Proposal
Your Name and Title:
Ryan D. Smith - American Literature and History as a Springboard into Global Social Issues
School Name:
Maryknoll School of Honolulu, Hawaii
Co-Presenter Name:
Rachel Moriyama
Area of the World from Which You Will Present:
Honolulu, Hawaii
Language in Which You Will Present:
English
Target Audience:
Middle and High School English Language Arts and History Teachers
Short Session Description:
In this session, we will share some specific projects that used American literature and history as a springboard into the study of global social issues so we can can focus on the U.S. as the curriculum demands, but still “promote global awareness, foster global competency, and inspire action towards solving real–world problems.”
Full Session Description:
In the first 20-30 minutes, we will speak about teaching American literature and history and searching for meaningful ways to connect the American texts, themes, and historical events to global social issues. As a Fulbright Classroom Teacher Exchange alum (Budapest 2012) and recipient to the Generation Study Abroad grant (2015), Ryan has an interest and responsibility to help students think of themselves as global citizens and have enough awareness and concern to resolve to travel/study abroad and take action to support others around the globe. Rachel shares the same passion. This work grows out of a desire to connect our curriculum and achieve these goals with our shared honors students.
We will share a few projects we have done to connect literature and periods in American history with contemporary global social issues: Huckleberry Finn and modern slavery; The Great Gatsby and global economic inequality; and Inquiry Projects in which students research an American and global social issue in preparation for a senior service learning project.
In the final 20-30 minutes, we will facilitate a discussion and brainstorm ways English and History teachers can connect other commonly taught texts to global social issues.
Websites / URLs Associated with Your Session:
Lisa Kristine: Photos that bear witness to modern slavery
https://www.ted.com/talks/lisa_kristine_glimpses_of_modern_day_slavery?language=en
Richard Wilkinson: How Economic Inequality Hurts Societies
https://www.ted.com/talks/richard_wilkinson?language=en
Inquiry Project Assignments
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