You’re Either Born with It or Your Not
After reading the interview conducted by Joanne Kilgour Dowdy to document the thoughts of Christina McVay one word came to my mind; real. The first lesson that I got from this was that there are people that are genuine and real about their work. Christina McVay was that person. She answered every question truthfully and straight to the point. At first I found it ironic that a white woman could teach black women about black language. Boy did she set me straight. Then I thought how many times as black women do we ourselves prejudge. We all do. This reading even though it focused on Black Women and Black Literature put a mirror in my face. Why should it matter if a white women or black women teach English? As long as that teacher has a passion and truly cares about the lives they touch and change. That is the most important requirement. During the course of the interview Dowdy did ask corning question. I felt Dowdy did this to see if McVay was genuine with what she was doing. Mcvay expressed that her first love was language, her second black culture. She even gave us a snippet of her background to show that it is not always where you come from. I feel this is another reason that she is a great teacher to black students. For black students are sometimes ashamed of their background; thinking that limits who they are and what they can do. McVay turns thinking all the way around for her students. For example, she says in the interview that some students felt that black language was improper and something to be ashamed of. McVay helps students embrace themselves and culture. All the while being real and never losing her self in the process. The second lesson I learned is that God gave each person his/her own spiritual gifts and talents. If your gift is not teaching do not do it. Or in our situation as students if you are not good in a specific major why major in it. Do what you love and love what you do; because Mcvay said it best "you’re either born with It or your not".
By:Shaniqua Burton
I really liked what you said about God giving each person their own gifts and talents. Teaching Black literature to students is obviously McVay's. I also recognized what you said about Dowdy and how she seemed to be trying to figure McVay out. I believe McVay proved her point and taught us all a lesson.
ReplyDelete~Alaina Walton (Writer's of the Quilt)
While beginning to read this article, I first did question, Why a white teacher was teaching a black course? I had to realize that i couldn't judge a person based on the color of her skin, but on how well she knows her material. As I read the interview, like Burton, I began to realize that Mcvay has a passion for education as well as, a passion for black literature. It is rare to see people in a profession doing what they love. I can only hope that one day i can find my pasion and purpose that God has set out for me.
ReplyDelete-Darcye S
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ReplyDeleteI decided to comment on this blog because it reflects on todays society. Dowdy and Mcvay opened the eyes of the African American race. If another ethnic race is in love with your African American culture, it should influence you to love on it even more. Many years ago, we were not able to practice reading and writing. Our ancestors were either beat, killed, or had their fingers cut off. They sacrificed all this which makes me feel like, today, in this generation, as an African American whole, and do the best we can in the education field alone. - Sa'Myra Bradford
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ReplyDeleteYou and McVay made great points about committing to endeavors in which you have a passion. Christina McVay is obviously a very intelligent woman and a phenomenal teacher and I am sure that several other job opportunities crossed her path in which she may have been more comfortable and felt less awkward. At the end of the day, however, if she had have accepted those oppoturnities in which lacked passion then she would be not be doing herself or her colleagues/students any justice. I believe that when you commit to something, it is essential that you commit to being able to bless another life in whatever that endeavor may be. It is evident that Christina McVay was born with a passion to teach and in doing so she has made a lasting impact on the lives of her students.
ReplyDelete-Taylor Carter
I completely agree with what you said. God gave McVay the gift of teaching and the gift of being able to relate to others and make them feel comfortable around her. After reading the article it is easy to see why so many young Black students take so well to her. Just from reading her responses in her interview I could sense how much she cares for her students and how much she loves teaching in the Pan-African department. Like I said a few sentences earlier God gave her the gift of being able to relate to others, this is a wonderful gift, not everyone can interact with other races and ages so easily. McVay can just sit down face to face with her students and have a conversation, she even tells them a little about her life and where she comes from just as they tell her about their lives and where they come from. It is not often at all that one comes across a teacher who cares the way that Christina McVay does, her students are blessed to have a professor like Christina McVay. -Mary Williams
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