This week I will introduce my students to a "film festival" of sorts. Unfortunately, Katie Couric won't be attending our viewing but I believe she is the one missing out as these fine young minds come together to view several films with relevant and important social justice issues. It came to my attention mid-way through our language arts social justice focus that the majority of my students lack context for these issues. As they are fortunate enough to be born into this mostly-fabulous country (we are far from perfect) they are ignorant to the many injustices and inequalities present within the world and their own country. To remedy this ignorance I thought we could begin by watching some documentaries on a few of these topics to provide a little bit of context and hopefully spark a sincere interest within them on at least one of these issues. After viewing each documentary the students will be posting their own movie review on their personal blogs that I hope you will take a minute to read and provide feedback on. After our film festival the students will be asked to create an inquiry project on one issue that interests them most. The inquiry will serve three purposes; to provide practice in thoroughly researching a topic and then taking research and transmitting it into their own words (while citing appropriately;) they will then create a speech on their topic. Lastly, they will create a youtube video on their issue that hopefully invokes an emotional response and willingness to change in the viewer, much like the frighteningly accurate and humbling video below. So please take a minute to view the following video and check back over the next week or two to consider our student's reviews on the documentaries they view!
When I first found out that I would be teaching Grade 8 in September 2015 it was bittersweet. I was relieved to have a straight class again as I had just finished a split grade 7/8. As most people may know, a split class is a great deal more work for the teacher and the students alike. I was fortunate enough to know the group of students I would be receiving as I had taught them Science during their rotary. My mixed emotions surrounding this group was twofold; I knew them well enough to know that they were a very energetic and engaged group. However, my experience with them as a whole was that they were also very egocentric (as are most teenagers;) and often had difficulty listening to the lesson or others as their minds went right into "How can I connect to this idea?!" mode. I would often teach a "Minds On" ten minute concept in Science class and have maybe one or two students able to carry onto the next portion of the lesson as the other students had all gone off on their own tangents of connections while I was teaching. Obviously a teacher could have much greater issues than these with an incoming group. Yet my experiences have shown me that if a student is unable to apply active listening strategies then comprehension follows. So I knew my number one goal with this group was to find a way to use their strength (their ability to connect and the energy created as a result) to guide their need; the ability to listen for comprehension and understanding. I took some time over the summer to reflect on our current adolescent generation. They're constantly surrounded by technology and have utilized such devices and applications to connect their lives to others either locally, nationally or internationally. As a result of this quick, reactive and informal communication they are conditioned to respond immediately and narcissistically; not due to their vanity but because like any generation they are youth navigating a culture that is unsympathetic to their ignorance. Unfortunately for them, their youth happens to fall during one of the fastest evolving times in human history. Every day there seems to be a bigger, better piece of technology. Or another new App to replace the latest and greatest. It's a tough time to be a teenager; especially when most have two parents that are working very long hours to provide their families with everything this 21st century has to offer... My idea to utilize their interest in social media was by no means revolutionary. My personal thoughts and feelings surrounding some social media made my decision to integrate it heavily into my programming a difficult one. To neutralize this hesitation I decided that focusing on social justice issues seemed like a compromise I could feel good about. So the journey began. Our language program will have a social justice theme each month, September began with "Education". October was "First Nations Relations in Canada" and November will be on "Cultures & Conflict". My teaching will approach each theme with a "Me to We" focus, starting with how the issue affects each student individually and then gradually moving deeper into the context of the issue and looking it at a national to global level. We will use these themes as our context for different language curriculum expectations. Students will be responding in oral, written and artistic form about these issues. They will also choose one issue they feel especially connected to or passionate about and create Facebook & Twitter posts about them. This is my plan to keep them engaged while also expanding their knowledge about the world and how they fit into it. My students are amazing. They are kind, thoughtful and full of spunk! They truly have every ability and endless opportunity to do whatever it is they want with their futures. I can't wait to see what they come up with this year and hope you will join us. Take a look at their blogs, our Facebook and Twitter to see just how awesome they really are!
