Styrofoam out of Schools

On Tuesday, November 17, 2009, I went to a presentation given by the Greener Schools Committee.  In beginning lecture, I learned how each New York City Public School is supposed to have a sustainability coordinator, but due to budget costs, this position is no longer available. A Sustainability Coordinator’s job would focus on prioritizing environmental projects and creating a unified strategy to move New York City Public Schools ahead.  Recruiting a coordinator could increase sustainability of practices such as recycling, energy and water use, transportation, and food services. It was interesting to note that if the New York City Schools did establish this position, the savings in energy and waste, would have the potential to make up for costs in establishing the position.

One of the guest speakers was Debby Lee from the Parson’s School of Design. She discussed how the use of Styrofoam trays are over used in schools and are posing a threat to our environment.  Debby and her students took dirty Styrofoam trays from local Public Schools such as PS 41 and PS 163 and turn them into 3-D artwork!  I learned that these trays take hundreds of years to decompose in our soil.  An interesting point, Debby made, “waste is measured by weight not volume.” Styrofoam is so light in weight that it is taking up so much room in our recycling facilities.  Also, the chemicals used in Styrofoam has been linked to certain Cancers. Debbie’s father, a Styrofoam worker, died from cancer, which she hypothesizes that the Styrofoam was the cause of death.

Debby showed the importance of the working together with your community to advice social justice.  She claims that she was successful with her project was because she worked with the cafeteria management and custodians in schools. There are three possible reasons why New York City Public Schools continue to use Styrofoam trays-- 1. It’s cheap 2. Easy to store 3. Plastic industry spends millions on lobbying.  I was shocked to hear that only 30 out of 1600 schools have dishwashers.  If the DOE gave schools a billion-dollar grant, Debby concludes, “ Most schools do not have the infrastructure to run one of these units.”

To achieve social justice as an educator, Debby mentions, the importance of first getting the citizen’s approval by creating a petition. Debby has already over 600 signatures. Next, Debby suggests, working on a class project to get student’s attention about what is going on.  Working with your school is staff is another crucial factor for bring change. Finally Debby concludes with starting a wellness committee.

Debby’s more practical solutions for not using Styrofoam plates was focusing on reduction such as--having students carry their own food, creating edible plates and “Tray less Tuesday’s.” Debby closed her lecture with how important it is to put pressure on the government. We can’t wait for the change it must begin with us. As we have discussed in class, Civil Rights Movement change can begin with ordinary people like Debby. This lecture was extremely engaging and relevant to me, because I am a supporter of environmental justice, and making our schools greener. I highly recommend attending one of these meetings! 

Metro Center’s Policy Educational Forum on 11/24

Yesterday morning, I attended an educational forum organized by the NYU Metropolitan Center for Urban Education. It was a large event and took place in the Rosenthal Pavilion in the Kimmel Center from 9 to 11 in the morning. Because the forum was supposed to be focused on policy, a lot of the attendees were administrators, leaders of community-based education organizations, employees of the department of education and also some teachers.

After opening remarks from Pedro Noguera and Dean Mary Brabeck, there were two parts to the presentation. First, a doctoral student reported the statistical findings of a research study undertaken by Pedro Noguera and a team of others at the Metropolitan Center for Urban Education. This study analyzed the graduation rates of Black and Latino male students in the NYC public school system. There was a lot of data presented, but one result that surprised me was that the largest number of Black and Latino male students that dropped out of high school, dropped out after staying in high school for three years. I expected that the highest number of students who dropped out would happen after only one year.

The second portion of the presentation was a forum discussion. The panel included two principals of high schools in NYC, a corporate banker, the Deputy Chancellor of the NYC Department of Education and the Chancellor for the New York State Education Department Board of Regents. Again, a lot of topics and ideas were discussed during this time. One atrocious fact that I learned is that in Indianapolis, the Department of Education is giving individuals who have not fulfilled the requirements for a typical diploma, a different kind of diploma (somewhat similar to NYC's "Local Diploma") and statistically considering them high school graduates. The Department of Education can thus prove that the graduation rates of Black and Latino students are improving. These diplomas are not considered sufficient for entry into any Indiana state university! How is this happening? This should be illegal!

India Masala

I attended the India Masala event celebrating International Education Week 2009 this past Thursday, November 19th. The event included performances by various dance groups, as well as a viewing of the movie 'Dor'. The event itself was great, with tons of food for attendees and performances throughout the night. As others have already mentioned I think we all took something different from the night, and for me it was the infusion of hip-hop in most of the Indian dance performances. This was something that I had never known, and is definitely a way that our cultures cross paths. This event was also a good experience because I saw someone I knew here at NYU in one of the performing groups, and this showed me a new side of that person that I didnt know about. I think this is obviously important in our classrooms, as you need to try to find out all that you can about your students because they may have a passion or interest that you had no idea about, but might share.
The movie Dor also provided a unique little lesson for all of us that attended the event. The first 5 minutes or so of the movie was played without any subtitles, before they ultimately realized this and restarted the movie. In that time, the movie was confusing and hard to understand what was going on, yet once the subtitles were on and I could follow along it really is a movie that all can relate to. When you dont get to understand a culture (or have subtitles, in this case) it is going to seem so different from your own, and will seem like something you will never understand. If you take the time to understand this culture, (or have subtitles, to complete the metaphor) a lot of times you will realize that it might end up being a lot like your own and that there are many ways you can connect with others. Overall I had a good time at the event with the other students from our cohort, and am much more aware of student groups like this on campus.

India Masala

India Masala is an event sponsored by International Education Week 2009 and cosponsored by the Office for International Students and Scholars, the Center for Multicultural Education and Programs, the Student Resource Center, GARBA at NYU, NASHA at NYU, and SHRUTI at NYU (who knew any of these organizations even exist?!). International Education Week is is an initiative to promote international exchange and foster greater global awareness.
A group of us from the cohort attended the festivities which included tastings of Indian food, listening to Indian music, watching traditional Indian dancing, and watching an Indian film (with English subtitles). This event is a great example of how we can teach different cultures in our classrooms. What better way to learn about the differences and similarities among us than to introduce a certain culture’s foods and art and start discussions from there.
My favorite part of the event was the movie. It is a beautiful tale of love, loss, friendship, and courage. One of its themes is the empowerment of the weak and oppressed- in this case a submissive housewife who later becomes a woman who learns to defy cruel tradition and live the way she wants to.
Until now, I was not familiar with anything Indian except the term slumdog (learned from the movie) and the fact that India had areas where female infanticide (deliberate killing of baby girls) was practiced until recent years (but that’s a different discussion). I heard the word masala before but never knew what it meant. It is a mix of spices used in Indian cooking and I found out it this case it refers to movies in Bollywood where there is a mix of genres (romance, action, comedy, music) in one movie. I would really like to attend more events like this one to learn about other cultures this way. That's all. Stela

NYU: Indian Masala

Going to this event, was the first time I have ever really experienced Indian culture. It was not only a new experience, but also an enjoyable one. I was first able to try some Indian foods (which were delicious!), then I was given the pleasure to watch Indian dances and a movie, both of which shed light on the culture of India. I always had the misconception that Indian culture was very different from other cultures that I am familiar with, but i have seen many similarities between India, America, and other Asian countries, in terms of their foods, music, dances, and movie production. The dance performances stirred a lot of excitement, and although the movie was very long, i enjoyed every moment of it. It was a movie titled "Dor" which told a story about two women who are desperately seeking what they individually want in life. Watching the journey that has been set before them, unfold, was not only heart warming, but I could relate to the two women in this film. And although the film was not in English, I was able to really grasp what the movie was about, and was moved beyond words. This made me think that although there may be a language or even a culural barrier between individuals, it is more than possible to not only communicate but connect through other means.

India Masala

     On Thursday Nov. 19th, along with a number of the students from our cohort, I attended the India Masala event celebrating International Education Week 2009. While initially nervous for the evening, I couldn't have enjoyed it more. As mentioned previously, the event was advertised as a movie screening of "Dor" as well as food and performances by student groups I had not heard of. From the beginning, I was engrossed in the film. I'm currently taking two courses that center on India and Post Colonialism and was surprised to realize how much I could connect them to the event.  The film itself paralleled two women's story's and their journey to basically finding what the wanted in life, one her husbands freedom, and one her own freedom. I'd never seen an Indian film, and could tell that some of the more social comic aspects were lost to me, I didn't fail to grasp the overall meaning of the movie. 

     However my absolute favorite part of the night was all the performances. I had never even before heard of these student dance troupes, and couldn't have been more impressed. (And am now a HUGE fan.) The students across the board performed a clash of culture pieces including traditional Indian dance styles with more modern, even "American,"  songs and dance moves. 

    As a (hopefully) soon-to-be-teacher, I couldn't help but realize that myself as a student in classes about India wasn't enough. This production helped me to realize that the things I'm learning in my own classes, can be brought to life in other ways, whether through film or performance, I was able to more concretely understand and experience a culture I had previously been unfamiliar with. It really enforced what it means to bring learning to life.

NYCore Open Invitation Meeting

Way back at the beginning of the semester I went with Nina and Jess to the NYCore Open Invitation dinner. It was basically an informational meeting where we learned a lot about the different projects that NYCore runs and participates in, and how the organization functions as a whole. It was really wonderful to share dinner with the group of people at our table. The attendees were mostly teachers (we were the only pre-service teachers). Even though I hadn’t been a full-time teacher yet, I’ve had so many experiences in the field during our program and I was able to participate in conversations about this with the people at our table. I felt that they were welcoming and open to discussion with me even though I hadn’t been in charge of my own classroom yet.

Something I thought was really neat about the organization is what they call ITAGs, an abbreviation for Inquiry to Action Groups. ITAGs are groups of people interested in a specific topic (ex. incorporating Social Justice Education into pre-existing curriculum standards), who meet eight times to discuss and learn about the chosen topic. After researching and learning about the topic, the group plans some sort of action to promote what they’ve learned from the experience.

Also at the meeting, I was able to see two performances – spoken word poetry and a section from a play. The play, “RECESS,” is a one-woman show that is performed by Una Osato. I remembered hearing about the play last year in our science class, but didn’t really know what it was about or how amazing it actually is, so I didn’t attend the performance last spring. After seeing the short part of the play that I did, I will definitely attend a full performance of it if given the chance again. I really think you all should too!

NYCoRE Saturday Series for New Radical Educators

On Saturday, November 7, 2009, I participated in a session of the NYCoRE Saturday Series. The topic was overcoming the negative culture of public schools by staying positive and building allies. The workshop was held at TC and facilitated by Annie and Marissa who are both New York City teachers and members of NYCoRE.
New York Collective of Radical Educators (NYCoRE) is a group of public school teachers committed to fighting for social justice in the school system and society at large, by organizing and mobilizing teachers, developing curriculum, and working with community, parent, and student organizations.
The first part of the workshop was classroom management lows and highs, conducted by Annie. She facilitated a discussion on building community. Some of the topics addressed were: empowering kids, positive language, staying positive within yourself and staying positive within the community. The point is to give students coping mechanisms they will be able to apply. For example, give them one thing they can do today that can make their day better, or show the student there is opportunity for growth by putting whatever happened yesterday or whenever behind us- don’t hold a grudge, and most importantly address the behavior not the student.
My favorite part was the reflection activity. We were to brainstorm things that effect students that are out of our control. The list was extensive- suicide, death, poverty, hunger, drugs, alcoholism, sexuality, lack of resources, body issues, overcrowding, foster care, absences, parents don’t speak English, status trends, gangs, learning disability, neglect, abandonment issues…the list goes on. This was named the “black hole” of positive thinking. I learned that spending time thinking about things I cannot control is a waste of time. I will be in control of my destiny as a teacher and focus on my planning and language and everything being positive.
The second part of the workshop was connected Freire to teaching. Freire believed that teachers engage students politically and then educate them in the process. Ways to connect are through critical dialogue, talk, and experience of living together. Existing knowledge must be questioned, thought provoking questions must be asked. Dialogue involves respect and the process is important and can be seen as enhancing community building. I am optimistic that it is possible to build a classroom environment that is like the world I want to live in.
Let me tell you- attending this workshop was special for me- and I say that because- after a year and a half of learning how to teach and practicing teaching in my placements, this is the first time I actually felt like a real teacher. Go and check it out for yourself. That’s all. Stela

Beyond the Bricks & India Masala

Beyond the Bricks

I attended the premiere screening of Beyond the Bricks on Wednesday November 18, 2009 at the Hip Hop Cultural Center in Harlem. It was simply amazing! The event lasted for three and a half hours which included the screening of Beyond the Bricks, and an interview and discussion session. The screening and discussion was hosted by Education Voters Institute along with the producers of the film.

The movie is a documentary that includes interviews with educators, administrators, elected officials, and activists who offer their ideas about solutions to the crisis facing young black men. This screening was an opportunity for not only me but for other adult figures to seek out the students who are caught in the middle of our education crisis.

Also, the powerful discussion with leading experts got me thinking about what we can do to provide a quality education for every child. The panel included Dr. John Jackson, President of the Schott Foundation for Public Education, Dr. Ivory Toldson, Senior Analyst, Congressional Black Caucus Foundation, Howard University Professor, Khary Lazarre-White, Executive Director, Brotherhood SisterSol, Shaquiel Ingram, 10th grader who was featured in Beyond the Bricks, and Dr. Adelaide Sanford, Former Vice Chancellor NY Board of Regents. The discussion session helped to explore policy solutions and actions that we can take to address the crises facing our students – especially minorities and those coming from an underprivileged family.

India Masala

I attended the India Masala during the International Education Week on Thursday, November 19^th for three hours. It was held at the NYU Kimmel Center sponsored by the Office for International Students and Scholars (OISS), the Center for Multicultural Education and Programs, the Student Resource Center, GARBA at NYU, NASHA at NYU, and SHRUTI at NYU.

They had great Indian food ready at the beginning, dance performances by NY Pandemonium, NASHA at NYU, GARBA at NYU, and Bhangra, and a screening of Nagesh Kukunoor’s feature film, Dor. The movie was in Indian with captions but I felt like there was a limit to understanding the full context of the conversations. I have never attended an International Education Week event during my four years at NYU so it was a new experience for me. It was a great way for me to involve myself in the NYU curriculum and also experience multiculturalism – it was my first time watching an Indian movie and watching dance performances in person.

Fourth Child Policy Forum of New York/55th Anniversary of Brown v. Board of Education

On November 14th I attended the Fourth Child Policy Forum of New York at the Schomburg Center. The event started out with a group of students from the P.S. 46 Wind Ensemble playing. There were then remarks from Howard Dodson (director of the Schomburg Center), Gertrud Lenzer (director of the Children's Studies program at Brooklyn College), and Joan Lucariello (Dean for Academic Affairs at Brooklyn College). The Deputy Mayor Dennis M. Walcott also spoke.

After the opening remarks, Professor Owen M. Fiss from Yale University spoke. Fiss spoke about the 2nd Reformation that started after Brown v. Board of Education, and ended in 1996 with welfare reform. He also spoke about a 3rd reformation coming now and how we need to focus on our public schools needing to meet students needs like charter schools can. He also spoke about parents needing to understand what is expected/needed of them and how they need to be supported by others to best help their children. Another speaker at this event was Howard Davidson, who spoke about the Convention on the Rights of the Child. He gave a lot of facts about different treaties that protect the rights of children. One of the things that surprised me the most about what he said was that the United States and Somalia are the only two countries that haven't ratified the CRC. This is something that the United States needs to work on and ratify.

One of the most interesting parts of this event, I thought, was the panel discussion at the end. William A. Scarborough, Barbara M. Clark, and Velmanette Montgomery all spoke. Scarborough spoke about many different things, but what I found the most interesting was the information he gave about foster care, working to provide services in the home, and working to get family to take over guardianship. Montgomery spoke mostly about what she called the cradle to prison pipeline and what causes this and how we can help by providing students with more health coverage, meaningful recreation activities, and work opportunities to help them be prepared for life after school. Clark spoke about child advocacy and helping children in school.

Beyond the Bricks

I attended the screening of a documentary, Beyond the Bricks, on Wednesday, November 18th at the Magic Johnson Theater. This event was truly amazing and I thought that the film was very powerful.
The film followed a two students, Shaquiel, a 15 year old who is still in high school and pushing himself to graduate even though he has had some familial difficulties and has had to go through the court system for truancy, and Eric, a 19 year old who dropped out of school after an altercation with his teacher and is now pursuing an alternative route to get his diploma.
In addition to interviewing these two young men and learning them, the film also brought in many experts, professors at universities, community leaders, directors of alternative high schools, and a mayor. All of these people were able to give valuable information about some of the problems that these students are facing and how hard we as teachers need to work to help them.
One of the things that really stuck with me was some of the statistics that were shared throughout the film. Although Black males make up only 17% of the student population, they account for 30% of suspensions and 32% of expulsions. Only 2% of this nations millions of teachers are Black males. 60% of Black students live without a father at home. 1 in 3 Black males are incarcerated, on parole, or on probation. These statistics were very shocking to me, and are clearly something that needs to be addressed.
After the showing of the film, there was a panel discussion (Dr. Adelaide Sanford, Dr. John Jackson, Dr. Ivory Toldson, and Khary Lazarre-White). The panelists touched on many different topics, but something that ran throughout all of their comments, was the need for a strong community built around our students, and the need for understanding teachers who know where the students are coming from and can be connected with their needs. During this discussion a group of students from Bushwick Community High School asked some questions and one of the students said something that really stuck with me. He said that even though their school was called a transfer school, they considered it to be a school of transformation. This statement was very powerful to me.
Again, I really found this documentary to be very powerful and if anyone gets the chance to see it, I would highly recommend it.

http://www.beyondthebricksproject.com/index.html

India Masala

I attended an event called India Masala.
At this event i was immersed in the Indian culture. The guests ate Indian food, watched Indian dance peformances, and watched an Indian film. At first i thought i was going to feel out of place, but when looking around at all the guests, to my surprise there was a great diversity.

As the dance performances began, it was so much fun. They were energetic and were upbeat. But the most memorable thing about this even was when the second dance performance started,the music came on first. I remember telling my friend sitting next to me, hey this sounds Chinese not Indian. She then turned around and said yea it does, maybe its because its from neighboring countries, they have to have something in common.

At that moment I realized that this was an important thing that i had learned. No matter how different the cultures may seem, all cultures have similarties and this would be a great thing to teach our kids in the classroom. The moral that I learned at this event was despite the differences, there are much more similarites.

Beyond the Bricks

This event was AMAZING.
It was a documentary following three young black men. One student was 15, the other 18 and the last I believe was 19 years old. The documentary explained statistics and the lack of role models that young black males have. It shows their struggles as well as them overcoming those struggles.

After the documentary was over, there were four panelists.
Many of the panelists discussed the importance of role models, love, and the need for high expectations. They also discussed the importance of teachers getting to know the culture of their students by going into their neighborhoods and experiencing what the students go through everyday. They also discussed how Black males are always associated with failures and negativity such as Black males are more likely to be incarcerated. But they are not associated at all with positive.

Another main theme that showed up was the idea that a village raises a child. They discussed how important it is to have a community that is supportive of their children who are our future.

One of the most empowering things throughout this event was listening to students (from high school who attended this event) there was one particular young man who was from an alternate school. he stood up and explained that everyone see his school as a transfer school and as a place where "bad" students go. He then said, that his school was not that, but because of teachers like his (pointing at his teacher) they call their school the school of TRANSFORmation. This was a first hand account of young black men, getting the education, leadership, and love that they deserve, and it was clear that it empowered the student not only academically but socially, emotionally, and mentally.

55th Anniversary of Brown v. Board of Education

On November 14th, I made my way back to the Schomburg Center to listen to a forum discussing the 55th Anniversary of Brown v. DOE. I thought the discussion would be highly appropriate due to the recent visit to the Courage exhibition. This discussion highlighted the affects of the decision made by the Supreme Court and where we are today in education.
The keynote speaker from Yale University Owen M. Fiss, was knowledgeable on the topic of what produced the judgment of equality for all in our schools, but at times, I found him to be off-putting because it seemed as if he was trying to restate what the black community struggle was from the inside looking out when I strongly doubt he has had to deal with any struggles or face any forms of racism as a white male in America. Even with that being said, i did glean some solid and valuable information worth reflecting upon.
One point that he made was something we talk about in class on occasion which is the "REAL" results of Brown v. DOE. School hierarchy was made up from slavery times. So this leads me to conclude that since we have over 80% teaching America, the way they are taught, what information is disseminated and how the children are treated are at the mercy of the slave master aka The Teacher.
Although the case fought for equality, according to Owen, blacks are still uneducated, make less and are disadvantaged. Economic and social parameters continue to effect black communities. So this leads me to wonder, how are we allowing poor blacks to gain access to the same privileges as someone in the middle/ upper class, or as white students who live in the same town/city but have way better schools?
Some ways the system can work on this as brought out by the speaker was to include parents in the educational process, support parents as they try to keep their children safe, there should be equal per capita expenditures(I believe property tax should not be the only way ( bulk of the way)in which school funding is provided ) teachers and administrators need to understand and take into consideration the family make-up.
We have an epidemic occurring and for once, we need to stop blaming the black students who come in with an insignificant chance or support. It's time to look at the educators and administration and say maybe it's me who's the problem. These kids may not have spit flying onto their heads, or stones thrown at their backs, but when they enter their schools the anti-learning environment they are succumbed to makes me wonder if the Brown decision did anything at all.

Green Schools/Styrofoam Out of Schools Presentation

This past Tuesday (11/17) I attended a presentation at the UFT headquarters by the Green Schools committee. Mary Most, a representative from the NYC Department of Sanitation, began with some very helpful information on waste prevention in schools. I really learned a lot about what to recycle and how, as well as information on how to set up a recycling program in your school. Some really helpful pointers included:

• Knowing what exactly CAN and CANNOT be recycled (for example yogurt containers, styrofoam, plastic utensils, plastic cups, straws, peanut butter jars are not included in the cartons/metals/foils/bottles category).
• Even if something cannot be recycled, remember the 3 R's: Recycle, Reduce, Reuse! Use those plastic bags as garbage bags.
• Work with the custodial staff within your school to identify storage areas, label containers, post signs, acquiring appropriate receptacles (only clear bags for recyclables).
• Rechargeable batteries and old electric equipment don't need to be thrown in the garbage. They can be donated or recycled.

I also learned about all of the recognition schools are getting for having outstanding recycling programs and composting projects. The Golden Apple and Golden Shovel award winners feature news stories on schools that are helping to beautify the world, even here in NYC. To learn more about this you can visit nyc.gov/wasteless/goldenapple.

The part of the presentation that really caught my attention as a future educator of social justice regarded the "Keeping Styrofoam Out of Schools Campaign." The presenter spoke about the 600 signatures she collected for this petition to come up with a solution to this problem. Yes styrofoam is cheap, sturdy, lightweight, and does not require a dishwasher, but it is harmful to the planet. Any age group of students can learn about this and see how it is affecting animals, wildlife, and earth's future. I immediately thought of the M & M's protest after hearing about this petition and thought this is an issue students could potentially become passionate about. Making a change by lobbying, protesting, and presenting their own ideas on how to find a better alternative from styrofoam trays is definitely a social justice issue. Also, I feel like students don't have to feel down if they have a protest and do not see an immediate change. They can make daily life choices about conserving energy, recycling, reducing, and reusing and feel that they are contributing to a better world, a better society.

Fourth Child Policy Forum of New York

On Saturday, November 14, I attended the Fourth Child Policy Forum of New York, presented by the Children's Studies Center and the Schomburg Center. The event was held at the Schomburg Center and focused on the human rights of children, as they relate to the 55th anniversary of Brown v. Board of Education and the 20th anniversary of the U.N. Convention on the Rights of the Child.

The event began with a brief musical introduction by a small wind ensemble from P.S. 46, which was fitting as the group featured several children. Several individuals, including Howard Dodson, the director of the Schomburg Center, and Gertrud Lenzer, the director of the Children's Studies Center, then spoke briefly, adddressing the importance of the day's topic.

After these introductions, the keynote speakers began, starting with Owen M. Fiss, a professor at Yale University, who focused on Brown v. Board of Education and how this essentially began the "Second Reconstruction," in which the lives of African Americans began changing in all settings, not just education. From this point, he began discussing the need for a "Third Reconstruction" and what must happen within this to better the lives of children, especially in regards to their home lives and their education. Following Fiss, Howard Davidson presented his ideas regarding the U.N. Convention on the Rights of the Child and why (or why not) some believe the U.S. should utilize this important piece of legislation.

After a short break, three members of the New York State Assembly and/or Senate took the stage and presented a number of items regarding more recent activities related to improving the rights of children, especially within the areas of human trafficking, as well as the use of foster care. They also addressed what needs to be done to continue to build on these rights with a focus on improvement of physical and mental health. After this, the forum ended with a brief question-and-answer session.

After thinking about all of the information and opinions adressed in this forum, I was suprised to learn that such a thing as the U.N. Convention on the Rights of the Child even existed and especially that it was completed twenty years ago. According to the individuals who spoke at the Forum, the U.S. played a large role in drafting the law articles, all of which focused on providing more rights to all children. Over fifty countries were involved in the CRC's creation, and over half of them have incorporated at least a portion of the laws into their countries' legal systems. I was shocked to learn that the U.S. is not included in this list of countries. How can our country criticize others for not protecting their children when several presidents refuse to incorporate the laws of the CRC here? The understanding that children are important does little without as many laws as possible in place to protect them.

The topic of the forum ties in well with what we are studying in this course. It addressed the importance of protecting the rights of children and ensuring they get the equity they deserve, something to constantly consider as a future teacher. Not only is it necessary to educate children in the proper manner but also to ensure they are not falling through the cracks, that each and every one of them has someone or something to hold onto as hope that they can and will become successful adults.

EquAsian: The Lifeguard Workshop

On Saturday, November 7th I attended a workshop from 5:30- 8:00 on suicide prevention at the APICHA (Asian and Pacific Islander Coalition on HIV/AIDS) headquarters on Walker and Broadway. I met with Larry, the coordinator, and different members of EquAsian, which is a support group for the Asian/Pacific Islander LGBT community. We discussed risk factors, warning signs, and reasons for suicide as well as preventative strategies.



The discussion was led by a guest speaker, Renee, from The Trevor Project, which is a confidential suicide prevention helpline for gay and questioning youth that offers someone to talk to. Needless to say, this workshop was extrememly emotionally charged (especially considering the recent suicide of an NYU student). Before the workshop began, I thought I would have a difficulty discussing such a heavy topic with complete strangers. However, I saw how open and honest everyone else was being and did not feel uncomfortable at all. I think what really helped was setting up ground rules before the meeting (just like we have done in class) so that everyone's opinions were heard and respected. We continued by brainstorming word that we associate with suicide: isolation, depression, hopelessness, escape, selfish, etc. Next we talked about risk factors associated with suicide and warning signs. For me, this was where I felt the most emotially vulnerable. I heard a lot of stories about how relatives and friends of someone who committed suicide "never saw it coming" and just how difficult it may be for someone to recognize these warning signs, even in a loved one.

One of the risk factors that kept coming up was "pressure." Immediately I thought of all of the academic, social, and emotional pressures that my future students will be left to face and how I will deal with that in my classroom. Keeping a positive and open way of communicating with your students is crucial, especially at a young age like elementary school when children are forming foundations of support. Part of our discussion led to the "Model Asian Student" stereotype that we have talked about in class (that Asian students are expected to perform to a higher standard than everyone else), which led to a discussion of pressures of an Asian student versus an Asian American student. One side of the debate was that Asian American students have a more difficult time fusing together a combined identity; one that is Asian and another that is American. Since I could not speak from experience about this topic, I mostly just listened and asked questions. In the end, I realized that being from two minority groups (Asian/Pacific Islander and the LGBT community) present so many struggles that I have never had to deal with in my own life; issues like being rejected from friends and family, teasing and ridiculed, stereotyped, all while dealing with everyday tasks like homework, chores, and having a social life.

Finally, I learned that the younger a person comes out to family and friends, the more likely they are to commit suicide because they do not have the maturity to deal with possible teasing and rejection from their loved ones. Teachers need to make sure their students can trust them and provide a classroom and school community based on respect, tolerence, and kindness.