I have
learned a lot in this class not only about global issues and different places
around the world, but about how children’s literature treats and attempts to
teach the youth about these places and global issues. There was very little
that I had already known about the subjects and issues we explored in this
class. For example, I knew about human trafficking but I had no idea how large
the issue was, especially between the countries of Nepal and India. Another
thing I knew very little about was the difficulty of immigrating into the
United States. I had no idea how difficult the US makes the immigration process
and how strict the limitations are depending on what group or country you are
from.
The most difficult things
that we’ve discussed, learned, and read about in this class pertain to children
and violence. All of the books we read are about children and most of them
include some kind of violence. The two books that will stand out most in my
mind are Sold and A Long Way Gone because of the level of
violence that was carried out against the main characters and how the adults
used these children for their own personal gain. The things that the children
in these books endured are horrific and are things that no child should ever
have to bear witness to nonetheless experience.
Even though
a lot of the books we read are difficult and challenging, I think it is
important that these stories be shared and read, especially by children to make
them more aware of what is happening around the world. The authors of these
books treat these global issues in a way that makes the stories accessible to
teens and young adults. They take major and very serious global issues, which
might be harder for children to understand when they are just being told about
them, and create a story that places the readers into the characters world. Whether
the characters in the books are fictional or not, reading about someone who is
or has experienced these types of global issues makes it easier for readers to
understand the seriousness of the situation and realize that there are real
people in the real world experiencing what they are reading about. By teaching
these books in the safe environment of a school setting, the youth can get a
better sense of the global issues addressed in the books and they can ask
questions and delve deeper with their responses and thinking about the books
and issues.
For me, having
read these books in a school environment was really helpful because it made me
feel more comfortable about discussing these topics. Having discussions about
the books and global issues was also really helpful because I got a better
sense of what I was learning and reading about. A lot of the time, the discussions
got me through reading these books, especially the more difficult ones, because
I knew that we would be talking about them and that other people may have had
the same troubles, responses, and questions that I had while reading the books.
I enjoyed being able to contribute to discussions with my responses and feelings
about these books and to hear others opinions that may have differed or agreed
with my own. It was both reassuring and eye opening and I learned more than I would
have had I just read the books on my own.
In addition
to the discussions, the projects and blog posts were also great ways to help me
better understand the global issues we discussed in this course. Writing blog
posts after doing research and reading each book helped me reflect on what I
had just learned about or read. While reflecting on the research and books, I
was able to think more deeply about them and reinforce what I had just learned.
It made it easier to contribute to discussions because I was able to remember not
only what I read about but what I wrote about.
The projects were also really
helpful to my learning process because, like the blog postings, it broadened my
thinking. It forced me to take what I read and learned about and think about it
in a more creative way or in a way that could be easily understood by others.
The project I probably enjoyed doing most was the museum display because I now understand
the concept of culture better and how it applies to me verses how it applies to
other people and places around the world. I also enjoyed the graffiti wall
because again it forced me to think outside the box. I had to think about
everything we’ve discussed, read, and learned about in class and I had to
portray it all through art, imagery, and the written word. Making my own graffiti
wall and seeing my classmates’ was really cool because I was able to see how
everything we discussed and learned about affected not only my thinking but
theirs.
This class
hugely affected how I see and think about the world. When I look back to the beginning
of the quarter, I can see how naïve I was and how little I knew. I probably am
still naïve, but my eyes are slowly opening and I am more aware than I was
before. This class has taught me so much about being informed of what’s going
on in the world. It taught me to keep my eyes and ears open to multiple news
station so that I am not swayed by biased accounts. This class has made me want
to do more than just sit in my own little world ignoring the pain and suffering
of others simply because I can. It has taught me how selfish we all can be to
feel like we have our own things to worry about when they are so petty compared
to the lives and struggles of others. Because my eyes have been opened, I now
feel it would be impossible to close them and why shouldn’t it be? There are
people, some much younger than I, who have seen and experienced things that can
never be unseen or un-experienced. So why should I or any other “more privileged”
person be spared. We shouldn’t. It is our duty to make ourselves aware of what
is going on around the world and to choose to do something about it. If we don’t
take action, how can we expect it to change?
As a result of taking this class and
all that I have learned, I have prepared a “Plan of Action” to not only to pay
more attention to the news and do more research about global issues, but to do
something in my own community. I have now been volunteering for two years at
The Domino Project where I work with children who have autism. It is something that
I have grown very fond of and although I have gone to school for creative
writing, this job has been so much more rewarding. I have learned tons about
autism, from what it is to how it affects the individuals who have it. I know
that what I and my colleagues are doing is an important part of these children’s
developmental growth. I love my job so much and I want to be able to do more to
help the people in our community who are directly affected by autism, so I have
changed my entire life goal and plan. Instead of getting a job as a writer or
at an editing company, I have decided that I want to go back to school. I plan on earning a Master’s degree in Speech
and Hearing Sciences so that I may become a Speech-Language Pathologist. In
doing so, I will be able to continue helping children with autism develop better
communication skills so they are not dependent on others to communicate for
them. I know my “Plan of Action” doesn’t directly correlate with the global
issues we’ve covered in class, but it’s definitely something I feel capable of
doing to make a difference in a community that I’m passionate about.