Breaking Down GALACTIC Stereotypes
Stereotypes are toxic, but we all use them! People all around the world feel misrepresented and misunderstood. One group that have been heavily stereotyped are Syrian refugees. Refugees from Syria have been blamed for all kinds of violence and endangering our way of life, and have been exploited as political chess pieces all over the world. The truth is very different, and understanding that truth can help us better understand the world and our place in it.
This week, we’ll be breaking down the stereotypes we experience and the ones we place on others. When we understand people beyond the stereotypes of culture, race, gender, sexuality, religion, and ability, we’re able to become better global citizens. By the end of the week, we will create a compilation of short stories representing characters we create together that go beyond their stereotypes.
Hi there! Bravo on getting this draft going. It is really a great start. Can you think of a way to incorporate your Art form (short stories or storytelling into the title? I am also wondering if using GALACTIC in the title might be confusing - maybe something like Stories Against Refugee Stereotypes Or Stories Against Syrian Stereotypes -- you could have an image of someone holding a sign at a demo. Just an idea - but something where the title has both the art form and the topic. Again, great work.
ReplyDeleteGreat, we can look at the title again and adjust it. We do have some poetry to incorporate into the lessons, but may also give the students time to write their own stories. Do you think that the art form of poetry would be what we should use in the title, or if we ask them to write in a variety of creative forms stick with storytelling in the title?
DeleteThat was Rachel, somehow I have "unknown" and I'm not sure how to correct that.
DeleteHow about Stories to Support Against Syrian Stereotypes? Too wordy? How do I edit the description above to change the title?
DeleteAre you going to explore refugees from places other than Syria? If so, will there be a common thread? I would be interested to see some of your more specific ideas for daily lesson plans.
ReplyDeleteWe had been originally thinking about incorporating several groups of people who are misrepresented. I wasn't sure, however, if we are supposed to focus on one group in particular, or if we can cover several groups of people. Amy, what do you think? And would this affect our course title?
DeleteDaily plans will be posted soon. We do have ice breakers and videos which are not specific to Syrian refugees, which I am hoping is ok for the lessons.
I think this topic has very interesting potential, especially if you branch out into other stereotypes, and educate them on the ways that even positive stereotypes can affect people in unexpected ways. Here are a few links regarding that topic:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.debate.org/opinions/are-positive-stereotypes-still-bad
Stereotype threat is a related issue, and might be of interest to discuss, as well:
http://www.debate.org/opinions/are-positive-stereotypes-still-bad
Great, thank you for sharing those! We had considered covering a number of stereotypes and even talking about stereotypes in a more generalized way and with several different examples and situations. We are planning to discuss other stereotypes in our ice breakers, but I had the impression we would need to focus on one specific issue for the lessons?
DeleteBack in April, I did a presentation on cultural stereotypes and one idea that I used in my presentation was a bunch of random pictures from different countries, cultures, religions, etc. and openly asked my students to tell what crossed their mind when they saw that picture first! They really enjoyed it. That might be one idea....
ReplyDeleteVesna's suggestion for the title
ReplyDeleteHow about the following title:
Stories about Syrian Refugees: Fighting Stereotypes
How does this sound?
I love this, thank you!
DeleteYour lessons are very relevant. Love how you are creating a comfortable environment for the students to be honest and the 4 corners activity!
ReplyDeleteThank you! The activity on the first day (we hope) should also break the ice before the students do their own 4 corners so that they are describing us and we become the first "guinea pigs".
DeleteHi - have you settled on a title that incorporates art, breaking stereotypes, and refugees? Thanks for finalizing this asap so we can get the final title to Balfour. the course looks great!!
ReplyDeleteI really like Vesna's, I will check in with the group to confirm that it sounds ok with them. I added that to the title of our lesson plans- I'm not sure I know how to change our title from "group 1" though in the blog links.
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