Blog Post #6

Lisa Delpit                                                                                                               The Silenced Dialog 

ARGUMENT: This author, Lisa Delpit, argues that students from marginalized backgrounds are often denied access to the “codes of power” when teachers fail to teach the cultural norms valued in schools and society.

Delpit’s central point is that well-meaning educators sometimes believe it is oppressive to directly teach students the rules of language, behavior, or power that are dominant in their culture. However, she argues that withholding this knowledge actually disempowers students, because they are left unequipped to succeed in environments that demand those skills. At the same time, Delpit stresses that these codes should be taught without devaluing students’ own languages and cultural practices. Her key contribution is showing that equity in education means both affirming students’ identities and giving them full access to the tools of power, so they can navigate and transform the systems around them.