This week, we watched a documentary about the Willowbrook State School in New York during the 1970s. The documentary was incredibly tragic and disturbing at times; however, it was important to watch. I was encouraged that throughout the film, the narrative was one that demanded equity and respect for all children.
I also have loved reading Beverly Tatum’s novel Can we talk about race?: And other conversations in an era of school resegregation, specifically the essays on the resegregation of our schools and the affirmation of identity. Tatum (2007) points out that the American public is quick to celebrate and focus on the “symbolic importance” of the Brown v. Board of Education decision, but fails to acknowledge the Supreme Court decisions in the following decades that “collectively facilitated the return to public school segregation”(p. 12). This novel helped to deepen my understanding of how American schools became resegregated as well as cement my belief that education is inherently political! I have also been studying Inclusive Education in African Contexts: A Critical Reader. The reader addresses how South Africa approaches inclusive education in a broad context due to the discrimination and violation of human rights created by the Apartheid. In this way, South African school inclusion is not as focused upon students with specific physical disabilities; rather, Phasa, Mahlo, & Dei (2017) explain that it is focused on a collective aim to “promote human rights, redress past imbalances, and make education inclusive and accessible to the majority of the disenfranchised”(p. 40).
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One of my very first experiences in preparation for this trip was watching the film Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom with my friend Paige, who is also going on the trip. We found the movie to be incredibly inspiring and very informative - I was glad to have a friend to reflect with afterwards! After viewing the movie, we were overwhelmed but hungry for more information about South Africa. The film powerfully showed how truly horrific and violent the Apartheid was. I knew that it was an extremely racist regime; however, I was not aware of the severity of the physical violence inflicted upon Black South Africans. I also learned a lot more about Nelson Mandela’s personal life. I had no idea that his wife was encouraging violence when Mandela was freed from prison and how that created a great deal of tension. I also was shocked and heartbroken by the conditions in which Mandela was forced to live on Robben Island. I was aware that he was imprisoned for a very long time but I was unaware of just how abusive the prison was.
Another influential experience so far has been writing the Social Location Essay. In my writing, I reflected upon the complexities, experiences, and intersectionality that contribute to my system of reality. Throughout my experiences studying education in undergrad at UCSB and now in grad school, I have come to realize that authentically exploring one’s own system of reality is essential in order to understand and positively change the complex social dynamics in our educational systems. By understanding my own social location, I am able to acknowledge the opportunity I have to create positive change. I will continue to work to understand my own system of reality, as well as the social dynamics of our educational system, in hopes of enhancing my ability to identify and intervene around conflict and violence. The initial email exchanges with fellow educators from University of Witwatersrand, Jabulani School, Bapedi School, and Phillip Kushlick Special School in South Africa, as well as educators studying at Marymount University have been extremely interesting. I look forward to learning more about the individuals in my group and can't wait to meet them in person so soon! |