#2 "The Silenced Dialogue" by Delpit

ARGUMENT: Lisa Delpit, the author of this week's reading piece called, "The Silent Dialogue: Power and Pedagogy in Educating Other People's Children," explored big picture topics such as culture, power, vulnerability, communication and others. By identifying the 5 major points on the culture of power, Delpit describes her experience learning about education through other people's perspectives. A phrase that came to mind while reading this piece was to put yourself in another person's shoes. How cliche?! However, this figure of speech rings true because without "be vulnerable enough to allow our world to turn upside down in order to allow the realities of others to edge themselves into our consciousness," we cannot learn from others and change our mindsets (Delpit 47). I believe that Delpit was not saying to only focus on other people's experiences but to simultaneously teach students about the culture of power as well as help students preserve their home cultures (Working through Delpit Handout). By recognizing that there is and has been a power imbalance in our education system, specifically speaking for the United States, this can lead to figuring out steps toward change. While there will be no solution, Delpit points out that the change cannot come from the bottom. No matter how hard the people who the system is built against try to stand up for fair and understanding education, if the system does not alter its ways then things will inevitably stay the same. She builds on her argument after breaking down the 5 pillars that make up the culture of power including... 1. Issues of power are enacted in the classroom 2. There are codes or rules for participating in power that is there is a culture of power 3. The rules of the culture of power are a reflection of the rules of the culture of those who have power 4. If you are not already a participant in the culture of power, being told explicitly the rules of that culture makes acquiring power easier 5. Those with power are frequently least aware or least willing to acknowledge its existence. Those with less power are often most aware of its existence ...which sets the foundation for the way things are. In order to change the current state of culture and power, there needs to be a change from the top down - starting with the education system as a whole. Overall, she is aware that there are problems in education that have existed for a long time and in order to bring about change, educating students on the culture of power and how to preserve their own culture can prepare students for the realities of the real world.

About The Author - Lisa Delpit: https://newlearningonline.com/new-learning/chapter-8/synthesis-more-recent-times/lisa-delpit-on-power-and-pedagogy#:~:text=The%20rules%20of%20the%20culture,those%20who%20are%20in%20power.