New News, Old News, No News

The newish news is that we've sent out wedding invitations. Glad to have that taken care of. There are few a still strays needing addresses, and as we get no's, we'll send a few more (maybe), but it's basically done. The RSVP cards make checking the mail a lot more fun. Since people seem to be asking, the registry info is in the invitation: go to mygiftlist.com, and search for Nicole and Patrick. If you don't have internet access, how are you reading this blog?

The no news is regarding Patrick's grants. Still haven't heard. Should find out this month. I started looking into programs abroad, in Argentina especially, that connect travelers with volunteer positions teaching English. I like the idea of tutoring adults. It's still not clear to me what kind of work needs English proficiency, though. Tourism industry? A website I was looking at advertises volunteer positions tutoring single moms. It would be nice to be helpful to a family in need, but I haven't really grasped why single moms in Argentina need to speak English. But maybe I could also help out around the house and learn to speak Argentine Spanish. I really don't want to be a classroom English teacher and be responsible for lesson plans and all that (and not even get paid!). Patrick suggests that in Mexico, I hook up with some of his profs' university connections and learn about Mexican teacher education. Sounds good to me.

The oldish news is that my school put on a Job Fair for the 7th and 8th graders last week. It was great. In a few weeks, we're taking the students to Exchange City, a model city with its own little bank, post office, snack shop, etc. that they'll run for a day. So at the Job Fair, they got dressed up, brought out their resumes and interviewed for jobs. I was representing the Bank (a few of the teachers have such a math phobia that they couldn't do even this), with four positions: Bank President, VP, Account Manager (teller), and Senior Account Manager. I interviewed kids for two hours straight, and it was tiring but also really enjoyable. One girl took the "firm handshake" way too seriously, and pulled her interviewers out of their chairs. It was charming how honest they were, too, and though part of me wanted to say, "You probably shouldn't tell someone that if you want them to give you a job," I was also pleased that they realized that I know them well enough--even those I don't teach--to make it stupid to lie to me. My favorite was the girl interviewing for president: I said, "As Bank President, there will be a lot of times when you have a lot going on around you, so you'll need to be able to prioritize and focus on getting your job done. Do you think that's something you'll be able to do?" She looked right at me and said, "Well, I get a little distracted." I think it was the same girl who, asked why she wanted the job, said, "I've never been the president of anything before, so I thought this could be my chance." Wow. There was a great interview for president, though, from a girl who I've taught all year and who I just love for the way she balances being engaged with the class without being a suck-up. Apparently, she's on the board of a group called Females United for Action or something, and part of her job is to work on their budget and make sure they can afford to do the programs they want to do, and if they can't, fiddling around to make things work. She's 13. I had NO IDEA that she was involved with anything like this. She also had great eye contact. It makes me so happy to find out about this aspect of her life, and to give her this job for a day.

There were a lot of good interview things going on, actually. One that really struck me is that our brainwashing is succeeding. A lot of times, in the classroom, it seems like all the stuff about working well with others and being respectful is just washing over them like a wave of hot air. But in these interviews, I was surprised by how many girls described positive conflict management on the job, saying they would handle conflicts by working together to find good compromises, by calming explaining their feelings to their co-workers, and by accepting the decisions of their superiors even if they didn't agree, "because she's my boss." (I'm imagining the ways I can use this in math class. "Hey, remember how you said you'd listen to the boss? Well that's me. I'm your boss. Where is your pencil.")

There was a lot of interest in Account Manager. When asked why they were passionate about this job (it was the #1 choice for many of them), a lot of the girls said that their mothers or mothers' friends work at banks. One girl was so articulate, it was heartbreaking: she said, "Well, I could work at the Snack Shop [another very popular job was Popcorn Machine Operator--must be safety conscious!], but to me that's like working at McDonald's, and that's not what I want in my life. Working as an account manager, that's like something I want to do when I grow up."

Now I'll grant that there are many possible explanations behind this sentiment. But here's my pessimistic reading: I imagine boys and girls across America dreaming about becoming President, or of launching into space one day, and realizing around this age, middle school, that they can realistically aspire to be teachers, doctors, lawyers, engineers, the like. For my students, at this school established to serve girls who have traditionally been underserved and disserved by their, our education system, the realization is that they can become bank tellers. Becoming a doctor is like becoming an astronaut to them. It makes me question my own grounding in reality, and that of my colleagues; we constantly talk to the girls about being scholars, being professional, about all the options that are open to them, but we aren't succeeding in teaching them to test well, to write well, to be competitive in four-year colleges, so who are we fooling? When we talk about change, about equity, who are we fooling?

When I figure out how to fix American education, you'll be among the first to know. Don't worry.

I should add that in other contexts, many of the girls have expressed their desire to become doctors and nurses. Also fashion designers, real estate agents, actresses, models, singers, and beauticians. In sum, maybe they are more "normal" than anything else. I still don't feel like our society is doing them justice, however. Maybe it doesn't do justice to most people and their talents, interests, and passions, but it seems disproportionate for these girls.

And now, the best news of this post: Spring is here!