Apocalypse Theories Post 4

In the last entry I said I had chickened out with giving the power to the students and this would happen only after some more directed teaching. After a lunchtime discussion with a very experienced educator interested in what I am doing, I have decided to trust them. The "more directed teaching" is important, but only in response to an actual need - "never ask unasked questions"! I need a pedagogy of radical trust, although that goes against every teaching instinct. I think it stems from a deep seated fear of young people and "losing control" over them.

Another couple of classes had created an exhibition for the parents the night before which was impressive. We took one class down to see it during period one. Being somewhat dim-witted it only slowly occured to me that "Apocalypse Theories" would make a fantastic exhibition. Fully appreciative of the fact that Alfie Kohn, the legendary crusader against behaviourism, would surely disagree, I appealed to their sense of competition (In my defence, the original meaning of competition is "getting fit together"). I said "I know it's not a competition, but...."..."YES IT IS!!!" they shouted, "we can do much better than that other exhibition!" I had to show the other class photographs rather than take them to view it, but their response was the same.

Back to the lunchtime discussion, the point was made to me that asking students to come up with "activities" they could do was not the best approach. It is an incredibly loaded term. Instead, it was suggested I ask them:

What actions do we need to take to get there?

Who would be our audience?

Why would this be an important exhibition? (who cares?)

What would it look like?

They were pretty keen to get stuck in and although asking them these questions was done on a complete whim - I was going to finish the activity we had started and then try this - we spent the next hour brainstorming ideas. It was a hot, stuffy afternoon in a classroom that would make tinned sardines weep, and all a bit messy - but that's life, not to mention democracy. Their ideas were really good, and as time goes on the participation will get better. Like anything, participation needs to be practiced.

For the four questions (my input in bold)their responses were:

What actions do we need to take?

- We need to find what resources we might need
-We need to work on it at home potentially suspending the homework challenges
-we need to think of the questions we need to answer
- we need to have a brainstorming wall where all our ideas go on it
- We need to take the stuff of the wall that is already there
- We need to get into groups
- We figure out what problem/fear we are actually addressing eg, how to stop it, background info, what happens in it.

Who would be our audience?

Year 13 – address them at assmebly
Parents – send an officail letter from the class, tell them to come.
Voters – posters on the street?
Teachers – personal invitations, hand written names

Other year 9s.

Why would this be an important exhibition?

People are naturally interested in how the world and their own lives might end.
To educate people how to survive or why they they shouldn’t worry eg, what is the science behind 2012?
To educate people how to stop it

What would it look like?

- It would have interaction
- Elis is making a model suitcase nuclear bomb
- Displays need to be 3D like a model
- We need tour guides, exhibition maps
- We could have different areas for different types of apocalypse
- An underground bunker
- We need to address human ‘s primal fears
- We should decorate the narrow hall way up to the classrooms
- We could have an online website for the exhibition that lasts longer than the temporary one