Stereotype

741 Words2 Pages

“Teachers would tell me, “You’re dumb. You’re gonna get kicked out of here. This school doesn’t need you.” “They looked at me and saw a dumb gangbanger. A kid that needs to be put away forever” (P.40). In Holler if You Hear Me, (2010) Mr. Michie, the author of the book; he’s a teacher, working at a school where all of his students are mixed at Quincy, an Elementary school in Chicago. This school, the majority of the students is Mexican. Moreover, the book is not just about him but it also includes the point of views of his former students. Also, in the book, some of the teachers are treating the students differently because of their background. In addition, stereotypes shape teens’ personalities and lives. It is necessary for teachers to show students they do not have to confirm to the stereotypes.
There are many students that Mr. Michie teaches during his years at Quincy. He met many students that are unique and smart in their own way. To add on, those students turned to be something that he didn’t expect. Furthermore, when years went by and Mr. Michie went back to find his pasted students to have a conversation with because he wanted to know how and what they were doing. One of them that he interacted with was Hector, he told Mr. Michie about his past and how he dropped out of high school. During the interview that Mr. Michie had with Hector, Hector told Mr. Michie, “Teachers would tell me, “You’re dumb. You’re gonna get kicked out of here. This school doesn’t need you.” “They looked at me and saw a dumb gangbanger. A kid that needs to be put away forever” (P.40). This kind of gesture that the teacher had made gave Hector something to look down on himself in life as a highschool student. Hector also states, “This other time, I w...

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...y’re dumb. Here is a quote from Mr. Michie before the trial was, “One of the things I’d tried to impress upon the kids throughout the year was the importance of speaking up intelligently about matters that concerned them.” (P.8). What he did to get rid of the thoughts was a court trial, to get everyone involved with the situations; he wanted his students to voiced their opinions about the cased that they felt strongly toward.
In conclusion, Mr. Michie showed students that even though they’re being criticized at or stereotyping themselves, there are still others that are willing to reach out for them, to guide them through the right path. He’s the kind of teacher that would do anything to help out his students. “Gregory Michie expands degrees of hope for cultivating humanity through teaching with love, justice, and cultural empathy and imagination.” (Ming Fang He).

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