Dialogue on Diversity: Dr. Sonia Nieto

After I left the social event of Dr. Nieto I had so many feelings and thoughts going through my mind. In a world full of chaos and personal problems, sometimes people forget about humility. Dr.Sonia Nieto is all about humility and finding the joy in teaching. After reading many articles of all the issues in education it was nice to hear many postivie things about education like making a difference in a child’s life; isn’t that what being an educator is all about. Although Dr. Nieto brought up many of the common issues in school systems all across the country. She also spoke about the books she published. There was one particular book she wrote called Why We Teach. She shared many passages of the book and they were things that were said by teachers she has worked alongside. The words she shared with us were inspiring and uplifting.

Dr. Nieto also took the time to talk about social justice and diversity and what has or has not changed. And sadly not much has changed. She talked about how there were so many misconceptions about different races and how it has and still effects the education of many students and especially inner city students. Dr. Nieto brought up her background story and how she was raised in a working class city and how the switch of her zip code changed her forever. I related Dr. Nieto’s background story to the girl in the podcast we listened to.

My favorite part of the dialogue was when Dr. Nieto said: “Poverty does not equal stupidity.” I started to think about my experience in high school and all of my friends who were not even given the time of day because we were just “just ghetto kids” who needed to pass. I needed to learn. I needed to be taught. I was not given hope and I was not encouraged to be the best I can be and now here I am in college pushing and sometimes struggling because I was not given the best education I could receive. My obstacles in life like Dr.Nieto has inspired me to be the best I can be so teach kids to believe in themselves. I want to find the joy in teaching and I want to show kids there is a joy in learning.

My enthusiasm in a sound clip below. I love Dr. Nieto !