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Civic Participation & Citizenship Collection
Forms of Government
Tara O'Brien, Vermont Adult Learning, Brattleboro
Earlier in the course, with a long list of student generated ideas for a group project, I felt that we did not have a clear definition of the "community" that we wanted to serve in our projects. In October, I used a Community Mapping Activity to better focus our vision. The students were asked to silently draw their community on a piece of flip-chart and discuss the visual. This was the first activity that elucidated the project possibilities that were most salient for the students. An abbreviated transcript of that dialogue follows:
Tara: "Now can you share with us what and why you drew it."
Gulmira (immediately starting the dialogue and pointing to "family" on the map): Any community starts with the family…..and friends, besides family, when you open your family to friends, they give you extra information, and share. It is important for family."
Raquel: "Families are very important for community."
(Discussion follows on the importance of family.)
Gulmira (pointing to "neighborhoods" on the map): "If it is a community, it means that everyone is a neighbor, like the Bible…it is anyone who is next to you."
Gulmira (pointing to "protection"): "It is important to protect the community if we are to protect the family together…protect from attacks to each other."
(Gulmira speaks of not understanding neighborhood relations in the US and gives example of cultural difference of having to call neighbors in America when you want to stop by, rather than just drop in, as in Kazakhstan.)
Tara: "Yes, there are differences with cultures and time and commitment." (Briefly speaks of examples from Edward Hall.)
Raquel (pointing to "parks" and "schools"): "For me it is important to share time with people who have kids and places we use together. There are places we need to keep clean and run."
Raquel (pointing to the "Adult Learning Center"): "It is important to find a place like this. It is important for information and support for both my personal life and my English. It was important for me to find you."
Stepanka (pointing to "education"): "Yes, education, and also, a library."
(The other students point to what they have contributed that reflects education.)
Gulmira (pointing to "schools"): "Schools are important for us all."
Raquel (pointing to "music"): "Education is not only schools, we have dancing here too….the dance school…dancing the tangos here in Brattleboro. Life is not only work and studying, and many people understand that here....that's what I love about Brattleboro."
Gulmira: (Speaks about food and culture.)
Gulmira: (pointing to "shelter for homeless"): "It looks like there are homeless here in Brattleboro. I see some on the street. I want to know where did they come from. Why are they just wandering, on the other hand, I am afraid of them."
Karina (points to "shelter"): "Yes, I want to know where are the shelters? Are there any?"
Karina (points to "newspapers"): "It is nice to have newspapers. They tell us what is happening. (Points to VAL and begins a conversation about newspaper at VAL) We can write in our own language, we don't have to lose our own language to share with the community."
At this point in the conversation, I told the students that this activity
was meant to give them a better look at their collective concept of community
and asked them where they might like to focus the class project. The conversation
focused on a newsletter with the following comments: "share ideas
of teaching," "maybe change views," "teach other cultures,
countries, religions," and "people don't know much." The
discussion next lead into ideas for an event: an educational course, forum,
or panel discussion.
Three weeks transpired since this October activity, but its relevance in confirming areas of interest was profound. The following classes were designed to narrow the choice to one. Pros and cons of each choice were examined, and the students were given the homework assignment of identifying clear objectives that they wanted to accomplish. In the next class, the students would be ready to make a final decision and choose individual roles in the project. Analogous to the process would be structures of governmental bodies and how "politician" or "political roles" are chosen.
The Lesson
The students brainstormed a list of objectives for the newspaper. They
spoke of the importance of their experience here at the school and wanted
to help inform others of the services offered. The students produced these
objectives for the publication:
1.) Educating the public about:
our cultures
other religions
food
experiences as immigrants
music
2.) Helping other immigrants with:
information about Vermont
Adult Learning
other schools
education in other countries
Next, I proceeded to elicit the different "sections" on which the students wanted to work. The students categorized the previous objectives into corresponding "sections" of the newsletter: special stories (features), VAL News, Language, Entertainment, and Student Profiles. We then proceeded to look at different forms of deciding who would be the editor of each section. A very eager and self-imitated student stated that she wanted to be the editor of each section. This would be an appropriate choice for this woman, as she also works at the center. However, I asked what kind of process this would reflect for deciding upon a politician or a political. The students replied that "self-nomination" can occur similarly in a dictatorship.
We then transitioned to look at the forms of government
. I asked the students to think of how government bodies were elected
in their own countries and other forms of government. They identified
the following:
Democratic (elected)
Dictatorship
Authoritarian
Autocracy
Monarchy
The Czech and Kazakh women were able to identify early Russia as an "autocracy," and also to identify their current governments as "democratic," yet were skeptical as to how fair the democracy was. Both cited that their governments were corrupt. The Bolivian was aware of the democratic system in her own country. They could identify America as "democratic" but not as a "representative democracy." (This is the next content to be covered in February/March during the town elections.) At this time, we also discussed the nomination process in a "democratic" election, and I inquired if this was the type of decision making procedure that they wanted to use. Rushed for time, we agreed to use "consensus," (a term introduced by one student) as how we wanted to proceed. Given more time, I would have liked to have completed a ballot exercise to allow the students the experience of the electoral process.
After Note
A challenge faced throughout these lessons and the course was in maintaining
balance between the dual objectives of introducing citizenship content
and fostering civic duty through community projects. Citizenship content
was highlighted as we planned the project - in studying the Constitution
(rights of free speech regarding the content), governmental functions,
voting and the electoral process (decision making and roles in the project).
Yet, the citizenship content could only be inserted as the students proceeded
through analogous stages in the project development. This deemed necessary
the flexibility to alternate back and forth between the two objectives
at appropriate times in the lessons.
Another challenge lay in my aversion to impose my
own ideas for the project. Various activities to identify students' interest,
as noted in the lessons, helped to maintain focus on the students concerns.
The students' interest in choosing their own student-generated projects,
a newsletter and an event, was high but time-consuming, taking 2 months
to determine clear objectives for each. Once this was accomplished, the
students worked in much of their own free time to complete the projects,
producing a 24 page newsletter for the community in only one and a half
weeks. They met on their own to produce a second newsletter. Additionally,
the students completed their second project by hosting a cultural event
for an area elementary school class, sharing their own immigrant stories.
They planned its agenda in just one class, demonstrating honed skills
in decision making and collaboration. Witnessing their motivation, expediency,
and confidence in executing the project (not to mention their success),
was testimony to the value of proceeding slowly in getting students to
generate and "own" their civics projects.
New
England Literacy Resource Center
World Education
Boston, MA
(617) 482-9485
