Ch.5+activities

=CLASS ACTIVITIES - CHAPTER FIVE (INDIVIDUAL ACTIVITIES)=

=Activity #1= __Reflective question:__ If you had an opportunity to visit another country’s school system, where would you like to go and what would you like to learn? 3-4 paragraphs =ACTIVITY #2=

Read the article and answer the following questions: What should students know about the world? (your opinion) What changes do schools nee to make improvement in the area of student's global knowledge? (your opinion)

__October 2002 | Volume **60** | Number **2** What Do Students Know? John H. Holloway__
 * The World in the Classroom** Pages 85-86

As the world's population becomes more interconnected and interdependent, students more than ever need to understand our global community. Research can help us reach a consensus on what students should know about the world, how well they know it now, and what changes schools need to make to improve students' global knowledge.

Standards and Requirements
In 1994, the National Council for the Social Studies established a broad set of curriculum standards related to global interdependence and connections among diverse societies. These standards are framed by 10 themes that include common characteristics of different cultures; how the world has changed; world geographic perspectives beyond students' personal locations; and the role of the citizen as a member of the world community (NCSS, 1994). Only a few states and school districts have established graduation requirements related to global education. A report from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES, 2002) shows that of all the states
 * 7 require either world history or world geography;
 * 4 require world history;
 * 5 require world geography; and
 * 15 require a foreign language.

Student Achievement
The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), which tests a broad cross-section of U.S. students, will not begin testing world history until 2005. Results from the 2001 NAEP geography test show that the percentage of 4th and 8th graders scoring at or above the Basic level had increased since the last assessment in 1994; the percentage remained stable for 12th graders. However, most students still scored at the Basic level in 2001; only two-fifths of 4th graders, three-tenths of 8th graders, and one-fourth of 12th graders reached the Proficient level (NCES, 2001). In contrast to the NAEP, the Advanced Placement (AP) exams are more selective and typically test a smaller portion of students with specific interests and talents. According to the College Board (2002), which administers the AP exams each year, student scores on exams that assess global issues are comparable to scores on AP exams in English, mathematics, science, and history. On the exams administered in May 2001, the following scores were reported (with 5 as the highest grade and 1 as the lowest):
 * European History (51,968 candidates)—mean grade was 2.87
 * Human Geography (2,751 candidates)—mean grade was 2.92

The College Board administered an AP exam in World History for the first time in May 2002; results are not yet available.

Reasons for Students' Lack of World Knowledge
Several researchers suggest ineffective practices in global education that may limit students' understanding of the world. For example, Doering (1997) found that a sample of 6th grade students in one school had a low level of world cultural awareness; they knew the physical geographic features of selected regions but not the geographic influence on cultural development. Doering identified many reasons for this narrow view of the world, including the teachers' reliance on a standard world geography textbook that focused predominantly on the physical geographic features of regions. This instructional approach had widened the gap in cultural learning at the school under study. Bennett (1997) concluded that students did not learn about global issues because many teachers viewed geography as a collection of facts, leading to many geographic misunderstandings. He recommended that geography be integrated throughout the curriculum in literature and thematic instruction. Johnson (1997) found that many students developed negative attitudes about other cultural groups, viewing behavior that was different from their own as bizarre. Traditional world geography units often reinforced students' misconceptions rather than helping them understand the meaning of other people's behavior. When students learned about different cultural groups, their negative stereotypes about those cultural groups decreased. Moreover, when students studied the culture from the perspectives of the various groups, they developed an appreciation of and respect for the culture. U.S. students' relatively poor knowledge of world cultures should cause educators some concern. Although new national assessments will give us a better idea of students' global knowledge, we clearly need additional research on how to improve global education practice and find the best methods for increasing students' global understanding.

Four Dimensions of Transformation
Teachers and administrators didn't transform the school just by crafting a vision statement. As the school has developed, faculty members have created new courses, projects, and learning activities designed to foster students' social responsibility. These new experiences teach students to care about one another, to critically examine violence and social justice issues, and to foster skills and adopt actions that will help resolve social problems. This effort changed Parkway along four dimensions that I believe are essential for fostering social responsibility within any school: It enhanced the culture of the school; gave students opportunities to reflect on their own values, beliefs, and behaviors; offered enriched academic learning experiences; and encouraged students to serve others. Let's look at how Parkway has developed each dimension.


 * **Students at Parkway High School for Peace and Social Justice paint a mural illustrating peace and justice themes on a wall of their school.** ||
 * [[image:http://www.ascd.org/ASCD/images/publications/journals/el200907_seif_photo1.jpg]] ||
 * Photo courtesy of Elliott Seif ||

Remaking School Culture
A major goal at Parkway is to build a schoolwide culture and value structure that supports peacemaking. Teachers have had numerous discussions on how to promote peace and social justice in each classroom and the school as a whole. Representative faculty members gathered with outside experts in daylong strategic planning sessions to develop a vision for the school. The principal and the entire faculty talked over the implications of adopting a peace and justice theme, created a mission statement, and established a set of four rules (called "Peace Actions") that guide both student and faculty behavior.
 * Be on time, prepared, and ready to learn.
 * Practice academic honesty.
 * Respect personal space, property, and opinions.
 * Promote a positive educational environment through respectful language and actions.

These decisions led to the adoption of programs that promote the desired atmosphere of social responsibility. For example, every 9th grade student at Parkway takes part in an extensive peer mediation training led by a consultant from [|__Educators for Social Responsibility__], a group that helps teachers create safe, caring, respectful, and productive learning environments. One teacher proudly recounted an incident that showed the effect of this training. When two students began to fight in the hallway, other students—instead of egging them on—separated the two and calmed them down. Students encouraged the fighters to attend a session conducted by a student trained in peer mediation that would focus on their conflict. The boys did so, and they resolved the contentious issue peacefully.

Learning to Reflect and Lead
The purpose of self-reflection at Parkway is to enable students to build personal responsibility through exploring their own values and beliefs. By looking more deeply into their values, ideas, and experiences, students learn to take greater responsibility for others, to explore ways to communicate well, and to solve interpersonal problems. Leadership skills are also a focus; students practice setting personal goals and carrying them through. All 9th and 10th grade students take a core sequence of social leadership courses, also developed with Educators for Social Responsibility. The 9th grade course focuses on the question, What does it mean to lead for social responsibility? Participants build communication and conflict-resolution skills and develop tolerance for individual differences. Students explore the definition of leadership. They determine whether they are currently leaders or followers, and why. Students discuss articles on good communication, take part in exercises that help them think about and practice effective ways to communicate, and learn conflict-resolution techniques. Another set of activities requires students to define social justice and examine whether it's possible to have a socially just world. This course helps students hone such crucial skills as listening actively, managing anger, learning how to disagree with others, and recognizing the difference between dialogue and debate. In a series of lessons, students work in pairs to write a skit about a personal conflict and act it out in front of the class. The teacher assigns two other students to take the role of mediator for each skit, and all four students role-play a mediation session. Afterwards, the whole class reflects on and analyzes the mediation process. In another set of lessons, students reflect on how movies, advertisements, music, and television perpetuate negative stereotypes. They watch or listen to selections that exemplify stereotypes and analyze how these media are designed to influence viewers' perceptions and ideas. The 10th grade course builds on the first year's work using a program called [|__Journey of a Champion__]. This program is designed to help students take greater responsibility for their own actions and become proactive in their school and community. Students reflect on who is a champion (or hero), the challenges champions face, and how individuals can become more heroic. They explore their own lives and values, analyze their communities for negative realities, and think about their roles in the community (as bystanders or as actors in support of change). The teacher also uses readings and discussions about historical events such as the Holocaust and the internment of Japanese Americans in the U.S. during World War II to examine how individuals and groups reacted to these events. Students explore champions in history and model ways to emulate them through behavior change and service to others. Each class also takes on one or more projects for the year, such as learning about and working with elderly people, helping homeless people, or exploring ways to aid people with mental illness. Journal writing and self-reflection are integral parts of these lessons and projects.


 * **Parkway students work with older adults from the Oxford Presbyterian Elderdiner club on physical fitness and nutrition projects.** ||
 * [[image:http://www.ascd.org/ASCD/images/publications/journals/el200907_seif_photo2.jpg]] ||
 * Photo courtesy of Elliott Seif ||

This program makes for dynamic lessons. For example, students use several lessons to create their own classroom code of behavior. Students continually refer to this code in their effort to be upstanding class members. In one class, this seemingly simple task led to passionate debate about what rules should be on the list. Some students argued that a rule might belong in the code of conduct, but they weren't sure they could always follow it. Eventually the class agreed to the following guidelines:
 * Listen to the teacher and to classmates.
 * Talk one at a time.
 * No throwing things in class.
 * Raise your hand.
 * Respect everyone's opinion (nobody's is "wrong").
 * Speak wisely.
 * No cursing.
 * Learn how to take constructive criticism.
 * No eating or drinking in class.
 * Stop jumping to conclusions.
 * No laughing at or teasing others.
 * No smart comments toward people.

Integrating Social Responsibility Themes into Academics
Academic learning can foster social responsibility by giving students a basic understanding of local, national, and worldwide social justice issues and of the underlying conflicts that can lead to violence. A newly developed required course at Parkway helps all 9th grade students become aware of worldwide problems and develop ways to face them creatively. There is no textbook; teachers provide students with readings and direct students to do research, collaborate in small groups, and contribute to class discussions. In the first unit, students learn problem-solving and research skills. Subsequent units help students examine local problems and also research other countries and study the challenges citizens of those countries face. Students come to understand how globalization has helped many people but also has created numerous problems. In the unit People Who Make a Difference, students research people who have worked throughout history to resolve conflicts, fight injustice, and make the world a better place. They create posters about such individuals as Clara Barton, Nelson Mandela, or César Chávez, which they share with others throughout the school. Teachers have revised parts of the core curriculum to integrate peace and social justice themes. In a course called African-American History—required by the Philadelphia school district—the teacher asks critical-thinking questions to promote students' understanding of social issues. In one lesson I observed, the teacher posed the following questions:
 * What is racism?
 * How long has it been around?
 * How did it develop in the United States?
 * What forces may have led to the growth and institutionalization of racism?

One English teacher at Parkway chooses literature with what he calls "edgy and risky" content—including //Things Fall Apart// by Chinua Achebe and //Sula// by Toni Morrison—that raises issues of peace and social justice in ambiguous ways, promotes open-ended discussion, and sparks generative writing assignments. As students progress through these novels, the teacher reads to the class from various other sources, introducing themes like racial and cultural identity, assimilation, human sexuality, and conformity. A key goal is to promote passionate dialogue among students as they examine provocative issues through the novels and to help them take greater responsibility for their own discussions. A science teacher uses the theme "how humans affect the planet." He examines such questions as Which interactions between humans and the environment benefit society? Which cause hardships? During the 2007–08 school year, Parkway sponsored half-day seminars for the entire school around such topics as the civil rights movement, climate change, and lesbian and gay issues. Speakers came to classrooms to discuss voting rights, the legacy of apartheid in South Africa, and the scourge of land mines as a legacy of war.

Promoting Service
Over their four years, students must donate a minimum of 60 hours of service and leadership to the local community. Many give much more. During the past year, students have worked on election campaigns, contributed to after-school programs, helped rebuild homes in economically depressed communities, volunteered at museums, and supported reading programs at libraries. School leaders encourage students to work with organizations that promote peace and social justice. Another vehicle for service is the graduation project, a school district requirement that has been adapted to focus on Parkway's theme. During their senior year, all Parkway students design and complete a multidisciplinary project connected to a real-world problem. This project helps them
 * Better understand peace and social justice issues.
 * See the connection between social justice issues and the world of work.
 * Demonstrate and improve competence in research, reading, writing, and giving presentations.

Topics chosen during the 2008–09 school year included worldwide food shortages, ethnic cleansing in Darfur, and violence in Philadelphia. Every senior project includes service learning as well as a research paper. The culminating activity is a presentation on the student's topic to a panel of teachers and outside community members. For example, one project focused on the connection between violence and the media. A student researched the prevalence of violence on television and in movies and its effects on young people. She also discovered how the Internet has made it easier to access information that promotes violence, such as how to make a bomb. Working with Mothers in Charge, a Philadelphia-based group aimed at reducing violence, she developed a presentation on her topic suitable for 9th graders.

Making a Difference
Developing powerful social responsibility experiences for students in these four crucial areas has taken continual commitment by school leaders, enthusiasm from teachers, and hard work by volunteers and outside consultants. The results have been very positive. In addition to the changes in school culture and test scores cited earlier, teachers report that students show greater initiative in planning and implementing the school's peace and justice activities. Students are also actively involved in resolving conflicts, show more tolerance toward diversity, demonstrate greater understanding of social justice issues, and more frequently participate in service activities. Parkway's success illustrates how any school can transform itself into a place that develops socially responsible young adults. Other schools that wish to build socially responsible attitudes and skills in students need to commit to this task by rethinking school culture, designing programs and courses that enable self-reflection, integrating appropriate themes into the curriculum, and promoting service learning. A comprehensive emphasis on developing social responsibility will enable students to make a difference in their schools, families, and communities—and will create students with the skills a conflicted world needs.

Endnote
[|1] Parkway students' standardized test scores have increased from 40 percent to 45 percent proficient or advanced in mathematics, and from 54 percent to 64 percent proficient or advanced in reading.

**Elliott Seif** is an education consultant and former Professor of Education at Temple University in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.