Inclusion, Exclusion: Rights, Reasons, and Excuses
I can’t help it: I love controversy. What’s more, I think it’s essential to have a safe forum to discuss important social issues with young people. The trick is to be open-minded, but not so open-minded your brain falls out* OR so open-minded that you allow one group of students to trample the rights, voice, or feelings of another.
I discovered the article “Boy Scouts de Panamá también cierran puertas a gays” as part of my summer graduate class on the Media (and so like the Fusion Project, there will also be a breakdown of the lesson on the class wiki). My son is almost old enough to be a Tiger Cub, and as the daughter and wife of Eagle Scouts, I have a lot to think about. That this issue has spread to the international stage is fascinating, especially when Panama’s neighbor, Costa Rica, is taking the opposite stance.
I’ve thought long and hard what the deeper fundamental point students need to think about could be, a point independent from sexualized or religious talk. That point is inclusion versus exclusion, where (and if) group rights end and individual rights begin.
Project Idea:
students establish school clubs and rules for membership
Driving Question:
Who has the right to decide who can join?
Content Addressed:
NM.CLL.1.1 Use memorized words and phrases to exchange information on familiar topics, such as likes, dislikes, emotions, everyday activities, and immediate surroundings.
NM.CLL.1.2 Use memorized responses to simple questions, statements, commands, or other stimuli.
NM.COD.1.1 Use memorized words and phrases to exchange information about the classroom and school
environment.
NM.COD.1.2 Use memorized responses to simple academic questions, statements, commands, or other stimuli.
NM.CMT.1.1 Use memorized words and phrases to ask and answer simple questions on familiar topics.
NM.CMT.3.2 Use memorized words and phrases to participate in school or community events related to the target culture
Major Student Products:
- Poster ad for club
- Calendar of events (1st month)
- By-laws
- Panama vs Costa Rica journal
- Rule defense debate
- Recruitment video/presentation
It just so happens that my new school is in need of new clubs. And it also happens that students have made some suggestions about what kind of clubs they want. There was an overwhelming demand for art club, a few calls for yearbook, and one or two for drama/debate and service clubs. So here are are my suggestions for clubs we could work on founding in, say, Spanish II:
- Green Team–environmental service and outdoor recreation
- Art Lovers Anonymous–experimenting with different art forms and art appreciation
- Acting and Arguing–speaking skills and competition
- Yearbook–photography and publishing
For example: blue-eyed students will not be allowed to join the Green Team because scientific studies indicate that outdoor activities are too risky for their health.
- ¿La salud depende del color de los ojos?
- Las gafas de sol son más importantes para los niños
- Ellos miran por ti, mira tú por ellos: No sólo la piel, también los ojos sufren los estragos del sol: unas gafas de sol homologadas, con protección ultravioleta y filtro solar ayuda a combatirlos
We will not observe recent decisions about Boy Scouts in the United States before diving into Panama and Costa Rica’s stances, getting students up to speed with a video like this perhaps:
At no point will we have class debate about this issue (unless I get REALLY comfortable with these kids quick and feel like they can handle it), but they WILL express their opinions in writing in a personal journal. That way they can be “heard” and use the TL, but neither I nor they will be responsible for making someone feel bad about their opinion–and I get to know them a little better.
