Yesterday's class was really interesting for me. I couldn't stop thinking about the classroom dynamic. I feel like there is this propensity to believe that if there is a 'diverse' classroom, then there needs to be an acknowledgment--either upfront or by yourself--of the diversity. However, this usually happens on an individual level. If we were taking me for example, I would be seen as the "Jewish" one, and would have the ability to speak for the Jewish people in terms of my own personal experiences in class discussion. It doesn't really seem fair that I have to represent an entire religion. Likewise, it doesn't seem fair that someone would have to speak for their own cultural group based off of color, religion, geographic location, sexual preference, gender, age, etc.

In class I said I think it ought to be mentioned in the beginning of any class that a disclaimer should be mentioned. It should be an acknowledgment of the individuality within the room, but that no individual should ever have to speak for whatever group they may or may not wish to be associated with.

While it may seem like one of those statements that don't need to be said, because everyone just assumes it, those are often those most forgotten sentiments. For the sake of knowledge, identifying structural concepts is more important than a spokesperson. What I mean by concepts is understanding the historical and structural background that has formulated the spokesperson's experiences. We cannot pretend that by getting one person's viewpoint on a certain matter means we understand the matter entirely. Yes, learning from each other's personal experiences is important for many reasons (a key reason that is slightly unrelated, is the mere ability to have effective communication and listening abilities), however, it is not a holistic understanding.

This is where I think detrimental knowledge comes into place. When one claims to have knowledge of a certain topic, but really this knowledge came from a singular perspective--there is much that is missing. This missing information, or the misinformation the individual holds, can be dangerous.

I don't mean to cut this off short, but my computer is about to die! I hope some of this makes sense...