In this short Education Week video, students at Downtown College Prep Alum Rock High School in San Jose, Calif., describe how their names get mispronounced and misspelled in school.
They are taking part in “My Name, My Identity,” a new national campaign to raise awareness among educators for respecting students’ names and pronouncing them correctly. The campaign is a partnership between the National Association for Bilingual Education; the Santa Clara County, Calif., Office of Education; and the California Association for Bilingual Education.
“For students, especially the children of immigrants or those who are English-language learners, a teacher who knows their name and can pronounce it correctly signals respect and marks a critical step in helping them adjust to school,” writes EdWeek’s Corey Mitchell in his recent story about the issue.
Judging by a recent tweet, the U.S. Secretary of Education agrees:
Taking the time to remember a student’s name and pronounce it correctly signals respect.https://t.co/ol0I7UEPc5
— John King (@JohnKingatED) May 12, 2016
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