On Tuesday evening Meri and I had the privilege of hosting in our apartment a small forum on education.  A Pepperdine University Education professor and her eleven college students (who are taking her course on culture and language study as preparation for becoming grade school teachers) met in our home and ate Thai food with ten of my neighbors who attend school or have kids in school in the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD).  The teachers-in-training humbly asked these parents and students of LAUSD to educate them on what life is really like living in the city of Los Angeles and going to schools in LAUSD.  They asked the families to be brutally honest about their experiences, to share what they want for their kids and grandkids, and what they are looking for in a good teacher.  One of my neighbors did the translating, as there were non-English speakers in the group.  One of the college students grew up in East Hollywood and another went to grade school in South Central LA, but for most of them this was a cross-cultural experience!  It was so fun to watch different worlds merge in a spirit of mutual respect. 

What a wonderful idea this professor had to bring these eleven students into the hood to sit at the feet of kids, parents and grandparents!  And this is not all.  This professor is calling Tuesday’s experience the First Encounter for her college students this semester.  Second Encounter will be with a church children’s program, and Third Encounter will be an overnight stay with a family and a school visit with their elementary school child. 

I wonder what would schools look like in East Hollywood/Los Angeles (and in our nation’s other big cities) if more parents and students actually got to help shape the training and idealogies of their community’s future teachers?  To this professor I say, “Way to go!”

Categories: culture