On Friday, October 2, I attended Preemptive Education: Language, Identity, and Power, hosted by Urban Word NYC and held in the Silver Center. The poety event last night kicked off a weekend of panels and workshops geared toward addressing important issues in new, innovative ways, including spoken word poetry and hip-hop.
The event featured three young poets presenting their own written work about some very strong and important ideas including being brave and reclaiming words/identity. After each poem, a panel discussed the significance of the ideas/issues presented and how these can possibly be addressed in the classroom setting.
Like the rest of the audience in the packed auditorium, I was incredibly moved by the words these individuals shared and the way in which they did so. "Switch," for example, a poem about being homosexual and brave in the face of opposition, brought everyone to their feet and several people to tears by the way it was perfectly choreographed. Another poem, "Queens," talked about what it means to be a woman and was based on the poet's experience on a bus one day, in which some very young boys said, in so many words, that girls were only good for sexual purposes.
It was incredible to hear such powerful emotions coming from such young individuals. From this, although it seems almost obvious, I learned that too often the abilities of students to address important issues is underestimated. People believe that students in high school, or even younger, cannot eloquently discuss items like those presented in the poetry slam, when, in reality, they may do even better than individuals working at it their entire lives.
Thinking about the event as a future teacher, I realized how necessary it is to change the ways in which information is presented and discussed/shared. Instead of having students simply write poetry, they should be able to use such a unit to cover social justice issues like those from this event and/or from class. Students need to understand that they have a voice which deserves to be heard, and it is the teacher's job to ensure this happens. As much as it may seem daunting and even impossible to even start talking about topics such as racism or sexism, it can and needs to be done.
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What an inspiring experience! It sounds like it was amazing. I agree that students are too often underestimated. The reason I wanted to become a teacher in the first place is because I think children are so much smarter than adults give them credit for. It is truly amazing to listen to what they have to say and witness their accomplishments. To be a part of their success by guiding them and teaching them is only that much more special. Listening to poems they created must have been incredible.
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