Education & Anthropology, Essay Example

Section A: Question 2

Foley’s perspective in regards to the “making out game” and “impression management” demonstrate the importance of student success and achievement relative to academic performance (Foley 204). The efforts that are made by students to succeed are often grounded in specific motivating factors within the outside world and within their communities (Foley 204). It is important to distinguish between specific factors that influence outcomes for students and to provide a basis for the exploration of new ideas and approaches that involve student achievement. In North Town, there are particularly challenging circumstances to consider with respect to the community at large and the impact of cultural diversity on the students who reside there. These concerns are relevant because they contribute to the weaknesses that prevail within the North Town school district and how students respond to their own potential for academic achievement and support.

The concept of the “making out game” is particularly insightful because it reflects an atypical assumption regarding making out. In this sense, it does not involve kissing, but rather, the relationship that teachers sometimes have with their students that plays a role in their development and in overcoming challenges (Foley 195). However, this is not always beneficial because in some situations, individuals may find themselves in a difficult position due to these games, as students might not recognize the practical nature of different events and their role in shaping their futures (Foley 195). It is expected that teachers who utilize this type of situation are not providing any real benefits for their students as they gloss over many ideas and do not sufficiently challenge their students (Foley 195). This is particularly harmful to the students who reside in North Town because it reflects their weaknesses and limitations in achieving greater academic performance (Foley 195). These efforts may have a negative impact on student outcomes because they are not provided with a realistic view of their performance and potential; on the contrary, these issues may be glossed over when teachers are not receptive to the idea of establishing individualized communication with their students in order to expand their academic performance and also build their confidence effectively (Foley 195). There are considerable challenges involved in this scenario and they reflect the importance of specific indicators that may have a positive impact on students who otherwise might not be influenced by these models of communication in the desired manner (Foley 195).

The concept of impression management must also be considered as an opportunity to convey the importance of specific factors related to the perceived versus the actual potential of students within the North Town district (Foley 196). This discussion is relevant because it demonstrates a clear lack of understanding in regards to the realities of student performance (Foley 196). Many students under this scenario might be passed off as good students in order to make good impressions, when in all actuality, their academic performance is subpar (Foley 196). This is a challenging scenario to consider because in essence, teachers are glossing over the fact that their students are not achieving their maximum potential, perhaps because they are fearful of the repercussions of these activities, or perhaps because they might not have sufficient time and energy to care about their students at this level (Foley 198). Furthermore, the minority status of many of these students also demonstrates a societal willingness to allow many students to slide because they are ethnically challenged in one way or another (Foley 198). This is merely an excuse and is inappropriate because it does not challenge students, nor does it challenge their teachers in any way (Foley 198). Use of the “race card” in this type of scenario is unacceptable and should never be used as a way out of a negative or challenging situation.

The efforts that are made by teachers to accommodate their students must reflect the importance of new perspectives in order to ensure that impression management is not a top priority in education. It is important for teachers not to take the easy way out and to fall back on these types of scenarios because all that they accomplish is to limit the ability of their students to be effective communicators. In addition, their academic performance may be severely limited under these conditions. As a result, it is necessary to evaluate other conditions that reflect the importance of new perspectives to encourage positive student performance that is also supported by realistic expectations from teachers. It is anticipated that these efforts will encourage positive student performance and also provide a basis for the exploration of new ideas and approaches that will prevent students from feeling alienated or otherwise excluded on the basis of their ethnicity, which may automatically exclude them from a host of other opportunities, both in North Hills and throughout the reminder of their lives as they move forward with college or in a specific career path. The efforts made by teachers in this community must reflect the importance of new strategies to enhance student academic performance and support for these endeavors as a key component of the school’s focus and direction on student achievement as a key driver of success and growth within the community setting. In many ways, impression management does not provide any real benefits to those using this approach in the school district. Many students might experience a greater sense of alienation as a result of the issues that they face in school in regards to their academic performance and their ability to excel academically within the school district itself at the current level.

Section B: Question 1

For Stanton Wortham, there are a number of considerations in regards to metapragmatic models and their relationship to identity. In this context, it is observed that there are critical aspects associated with metapragmatic approaches to identity as reflected in the classroom setting, particularly as students learn about their own identities through the activities that are conducted in this environment (Wortham 34). Much of Wortham’s perspective is related to the context of a given situation and provides a basis for the exploration of new concepts as reflected in the approaches that are supported by the surrounding environment (Wortham 31). From this perspective, Wortham conveys the importance of specific factors in dictating how meanings are derived within specific situations, and this is supported through the continued development of one’s identity in the process (Wortham 31). It is expected that these contributions will play a role in how students and teachers respond to each other under different conditions and the issues that often emerge with respect to these conditions (Wortham 31).

Creating an environment that supports individual identity serves as the “identity” of Wortham’s perspective. Therefore, it is important to determine how identity is best served through metapragmatic models (Wortham 31). These elements hold considerable weight in the development of new approaches to encourage student achievement with the ability to develop an identity at the same time (Wortham 31). It is important to identify the resources and related models that are instrumental in these tasks and in enabling students to learn more about themselves and their core strengths in order to capture their success and achievement in different forms (Wortham 31). It is evident that individual identity is an evolving process and requires many different processes, including communication and learning as a means of achieving one’s personal identity in important ways.

Wortham’s perspective also generates the “labeling” of students as falling into specific categories that reflect their experiences and knowledge to date in order to accomplish the desired objectives. In this context, there are considerable challenges associated with labeling that are represented by these metapragmatic models and which may pose problems for individual learners as they move forward in meeting their individual needs (Wortham 34). It is known and stated by Wortham that “Social identification, then, emerges across a trajectory of events. There can be no general formula for how to explain the emergence of a social identity—one that explains all social identification in terms of certain timescales and processes” (Wortham 48). Under these conditions, it is important to reflect upon the challenges set forth in the context of students at the high school level who are attempting to learn about specific subjects, while at the same time, attempting to recognize themselves in the process (Wortham 48). In this context, there are challenging circumstances to consider that reflect the importance of different approaches to learning that support individual identity and personal growth in the student role (Wortham 48). These findings suggest that the ability to capture and understand the relevance of individual identity is grounded in metapragmatic models and other tools that support ongoing learning and knowledge generation, particularly in vulnerable periods, such as high school (Wortham 48).

The metapragmatic models under discussion that have been created to provide insight into the inner workings of education and how learning is instinctive yet is supported by the surrounding environment and other factors. It is important and necessary to evaluate some of the circumstances and to consider how they play a role in achieving the desired outcomes. Wortham appears to associate education with learning as a unique yet satisfying challenge for students who otherwise might struggle with their own learning curves and in discovering who they are in the process. The efforts that are made by teachers must demonstrate the importance of specific factors that play a role in shaping outcomes and in providing students with individualized frameworks to achieve improved learning, greater strength, and courage as learners. In high school, the vulnerabilities of students are in full force; therefore, it is important to identify some of these challenges and to consider some of the most important aspects of metapragmatic models that have an influence on individual learning and identity.

The alternatives that are available to younger learners must reflect the ability of education and its infrastructure to be effective in supporting the different dimensions of quality that will enhance personal knowledge and growth. From a student perspective, it is evident that learning is a gradual process, one that enables their needs to be fulfilled and their list of opportunities to grow as they mature and thrive in the school environment. However, this also reflects the capacity to develop new teaching strategies in order to accommodate students and to improve their overall learning potential. These efforts must reflect the importance of specific learning models and their relevance to developing an individual identity so that they will also continue to learn effectively and consistently. These elements contribute to the overall direction and scope of Wortham’s approach to learning and his understanding of the needs of student learners as they begin to formulate opinions regarding themselves and their individual identities. This appears to be the direction that Wortham suggests and provides him with a basis for the exploration of new ideas that will improve the learning potential of many individuals and provide them with evidence in regards to their personal identities and their reflection on specific contributors to their learning curves that will improve their personal growth.

Works Cited

Foley, Douglas E. Learning Capitalist Culture: Deep in the Heart of Tejas, 2^nd Edition. University of Pennsylvania Press: 2010. Print.

Wortham, Stanton. “Social identification beyond the speech event.” University of Pennsylvania Scholarly Commons, 2005. 9 December 2013: http://repository.upenn.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1070&context=gse_pubs