123ArticleOnline Logo
Welcome to 123ArticleOnline.com!
ALL >> Business >> View Article

To Carve Out New Orders In Experience"1: Imagination In A Social Action Literacy Project

Profile Picture
By Author: Tracy carter
Total Articles: 101
Comment this article
Facebook ShareTwitter ShareGoogle+ ShareTwitter Share

This country is definitely not perfect and this world is not perfect. If you take these issues and deal with them one by one, we can kind of resolve them. We won't put an end to it but we can actually decrease it and lessen it, so it will be better.—Cara, an eighth grader.Cara believes in the possibility of change for the better. In the quote above, she has imagined citizens confronting social ills and working toward an improved society. However, many eighth graders in Class 345 expressed such visions as they created social action literacy projects. Through their work, they tackled a range of civic problems including high school dropout rates and domestic abuse, exercising their Vibram Five Fingers critical consciousness and displaying a willingness to imagine how their world could be different. Multiple iterations of the students' imaginations surfaced, prompting me to continuously expand my understanding of adolescents' activist identities. In this article, I describe the unfolding of the social action literacy project and two students' experiences. I share these cases ...
... with the belief that teachers can learn from youth, as their responses to the project illuminate the ways social action can provoke adolescents' imaginations in English classrooms.

1. Social Action in Class 345
Scott and the students enacted the social action curriculum daily during a 90-minute period from March through June. Overall, the students conducted research on a range of social issues and then composed and presented texts on these issues.

2. Students as Researchers
The project began when Scott asked the students to make ethnographic observations of their neighborhood. They documented their lived experiences and collected "seed ideas" in their writing journals. He told the students to "stay close to home" and "describe something you have seen." They also routinely read newspapers looking for articles on issues of social reform. To record their learning, Scott asked the students to summarize the articles and identify what the journalists or subjects think should be reformed. This process provoked engaging conversations on the war in Iraq and immigrant rights, among other issues. The students also researched activists' experiences by independently reading biographies of people who have "used their voices to make a change," including Malcolm X and Anne Frank, and interviewing a tenant organizer in their community. Additionally, Scott prompted them to compose journal entries about change-makers in their personal lives. This research process asked students to identify various social problems and the possibility of reform.

As the students' banks of seed ideas grew, Scott designed activities that highlighted distinctions between the issues. First, they categorized the problems as international, national, or local. Days later, he asked themVibram Five Fingers On Sale to label each idea with one of the following codes: "someone should do something about this" and "way to make the world better." In asking them to identify what it would mean for the world to be "better," Scott showed his commitment to what he called "seeing answers and thinking in hopeful ways." Encouraging the students to be forward thinking in this way may have particularly ignited their imaginations, as he called on them to envision and plan for a better world.

Total Views: 382Word Count: 522See All articles From Author

Add Comment

Business Articles

1. Lucintel Forecasts The Global Satellite Operations As A Service Market To Grow With A Cagr Of 13.3% From 2025 To 2031
Author: Lucintel LLC

2. Lucintel Forecasts The Global Satellite Operation As A Service Sale Market To Grow With A Cagr Of 13.5% From 2025 To 2031
Author: Lucintel LLC

3. Ticket Booking Api
Author: RishiHassan

4. Jewelry Photo Magic: Unveiling The Tricks Of Professional Editing
Author: ukclippingpath

5. How Outsourced Accounting Services Improve Cash Flow Visibility
Author: Harsh Vardhan

6. 5 Ways To Make Homes Safer For Seniors
Author: Jack Jones

7. اكتشفي أناقتك مع متجر عبايات: دليلك للتسوق المثالي
Author: Max

8. When Is Assisted Living Needed? 5 Signs To Watch Out For
Author: Jack Jones

9. How To Document Nonconformities In Iso 22000 Audits
Author: Jane

10. Elevate Your Career Opportunities With A Supply Chain Management Certification
Author: jayesh

11. Kpi Vs. Okr: Understanding The Difference For Smarter Goal Setting
Author: TrackHr App

12. Explore The Fascinating Businesses And Landmarks Found Along Luz Church Road
Author: jayesh

13. High Temperature Superconductors Market Size & Share, Analysis 2031
Author: Andy

14. Maximize Medical Practice Profits With Expert Revenue Cycle Management In Houston
Author: patriotmedbill

15. Enhancing Quality Of Life: The Role Of Senior Living Property Management Companies
Author: Trinity Diaz

Login To Account
Login Email:
Password:
Forgot Password?
New User?
Sign Up Newsletter
Email Address: