Prompt 5 - Collaboration *

Theorist Connection: Kliewer

If I was the teacher of this classroom, the challenges that I may face would be the language barrier between the students and I. Most of the parents in the classroom speak only Spanish. I know this because I have talked to a few of the students and they say they get confused because at home they speak Spanish, but when they come to school they have to speak English. That would be the absolute biggest challenge in the classroom. The parents may think that I am saying something bad about their children if I was to use words that they didn't understand. If that happened then the parents could think I was a terrible teacher and try to find a way to get me fired. I would never say anything negative about a student anyways because if you have something negative to say you should definitely end it with something positive. These students are trying and if they don't know something it doesn't mean they are bad. To address the challenges of the language barrier, I could call in a translator who could help me communicate with some of the parents so they understand I am trying to fit their needs too. If I had to send a letter home to parents I would make sure I had one for both languages. There is a translator site online that can help you do so if you don't know how to already. To demonstrate respect for parents concerns I would make sure that they know I am just trying to help them and their children get through school to get into the real world.

I related this to Kliewer because he talks about disability in his article. Mostly about how everyone can do things in this world despite a disability. Although a language barrier isn't a direct disability, to someone who doesn't speak Spanish or someone who doesn't understand English this could be a type. Kliewer pushes everyone to succeed with a disability and this could be a push in the right direction of stopping the language barrier so all parents and teachers can work together so their children get good educations.