QUESTION:
Assessment 2
Modules 2 and 3(Topics 5-9)explore critical ways of thinking about how formal education and therefore the experiences of learners are shaped by influences within and beyond formal education. This task aims for you to demonstrate your understanding of some of the ideas explored in Modules 2 and 3. To complete this task successfully, read the required readings with this assessment in mind. The word count is 2500-2800.
Task description
This task has TWO options. Choose ONE option only:
OPTION 1
PART 1: Synthesis(approx. 1700 words)
Write a response to the following:What are significant ideas raised in Modules 2 and 3 of the unit?Rather than summarise, your synthesis must combine key ideas from across the unit readings. Your synthesis should demonstrate a depth of understanding of the readings and the influences from within and outside of education that impact on things like the lives of learners, their experiences of learning, education systems and educators. You must use any8 (eight) essentialunit readings from Modules 2 and 3 (from at least 4 topics) to write your synthesis, using correct APA in-text referencing and page numbers.
PART 2: Story(approx. 800 words)
Next, use one or more of the ideas and concepts described in your Part 1 synthesis to write an interesting and creative narrative, memoir or anecdote of one or more related experiences of schooling. This may be one of your experiences as a learner at preschool and/or primary school and/or secondary school, or what you observed as a learner which affected you. Your narrative should demonstrate a sophisticated understanding of the wider social influences on the experiences of schooling. You may use visuals/images to enhance your written story.
PART 3: Connection(approx. 300 words)
Following the narrative, write a statement that explains the connection between your synthesis and your narrative. You must use in-text references for Part 3. You can use the following sentence starter to assist:
- My narrative has been informed by my reading/s of:
- The unit’s big ideas I am showing in this narrative are:
OPTION 2
PART 1: Synthesis
Write a response to the following:What are significant ideas raised in Modules 2 and 3 of the unit?Rather than summarise, your synthesise must combine key ideas from across the unit readings. Your synthesis should demonstrate a depth of understanding of the readings and the influences from within and outside of education that impact on things like the lives of learners, their experiences of learning, education systems and educators. You must use any8 (eight) essentialunit readings from Modules 2 and 3 (from at least 4 topics) towrite your synthesis, using correct APA in-text referencing and page numbers.
PART 2: Story
Next, use one or more of the ideas and concepts described in your Part 1 synthesis to write an interesting and creative biographical narrative/story of one or more related experiences of schooling, of a learner at preschool and/or primary school and/or secondary school. To do this you will need to interview or speak to somebody about their experiences of schooling. Your narrative/story should demonstrate a sophisticated understanding of the wider social influences on the experiences of schooling. You may use images/visuals to enhance your written story.
PART 3: Connection
Following the narrative, write a statement that explains the connection between your synthesis and your narrative. You must use in-text references for Part 3. You can use the following sentence starter to assist:
- My narrative has been informed by my reading/s of:
- The unit’s big ideas I am showing in this narrative are:
Notes
- Writing must be in Academic.
· Write from Text book and recommended books not from any external resourse. ( Go through reading list Topic 5 to 9 and Module 2 and 3, cover all with intext REFERENCE WITH PAGE NUMBER)
- Word count: 2500-2800 words. This includes all text (headings, in-text citations, captions and direct quotes). It excludes the Reference List. No 10% +/-.
- Reference using APA 7th edition.You must include page numbers in all of your in-text references.
- Not using 8 essential unit readings (essential and recommended) from Modules 2 & 3, all 5 topics cover, otherwise you may result in a fail for the assessment.
- How are you being marked?
Ø Part 1: Synthesis (0-15) A clear, coherent, and sociologically-informed synthesis that demonstrates a thoughtful, sophisticated and critical understanding of key issues and ideas drawn from the unit. It consistently makes meaningful connections between ideas with at least two citations per paragraph. There is appropriate, judicious, and accurate selection of information, with ideas, language and concepts incorporated correctly and thoughtfully. The ideas are well-explained and developed in their complexity, and in the best cases the synthesis is rigorous and nuanced. 12-15 marks
Ø Parts 2 & 3: Narrative/Connection (0-15) The narrative is thoughtful, focused, engaging, wellcrafted and appropriate for the task. It effectively conveys or applies (through a story focused on a school experience) one or more ideas linked to their synthesis. The story and Part 3 demonstrate an insightful and nuanced understanding the complexity around the ideas and experiences conveyed, and the complex relationships between schooling and its wider context.
Ø Readings (0-15) Supported by the use of page numbers in all in-text referencing, it consistently, judiciously and precisely uses and references at least 8 essential unit readings from Modules 2 & 3 (from at least 4 topics) to explain and develop the ideas presented. Its use of additional references supports the strength and credibility of the submission. 12-15 marks
Ø Transcriptional elements of writing (0-5) Essentially free from spelling, grammar, and punctuation errors. Fluent sentence and paragraph construction. 5 marks
Ø Achievement in relation to career goals (No marks) Demonstrates a sophisticated understanding of the complexity of relationships between education and diverse learner backgrounds, and their significance. APST 1.3
Here is my university id and password:
Go to Curtin university OASIS.
ID: 20861193
Password: Rahnafraiaf.
## You will see this page. Left side reading list. Click and Enter. You will find topics there.
You will find this page down bottom. I have added screen shot.Read Topic 5 to 9. Assignment’s writing must be covered these topics. No external reading.
Also, cover Module 2 and 3. You will find it in left list. After reading list scroll down, you will find Modules.
Sample personal narratives
·
Additional information & resources
1.
How might I approach writing a synthesis?
· Identify signficant or important ideas in each reading and across the reading/s.
· Next, begin writing by describing and explaining a few key ideas that run across the readings, and explaining why those ideas are useful / important.
· The more ideas you write about, the less opportunity you have to demonstrate a deep understanding of them.
· When writing, make connections between the ideas and readings, referring to 2 or more readings in each paragraph.
2. What will I be marked on? 4 key criteria
Criterion 1:Does your synthesisdemonstrate an understanding of key ideasof the unit (in their complexity, intricacies, subtleties)? How well?
Criterion 2:Does your story effectivelyconvey an understanding of a key idea/ideasfrom your synthesis (in its complexity, intricacies, subtleties)? How well?
Crierion 3:Do youuse the required number of essential readings, and are thesereferenced correctlyandused preciselyand effectively?
Criterion 4:Is your writing gramatically and syntactically correct?
3. Additional details about the assessment
- Each person's submission will be different, so there is no set word limit for each component. You couldaimfor similar word counts for Parts 1 and 2 (e.g. 1200 words each). The fewer the words in one component, the more words you will need to use in the other component. Remember, your goal is to demonstrate your thoughtful understanding of some of the ideas explored in the unit.
- Part 1 must be written in 3rd person point of view using in-text referencing, Part 2canbe written in 1st person point of view (using 'I'), and Part 3 can be written in either first or third point of view.
- Use correct APA 7th Edition referencing for in-text and end of text referencing. See the Guide.Use page numbers for all in-text references (paraphrasing, quoting, etc.)
- Do not plagiarise - acknowledge other people's ideas and words using correct referencing. When you submit online, Turn It In software will compare your work with other texts to ensure there is no plagiarism.
- You must use 5 unit readings (required) or you will be penalised. Once you have used the 5 required readings, you can then use additional articles/chapters/reports from credible sources (e.g. not blogs from the internet, etc.; check the Additional Readings and Resource Collection for 'Additional Resources')
4. Advice on formatting of the submission
- 11 or 12 size font (Arial or New Times Roman)
- Normal margins
- 1.0 line spacing is fine
- Miss a line in between paragraphs
- The Reference List is always in alphabetical order, with hanging indents and on a separate page
- No cover page is needed
- Have a title
- Don't guess with APA in text or end text referencing
Work Samples of Parts 1, 2 and 3
, Do not Copy, Just for an idea.
Part 2 Sample 1 (interview-narrative).docx
Part 2 Sample 1 (interview-narrative).docx - Alternative Formats
Answer: My father was born in Beirut, Lebanon in 1953. He was the first-born child in his family of 5. He had a younger sister Mary and a younger brother Anthony. His mother Eugenie was a home maker and his father Abdo was a jeweller. He was five years old when he started attending an all-boys school called Sacred Heart Brothers Catholic School. My dad was born in a low to middle-class socio-economic family. Due to lack of stable jobs and economic uncertainty his family struggled to make ends meet. My dad recalls often attending school without having any lunch, and not being able to afford to take the bus so would have to walk for five kilometres in the harsh winter weather with his younger siblings. His parents were often unable to provide textbooks and accessories for my father which created a divide between him and his fellow school mates. As Gowlett and Niesche (2017, p.357) states this can cause students to feel excluded or ostracised from their peers.
Social, political and economic troubles impacted Lebanon especially Beirut in the 1960s. The city was impacted with threats of minor wars and the people lived in fear with no security and constantly worrying about the future. My dad was the first born of his family and also being a male placed a lot of pressure on his shoulders. The male gender stereotype existed where he was expected not only to be a role model for his siblings but to have an education and do well at school to go on to support the family. His sister Mary did not have the same pressure to succeed academically as she was expected to get married have children and be a home carer. My grandfather Abdo suffered from mental health issues so providing for his family was a daily struggle and my father bore the responsibility of that struggle.
On the first day of school my father had an interview with the principal of the school. The name of this principal and the way he looks is still a vivid memory in my father’s mind. He was a French brother by the name of Marcel. Brother Marcel asked little five-year-old George to count to five in French. Seeing Arabic was the only language spoken at home he recalls being embarrassed by his lack of knowledge. Brother Marcel was very sarcastic and disappointed at my father’s lack of understanding. My father arrived to Jardin Denfant (Kindergarten) with his virtual schoolbag empty. He did not have the opportunity to fill his virtual schoolbag with much knowledge or skills (McGregor & Mills, 2017, p.373).
My father’s school was run by strict French brothers. They were expected to attend daily mass at 7am in the morning seven days a week. During recess they were required to pray the rosary prayer as they marched around the courtyard. Sacred Heart school during the 60s fostered a very strict and harsh environment. The students were required to learn three languages. French, Arabic and English. They were assessed in front of the entire class and were required to memories pages and pages of information. If they made a mistake they were humiliated and ridiculed in front of the class as their form of punishment.
My father was struggling in school as the social, cultural and economic factors that affected him such as poverty, family conflict, lack of family support, caring responsibilities contributed to his disengagement from school (Mills & McGregor & Mills, 2017 p.375).
My father recalls that students were treated differently according to their social status. The students who came from wealthy educated parents were treated superior to the students with middle- or lower-class statuses. Students like my father suffer from exclusion and marginalisation and their experiences and values often go unrecognised (Gowlett & Niesche, 2017, p.356)
The cane was also frequently used, and my dad recalls his fingers being swollen to this day due to the beatings from the cane. If one student played up the whole class would be disciplined by staying back 4 hours after school. The climate of the classroom was very toxic, and my father felt like he did not belong. McGregor and Mills (2017, p.380) state that if children feel they do not belong or struggle to make a connection with their teacher, they will be less likely to engage in learning and less likely to have academic success.
My father recalls the study load as being immense. His subjects were Catholic studies in French, English, French literature, Arabic, Mathematics, Science, History/Geography and Ethics. Every night required hours and hours of homework which consisted of only memorisation. He recalls stying up till midnight every night to complete his workload. This impacted on his mental health and as a result he developed stress and anxiety. He has a very big fear of failure. McGregor & Mills (2017, p.380) argue that a fear of failure can be a gigantic deterrent to trying new things.
Sadly, my father has very traumatic negative feelings towards his schooling experience. Unfortunately, he was not able to recall a single happy memory or a single instance where one of his teachers had a positive impact or influenced him in any way. Clearly the educators at Sacred Heart Brothers Catholic School did not succeed in responding to ensure respect, inclusion and engagement was enacted in their classrooms. As a result of this their students have had lasting negative impacts which has affected them throughout their lives.
My father likens his experience to being in a jail. He still suffers from the effects of these experiences till this day through nightmares and sleepless nights.
Part 2 - Just a small town girl, living in a lonely world
My wife was born in 1983 in a small town in rural Western Australia. The population of the town at that time was approximately 1,000 people. She lived in a modest home with her Mother, Father and younger Brother. The town existed to provide goods and services to the surrounding farming community. My wife initially described her family as being stoically working class, but in hindsight conceded that her family existed just above the poverty line. My wife knew that her parents struggled to make ends meet and was certain they went without in order to put food on the table. The more affluent families were drawn from wealthier farmers; the poorest people in town were the local Noongar Aboriginal families, who were definitely the minority demographic in the community.
As a child, my wife was ignorant of this ingrained social hierarchy. She described a very happy childhood which she recalled with great affection. My Father-in-law was the major influence in the formation of my wife’s beliefs, values and attitudes. She was taught the value of hard work, the need for self-sufficiency, the virtue of compassion, and to judge a person based on their words and actions, not the colour of their skin. From an early age, my Father-in-law fostered an appreciation for education, especially reading, as he placed a high value on the betterment of one’s self. My wife loved to draw, paint, write and create; she was an incessant reader as a child, and made frequent use of the town’s library. The library was the only ‘cultural’ institution in town; there were no theatres or museums, and the town was lucky if a travelling circus visited once a year. Despite the apparent lack of cultural capital, my wife valued what she did have, rather than yearn for what she did not. One would consider her virtual schoolbag to be full of confidence, self-esteem and earnestness (McGregor & Mills, 2017, p. 373).
My wife lived in the same town as the local high school, which catered for Foundation to Year 10. She loved primary school, and knew that it was both important to her and her family that she received a good education. This particular school had excellent teachers who all came from the same community – the school was proudly collegial, and her education was very egalitarian in nature. My wife recalled that the teachers did not pander to the students from affluent backgrounds, nor did they pity the students from poorer backgrounds – everyone was treated equally. The primary student cohort mixed well with one another and there were no cliques to speak of. My wife’s early experience of school is at odds with research which indicated that students from low SES backgrounds were less connected to their education and less confident in their academic abilities (Pearce, 2017, p. 206).
My wife labelled herself a tomboy from quite an early age. She understood that boys and girls were biologically different from one another, and that your gender meant that you were expected to behave in a certain manner. My wife, ever the rebel, bucked these expectations knowingly and with intent. She did not want to play with dolls, nor dress in pretty clothes; she dressed in dungarees and built forts with the other boys at the local creek. Her peer group consisted of her Brother, her male cousins, and other local boys of a similar age. She felt comfortable in their company and wasn’t treated any differently just because she was a girl. The onset of puberty saw a paradigm shift occur regarding the way in which my wife was perceived by others. My wife started menstruating at age 10, and was large-chested by age 12. Her emergent sexuality was plainly evident, which was in stark contrast to her pre-pubescent female friends. My wife also began to notice subtle difference in the way boys treated her, which she believed was based solely on her looks, and loathed this unsolicited attention. This also affected her relationship with her female peers, who were envious of the attention my wife was receiving.
At the age of 13, my wife was enrolled at another secondary school at a larger regional centre, some 60km distant. She was required to live full-time at the local boarding college. Her Mother explained it provided a better education, whilst my wife suspected that her Mother was confounded by her rebellious nature and had been essentially exiled from the household. It was here that my wife’s disengagement with schooling began, as she felt not only lonely and isolated, but extremely marginalised because her identity was sexualised by others. My wife found her new school to be an environment in which one’s appearance, deeds, and attitudes determined your worth amongst your peers. She aptly described it as a perpetual cycle of conformity and shame. She was perceived by both her male and female peers to be promiscuous, based simply on her appearance. The notion that boys and girls could have a platonic relationship was ridiculed; the female cohort were expected to have boyfriends, as that conferred popularity and status, whilst for the boys, having a girlfriend reinforced their masculinity. My wife found this new social landscape confronting and ridiculous, but even so, she conformed to some extent. She had boyfriends, although never serious, and followed the lead of her female peers, who wore designer label jeans and expensive footwear. She ensured that she did not appear too scholarly or bookish, and her grades suffered as a result. But her loved of art remained, and excelled in the school’s art programs, thereby preventing a complete disengagement from education.
Teachers who are cognisant of their own individual backgrounds, including their inherent belief systems, attitudes and values, can influence the lives of their students greatly (Pearce, 2017, p. 209). For example, one of the boy’s in my wife’s peer group flippantly asked the deputy principal, aged in her 60s, why she gave herself the title ‘Ms’. After chastising him for his rude behaviour, she assembled the nearby girls who had overheard the exchange, including my wife, and engaged in an enlightening conversation. The deputy principal explained that by choosing her own title of address, she was making a conscious effort to express her own identity. She didn’t want to be a ‘Mrs’, as she believed that such a title inferred she was the property of a male; conversely, the title of ‘Miss’ suggested that, for someone of her age, she was either undesirable, homosexual, or a feminist. She had chosen how she wanted to live her life, both privately and publically, simply by deciding how she wanted to be addressed by others. My wife described this conversation as a lightbulb moment, as she realised that she could be her own woman, and that her identity could be independent of the expectations of others.
From that day forward, my wife took control of her life. She dressed how she wanted, which ranged from wearing her father’s oil stained jeans and steel-capped work boots that minimalised her femininity, to a pencil dress, blouse and vest that accentuated the curvature of her body. Although ridiculed, other female peers began to follow her lead, underscoring to her just how capricious teenagers could be. She rejected the advances of other male students, and ignored the indignation such actions engendered. She took control of her education, and in her upper secondary years enrolled in subjects that appealed to her natural interests, such as the arts, but also other interesting subjects that were expressly non-feminine, such as vocational classes. My wife explained that it was her way of rebelling against an education system that moulded students into accepting outdated stereotypes and preposterous gendered expectations. Ultimately, my wife graduated from university with a degree in fine arts; a testament to her tenacity and willingness to be her own person.
Separate PDF File added. See next file
Part 2: Narrative I’d like to preface this by saying that within this writing is the photos and stories of those who have passed. For cultural reasons I will refrain from using their names. These are memories of the words spoken to me and those I love throughout our time in school together. “But, you don’t look Aboriginal.” What is an ‘Aboriginal’ person supposed to look like? The idea of someone proclaiming “but you don’t look Scottish” seem absurd so why do we ask that question of mixed-race people and people of colour? My response to the statement now is that I’m not Aboriginal. I’m Larrakia. I was named after my people; the saltwater people of the Northern Territory. “Dirty abo.” These two words were spoken to a dear friend of mine. It was said by a boy that we had accidently bumped into walking to the canteen. At first, I was offended; how dare he say that to us! And then I realised. He didn’t say it to us. He said it to her. I watched as her face fell and the happiness we felt moments before fade away. As he continued walking, he glared at her with malice and disgust, as if she were disease ridden. In Year 10 I won a scholarship to an elite private school in Western Australia where I could’ve finished high school. I was so proud of myself. I couldn’t believe I’d actually won. When I told my uncle about it, he told me, “They only picked you because you’re white. Let them pick a black kid. They deserve it more.” To say I was crushed was an understatement. I thought I was chosen because I’d done the best. It was as if the world imploded and the rules of this black and white game became very, very clear to me. I declined the scholarship because I was so filled with shame and disgust; at myself, at the school, at the world, at my uncle. When I was in Year 3 our deputy principal asked all the Indigenous students to stand up at the NAIDOC assembly. Thinking back, I could’ve remained seated, but like the obedient child I was, I stood up on shaky legs. I looked at my friend Terrence, the only other Indigenous kid in my Year. I’m not sure about him, but when I saw the hundreds of heads turn to gawk at us, I felt like a hideous taxidermy animal in a museum. Our deputy principal then went on to talk about how lucky the school was to have us and encouraged everyone to give us a round of applause. My face felt so hot and I was horrified. When I sat back down my friend turned to me and whispered “I didn’t know you were like Terrence.” I replied with a tiny “yeah”, and for rest of the day I starred at the ground, too scared to lift my head. I’m sure his intentions were good but that icky feeling of having a spotlight put on you and every stare at you has never left me. 2 Prior to that moment, I had asked my dad if I could walk to the car, rather than have him pick me up from my classroom. No one else’s dad looked like mine. My dad was a bricklayer, with dark skin, tattoos, an afro, and hands that were always covered in concrete. I thought that if no one saw my dad then they wouldn’t know I was different. The only representation of families I ever saw in books or films were typical, nuclear, and white. No one had a black dad and a white mum. I felt like an alien. In Year 7 when the Indigenous liaison officer came to get us from class, my maths teacher saw her coming through the window. He asked all the “Indig” kids to start packing up our things and get ready by the door. I closed my book, zipped my pencil case and began putting my things in my bag when he shouted “and where do you think you’re going Larra?” I pointed toward the liaison officer and looked at him as if he had lost his mind; did he just forget he told us to pack up? He walked closer to my desk and asked me “and why would you be going?” I didn’t know how to answer that. When the liaison officer walked in, she was confronted with my teachers asking “are you taking Larra?” This maths teacher was terrifying and I thought she was the bravest woman in the whole world for how she starred him down. She looked at him for a long second and then turned to me with a smile and in a quiet voice said, “come on you lot”. The four of us sprang from out seats and followed her out the door. These experiences have made hyper aware of the way we, as a society, perceive those around us and the preconceived judgements and accusations we place on those who look different. School was difficult for me because I never truly felt like I belonged and pretending was exhausting. For years I bounced between being incredibly open about my family and culture to being closed off and ashamed. Today, I am ashamed that I was ever ashamed. Part 3: Statement My narrative has been informed by my readings of: Grant, S. [The Ethics Centre]. (2016, January, 19). IQ2 Racism debate: Stan grant [Video]. Youtube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uEOssW1rw0I&feature=youtu.be Rudolph, S., & Brown, L. (2017). Understanding the techniques of colonialism: Indigenous educational justice. In B. Gobby & R. Walker (Eds.), Powers of curriculum: Sociological perspectives on education. (pp. 288-320). Oxford University Press. http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/curtin/detail.action?docID=5199526 My narrative is attempting to highlight the concept of ‘othering’ presented by Rudolph and Brown (2017), as well as the consequences of colonialism on Indigenous people and the experiences surrounding the stereotypes of Indigenous culture and ethnicity (Rudolph & Brown, 2017, p. 305; Grant, 2016). During my primary school years, I felt ashamed of my Indigenous heritage and did everything I could to hide it. I went to school in Western 3 Australia, south of the Swan River. Many of these experiences happened at my first primary school which was predominately Anglo-Celtic and Eastern European. My high school was far more diverse but there was a clear and distinct divide between the majority and the minorities. This high school was in a low socio-economic area and there were often fights and arguments about the “privilege” and “extra assistance” that Indigenous students received. We were all struggling, that was clear, but I think often we were blinded by our own struggles and sufferings that it was difficult to acknowledge the experiences and battles of others.
Part 2 Sample 5.pdf
Part 2 Sample 5.pdf - Alternative Formats
PART 2 Man Up In 2001, I started high school at a private Christian College, joining my brother, Nic, who was one year above me in Year 8. We were middle-classed and enjoyed the advantage of having relevant cultural capital and virtual schoolbags brimming with appropriate knowledge and skills to give us the best start at a new school. One Friday night, Nic invited a group of school friends over to our house when my parents and I were out. He had drifted around throughout the previous year, trying to find his place within the groups at school, and had finally settled in a nice gang of ‘cool’ guys and girls. He was into skateboarding and was just starting to experiment with the occasional beer and this was the first time he had invited girls over to the house. They were having a low-key night hanging out, a couple of the girls had snuck some Vodka Cruisers, but it stayed tame with the group mostly sitting around talking. They walked up the street to another friend’s house and on the walk back, my brother was in front with a girl named Tess, while his mate Sam walked behind with a girl named Jade. As Nic reached the front door, Sam called out to him. Jade appeared to have suddenly fallen over and was lying still on the driveway not responding to Sam saying her name and touching her arm. Sam said that they had just been talking and he thought she had slipped over. He started to panic that she must have hit her head badly, unable to reconcile the unremarkable fall with Jade now being seemingly unconscious. The situation intensified quickly. Fear escalated as Nic checked Jade’s pulse and Tess frantically questioned whether they needed to call an ambulance. Within a few minutes they had called 000 and Nic had started giving Jade CPR, being unable to find a pulse or feel her chest rising. The ambulance arrived within 15 minutes, but Jade died at the scene. They believe she had an undiagnosed epilepsy disorder which caused a freak seizure that stopped her heart. This unbelievably tragic and horrific night changed my brother forever. It was nobody’s fault and there was nothing that they could have done differently to change what happened. 2 When Nic and his friends returned to school about a week later, my parents came to attend a school assembly where the principal would address what happened and honour Jade’s life. I was standing out the front of the hall with them, with my brother and his friends nearby looking understandably miserable, and we watched the principal approach them, expecting words of commiseration and support. Instead, we looked on as he stopped in front of their group and said, “C’mon boys, let’s man up, hey. And tuck in those shirts.” He clapped my brother’s shoulder and strode away into the hall, leaving him looking crestfallen. I don’t know if he realised that my brother had been with her when she died, or if he was just that emotionally insensitive, but in that unplanned curriculum experience, he took away Nic’s permission to be vulnerable at school. Gender norms and expectations of men being strong and unemotional were evidently rooted in the principal’s pedagogy which he then enacted through the hidden curriculum. For weeks around the school, there were groups of girls crying together in the halls and playground. Teachers were softer and less strict with the girls as they grieved their friend, seeming to forget that the boys had been her friend too. This reflected a binary way of thinking about gender and reinscribed the myth that women are more emotional than men. Tess later told us that the school had offered her counselling, while Nic had been extended no such assistance. My parents were so appalled by this complete lack of support that they spoke to the school and were garnered a hasty apology. The damage, however, had already been done. Nic emotionally shut down and has been very reserved in the way he expresses himself ever since. The expectation and pressure on the boys to suppress the emotional magnitude of what they had experienced was evident at school, with no safe space for them to talk and express their feelings. Perhaps the teachers felt that teenage death was best left to the null curriculum, modelling through the hidden curriculum that feelings should be kept inside and not to talk about upsetting matters. The experiences that young people have at school are vital in shaping how they understand gender and impacts the extent to which they feel they must ‘perform’ their normative gender behaviours (Pearce, 2017, p. 197). Experiencing the tragic death of a friend at such a pivotal time of maturation was added to the virtual schoolbag that my brother carried with him, and he quickly learnt that it was not valued by the school. Despite my parents’ best efforts to 3 offer support and encourage emotional openness, the example he was shown through the school’s hidden curriculum, and advice to ‘man up’ given to him by the head of the school affected him greatly. Prior to this, Nic had felt comfortable in his belonging at school, however this experience caused him to question the relevance and usefulness of school to his own life and influenced his decision to drop out a few years later. Forever bonded by the traumatic incident which they shared, he ended up marrying Tess and lives happily with her and their three children, despite the rocky patch in his emotional development which affects him to this day.
PART 3: Connection The unit’s big ideas I am showing in this narrative are that there is immense social pressure on young people to conform to gender norms which are ingrained in society and imposed by schools through the hidden curriculum (Davies, 1989, cited Pearce, 2017, p. 197). The teachers in the story demonstrated a binary way of thinking in regard to gender (Pearce, 2017, p. 196), allowing the girls to be emotional and vulnerable at school, but perhaps subconsciously, not providing the same supportive environment for the boys. Bem (1993, cited in Pearce, 2017, p. 198) observes that normative ways of males and females expressing emotion stems from a false dichotomy which is reinforced by people continuing to perform their inscribed gender roles to fit in with their surrounding cultural norms. The story also highlights the significant influence that a teacher or school official can have on sanctioning gender roles, polarising the norms and turning schools into ‘regulatory spaces’ where young people are expected to follow the rules of gender intelligibility assigned to them (Davies, 1989, cited in Pearce, 2017, p. 198).
My narrative has been informed by my reading of:
Ø Pearce, J. (2017). The trap of binary thinking: Problematising gender and social disadvantage. In B. Gobby & R. Walker. (eds). Powers of Curriculum: Sociological perspectives on education. (pp. 194-214). Ø McGregor, G. & Mills, M. (2017). The virtual schoolbag and pedagogies of engagement. In B. Gobby & R. Walker. (eds). Powers of curriculum: Sociological perspectives on education. (pp. 372-392). Ø McGregor, G. & Mills, M. (2017). The virtual schoolbag and pedagogies of engagement. In B. Gobby & R. Walker. (eds). Powers of curriculum: Sociological perspectives on education. (pp. 372-392).
Key terms:
Ø Virtual schoolbag Ø Cultural capital Ø Gender norms Ø Hidden curriculum Ø Pedagogy Ø Null curriculum Ø Binary thinking Ø Myths Ø Performativity Ø False dichotomy Ø Rules of gender intelligibility
Listen to the stories by previous students below
Brad@Curtin·Learning the meaning of sorry
Brad@Curtin·A horrible teacher's shocking exit
University resources to support your academic writing
Additional resources (download and from the internet)
## Above all links you can access when you login my uni account, Its all in Assignment 2.
## In Assignment 2 there you will find 2 recorded story for help you can listen that, here is screen shot.
## And I already have send you teachers A1 feedback So, need to concentrate on Academic writing, As, many reading you could include with intext with page number.
## If you need any further help please knock me.