Invite investigation and critique.
#6 How Do You Get Wisdom from Crowds?
YOUTH RADIO INTERVIEW"Crowdsource Wisdom"
Interview by Desmond Meagley Q. You get to see feedback & criticism on your posts. Does that dialogue ever change your opinions? A. Staying on the cutting edge of change means maintaining an open dialogue with supporters. Kendra Calloway, the head moderator of thisiswhiteprivilege on Tumblr, knows the importance of listening closely. Tumblr has unique functions that allow her to use her blog as a platform that focuses on the intersecting experiences and challenges that people of color face. The open communication between followers and moderators enriches the content of her blog, building its network of followers, and inspiring others to start their own conversations.
|
Bending the Arc*
Final Project: Bending the Arc Jim Crow & Civil Rights, Fall 2017
“If you have come here to help me, you are wasting your time. But if you have come because your liberation is bound up with mine, then let us work together.” - Aboriginal activists group, Queensland, Australia 1970s
“What you're supposed to do when you don't like a thing is change it. If you can't change it, change the way you think about it. Don't complain.” - Maya Angelou
“Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly." - Martin Luther King, Jr.
"Sometimes change comes not in the first round, but at the second, third or fourth. Change starts with one person questioning, challenging, speaking up and doing something to make a difference. We can each make a difference…because each of us is already part of the community where racism exists and thrives." --Paul Kivel, 1993
“The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends towards justice.” - MLK Jr., echoing Unitarian minister Theodore Parker. Project Goals
OverviewHistory teaches us that all too often, we give up our rights and sense of justice as they are slowly - or perhaps swiftly - eroded. Looking at the most somber times in our past also shows us, however, that there are always people who work to improve the lives of others.
Facing the hardest moments in our history does not mean we have to bow to them. Rather, looking unflinchingly at the times that human beings least lived up to ideals of justice and compassion can prompt us to be more reflective, honest, and empathetic, and to remember that kindness is often delivered in small but potent doses.
For this project (the project overview), you and a team of your classmates will brainstorm, propose, plan, and implement a social justice or human rights-centered project that seeks to positively impact other people. As with all schoolwork, the success of the project will depend largely on the thought, effort and time your group puts into it. Unlike other schoolwork, though, whether or not the project succeeds may also depend on factors outside of your control. The key will be to remain strategic, flexible, and resilient, and to remember the most important goals of the project when forced to compromise.
Project RequirementsThe project your group designs needs to:
AND/OR
Examples of ProjectsActivism Projects
Service Projects
Awareness and Education Projects
Rough Overview of the Process
→ As you go, your group will be completing a Ten Questions reflection sheet.
Formal Proposal: Bending the Arc Project (Interated with the Ten Questions)Directions:EVERYONE needs to make her/his own copy of the formal proposal and submit it by the end of class.
DUE Monday, December 11th by the end of class.
Elizabeth Olesen/Innovation Academy Charter School |
* This lesson idea is provided by one of our Teacher Leaders. The original post is found here: "Bending the Arc."
Teachers can use the Ten Questions Content Organizer to parse a big issue into small discussion topics. Have students fill in the blanks; they can think about the choices they would make and why, and what the consequences would be like. See an example here: "Facing History with the YPP Action Framework––Focusing on Eyes on the Prize: Ain’t Scared of Your Jails”
Question |
Answer/Notes |
Choices |
Consequences |
1. Why Does It Matter to Me? |
|
||
2. How Much Should I Share? |
|
||
3. How Do I Make It About More than Myself? |
|
||
4. Where Do We Start? |
|||
5. How Can We Make It Easy and Engaging? |
|
||
6. How Do You Get Wisdom from Crowds? |
|||
7. How Do You Handle the Downside of Crowds? |
|
||
8. Are We Pursuing Voice or Influence or Both? |
|||
9. How Do We Get from Voice to Change? |
|||
10. How Can We Find Allies? |
The National Writing Project provides a civic writing rubric and resources for teachers to supot students’ writing as a form of civic debate, dialogue, and engagement.
Teaching Tolerance’s Digital & Civic Literacy Skills Framework & Resources
Identifying High-Quality Sites Lesson Plan | Common Sense Education (PBS Learning Media)
Youth Radio DIY Toolkit: How To Write A Commentary
Writing Our Future: American Creed is part of the National Writing Project’s family of youth publishing projects, all gathered under the Writing Our Future initiative.
Youth and Articifial Intelligence: Where We Stand