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Hot Button, Cool Heads:
Global Scale Problem:
Global Scale Problem:
Communities are built on agreement, yet agreement can be extremely difficult to find. Communities, both local and national, struggle with conflict when different parties are unable to hear or recognize each other’s concerns and needs.
Outcomes:
Outcomes:
Students will learn about the challenges communities face when multiple, often conflicting, opinions are deeply held. Diversity of perspectives can both enrich and impede communities and political structures such as democracy. Students will learn why listening to different perspectives is important, and models for building cooperation among disagreement. Specific areas of AWE-aligned focus include:
Week 1
Week 1
The Lies That Bind: Rethinking Identity
The Lies That Bind: Rethinking Identity
The 11th and 12th grade Co.Lab students are reading the book The Lies That Bind: Rethinking Identity by Kwame Anthony Appiah. The book is an exploration of the nature and history of the identities that define us. It challenges our assumptions about how identities work. Over the course of J-Term, the students will explore how to have hard conversations in ways that are respecting each other's opinions even if they may not agree with one another.
Field Trip to City Hall
Field Trip to City Hall
On Thursday, January 12th, the 11th and 12th grade Co.Lab students went to City Hall to listen in on hearing about making Lunar New Year an official school holiday.
Week 2
Week 2
Field Trip to Midtown Community Court
Field Trip to Midtown Community Court
On Tuesday, January 17th, the 11th and 12th grade students visited the Midtown Community Court. They learned more about their program which aims to reduce the use of incarceration, increase equity, and strengthen neighborhoods. It was a very informative and fruitful visit!
Field Trip to Museum of the City of New York
Field Trip to Museum of the City of New York
On Wednesday, January 18th, the students traveled to the Museum of the City of New York. While the museum is closed to the public, our students got two guided tours. The first is of the City of Faith exhibit and the other is of the Activist New York exhibit. The City of Faith exhibit examines how faith and religion emerge as cultural forces within a secular city. The Activist New York exhibit investigates how we as a city have "acted out" to create societal change over the last 100 years.
This dovetails with our Co.Lab which is investigating how identity both is a cohesive and, at times, a divisive force within society. As part of the Co.Lab, students are investigating how to navigate intractable differences in beliefs in productive ways.
Week 3
Week 3
Visiting Author: Kwame Anthony Appiah
Visiting Author: Kwame Anthony Appiah
On Tuesday, January 24, Kwame Anthony Appiah spoke to the eleventh and twelfth grade Co.Lab students. He is the author of their core text, The Lies That Bind. He is also the Ethicist of the New York Times, a professor at NYU, and the author of several other books. Appiah spoke to the students about the issues of identity explored in the book, then opened the session to a Q&A for the students.
J-Term Showcase
J-Term Showcase
To close out their J-Term experience, the eleventh and twelfth grade Co.Lab students created project surrounding the themes of identity they have been exploring over the past couple of weeks. Parents and community member were invite to come explore the projects.
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