My Name Is…

Exploring the Meaning of My Heritage Name and Identity: My Name Is…
Designed by Angela Lee-Smith (Yale University)

 

Module 2. My Name Is

  • Applicable Proficiency Range: Intermediate-high to advanced level
  • Applicable Languages: All HLs
  • Educational Setting: HL learners in community-based/school-based education settings at high school and post-secondary levels.
  • Genres: descriptive, explanatory, inquiry, narrative, reflective
  • Content Theme and Topic Keywords: heritage, identify, affective, reflection, language, culture, community, connection, Justice, Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, and Belonging (JEDIB)
  • Pedagogical Approaches: community-based, reflective learning, critical thinking
  • Project Duration: 2 out-of-class assignments, 1–2 in-class discussions, 1 presentation
  • Project Description

Project My Name Is is a variation of heritage meet my heritage self. Heritage learners explore their identities through their heritage names, which are usually not as equally respected, valued, and appreciated as their English names. Students explore the meaning of their names, the person who named them, how they feel when their heritage names are called, what their names mean to them, what memories and experiences are associated with their names, etc. Through this project, students research the origin and meaning of their name, complete the process of discovering their name’s meaning, and feel empowered by their name. This project can contribute to areas where attitudes and practices concerning diversity— one’s name in a language other than English— intersect with issues of inclusiveness, belonging, and social justice.

  • Rationale

Students come from a wide range of ethnic, racial, and religious backgrounds. In some cases, students’ names may sound unfamiliar to their teachers or peers. If school community members fear mispronouncing a student’s name, they may inadvertently exclude or marginalize that student in social or academic spheres. In this project, students learn about each other’s names, explore name meanings and related family stories, and brainstorm strategies for respectfully approaching unfamiliar names. Finally, students create ways to guide and claim their names represented properly within their cultural or personal contexts.

  • Learning Objectives

Students can demonstrate the following:

  1. Create a safe space for dialogue about names.
  2. Grow empowered by researching and sharing the meaning of their names and the meaning behind their names.
  3. Cultivate a community committed to raising consciousness and community action through language learning.
  • Outcomes
    1. Students can engage with their family by exploring their name(s): meaning, feelings, family history, etc.
    2. Students can share their social experiences associated with their names, explore their identities, and identify social matters of which community members and society should be aware.
    3. Students can critically reflect on social matters and engage in JEDIB by determining and carrying out practical action plans and strategies related to their/heritage names.
  • Tasks
  1. Students learn about their heritage name and meaning and represent their name to educate other people appropriately.
  2. Students learn about each other’s names and their meanings, and they brainstorm strategies for respectfully approaching unfamiliar names.
  3. Students create a presentation or write a short piece about their own names. They can also survey family members and other HL speakers to understand the naming practices of the HL community in the US. Such practices can be compared to the traditional naming practices from the HL country, other cultures, and the US.
  4. Students may interview their own (grand)parents and other adults to consider their views on the matter and prepare a short report for the class. Students further explore their name by discussing the relationship between names and ethnic identity, debating the pros and cons of having an ethnic name in the US, and reflecting on their own name in terms of how well it reflects who they are.
Guided Questions for Critical Discussion

  1. Who named you, and why were you given your name?
  2. What meanings does your name have for you?
  3. What hopes and dreams does your name hold for the people who gave you your name?
  4. Is your name easy for other people at school to pronounce? Do other students in your school have the same name?
  5. Is your name difficult for people at school to pronounce? Are you the only one in your school with this name? How does this make you feel?
  6. Have you ever heard someone get teased because of their name?
  7. What could you and your friends say or do if you witness someone being teased because of their name?
  8. What can you do if a classmate has a name that is difficult for you to pronounce? If you have a name that is challenging for other students to pronounce, what can you do to help them learn your name?
  9. The meaning of my name is…
    My name means the following to me:
  10. What do you think of your Korean/English name?
  11. Do you like your name? Why do you dislike it?
  12. Do you think my name is a name that does not fit me? Why?
  13. What do you want others to think about me when they hear my name?
  14. When and where do you use English/Korean names?
  15. Share your experiences and memories related to your name while growing up as a child.
  16. How do your feelings differ when you call my Korean/Chinese name and when you call my English name?
  17. What name do you want to give your children? And why?
  • Critical Applications

Developing an Effective Action Plan: Students discuss building and implementing an effective action plan for public education.

  1. Identify a list of action plan items.
  2. Collaboratively construct a guideline suggesting ideas to help people develop awareness and learn what small things they can do first to improve social justice through the topic: heritage names (for example, producing a Public Service Announcement poster/video, educational presentation to the local community – class/school, open public forum/discussion, etc.).
  3. Present and share the project’s final products to make a meaningful contribution to the community.