A Minnesota School and a Brazilian Activist
In his world-renowned “Pedagogy of the Oppressed,” Paulo Freire demonstrated that the paternalistic teacher/pupil relationship inhibits dialogue and critical thinking—breeding what Freire calls a “culture of silence.” While any teacher who has stood in front of bored, sullen teenagers is well acquainted with a culture of silence in its most literal form, Freire points out that this traditional education model cultivates a population prone to submission and subjugation (or at the very least, apathy). Freire’s alternative is an emphasis on dialogue through which, “People educate each other through the meditation of the world.”
The Minnesota New Country School is taking a stop in the right direction through what they call “Project Based Learning.” According to the school website:
PBL is based upon the idea that students will be most engaged in the learning process when they have a personal interest in what they are learning. Instead of sitting in a teacher-driven classroom all day long, students learn through the exploration of topics that interest them on their own terms, and largely at their own pace. Each students is a member of a team of 12-20 students, managed by an adult advisor who helps to facilitate the learning process.
Obviously, no teacher intends to breed student drones, so perhaps some of the New County School’s techniques can liven up learning in traditional schools as well. Has anyone out there experienced this firsthand?
For more information, here’s an NPR article on the school and the school’s website. Or better yet, find out more about Pedagogy of the Oppressed.
Every August, fifteen students gather in the basement of the theatre building at Gustavus Adolphus College in Saint Peter, Minnesota. In one week they will create, produce and perform an original show for 700 incoming first-year students- a show that will welcome them to the community, make them aware of the issues they will face here, and set the tone for a student body committed to social justice.
I Am…We Are is an unusual theatre troupe- most are not actors or writers by training, many have never performed before. They join the ensemble because they have stories to tell, because they have lived the issues that we so often discuss from a distance. To facilitate their work, the group has adopted and adapted many of the techniques of the Theatre of the Oppressed. Here are a few you may find useful in your own work-
Read the rest of I Am…We Are – Techniques for Exploring Justice through Theatre »
“Bosnia!?!?”
I still remember the look of disbelief, and slight disgust, on the ticket seller’s face. I was living in Prague in 2005 and wanted to take a more unconventional vacation trip. I have to admit, I was drawn to Bosnia by the idea of experiencing a nation crippled by recent war—to see first hand the ludicrous effects of humanity at its worst. While I saw my share of gutted buildings and bullet holes, I was unprepared for rolling green hills, a happening nightlife, and giggling children playing in parks as individuals sidestepped the rubble and went about living.
Recently, a photo journal by Nasim Fekrat reminded me of my Sarajevo experience. Most media images depict Afghanistan as a barren land devoid of all life other than that which is obliterated by car bombs, but Fekrat’s photos demonstrate that the country is overwhelmingly occupied by those neither American nor Insurgent. With no formal education or training, his photo essay, “Preventing Hate in Afghanistan,” manages to show striking poverty and hardship, without letting the desperate environment displace the humanity of the individuals. Read the rest of Images of War: The Destruction or the Ideal? »
Despite instances of disease, assault, and kidnapping, these individuals continue to go out there and do their work simply because they feel called to do so.
Thursday, August 19th marks the anniversary of a 2003 bombing in Baghdad that killed 18 UN staff members: “Last year, the UN and other humanitarian organizations began honouring the anniversary as ‘World Humanitarian Day’ in order to recognize the contribution made by humanitarian workers worldwide.”
This day is darkly pertinent this month, as 10 medical aid workers in Afghanistan were kidnapped and executed by Taliban gunmen just a few weeks ago.
Whatever your thoughts on the effectiveness of foreign aid, or the specific agencies that organize it, take a moment today to think about the inspirational individuals who are backing up their beliefs with action, and oftentimes, personal sacrifice.
(more on World Humanitarian Day here.)
Last month, LindsayF wrote an inspiring article on “Telling True Stories,” using Dave Eggers’ book, “What is the What,” as a starting point. Egger’s telling of Valentino Achak Deng’s experience as a Sudanese refugee has touched the lives of thousands, and not just as a powerful story to read, feel moved by, and put back on the shelf. In donating the profits, the book gave rise to the first functioning secondary school in Deng’s home town of Marial Bai. Anyone who doubts that the arts can have a tangible impact on the world should read about the success of the school.
Though my main goal in writing this is to let people know that Eggers work telling true stories did not end with What is the What. Eggers’ latest book, “Zeitoun,” tells the frustratingly true story of a Syrian-American who disappeared after hurricane Katrina.
As with What is the What, profits from the book will go back to the family’s community. The Zeitoun Foundation has already given over $100,000 in grants to help rebuild New Orleans and to protect human rights across the U.S.
To top it all off, having seen the profound power of oral histories, Eggers joined up with other activists to found Voice of Witness, a non-profit book series with the goal of “illuminating human rights crises through oral histories.” Read the rest of Oral Histories: Voice of Witness »
The world is talking. Are you listening?
I recently posted a video talk from Ethan Zuckerman on how our “world wide web” has failed to connect us—or rather—we have failed to connect ourselves by our almost exclusive preference for domestic media sites.
So how can we branch out? There’s a world of options at our fingertips, but how do we become a part of this world wide dialogue?
Zuckerman aims to answer this question with a web-based media organization—GLOBAL VOICES. According to the site, “Global Voices is a community of more than 300 bloggers and translators around the world who work together to bring you reports from blogs and citizen media everywhere, with emphasis on voices that are not ordinarily heard in international mainstream media.”
Go ahead and check out the Global Voices site, or better yet, get involved!
As a follow up to my last post – here is yet another organization working to use art as a means to bring attention to the criminal justice system and help the artists strengthen their communities. Art for Justice also hosts workshops for youth in the Philadelphia area who have an increased exposure to crime, violence, and the justice system.
Earlier this month, France’s lower house of parliament approved a bill to ban Islamic face veiling, or the burqa.* Though not yet law, the bill is expected to pass through the French senate in September. Lawmakers have somehow framed this proposal as a boost for security and women’s rights, but—as anyone who reads into the social implications will realize—it is neither. Read the rest of The French Burqa Ban and its Theatrical Exemption »
The world wide web was supposed to usher in an era of connection between various cultures, opinions, and voices around the world. However, according to Ethan Zuckerman, the overwhelming majority of online users simply access domestic media and surround ourselves with people just like us.
Logging onto the internet may give us an illusory feeling of cosmopolitanism, but when we look at the demographics (racial or ideological) of our facebook/twitter feeds, or the country of origin of most media we access, it begs the question: Are we really using the internet to break down barriers, or is the unprecedented ability to “choose” which people and information sources we interact with ironically allowing us to sequester ourselves in exclusively like-minded-media?
How can we more effectively unlock the connective functions for which we extol the communication age?
http://www.ted.com/talks/ethan_zuckerman.html
Zuckerman explores this idea at TED 2010. This talk is well worth the time of anyone interested in communication, journalism, or social media.
Much of the work we highlight here at thambo.org focuses on the influence of external audiences through performance and other art forms. However, art is often used for or results in an internal transformation as well. Nowhere more apparent is that fact than San Fancisco, CA where a small organization called Community Works is changing the lives of all those it touches.
Community Works aims to change the lives of men, women, and children affected by incarceration and it is doing just that. Read more about this incredible organization here.