by Tiffany Gabbay
My name isn’t particularly complicated yet all through my school years teachers and fellow classmates found some way to botch it, the latter often intentionally. It’s a rite of passage. It’s a part of life — and it still happens to this day.
I had no idea I was the victim of microaggression, and that the “lasting impact” of people calling me “Gabby” would leave psychological scars. I should probably dedicate my life to ensuring no other child ever has to endure this dehumanization — if only I didn’t have better things to do…
Apparently, however, school districts around the country don’t, and that’s why they’ve taken a “pledge” to pronounce all students’ names properly, lest they be guilty of the hate crime of microaggression. CNSNews reports that the national campaign dubbed, “My Name, My Identity: A Declaration of Self,” asserts that when a teacher mispronounces a student’s name, it can cause “anxiety,” “resentment,” and even disregard the child’s entire family and ancestry.
…it was launched in 2015 by the Santa Clara County, Calif. Office of Education (SCCOE) and the National Association for Bilingual Education, a teacher who mispronounces a student’s name can cause that student “anxiety and resentment”.
“Mispronouncing a student’s name truly negates his or her identity, which, in turn, can hinder academic progress,” according to Yee Wan, SCCOE’s director of multilingual education services.
Rita Kohli, assistant professor of education at the University of California at Riverside, says it is a sign of “microagression” when a teacher mispronounces, disregards, or changes a child’s name, because “they are in a sense disregarding the family and culture of the student as well.”
Other school districts, including the Washoe County in Reno, Nevada have joined 528 school districts in this “important” initiative, reports CNS.
In an article filed under the “social justice” section of the teachers’ association’s publication and titled, The Lasting Impact of Mispronouncing Students’ Names, teachers are instructed to self-flagellate after they “reflect upon and interrogate their biases and any deficit thinking they may have.”
Wow. Interrogate biases and deficit thinking?
Teachers are further indoctrinated — I mean, asked — to “see the cultural wealth of students and families, and approach teaching and learning through the lens and culture of students and their communities.”
Welcome to 1984.
http://www.truthrevolt.org/news/school-districts-deem-mispronouncing-students-names-microaggression