Just when I thought my blogging was over, I was able to experience a professional growth opportunity that I want to share on this blog because it fits so perfectly with what I was reflecting on. On Wednesday, April 4, Dr. Kuecker and Dr. Webster-Moore came to my General Methods class in the morning. This class turned into a responsive panel discussion based on each students' readings and the plethora of knowledge and experience that these two speakers had. While the whole discussion was engaging and beneficial, there are two main points that truly stood out to me and prompted me to expand my understanding.
To begin, Dr. Kuecker made a few statements about the link of diversity to the Christian faith. So often, he stated, Diversity, Justice, and acts of kindness are seen as extras, or bonuses outside of theology. Importance is often placed on doctrine, and if you believe the true doctrine, you are okay. Then if you have the time for the extras, then you can focus on acting on other causes. Rather, he made the statement that these "extras" are actually at the heart of the gospel. If we look at Jesus' life and the way he lived every day he was on earth, we can see that this is the truth. Reflecting on this point, I believe that this change in thought process is something that will truly shift the way I teach my future students. The diversity God has created in this world is not just an extra, but rather something God created purposefully to bring more glory and honor to him. Each of my students is diverse in some way, shape, or form, and by discovering and addressing this diversity is what God has called me to do. It is the way he wants me to show my faith in his gospel. Diversity needs to be always on my mind. What a beautiful addition to our world!
Another point that broadened my horizon was made half way through the talk. It was stated that diversity is not about tolerance. We are not called simply to tolerate diversity, but rather to embrace it. Tolerance, as stated by Dr. Kuecker, means no relationship is formed. Rather, tolerance means we are deciding to be able to survive in the same situation as each other as long as we can avoid each other and not have too many issues come to the surface. When it comes to diversity, especially the diversity in my community and classroom, I am called to accept these differences to the point that a strong relationship is welcome to emerge. This point relates to my author, Richard Milner's point about colorblindness. He also talks about how we are not to look past the differences that are present in our students, because we are missing a part of who they are. Also, during the discussion panel, Dr. Webster-Moore stated that "If you don't see color, you don't see me." In her statement, she reminded us all that color and diversity are not to be ignored. There is a big piece of the "whole-student" that we are missing when we look past, tolerate, or ignore the diversity in the classroom.
In conclusion of this panel discussion, I want to leave you with a statement that has proved to be a great reminder to me. In the future, there will be many difficult and uncertain situations I will deal with. A strong reminder was given to me by these two professors and serves as strong encouragement. They said to remember that God takes what we have and uses it. It is not by our own power that we make it through difficult situations in the classroom or in life, but it is by surrendering ourselves to God's will and offering to him all that we have, similar to Jesus using the five loaves of bread and two fish to feed a multitude of hungry people. Students are hungry for love, acceptance, and encouragement. May we all choose to offer what we have been given to God to be used as he sees fit for his honor and glory.
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