Tag: teaching

Disruption in Education: It’s a good thing, and it’s more than a buzzword

Featured ~ Rusul Alrubail ~ Leave a comment

This post was originally published in International Literacy Association's Literacy Today magazine.  Google defines disruption as a “disturbance or problems that interrupt an event, activity, or process”. We need to look at disruption as a concept to use and implement in education, not as a problem, but as a strategy to formulate solutions to current … Continue reading Disruption in Education: It’s a good thing, and it’s more than a buzzword

Resources to Teach about The #MuslimBan

Featured ~ Rusul Alrubail ~ 5 Comments

Many educators are often afraid of discussing "controversial" issues in the classroom. The word "controversial" here puts a shroud on many relevant topics, such as politics, daily events, history, social justice issues, equality, and many others. What are you so afraid of? Having a healthy debate in the classroom? shouldn't students be exposed to different … Continue reading Resources to Teach about The #MuslimBan

How to Support Students in these Difficult Times

~ Rusul Alrubail ~ 2 Comments

The world woke up on November 9 to the news that Donald Trump is America's next president. This is a nightmare to everyone who has been insulted and assaulted by Trump and his supporters. It's a nightmare to Black people, Muslims, LGBTQI communities, women of colour, immigrants, Mexicans, and many marginalized groups who have been … Continue reading How to Support Students in these Difficult Times

Planting a Seed – Our Project on the Refugee Crisis

~ Rusul Alrubail ~ Leave a comment

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's avatarPernille 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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Who Am I? Help Students Explore Their Identity

~ Rusul Alrubail ~ 2 Comments

This post was originally published for Annenberg Learner foundation.  Being an English language learner, in middle school, was a really difficult experience. I had many questions about my identity, and who I was as an individual. This was a result of the language shift, but a culture shift played a huge role in this complex … Continue reading Who Am I? Help Students Explore Their Identity

Higher Education is Pushing More Professors into Poverty

~ Rusul Alrubail ~ 16 Comments

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