Whole group
Small learning community
One on one.
Small learning communities- he calls them PODS. He gave an example where Einstein and a small group of friends got together to discuss physics, drink, play practical jokes and discuss the issues of the day. Why shouldn't our students have these kinds of communities? Mr. Kay randomly selected the members of his PODS when first setting them up. As the year goes along, membership in the PODS can change. For these communities to work, teachers must accept and make peace with student distractibility. They will get distracted.
In small groups, it's good for students to speak their own language - not necessarily academic language that they would use with the teacher to better express themselves naturally to their peers. Teachers should only intervene in a pod if absolutely necessary.
One to one conversations can be between teacher and student or two students. The conversations allow for the deepest exploration of ideas.
It is a great idea to mix up all three types of conversations in the classroom. I can see how we use whole group discussion and one on one ( turn and talk partners, student/teacher, but how might we incorporate pods?
Notable quote - "Between me and the other world there is ever an unasked question; unasked by some through feelings of delicacy; by others through the difficulty of rightly framing it. All, nevertheless, flutter around it... How does it feel to be a problem? - WEB DuBois
*Why are minority cultures always discussed as a problem? In relation to white oppression? How can I make room for discussion to explore all facets of culture?
We should make sure that the struggle against white oppression aren't the only stories that we tell and discuss.
Themes to consider - gender, religion, recreation and play and identity, aspiration and relationships, the prevalence of white saviors.
What kind of citizenship do I hope to encourage through these discussions? To that I add what kind of personal growth do I want to engage in?
- reasonable discussion - willing to honor fair principles of social cooperation even when not in personal best interest.
- realize that sometimes when people disagree it doesn't mean that others are biased, ignorant or selfish.
- deliberative - able to construct sound arguments and willing to change views when confronted with better ones.
Some ideas for themes outside of music, food, gender, spirituality:
how does the environment effect me?
how are systems created and defined?
how do systems shape the world?
what is the role of individuals in systems?
what causes systemic and individual change?
what is the role of the individual in creating and sustaining change?
what is the relationship between self and changing world?
Race issues are human issues Women's/ Black/ LGBTQ rights are human rights Animals matter.
How did a dominant culture become so blind to the suffering they inflict all around them?Why do humans play at their own destruction? So much to think about. Freedom Writers, 12 Years a Slave, Octavia Butler, Americanah, Half of a yellow sun, Raisin in the sun, Fences.
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