In Spanish class, Mary might be called Maria, and John might be known as Juan.When I took German in high school I was addressed as Darren, not as Wolfgang or Heinrich or Horst or even Adolf. And that is as it should be. Is there really anything to be gained by renaming a student? To use a leftie argument here, is there any "cultural appropriation" occurring by giving students new names?
Renaming students is a common practice in foreign-language classes, but there has been a growing pushback among some educators, who say it can be culturally insensitive and put some students in an uncomfortable position. The debate has resurfaced after comments made this week by Sen. Amy Klobuchar, who's running to be the Democratic nominee for president.
"My name is Amy, but when I was in 4th grade Spanish, they gave me the name Elena," Klobuchar said at the Culinary Union forum in Nevada.
I guess there's no harm done if students opt to participate in this, but there's something to this practice that doesn't pass the educational smell test with me.
In learning a language or acting in a play, a person engages a culture. Renaming is merely acting. Geez. Perhaps, no actor should use a name like "Alexander Hamilton" in a play. Cultural appropriation! Stick to given names always - not even nicknames. It's best to be pure.
ReplyDeleteI don't know. I got a Korean name and rank when I attended class at the Defense Language Institute (필일병). And I met plenty of people in Asia with Western names that you know they were not born with. I think it is just a way for the teachers to be able to more easily say your name and for you to get your head in the game and immerse yourself in your studies. No harm no foul.
ReplyDeleteIf you can be "renamed" to better fit into the language you are learning, would it be ok to also assign the person a new "personal pronoun" based on this new language?
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