Blog 5:
In Ian K. Macgillivray’s article entitled, “Using Cartoons to Teach Students about Stereotypes and Discrimination: One Teacher’s Lessons from South Park,” Macgillivray goes into extensive detail about various instructors’ utilization of cartoons in their classrooms. Elaborating on how students connect to cartoons Macgillivray states that, “Categorizing people by using a group label, in effect, highlights their similarities to one another and their differences from other people, which also “link[s] social groups to a whole constellation of other types of information” (Ehrlich, 2–3). In essence, stereotyping “makes it easier to store knowledge and to recall it” (Mcgillivray, 138). He also goes on to describe the four different reasons that he uses cartoons in the classroom. He asserts that “animated cartoons are an important part of popular culture… because cartoons are based on humor, they are especially apt texts for examining culture” and that “there is evidence that humor helps students to better process and accept information that negates stereotyping.” Moreover, and most importantly, “allowing students to identify with a cartoon character who is coming to terms with his or her own prejudices, which the student viewer may also hold, is less threatening in that it gives the student an opportunity to first see someone else (the cartoon character) going through the process of examining his or her own stereotypes.” Macgillivray then goes on to explain how other teachers use cartoons in their classroom by citing research that he uncovered regarding cartoons in classrooms. These teachers discuss how the cartoons they used were effective, but they also gave warnings about how the overuse of cartoons can just perpetuate the negative stereotypes they portray as opposed to educating students. Macgillivray also explores in his article how analyzing the studies of cartoons over an expanse of time can help teachers tailor their lesson plans to their classes. Macgillivray dives into a number of studies including research regarding racial, gender, and LGBTQ+ stereotypes, as well as stereotypes regarding those with mental illnesses. This article is a great one to read, not only because it shows you how other teachers have used cartoons to teach kids about how to identify and engage with their biases, but because it also tells instructors how we relate to cartoons in such a way that allows us to project our biases onto the cartoon during class discussion and, in that projection, we feel safe from judgment because “it is what the illustrator is saying, not us.”

Rockbridge County is in the Shenandoah Valley in West Central Virginia and according to the Rockbridge county website, serves about 2,500 students. The area is predominantly rural and contains mostly farmers, artists, small business owners, military, and retirees. However, the area is plagued with an ailment that harms many areas nationally and internationally. According to the 2013 census, Rockbridge county maintained the highest poverty statistics in all of Virginia. Federal assistance is usually required in the community and free lunch is required for the children.

We asked our teacher, Mrs. Leadbetter about the demographics and she gave information much like that above. She let us know that poverty was one of the biggest challenges the school faced and that their learning had to adapt to those conditions. This factor about Rockbridge County; However, did not show at first glance. When we arrived in their high school environment, we saw a relatively normal scene. Once we entered the classroom, we experienced firsthand Mrs. Leadbetter’s teaching style. Within her teaching day she began the lesson with one topic and switched to another to cover more ground in the unit. Her children seemed to respond relatively positive to this method of teaching. Her environment was an example of the interesting culture that was Rockbridge High School. Prior to the visits, I would never had been able to see Lexington in that light. I see now that Mrs. Leadbetter’s Class, Rockbridge County High School, and Lexington has a whole had a unique story to tell.

blog 5

Tomorrow morning Tyain and I will be meeting with Mr. Simms and his first period, 9th grade English class. I am so excited to get the chance to work with him and his students. This class is actually focused on one of my favorite subjects, mythology. When I was younger, I loved to read Rick Riordan’s books. I devoured the Percy Jackson series, the Heroes of Olympus, and Magnus Chase. My interest in mythology, although not cultivated or refined by any formal education, had continued to carry on into my adult life as I’ve read much of Robert Graves’ Greek Myths. This book outlines in quite explicit detail the entirety of the Greek mythological belief system as it developed over history. Over time I’ve also done some light digging into Egyptian, Norse, and Celtic mythology.

One of the reasons that I’m most excited for this fieldwork project is because I know that my interest for the subject area that these kids are studying will shine through. I hope that I can pass that excitement along as I work with the students. I’m also so excited to see what kind of things these students are doing in their classroom because I know mythology was always a subject that I wanted to study in a course, but never got the chance to. I do think, though, that there may be a chance that my inherent interest in mythology may work against me. This is not necessarily a subject area that everyone is already intrigued by so, I think it may be difficult for me to cultivate students’ interest in whatever project we do undertake in regard to the subject because it may be difficult for me to locate the source of their disinterest.

Moreover, I know that English isn’t necessarily everyone’s cup of tea and I know that there are people who really detest writing, but I hope that by creating a project that really sparks and encourages the imagination I can show the students that English is oftentimes a subject where we can sort of integrate our interests into the course content.

I will be honest, I don’t expect this experience to be easy for me. While I am relatively gregarious, I really do not enjoy public speaking. I most definitely anticipate for tomorrow’s class, the first class, with the students to be the most difficult for me. I am definitely aware of the importance of first impressions and, having been struck down by barracks plague and having to get up and speak in front of a group of people, is a pretty intimidating situation for me to be in – especially because I know how difficult it can be to please high school students. I keep thinking back on when I was a 9th grader. What would I have been responsive towards? What would my attitude have been if someone like this were walking into my classroom? I think these questions are definitely important to consider, but I also think it’s important not to make any assumptions before I walk into the classroom. It’s been a while since I’ve been in high school and this school is most likely nothing like mine was. These kids will most likely be a fair bit different from what I was used to years ago.