Not In Our School
School Without Walls [SWW]
Rochester , New York
A WebQuest for SWW 2008-09
Deborah Rowe-Jarrett
Deborah.Rowe-Jarrett@rcsdk12.org
blogs.bet.com
"Folks never understand the folks they hate."
Harry Emerson Fosdick
Introduction:
Have you
resigned yourself to belonging to a growing number of crime “watchers?”
Sometimes, just going along with the crowd seems like the safest, easiest way
to go. After all, what difference could just one person possibly make by not
watching? Remember that sitting on the sidelines is how most folks show their
support for a favorite sport. Therefore, your sideline participation comes
across as acceptance. So… your challenge as a responsible member of the SWW
community is to organize a campaign against hate and intolerance. This campaign
is also your opportunity to come together as a group to challenge the status
quo to make a good difference in SWW and your neighborhood.
“President Clinton, in a June 7, 1997,
radio broadcast, called the problem of hate crime “one of
The
Task:
Enlist Dan,
your Principal to draft a “Not in Our School” proclamation. Line up your teachers,
SWW staff, and fellow students to pass the proclamation for SWW. Once you have
their support, invite SWW community members to sign on to the proclamation.
Here is sample
proclamation to view.
You will:
• explore
community structures that support diversity and resist intolerance;
• examine
the forces that influence people toward prejudice;
•
understand how hate groups target individuals and groups within a community;
• relate concepts
explored in the video to SWW and your own community.
The
Process:
As a class,
we’ll complete the worksheets of the Public Policy Analyst [PPA] application.
PPA Worksheets:
- Worksheet
#1: Define the Problem
- Worksheet
#2: Gather the Evidence
- Worksheet
#3: Identify the Causes
- Worksheet
#4: Evaluate the Policy
- Worksheet
#5: Develop Solutions
- Worksheet
#6: Select Best Solution
The
following steps are a guideline to help you complete the PPA. Please feel free
to use the “Resources” section that follows the six steps below.
Step
1.
First you
will watch a video involving hate crimes in the northwestern community of
“Not In Our Town
tells the uplifting story of how the residents of
Identify
and define the problem of hate crimes and how similar attitudes at School Without Walls may or may not impact your relationship with others;
then complete Worksheet
#1: Define the Problem.
Step
2.
Second, you
must assess your own level of intolerance. You will take a self-survey to
assist you in identifying any hidden biases you may or may not be aware of: https://implicit.harvard.edu/implicit/demo/takeatest.html.
Remember to ask yourself the question... Am I a crime watcher or a crime
stopper? Identifying your role, either way, will be critical to the successful
development of your campaign “Not in Our School.” Gather the evidence for this problem and
complete Worksheet
#2: Gather the Evidence.
Step
3.
Identify
the causes and effects that hate crimes have on communities like
Step
4.
As a class,
you must enlist your principal, Dan to help write a proclamation that invites
teachers, staff, and students to sign-on to the campaign to support diversity
and resist intolerance in School Without Walls and
your community. Use the following worksheet to assist you with this step: Worksheet #4:
Evaluate the Policy. In addition, present the sample
proclamation or your own rough draft to Dan to get started with the
following step.
Step
5.
In this
step, you will be developing solutions to support your campaign. A completed
proclamation is just one of the many ways to get started. Complete Worksheet #5:
Develop Solutions. If you come up with additional methods to support
diversity and resist intolerance, please be prepared to present your ideas to
the rest of the class.
Step
6.
Finally,
evaluate the effectiveness of your campaign and select the best solution to
solve future issues lacking diversity and perpetuating intolerance in our
School Without Walls community. Use the following
worksheet for this final step: Worksheet #6:
Select Best Solution.
After you
have completed the six steps, in groups of three, you will be required to
present your finalized proclamation of “Not in Our School” to each of the other
Extended Classes. Each presentation will include a brief review of your work as
a Public Policy Analyst in support of your request to enlist each student and staff
member at School Without Walls to sign-on to the
Proclamation. You will present the finalized proclamation for display in the
Common Area at School Without Walls.
The
Resources:
This site
takes an in depth view on some of today's hate crimes.
We use
http://library.thinkquest.org/C006274/
The
non-profit sector offers information, education, and activism against hate
violence. This list contains a few of the organizations that offer resources or
help communities respond to hate activities. Many of the national organizations
have local chapters.
http://www.pbs.org/niot/get_involved/resources.html
Our world
is entering a new time. Our generation is facing a more hostile world. The
conflicts are moving closer and closer to home and we couldn’t understand why.
We all have our slight differences, but we still all have that one common bond:
we’re all part of the human race here on Earth. So, we decided to look for
answers.
http://library.thinkquest.org/05aug/00846/
The 3 R's - Recognition Rights Respect
In an
effort to increase religious tolerance, this website explores and values
differences and rights of people of all beliefs, and encourages respect of
those differences.
http://library.thinkquest.org/05aug/00879/
"Operation Cooperation: Harmony Within World Religions"
Our website
is dedicated to the belief that all religious traditions can live harmoniously
in our global community.
http://library.thinkquest.org/06aug/01518/
Short
history and a review of the most important spiritual values in some of the most
important religions in the world
http://library.thinkquest.org/05aug/01975/
The World
Religions website gives information on the five major religions: Buddhist,
Christian, Hindu, Muslim, and Jewish. This site compares and contrasts these
religions so that the reader might delve deeper into all religions. Written in
a factual way, this site should help the reader understand that we have more in
common than we think!
http://library.thinkquest.org/05aug/00157/
Religious Persecution: Shades of Grey
What is
religious persecution? At the beginning of this project, we thought religious
persecution was a black and white topic with a clear definition. We thought
that religious persecution was simply the persecution of a group because of
their religious faith. However, we discovered that there are no simple
explanations of religious…
http://library.thinkquest.org/C005706/
Religiously
motivated hatred, animosity and intolerance
Religion
can generate great personal commitment and passion, expressed as caring, love,
respect, and support for others. It can motivate believers to dedicate their
lives to the alleviation of suffering and need. However, it can also motivate
people to hate followers of other religions, and secularists. This can escalate
into actions of conflict,
oppression, murder,
terrorism and genocide.
http://www.religioustolerance.org/rel_hate.htm
The following are just a few of the many non-profit organizations
that work to promote tolerance.
|
Anti-Defamation League (ADL) 823 United ph: 212-885-7800 www.adl.org |
National Conference ph: 800-352-6225 www.nccj.org |
|
Center for Democratic Renewal ph: 404-221-0025 www.publiceye.org |
National Council of Churches ph: 212-870-2299 |
|
Center for Living Democracy RR # ph: 802-254-1234 www.livingdemocracy.org |
National Gay and Lesbian Task Force 2320 ph: 202-332-6483 www.ngltf.org |
|
National Hate Crime Prevention Project- EDC ph: 800-225-4276 |
President’s Initiative on Race Attn: PIR1 New www.whitehouse.gov/Initiatives |
|
Facing History and Ourselves ph: 617-232-1595 www.ncrel.org |
Southern Teaching Tolerance Magazine ph: 334-264-0286 |
|
Gay, Lesbian and Straight Teachers Network (GLSTN) ph: 212-727-0135 www.glstn.org |
ph: 806-928-2616 http://civic.net/AFC/SCRC/html |
|
Leadership Conference on Civil Rights www.civilrights.org |
Toward a More Perfect Diversity–A Guide to Building Stronger Communities Through Public Dialogue www.pbs.org/ampu/scg.html |
|
National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) 1-800-NAACP-55 www.naacp.org |
ph: 202-488-2661 www.ushmm.org |
The
Evaluation:
You will be graded on the PPA
worksheets, your finalized Proclamation, and the Extended Class presentations.
Use the following rubric as your guide:
|
|
Beginning 1 |
Developing 2 |
Accomplished 3 |
Exemplary 4 |
Score |
|
Six-Step
Public Policy Analyst
|
Description of identifiable performance characteristics reflecting a beginning level of performance. |
Description of identifiable performance characteristics reflecting development and movement toward mastery of performance. |
Description of identifiable performance characteristics reflecting mastery of performance. |
Description of identifiable performance characteristics reflecting the highest level of performance. |
|
|
The Proclamation
|
Description of identifiable performance characteristics reflecting a beginning level of performance. |
Description of identifiable performance characteristics reflecting development and movement toward mastery of performance. |
Description of identifiable performance characteristics reflecting mastery of performance. |
Description of identifiable performance characteristics reflecting the highest level of performance. |
|
|
Extended Class Presentation
|
Description of identifiable performance characteristics reflecting a beginning level of performance. |
Description of identifiable performance characteristics reflecting development and movement toward mastery of performance. |
Description of identifiable performance characteristics reflecting mastery of performance. |
Description of identifiable performance characteristics reflecting the highest level of performance. |
|
NYS
Learning Standards:
ELA
Standard
3: Language for Critical Analysis and Evaluation
Students
will listen, speak, read, and write for critical analysis and evaluation. As
listeners and readers, students will analyze experiences, ideas, information,
and issues presented by others using a variety of established criteria. As
speakers and writers, they will use oral and written language that follows the
accepted conventions of the English language to present, from a variety of
perspectives, their opinions and judgments on experiences, ideas, information
and issues.
SS
Standard 5:
Civics, Citizenship, and Government
Students
will use a variety of intellectual skills to demonstrate their understanding of
the necessity for establishing governments; the governmental system of the
Conclusion:
The primary
focus of this WebQuest is to formulate a plan for a “Not In
Our School” campaign. The development of such a plan will encourage students,
teachers, and other school personnel to band together against prejudice and
intolerance. This WebQuest also extends an invitation for you to learn about individuals
who have struggled to overcome intolerance. The following list names just a few
of many who faced challenges to overcome intolerance in their own lives and
communities:
·
Harriet
Tubman
·
Nelson
Mandela
·
Helen
Keller
·
Sophie
Scholl
·
·
Sojourner
Truth
·
Philip
Randolph,
·
·
Cesar
Chavez
An
extension of this WebQuest could be to create a class book profiling the
challenges and achievements of these individuals.
A note from
The Working Group~
“Not
In Our Town” (NIOT) profiled how the town of
The
public television broadcast of NIOT inspired many of its viewers to realize
their own potential to make a difference. The NIOT audience didn’t just
react…they acted! NIOT took on a life of its own, resulting a groundswell of
response to intolerance, prejudice and hate crimes. “Not In
Our Town” proved that television can move beyond entertainment and information,
inspire public dialogue and contribute to positive social change.
References:
http://www-tc.pbs.org/niot/media/Study_Guide1.pdf