We begin the semester with an overview of the syllabus--the curriculum, a personal introduction, and some classroom expectations.
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No man is an island entire of itself; every man |
Students reflect on how we together with so much diversity. We as humans depend on each other in numerous ways, but we also bring many different backgrounds, interests and stories. We use the African concept of ubuntu to reflect on how we can live together, using an excerpt from Desmond Tutu's No Future Without Forgiveness.
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In review the concept of ubuntu, I asked students to now personally respond to the idea. In doing so I asked students to return to the third element of the CURE method for reading informational texts--respond in the margins. In order to prepare students for responding I introduced students to the Question-Answer Relationship (QAR) to help students appreciate that reading is a dialogue, a two way street. We don't just receive information, but also interact with it through questioning. Typically students are taught to read and analyze a text, but students also should be encouraged to respond through considering its relevance, its purpose, their reactions, etc. Students come with experiences and background understandings that impact their understanding of text.
Students returned to the reading to respond with four questions or comments that reflect an "in my head" type of response. This prompted students to think about the relevance for their lives and the classroom. Students selected two ways they felt they could work on having ubuntu this year. This was added to the final to boxes of the quilt square. |
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