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TEACHING ABOUT LATIN AMERICA

TEACHING ABOUT LATIN AMERICA. This presentation will address these questions:What are the social, economic, and political issues of primary importance to understanding Latin America today?How are Latin America and Latin Americans perceived in my community, and how do I deal effectively with ster

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TEACHING ABOUT LATIN AMERICA

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    1. TEACHING ABOUT LATIN AMERICA By Carol F. Robison The Ohio State University Center for Latin American Studies For Ohio Teachers Going Global Kent State University August 5, 2009

    2. TEACHING ABOUT LATIN AMERICA This presentation will address these questions: What are the social, economic, and political issues of primary importance to understanding Latin America today? How are Latin America and Latin Americans perceived in my community, and how do I deal effectively with stereotypes while celebrating cultural diversity? What electronic resources are available to help me teach about Latin America?

    3. LATIN AMERICA IN THE NEWS IMMIGRATION AND TRANSNATIONALISM Hispanic/Latino population of OH = 11,466,917 Countries of origin: Mexico 42% Puerto Rico 31% Central & South America 25% Cuba 2% Where predominant: Northwest OH Mexicans Northeast OH Puerto Ricans Central & Southwest OH More diverse Southeast OH Limited presence Source: US Census Bureau

    4. LATIN AMERICA IN THE NEWS TRANSNATIONALISM, WHAT’S THAT? Refers to the flow of people, resources, cultural products, money, political activism, etc., across borders. Has a profound effect on the individual, the US, and the country of origin. For example: Customs Remittances Language Social disruption Politics Aspirations Latin American immigrants tend to go back and forth across the border.

    5. LATIN AMERICA IN THE NEWS “Most migrants are parents, trying to take care of their kids. They come because the US represents opportunity and hope for a better future.  Most don't want to stay, rather they want to go home and use their experiences in the US to make their lives better--for example inspiring kids to stay in school.  The idea that migrants are poor and want to take our resources misrepresents the reality most migrants face.  They are not typically poor, rather they are willing to invest what they have in the chance to reach the US and maybe find a decent job.  In fact, we often talk about the fact that migrants are not typically ill, they are healthy, well organized and tend to be ready to meet a challenge.  Thus, they are not here to take resources or go on some sort of government support.  Most pay taxes and social security; in fact, in the late 1990s the Social Security Administration earned something like 16 million dollars on work done by migrants from Mexico-these were fees that the migrants will never see.” Jeffrey H. Cohen, PhD OSU Dept. of Anthropology

    6. GLOBALIZATION Globalization in Latin America is much, much more than free trade (NAFTA, CAFTA, MERCOSUR) and the transfer of capital among the nations of the hemisphere. It also has an impact on political, social, and environmental issues. Politics The rise of nationalist leaders – think Hugo Chavez (Venezuela), Evo Morales (Bolivia), Lula da Silva (Brazil). Human rights Indigenous movements The environment Deforestation, oil

    7. BRAZIL Brazil is the “invisible giant” of Latin America. In the world: 5th in population (US 3rd) 5th in size (US 3rd) 10th largest economy by GDP (US 1st; EU largest of all) Most of the Amazonian rainforest is in Brazil. Agricultural and industrial powerhouse Soybeans, oranges, beef Aircraft (Embraer), ethanol (Petrobras) BRIC: The 4 largest developing economies Vibrant, diverse culture Language and heritage: Portuguese

    8. ADDRESSING STEREOTYPES Ethnic stereotype: A generalized representation of an ethnic group, composed of what are thought to be typical characteristics of members of the group. (Wikipedia) What stereotypes do your students have of Latin Americans?

    9. ADDRESSING STEREOTYPES Stereotypes reported by the OSU Latin Americanist community: Latin Americans are involved in drugs; are illegal immigrants; eat/like hot/spicy food; spread disease; have dark hair, skin, and eyes; speak Spanish; are poor and uneducated; live in the tropics; dress funny. Latin American women are hot and Latin American men are sexually aggressive. Brazilians walk naked on the streets (or go naked to the beach). Anecdotes: I am Cuban/Spanish. I could not convince my dinner companions at a Mexican restaurant that my mother did not cook with jalapeńos and tortillas. They told me that I didn’t know that my mom’s cooking was spicy because I was used to it. I told them that they weren’t understanding what I was saying - that jalapeńos really don’t even grow in Spain or Cuba in an indigenous way. But they insisted that it was that I couldn’t detect the kick in my mother’s cooking because I was so used to it.

    10. ADDRESSING STEREOTYPES Anecdotes, continued When I had (gave birth to) Natasha I called the operator to place a call to my mother in Chile; she left me on hold for a long time and finally came to back to ask me in what part of Mexico was Chile! An friend whom we had invited to dinner marveled at my family pictures and commented that we looked just like Americans (meaning citizens of the US). I had to mediate a lawsuit for a Guatemalan family who had bought a house with $90,000 cash that had been saved in a shoe box - since nobody would give them a bank account. Not only does the story show how hard Latins work (saving $90K in less than 3 years) but their desire to enter the social order, and not being allowed to, despite a massive amount of capital.

    11. ADDRESSING STEREOTYPES What US students need to know about Latin America and Latin Americans: The region and people are ENORMOUSLY DIVERSE in geography, history, ethnicity, culture, customs, values, economic and social status, language. Above all else, most Latin Americans are not Mexican!

    12. ADDRESSING STEREOTYPES So, how do we, as educators, combat the stereotypes our students have of Latin America and Latin Americans? Directly: Teach them the geography, history, literature, art, languages (Spanish and/or Portuguese), etc., of the region. Indirectly: Incorporate Latin America and Latin Americans into the curriculum early and often, in ALL subjects, including math, science, art, reading/literature, physical education, etc.

    13. ADDRESSING STEREOTYPES Teach cultural proficiency: See difference and respond positively. Make personal changes in attitudes and behavior. Focus in conversations on “we” and “us” not “them.” Develop alliances with members of other cultural groups. From Cultural Proficiency, a PowerPoint presentation on the website of the Midwest Equity Assistance Center, U of Kansas: http://www.meac.org/program.html. Another PowerPoint available on this website, Best Practices in Culturally Responsive Teaching.

    14. ONLINE RESOURCES ON LATIN AMERICA, THE REGION LANIC: Latin American Network Information Center University of Texas at Austin website. THE place to start to research any Latin America-related topic. (Lesson plans, too). http://lanic.utexas.edu/ Outreach World Website of US Dept. of Education National Resource Centers. Wide variety of information on the world regions as well as state of the art teaching materials. http://www.outreachworld.org/ > Resources Librarians’ Internet Index A publicly-funded website featuring links to websites selected by a team of librarians. Search by country or topic. http://lii.org/

    15. ONLINE RESOURCES ON LATIN AMERICA, THE REGION BBC News: Americas Different slant on the news, more complete coverage of Latin America. Past stories are archived; important issues, past and present, are explored in articles, analysis, profiles, timelines. Country profiles. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/default.stm Maria-Brazil: Home of Brazilian Culture on the Web Website devoted to Brazilian culture: food, music, customs. http://www.maria-brazil.org/ Rainforest Sounds Part of the Prince’s Rainforests Project for Schools, a British organization dedicated to combating deforestation. http://schools.rainforestsos.org/free-resources/rainforest-multimedia/rainforest-sounds

    16. E-RESOURCES FOR TEACHING ABOUT LATIN AMERICA Outreach World Website of US Dept. of Education National Resource Centers. Wide variety of information on the world regions as well as state of the art teaching materials. Has links to National Resource Centers http://www.outreachworld.org/ Américas Book Award for Children's and Young Adult Literature The Américas Award is given yearly in recognition of US works of fiction, poetry, folklore, or non-fiction published in the previous year in English or Spanish that authentically and engagingly portray Latin America, the Caribbean, or Latinos in the United States. Website includes list of previous winners. http://www4.uwm.edu/clacs/aa/index.cfm

    17. E-RESOURCES FOR TEACHING ABOUT LATIN AMERICA FLTeach: Foreign Language Teaching Forum E-mail listserv for language teachers. Many good links on Resources webpage. http://www.cortland.edu/FLTEACH/flteach-res.html#spanish World727 listserv for global educators This e-mail listserv grew out of online courses in global ed – participants wanted to stay in touch. Topics discussed include teaching about current events, global issues, world cultures, global connections, and global history.   List members share resources or primary sources, professional opportunities & experiences, discuss issues and methods, and at times discuss events going on across the planet. http://people.ehe.ohio-state.edu/mmerryfield/world727-listserv/

    18. WHAT’S NEXT? As your project develops this year, please contact me for additional suggestions/recommendations. Carol Robison Robison.26@osu.edu 614.688.3963 http://clas.osu.edu

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