"It's a world of laughter, a world of tears. It's a world of hopes, and a world of fears. There's so much that we share, that it's time we're aware. It's a small world after all." - written by Richard M. Sherman and Robert B. Sherman & made famous by Walt Disney

Thursday, November 22, 2012

Lincoln's National Day of Thanks

Abraham Lincoln is known as the man who saved the union.  His goal at the beginning of the Civil War was to preserve a united nation and work to resolve the differences among the states.  He dreamed of a country where people gave their allegiances to the United States of America first.  When I teach about identity in US History prior to the 20th century I try to get the point across that those living in what is today Virginia would have called themselves Virginians first then Americans.  This is also true of the Thanksgiving holiday.  Prior to 1863 individual states had Thanksgiving holidays at various times throughout the year.  On Oct. 3rd, 1863 took another step to unify a divided country by declaring a national Thanksgiving Day.  As I look forward to seeing the new Spielberg film Lincoln,  I find it very appropriate that it is one of the top movies out over the Thanksgiving holiday.

Sunday, November 18, 2012

Not the Stereotypical learning environment

I am continuing on with thoughts about various educational systems around the world.  While in China my group was lucky enough to visit a Kung Fu boarding school in Beijing.  This happened to be the same school used in the new Karate Kid movie with Will Smith's son.  I imagined the schools to be very drab with students in rows following drill and kill lessons from a teacher walking around waving a yard stick.  The environment we walked into was one of bright paintings and visuals on the walls and smiling children talking about their English lesson with each other.   Even though the desks were in rows we met excited students who were eager to show they knew words such as pizza.  As we continued down the hall to leave we also waved to numerous teachers sitting at their desks grading piles of papers.  All I could think at that point was I am just like those Chinese teachers.  I push through the papers to see the smiling faces when students are proud of new found knowledge.

Friday, November 16, 2012

Student Responsibilities in Japan

Are there any teachers out there that would like to see their students be responsible for helping clean their classroom and even serve meals?  This is standard in Japanese schools.  Through the Virginia School University Partnership I had the opportunity to meet Haruko Yuda who is the Japanese Outreach Coordinator at the Asia institute at UVa.  She is a great resource to help teachers and students understand Japanese culture and education.  She helped me with a workshop on education in East Asia.  We found out that just like everywhere else in the world Japan wants to do what is best for their students to prepare them for the future.  They believe in the philosophy that students should be responsible and directly connected to the educational environment around them.  This includes EVERYONE cleaning and all having the same responsibilities no matter if they plan to be a doctor or factory worker.  Some American students could use this lesson.

Sunday, November 11, 2012

Armistice Day

The First World War really made the world feel small for thousands. Soldiers from nations around the world shared a battlefield for over four years. Then at the eleventh hour on the eleventh day of the eleventh month The Great War came to a ceasefire on the Western Front. This day became known as Armistice Day to remember those who died in war. It has remained with this title in France and Belgium. The British Commonwealth uses Remembrance Day while in the US we refer to Nov. 11th as Veteran's Day. Whatever the name it is a time to reflect upon the sacrifices people are willing to make to better mankind.

Friday, November 9, 2012

A Modern Monastery

In class when we talk about World religions, religious orders often come up.  Because of modern impressions students are very curious about what seems to be the closed off world of monasteries.  They often ask why would someone join a monastery and what life was really like.  Medieval monks from Monty Python and Buddhists following the Dali Lama are the stereotypes that most students have about religious orders.  What students do not realize that there are very active monasteries around the world today, and for my students at Western Albemarle there is one just down the road.

Our Lady of the Angels Monastery is a Trappist Monastery in Crozet, VA.  The sisters of the monastery are open to visitors and I was lucky enough to have a teaching partner who arranged a field trip for a small group of our freshman.  There students got to see that the monastery does still follow vows of chastity, poverty and silence relating to a very deeply connected Christian life.  However, they do not live in the dark with only candles.  The monastery does have most modern conveniences including computers and the internet to connect with the community and world around them.  Even though the sisters do not leave the monastery they receive family visitors and make amazing homemade goods to support themselves.  It was an eye opening experience that hopefully will stay with those students for years to come.

Click here so visit the Our Lady of the Angels Monastery website.

Tuesday, November 6, 2012

Virginia Girl First Female MP

Yes you read the title correct.  The first female member of Parliament in Great Britain was a Virginian.  I have found that this is a great
hook to lure in students to the suffrage movement in both the US and UK.  Nancy Langhorne Astor was born in Danville, VA and later moved with her family to Albemarle County.  After marrying the wealthy politician Waldorf Astor after spending time in England she stepped into the world of politics.  Eventually she ran for her husbands vacant seat in the House of Commons.  On Nov. 28, 1919 she became the first female member of Parliament.  The suffrage movement in the US is often considered tame as to that in Great Britain, but students often do not make the connection that the same progressive movements that they are familiar with in US history were also taking place around the world. 

In the Fall of 2011 I developed a lesson on the Trans Atlantic Women's Suffrage Movement through the Teaching American History Grant.  Click here to access the lesson kit with all materials including primary sources documents and other resources connecting the two movements.

Monday, November 5, 2012

DC Students Experiencing the World

One of the most amazing stories that I learned on my trip to China was that of my roommate Allie.  We both teach at high schools of about 1000 students, our school colors are blue and gold, and both our schools lack racial diversity.  That is where the similarities end.  I am at a high achieving suburban school that is about 88% white.  Her school in urban Washington DC is approximately 98% African American and struggles to meet academic standards.  Which school would you think is sending dozens of students to Africa and Central America this year?

Allie teaches Spanish at Ballou High School where continuous teacher turnover is typical.  However, Allie has not only survived as a young teacher, but has thrived and brought the world to her students.  For most students in inner-city DC international travel has never crossed their minds, but this has changed at Ballou with the organization of Ballou International.  With Allie's guidance this group raises thousands of dollars each year to send students around the world.  This year Costa Rica and Ghana are on the agenda.  This is just another example of a wonderful educator bypassing the issue of finance and making the world "smaller" for her students.  Please check out the website below for more about Ballou International.

www.ballouinternational.com

Sunday, November 4, 2012

China through the Eyes of American Educators

Thank you camera Dan (Dan McKosky) for creating this wonderful film that shows our 10 day experience in China.

You Tube Video

Saturday, November 3, 2012

Inspiration from a Friend

I will be the first to admit that writing is not my forte.  I spent a good deal of time in college planning my classes around the fewest writing assignments.  The same is not true of a very dear friend of mine who I met while at UVa.  Whitney has gone on to earn a master's degree in journalism and is now a magazine editor.  Even though we differ on if writing is a pleasure or a chore, we share many other passions.  History, travel, and UVa sports (Wahoo Wa) have made us life-long friends. 

I grew up in rural Augusta County, Virginia where international travel was only for those who joined the military.  Even when I went to college and saw numerous classmates make their way abroad I was too scared of the distance and the finances to really consider leaving the US.  Then came the opportunity after fourth year to work at The American School in Switzerland for two months.  I was engaged, getting ready to start student teaching, and terrified to tell my mother that I was thinking about living in Europe for a summer.  The odds were against me actually capitalizing on the opportunity of a lifetime, but then Whitney confirmed that she was going.  Together we led Saudi Arabian boys on hikes, showed Japanese girls how to play basketball, and taught slang to Russian teenagers.  This was my first true experience that it is a small world after all.

Whitney is now in Missouri, but she still inspires me with her Quote of the Day blog.  Oh and by the way she has kept up a post once a day for over four years. 

Friday, November 2, 2012

A Husband's Dream

After returning from my first trip to Asia, I realized that one of my husband's greatest dreams can be achieved in China.  He could have Kentucky Fried Chicken delivered to him at pretty much any time of day.  As I quickly took a picture of the KFC bike delivery guy I realized what a small world we really do live in.  For seven years I have been attempting to teach world history to high school students who have never seen the world.  US history is easier.  Students can pronounce the name George and they can walk on a Civil War battlefield with just a small drive.  By making their backyards the classroom they can experience history for themselves and are naturally more connected.  The same is not true for World History, especially when trying to describe the Sahara Desert or pronounce Qin ShiHuang.  It is up to the teacher to try and make the world small enough for students to create one history for them to experience and find their place within.  My goal as an educator is to help my students realize their dreams and passions even if it is a KFC delivery bike on the streets of Shanghai.