demographics

Today I’m in my math 144 class for elementary school teachers. There are probably about 28 people in this class, but out of all of us, I can count the students of color on one hand and still have room for my index finger to point out that there is a crazy lack of diversity amongst school teachers, especially elementary school teachers (not to mention there are only 2 guys in the entire class, both white).

At my service learning site, there is exactly one white student in my class. All of the others are either black, latinx, or asian (from what I can see). The majority of my kindergarten friends are hispanic, which is a reflection of the demographics for the entire school.

Over half of the students are hispanic, and only 10% are white.

I must admit, I felt more comfortable being in a more diverse place considering it is what I am used to. I’m used to switching between english and spanish with my friends and knowing that not everyone has money to get things done easily, but also knowing it will get done regardless. I love being able to speak to the students in spanish when some of them are having a hard time adjusting. Maybe this is their first time being in a mostly english-using space, and speaking their home language can help them feel more welcome.

Students will also receive letters home in both english and whatever language is spoken at home. It is important to be able to communicate with all students and families.

The students of course do not really understand yet that they have major differences. One boy, who I will call evan, shared a name with a character from a book who is white, and told me that the character is him. Charlie is black, so I found this to be a bit funny, but simply agreed with him and told him how cool it was that they share a name.