"Empowering Education"
Ira Shor


In this reading the Shor argues that education is politics and that curriculums should promote the students questioning their education. That instead of the you listen an take notes while i tell you approach it should be engaging and peak their curiosity.
I am so happy that i chose to do my service learning at The Met school because here i get to witness this first hand. First of all the Students are not seated in the standard institutionalized setting. They are seated in a circular formation that way they can all see the teacher without difficulty and can have meaningful discussions about what is being taught. As i observe the advisor/ teacher do a lesson i see how interesting the students are and how eager they are to participate. I wondered what the secret to her method was but as time went on i noticed that this came from respect. Respect given to and from each other. she taught but at the same time acknowledging their questions and concerns. if they have a problem withe way something is being taught or if they have suggestions about their lesson plan they have a discussion about it and if it is reasonable enough she will find ways of implementing it in future plans. That is why The Met school is a so one of a kind, because the students are able to question their education it has lead to a whole different way of teaching and learning there. Definitely what i'm hoping to encounter when i enter my classroom as a teacher.

“Citizenship in School: Re-conceptualizing Down Syndrome,” 

Kliewer

In this article Kliewer argues that disabled students are segregated from their non disabled peers and, as a consequence, miss out on many educational opportunities. The movement to merge the education of children with and without disabilities is based on the belief that communication is built on one's ability to listen deeply to others. Success in life requires an ability to develop relationships and form a “community” and, because we don't have complete control over our interactions, we must “work with others.” John Dewey believed that schools must serve as a site where children develop commitment to each other as well as a sense of self-direction. Some schools have a goal of placing children with down syndrome in the same classrooms as their peers and accepting all students as citizens. It tells the story of Shane Robbins who puts “citizenship” into practice. For example, she listens deeply to each student and maintains a focus on the individual needs of each student in her classroom. She did not, however, interpret a child's nonconformity to developmental theory as a manifestation of defect. Previously, schools took a narrow position when defining and judging student intellect but, today, there is a push towards broadening that approach. Schools must recognize themselves as places where the three R's are posed as “problems, challenges, problems and opportunities.” School personal must also expand their vision of what constitutes valued patterns of learning. Citizenship and respect, according to Borgan and Taylor, also require recognizing an individual's ability to think and a realization of each student's individuality. Classrooms that have accepted all children as citizens who are thoughtful, creative and interested learners with personal identities have removed the image of community burden attached to down syndrome. All students receiving equal opportunity and school citizenship rejects the idea of a gap between normality and down syndrome. While this article specifically focuses of accepting students with down syndrome as citizens in the classroom, other oppressed groups face similar challenges in the classroom as well.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kFQpqigIcOY

http://www.ndss.org/Resources/Education/Implementing-Inclusion/

Social Justice Event
"From belly dancing to burqas"

On November 12, 2014 I attended a seminar held by Dr. Afshan Jafar. The topic of the seminar was "from belly dancing to burqas". The whole point of this seminar was to clear up any misconception, and to eliminate the stereotype of Muslim women. One of the neat things Dr. Jafar did was to have us write four things we think we know about Muslim women. It was astounding to hear the similarities in everyone's answer. Some of the more common words used were oppressed, shy, beautiful, covered, submissive, traditional and shy. What was even more surprising was to know that we all had incorrect preconception. The message she tried to get across was that Muslim women are not as timid and oppressed as they are portrayed to be. That just like any other group there are different degrees and levels to their belief. From the conformist to the nontraditional. 

The Muslim religion is considered to be a very patriarchal one. So it was interesting to find out that a lot of these women were not force or expected to dress and behave in a certain manner. Instead, they choose to do this out of pride and respect for what they believe in. She thinks that the fallacy we have of Muslim women is based on ignorance and media coverage of their way of life. Media such as magazines, TV, Internet etc. and her purpose was to try to set the record straight. 

This seminar was very informative. I learned a lot about the muslim religion and I also learned that unfortunately I was guilty of doing the same things such as generalizing and stereotyping a certain group of people just as others do when they look at me based of my ethnicity. Thanks to this seminar this is not the case anymore and I will try my best to do that with everyone and everything going forward. 

Three course readings I'm reminded of by this seminar are: 

1. The Wise video where he said at some point in our lives we are all guilty of judging a person based on what they look like. 

2. Christensen's "Unleashing the myth that binds us" where she spoke on the role of the media and how it brainwash us to think and react a certain way and 

3. McIntosh's "White Privilege" that touched on women's rights in society.







https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dqMi5iWpTQs

http://submission.org/Misconceptions_about_Women.html