ADVENTURES IN CURRICULUM CONFERENCE – MAY 2006 School: Appleby College (Oakville, Ontario) Ellen Palmer ([email protected]) – English – Grades 7 to 12 Aparna Singhal ([email protected]) – Mathematics – Grades 7 to 12 1. What extra-curricular social justice activities are students involved in at your school? Appleby College students are involved in many different activities. We have briefly listed some of the major activities that Appleby College students are usually involved in. • Round Square (www.roundsquare.org) – National & International Conferences, Service Projects, and Exchanges • Duke of Edinburgh (http://www.dukeofed.org/) • Clubs – Model United Nations, Debating/Public Speaking, Students Without Borders, Amnesty International, War Child, Camp Vista, Adventurers Club, Armagh, Dignitas-Appleby Youth Initiative • ASCENT - A grade nine programme involving a one-week service component (e.g., working at a Women’s Shelter or providing necessities to homeless individuals in Toronto). • Various service placements – mandatory for Grade 9-12 students. • Middle School Service days – Students go out into the community to spend time learning about different organizations, what services they provide, and actually helping others. • Theme Day & Guest Speakers – Various speakers and activities are planned each year to raise awareness of important issues and to provide students with avenues to discuss these issues. 2. What curriculum-based activities (areas where social justice are integrated into the curriculum) are students involved in at your school? • Social Science courses are offered for various grades (Examples: Race, Gender, Rights course, Grade 10 Civics, Canadian & World Politics, World Issues) which incorporate various activities to raise awareness, and promote social justice and responsibility for students. • English courses are incorporating multicultural texts as a vehicle to promote discussions and awareness of various faiths and cultures. • Languages courses are allowing students to write stories in different languages for children and families in other countries to send overseas and to take on International conferences & Service Projects. • Mathematics courses are using problems that promote discussion about global issues. Data sets are also analyzed related to global issues such as poverty, economic status, health concerns, education measures, etc., in order to raise awareness and facilitate discussions about current and relevant issues. These analyses lead into discussions about what actions students can take about issues they feel strongly about. • World Religion 3. What structures or processes are in place at your school which promote student involvement and/or leadership? Think about practical examples that you can share with other schools. • Prefects • Home Form leaders • Boarding House positions • Various Clubs, especially U2 Leadership Club, Model United Nations, Cadets, Camp Vista, Adventurers Club, Students Without Borders • Peer Counselors • Sports teams & Music/Art Initiatives • Theme Day & Guest speaker planning • Junior Outdoor Leader/SOL 4. What are your goals for social justice in your school/classroom/subject area? • Subject area/Classroom: English: I would like to incorporate more texts into our curriculum which allow opportunities to explore social justice and responsibility. We also have several writing and public speaking competitions which could be organized around themes relating to social justice and responsibility rather than having them open-ended. Math: I would like to be able to integrate more problems and datasets relevant to raising awareness and promoting discussions about social justice and responsibility in courses such as Middle School and Grades 10 & 11, as currently these courses are not as infused with this focus as compared to the Grade 9 and Grade 12 Data Management courses. • School: Provide more guidance and opportunity for students to be advocates for a cause they feel passionately about in conjunction with raising their awareness about various issues. Work on extending the impact of speakers and extra-curricular programs so that they are not isolated experiences. Create more relationships with external organizations which promote social justice causes. 5. What resources have been exceptionally helpful in promoting social justice? What resources do you feel you need to achieve your social justice goals? • Helpful in promoting social justice: Working with external organizations (examples: Canadian Red Cross, Dignitas International, Amnesty International, Engineers Without Borders) Having funds to invite in guest speakers Library materials/staff Freedom to initiate new clubs and experiment with curriculum ideas A supportive administration and faculty Technology (websites, communication through emails, creating websites, etc.) SEED • Needs to achieve our social justice goals: o More time with students and faculty with this focus o Planning time at the beginning and the end of year devoted to curriculum initiatives focusing on raising social justice and responsibility of our students in all disciplines o PD related to social justice issues for teachers – learning how to promote students to become better global citizens by empowering them with more awareness and providing guidance on how they can become advocates! o Knowledge of best practices and of useful teacher resources Adventures in Curriculum 2006 Reflection Questions Branksome Hall, Grade 6: Marny Gibson and Shelagh Gustavison Background Philosophy Branksome Hall is an authorized IB PYP School. The Primary Years Programme (PYP) caters to students between the ages of 3 and 10 years. It is a transdisciplinary programme designed to foster the development of the whole child, according to their academic, social, physical, emotional and cultural needs and expectations. Central to the PYP philosophy is a commitment to developing students’ concepts, attitudes and skills of inquiry to help them become successful lifelong learners and responsible global citizens. The mission statement of the International Baccalaureate Organization Through comprehensive and balanced curricula coupled with challenging assessments, the International Baccalaureate Organisation aims to assist schools in their endeavours to develop the individual talents of young people and teach them to relate the experience of the classroom to the realities of the world outside. Beyond intellectual rigour and high academic standards, strong emphasis is placed on the ideals of international understanding and responsible citizenship, to the end that IB students may become critical and compassionate thinkers, lifelong learners and informed participants in local and world affairs, conscious of the shared humanity that binds all people together while respecting the variety of cultures and attitudes that makes for the richness of life. Making it Happen, IBO, 2003. Action- the key to social justice. An essential element of all units of inquiry is action. “The PYP believes that international education must extend beyond intellectual attainment to include not only responsible attitudes but also thoughtful and appropriate action. International schools can and should meet the challenge of offering all learners the opportunity and the power to choose their actions, to act and to reflect on these actions in order to make a difference in and to the world.” Making it Happen, IBO, 2003, p.30. Act Reflect Choose “The action component of the PYP involves service in the widest sense of the word: service to fellow-students, to the staff and to the community. Through such service, students are able to grow both socially and personally, developing skills such as cooperation, problem solving, conflict resolution and creative and critical thinking. These actions are, moreover, ways in which the students exhibit their commitment to the attitudes that we seek to engender within the PYP classroom.” Making it Happen, IBO, 2003, p.30. 1. Extra-curricular social justice activities students are involved in: (a) Fundraising: Students come up with initiatives they would like to support, either on their own, in small groups, or as a class. This year one student sold bracelets to raise money for the Red Cross, one class held a silent auction in aid of disaster relief, and the whole school participated in the Terry Fox Run. In grade one, some students decided (on their own) to sell their drawings to raise money for Sick Kids Hospital. (b) Donating items: Similar to above, but students bring in items for various causes, such as the “mitten tree”, which provides mittens, scarves, hats and socks for students at an inner-city school; another example would be the art supplies that we sent to our partner school in South Africa (c) Tutoring: In the Senior School, students have the opportunity to volunteer at an inner-city school. Some students traveled to our partner school in South Africa and tutored there. 2. Curriculum-based social justice activities students are involved in: (a) MS Readathon: in homeroom, students have time to select and read books over the period of a month; then they collect pledges in support of the MS Society (b) Jump Rope for Heart: in gym, students skip rope for a set amount of time and collect pledges in support of the Heart and Stroke Foundation (c) Amnesty International: after the Injustice unit, grade 6 students heard from a representative of the Amnesty club at Branksome and signed a letter to protest about the use of child soldiers in Nepal (d) “Reaching