This is very prevalent. In American literature especially, the viewing of America as this beautiful unexplored land that was waiting to be discovered by these "first settlers". Even now, from what I remember, in schools the romanticism of Canada being discovered for the "first time" inspires dreams and the adventurous spirit in children, without really acknowledging in depth the violence that was committed against the true first inhabitants. They are erased and pushed aside in the founding of a "new" land narrative.

This helps summarize most of the article; the idea that white people have been and are erasing Indigenous people from history, from our current lives, and placing themselves in their place, placing their views and cultures in the place of Indigenous views and cultures. Despite the different interventions, people who stand up against these white systems are quickly silenced and brushed aside.

I appreciate the author being blunt and honest about this, about there not being any easy solution to the whiteness that has overtaken our schools, there is no "comfortable" solution. It's hard, and will take hard work and holding each other accountable to keep from perpetuating settler colonialism in our education systems. This is part of why this class will be valuable in our future, if we can foster an attitude of holding ourselves and each other accountable and asking the hard questions.

This reminds me of that video that we saw in Wednesday's class. It's so important that we see each student as an important contributor and part of the classroom, otherwise we're in danger of falling into this trap of distinguishing who is helpful or worth effort, "ration(ing) kind of knowledge to class".

I'd be interested to see a similar study performed in the 2020's; have people grown more accepting of a diverse community, or is there still lots of racism and fear among middle class families? What are the domestic situations of the more recent years like?

I'd be interested in knowing how they do that; what is it exactly in the curriculum or in the beliefs held by teachers and parents that keep kids in the class structures they are currently in? Maybe it's simple discrimination and there isn't much to explain? I'm sure we'll touch on this in class in the future.

This idea seems a little dated to me. Children are no longer outcast for displaying behavior that is disruptive. They are talked to, they are assessed for underlying disorders that may be keeping them from engaging fully, and teachers teach differently, as to engage a variety of learners. Also, this "educational failure" isn't just a school issue; are parents helping or supporting their children in their education? It's hard to always know, especially since teacher/parent relations seem to be very tricky and sensitive in today's day and age.