Please read the following print edition article by Gary Mason from the Globe and Mail newspaper. Do you agree or disagree with Mason's postion on social justice education and Socials 12? Why or why not? How are you going to approach the issue of same sex marriage, discrimination and oppression in your classroom?
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/LAC.20080927.BCMASON27/TPStory/?query=Gary+Mason
Sunday, September 28, 2008
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6 comments:
The Bible Belt refers to the American mid-west not some imaginary place in BC; and other than the slight use of Newspeak Mason had little to offer. Expecting teachers to integrate some aspects of social justice into lesson is NOT completely unrealistic.
If having a musician teach mathematics, or a historian each physics (common practice) is not unrealistic, then it is not, perhaps, too much to ask that experienced teachers "begin weaving lessons on diversity into their classes." Mason himself said that "the [social justice] stuff the kids can learn from it is far more important than what they'll pick up in their mathematics or biology class."
Finally, Mason's suggestion that "the Correns should rein in their expectations" is a little presumptuous. If he took Social Justice 12, he might consider that while promises from the ministry of education, and universal declarations from the UN are well and good, they become disappointments when the are not implemented domestically or in practice.
Schools "don't have to offer electives" is different from school boards NOT OFFERING the course because of alleged parent complaints. This raises the questions, however, of why are parents blocking a course from an entire district, an elective course? Maybe those in the Bible Belt can be justified in retarding their children's education (likely not), but they should not meddle in the education of others. Students choose electives, not parents, and not other people's parents. It should be a mandatory course, it can't be worse than CAPP was.
How to teach SJ (I don't want to write Social Justice for fear of offending people) in the class? Well, I usually approach it from the perspective of the group in question. Most of us are well aware of the 'other' perspective from the media, so taking off the blinders helps.
So here's what I think about the subject. I am all for the integration of social justice within the BC curriculum. I believe that the goverment, school boards, and the community spend too much time bantering about what might be good or bad for students because, well let's just face the music, the students cannot make such decisions for themselves. Of course I believe the notion to be perposterous. I believe that many students thirst to have a knowledge about that which they face in their everyday lives. Personally, current events speak way more to me than do theories and formulae. I would hope that we have instilled enough maturity in our students for them to be able to make well founded decisions on the matter. In the case of Abbotsford outright banning the subject, I suppose it is their choice, but I would argue a poor one. Before I can go any farther I am going to try to read the 68 page booklet and make a better decision based upon the curriculum guide that is available.
For the curriculum guide you can get it here:
http://www.bced.gov.bc.ca/irp/drafts/
"The idea that you're suddenly going to get every teacher in the province to begin weaving lessons on diversity into their classes overnight is completely unrealistic."
As soon but then I took a step back. I am slightly hostile when it comes to issues of my heart like teaching and controversial issues. So lets be real then. I think he's right, it won't happen over night but here is why. And please note I do actually believe that it should happen over night and that it is possible but that I know it won't.
Perhaps you can tell me I am a fatalist and that if more people demanded recourse that it would happen. And I would tell you that you are right. But they won't. People won't do things. Not all people.
Let me explain the popualtion as a whole, all of us, are like high school students we are diverse. Some will fight for what they want as some students will just be independant learners questing for knowledge, some will let other do it for them as some studnets will (as mentioned in an earlier post some studnets are complict in their own captivation). And so on. So if this is the way it is then its not enough to just get mad at what man wrote in the newspaper we have to get up get out and go motivate the quieter population. I don't mean tell people what to say. But I mean show people how to have a voice.
I am idealistic I'll admit that but I see my role as teacher not just for my studnets and their voices but for everyone everywhere. I don't want to be a teacher just to be an advocate for students althought that is closest to my heart. I want to be an advocate for the earth and the population that doesn't feel like they have a voice....
So maybe we should start writing some letters about this get a hold of some name No?
I think the government made this decision knowing that Social Justice 12 would likely be lost within the shuffle of an already crowded curriculum. I think it is ridiculous if the government continues to make promises about integrating courses into the curicuulum without having any follow through. If a course if going to be made an "elective", students should still have the ability to make the decision whether or not to take the class, and not the school making the decision whether to offer the class. I can understand a class being cancelled due to lack of interest, but if a class is not offered then how will we as educators or curiculum builders know whether their is student interest in the subject. I believe if this class was introduced throughout the province there would be a strong interest throughout the student body.
I agree with Darryl:
"If a course if going to be made an "elective", students should still have the ability to make the decision whether or not to take the class, and not the school making the decision whether to offer the class"
I strongly believe that if given the opportunity to take a class that discusses such issues as put forth in this article, students would be all over signing up. Students THRIVE for real life issues and issues that have other wise been 'taboo' topics thus far in their education - those which quite frankly, should not be taboo. These 'electives' (which is an issue in itself) should stay put in schools - keep them electives if fearful administration need to offer to enraged parents that their children 'are not required to take the course' - but leave it be for all those students (and a society at large) that would benefit from these courses existing.
Also, just to reiterate what Jason said in class: what is so special about the 2 months students go from grade 12 to university?! Are you telling me that grade 12 students can't have mature discussions regarding gay and lesbian rights etc but in two magical months from now they will be prepared/informed/productive members of a society/university??!!
People HAVE GOT to stop underestimating these young people.
As for the time it takes to integrate programs into schools... I get that transitions can take time sometimes, but my gosh i just feel like we are so sloooooow to forego our ignorance sometimes. We will all look back in 20 years shocked and awed that discussions of same-sex relationships "only just became accepted in the early 2000's" (hopefully!!) - just like we are shocked now at how not long ago it was that women couldn't vote, aboriginals couldn't vote etc. We need to be more on the ball with these types of issues in this day and age.
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