’s message remains as poignant and valuable as when

originally presented. “The single story creates stereotypes, and the problem with stereotypes is

not that they are untrue, but that they are incomplete. They make one story become the single

story” (Adichie, 2009).

What is unifying about the danger of a single story is that each of us can easily fall into

the narrative of sharing our own single story. It takes more time, more emotional effort, and

more recall to provide details about life that might not fit another’s expectation of the individual.

Sometimes, it is easier to fit a mold and move on. However, Adichie proclaims this to be

detrimental to not only the present exchange, but to assumptions moving forward. Indeed, as my

colleague Philippa Gray stated, “I have had multiple people in my life make assumptions about me

because I am female and Asian, so the stories are that Asians are bad drivers” (Gray, 2018). The author

goes on to state that because this line of commentary has become so frequent in life, she oftentimes either

ignores or laughs it off. However, this can only perpetuate assumption. At many times in my adult life, I

have had another Caucasian share a personal belief that is ignorant and racist. While the commentary is

terrible, what is even more offensive is that I am assumed to be in concert with these messages of hate,

just because I too am Caucasian. If I do not speak up and make known my true intent on the issue, I have

created a single story for the other to label me with. Assumptions and the danger of the single story go
hand-in-hand. Within the classroom, assumptions about students creates an inevitable single story

problem. At my school, many teachers and students hold a single story mentality about many of the

Native American and Hispanic students on campus. The single story about the Native American students

is that they all come from broken homes on the Pala Reservation, don’t care about school, and are just

waiting to turn 18 to earn their casino money. Similarly, I have heard the odd question of “Why can’t the

Native students be like our Hispanic students from the reservation?” What is implied here is that all

Hispanic students have the same socio-economic challenges, but that they all are achieving at an

academic rate beyond that of the Native American students. This entire narrative is short-sighted,

ignorant, and well within Adichie’s definition of the cultural single story. Teachers using this kind of

flippant ignorance falls well short of Lindsey’s cultural proficiency expectation.

My colleague Danyel Fogarty made an exceptional point when she shared her own single

story of growing up in the shadow of an academically successful older brother. Her teachers,

often asking, “What is wrong with you, aren't you Sean's sister? You're supposed to be my best

reader,” (Fogarty, 2018) fell into the trap of the single story, and simultaneously, placed doubt

and false definition of self into Fogarty’s mindset. Even within our own family units, we must be

so careful to avoid doing this. As a father, I am guilty of this. I often find myself proudly

describing my two sons as polar opposites but one-dimensional shells (one is social, and one is

shy, for example) of their real selves. Exponentially, this verbiage can end up defining both of

my sons’ self-worth as they move into adulthood, and I need to be more self-aware of this trap.

The single story, assumptions, and concerns over self-worth all challenge us as a society

to do better. All are barriers to honest and open interaction, and a better understanding of one

another as individuals. As teachers, altering this lens can help personalize academic learning

while developing stronger relationships with the students we teach.

 References

Adichie, C. (2009). The danger of a single story [Video file]. Retrieved from

https://www.ted.com/talks/chimamanda_adichie_the_danger_of_a_single_story?language=en

Gray, P. (2018, September 30). Re: the danger of a single story discussion forum [Online

discussion group]. Retrieved from https://cc.csusm.edu/mod/forum/discuss.php?d=354364

Fogarty, D. (2018, October 2). Re: the danger of a single story discussion forum [Online

discussion group]. Retrieved from https://cc.csusm.edu/mod/forum/discuss.php?d=356125