Planting a Seed – Our Project on the Refugee Crisis

Pernille’s class did a unit on the refugee crisis, and I was honoured to share my story with 3 of her classes. I love the process that she did to guide her students through the topic. By having students debate, discuss and ask questions about a topic that’s causing a great deal of discussion, outrage, and intolerance is so important to help students see and understand the urgency of the situation. Please have a read and I hope this Pernille’s lesson inspires you to start the conversation with your students.

Pernille Ripp

I grew up in a home that had a newspaper on our table every morning.  Laid out for us kids to see, we grabbed the comics first, then the Danish news.  I was a teen when I started reading the international news.  Being aware of the world was something that was expected of us, after all, Denmark is a small nation.  We read the paper, we listened to the radio, we watched the news.  Not always fully attuned but always aware of at least some of the bigger things happening in the world beyond our own.

Being a globally aware and invested teacher is something I have tried to live and breathe for many years now.  After all, the Global Read Aloud was created with the idea of making the world not only smaller, but also more interconnected to create more empathy and kindness.  My students have therefore in varying…

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Higher Education is Pushing More Professors into Poverty

The summer of 2014 I received a phone call that would forever alter my career as an English professor. The chair of my department called me to tell me that the college will be getting rid of contract faculty starting January 2015. Of course, I was a contract faculty there. My heart dropped. My mind … Continue reading Higher Education is Pushing More Professors into Poverty

Five Ways to Advocate for Justice in Education

This post was originally published on Teaching Tolerance.  “We live in a time of crisis,” warned Dr. Ruha Benjamin in the beginning of her opening keynote at the 2016 International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) conference. Benjamin, an assistant professor in the Department of African American Studies at Princeton University and author of People’s … Continue reading Five Ways to Advocate for Justice in Education

The Toughest Lessons Learned: Conversations on Race

“In a sense the limitations of Orientalism are, as I said earlier, the limitations that follow upon disregarding, essentializing, denuding the humanity of another culture, people, or geographical region.” ~ Edward Said The first time I read Edward Said's "Orientalism" was when I was doing my Master's in Literature, back in 2008. I remember signing … Continue reading The Toughest Lessons Learned: Conversations on Race

Supporting First Nations, Métis, & Inuit Education: How do we maintain momentum that is driving us toward change?

  As we get ready for a new start to the school year, we look back on some of the most important issues to cover, and learn more about how to support educators and students to reflect on some of the best practices for supporting their own growth of understanding the world around them. Equitable … Continue reading Supporting First Nations, Métis, & Inuit Education: How do we maintain momentum that is driving us toward change?

Equity for English Language Learners

This post was originally published on Edutopia as a part of the #EduColor series on race, equity and social justice. To understand English-language learners' need for equitable education, we must first look at the dramatic increase in the numbers of ELLs in U.S. public schools. Between 1997-1998 and 2008-2009, the number of ELLs in public schools … Continue reading Equity for English Language Learners