9/29 - Class Recap

The flag of the United States during the National Anthem at the 2011 BCS College Football National Championship Game between Oregon and Auburn.

Dear class,

Thanks for checking in on the blog and doing your homework! We continued with our opening unit of the year on Race in class. Here's what happened in class today:

Learning Targets Addressed:
I can communicate effectively, both verbally and in writing.
I can explain the process of change and continuity in a society, place, or region.

Soundtrack: "Just Fine" by Mary J. Blige. Selected for today because it always puts Ms. Labossiere in a good mood. Lyrics here.

AGENDA 9/29/17:
Check In/Review Agreements
Debrief Socratic Seminar
Current Event - Student Rights
Conversation About Race

Homework: Read the blog! Make sure you are up to date with all assignments/readings in class!
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The PowerPoint we went through during class to guide the day can be found here:

Google Drive - 9/29 DSJ Class PowerPoint

Check In/Review Agreements: At the beginning of class, we went over the Courageous Conversations Agreements, as always, to begin our work together for the day.

Debrief Socratic Seminar: What a super interesting conversation we had with Jordan last class! We asked everyone to talk about what they took away from the conversation - again, my notes from what was said are in the last blog post, recapping class on Wednesday. We will aim to continue having these sorts of great conversations, hopefully with more guest speakers, as well!

Current Event - Student Rights: Since this came up on Monday, and we did not have time to debrief together on Wednesday, I wanted to talk about student rights regarding protests during patriotic events. We showed this email from Westview's Athletic Director, which was a forward from the Beaverton School District administration:

The link referenced in the email is this article: EdWeek.org - Students Have a Right to Protest During National Anthem, Pledge of Allegiance. A very interesting read, for sure!

We talked in class about our thoughts surrounding the protests and the message that it sends to various groups of people, as well as the original intent. We also asked about the message it sends when owners and coaches are protesting with the players.

Next, we talked about two recent acts of defacing our shared property here at Westview that really concerned us. We shared about the letters KKK being written on a desk in our DSJ room (we have no idea if it was someone from this class or another one), and what that brought up for us. I shared about a swastika being drawn on a poster that was in my room last year of British pilots who helped save the country from German attack during the Blitz that my grandmother survived (though she went into shock and has very few memories from that time).

Again, the point here was not the drawings or the intent behind them. It was more about the feelings it left use with: scared, sad, ashamed, worried, etc.

Conversation About Race: This was deliberately vague in the introduction, as we had a lot to say here. In fact, so much, that we did not even come close to finishing our planned lesson today. Ms. Labossiere read from her recently published article in Rethinking Schools (so awesome!):

RethinkingSchools.org - Who Do I Belong To?: A Black Teacher's Dilemma

This was meant as an introduction to the next reading we are having the class do, but it actually ended up as the final activity of the class today, as there were a TON of questions, comments, and stories about the use of the 'n' word in society. The resulting conversation lasted the entire rest of the class.

We know that it was pretty much an entire class period of one big group talking about these issues, and that those conversations (not always a bad thing) tend to have some students who are more comfortable in wanting to share out in response. Obviously, it will continue to be a balance for us in terms of the different activities we do and ways to encourage everyone to stay engaged with what we are doing in class. Thank you, everyone, for sticking with it and finding ways to buy in to what we are talking about! Have a great weekend.

9/27 - Class Recap

Here's the class picture with Jordan Thierry at the end of our discussion today!

Hello everyone,

What a great day in Diversity and Social Justice! We had an awesome Socratic Seminar. Here's what happened in class today:

Learning Targets Addressed:

I can communicate effectively, both verbally and in writing.

I can explain the process of change and continuity in a society, place, or region.

Soundtrack: "Space Jam" by Quad City DJs. Selected for today because our guest speaker, Jordan Thierry, played basketball in his documentary with his dad! Lyrics here.

AGENDA 9/27/17:
Check In/Review Agreements
Socratic Seminar
Q and A with Jordan

Homework: Read the blog! Make sure you are up to date with all assignments/readings in class!
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Check In/Review Agreements: At the beginning of class, we went over the Courageous Conversations Agreements to set the stage for our discussion about The Black Fatherhood Project and the Ta-Nehisi Coates article in the Atlantic.

Socratic Seminar: This was so cool! Thank you so much for participating and for welcoming Jordan into the discussion circle! We appreciate your willingness to adapt to the structure today. Here is the Socratic Seminar model that we used in class:

Google Drive - Socratic Seminar Pilot/Co-Pilot Model

As a part of this model, we started with students who had read sections 1, 2, or 3 in The Atlantic reading, then had the other members of the small groups be "co-pilots" in the discussion, by helping with sending notes. This was followed by the inside circle being students who read sections 4, 5, and 6, then a final discussion with students who read sections 7, 8, and 9. We only had enough time to have each of the three discussions be about 8 minutes each.

Here are my (Mr. Fritz's) notes from the conversation, by group number, if it helps in remembering what we talked about:

Group 1:
Patriarchy - women as leaders? --> both roles at home
One parent as head of the household
Divorced parents?
Moynihan Report as a product of his time
How does it differ if parent is in prison?
Father lays the law down? --> Not always the case
Different stigmas
Emotional trauma from jail + parent at home now as 2x as much work
Government is not providing enough services

Group 2:
First war on drugs - 1910s to 1980s --> seeing the same things
Nixon and heroine (reference to article), as part of re-election campaign
Jordan: coded language that is used to this day, to identify poor people/drug addicts/black --> tough on crime
80% of crimes are non-violent
Need to break the poverty cycle
Work on the stigma
Free labor with prison inmates
Justification for using black labor has not changed --> society and black criminality
Make time to understand the argument

Group 3:
10 years in Europe is considered a harsh sentence - why are we (U.S.) so harsh on non-violent crime?
Privately owned prisons
Pay under minimum wage
Large corporations --> a form of business to use these incentives
Too much incentive/monetary value within the system
Why is solitary confinement still used to much, then?
Significant portion of inmates with mental health/drug problems
Drug addiction is a social health issue --> prison takes away support structure --> escape oppressive reality
Prison as a traumatic experience
"We need justice!" --> the narrative in the United States as to why such long/harsh prison sentences are needed

All it all, it was a really good conversation and I'm so glad we were able to have Jordan with us to help process these topics. I wish it had been longer, for sure! Thank you to everyone!

Q and A with Jordan: At the end of class, we gave a little time for Q and A with Jordan with a class wide discussion. Many of the questions had to do with how students could effect change in the world and our own communities. These were great questions, for sure. We will definitely continue to investigate this and students will be working on a related project at the end of the semester!

Thanks again for all of your effort, focus, and participation today! We are looking forward to debriefing with you on Friday!

9/25 - Class Recap

Today's documentary was about family - here's my family at my wedding last year! - Luke

Hello everyone,

Today, we continued with our unit on The Black Fatherhood Project, which will culminate next class with a visit by the filmmaker as we have a discussion about the film and what it brings up. Here's what happened in class today:

Learning Targets Addressed:

I can communicate effectively, both verbally and in writing.

I can explain the process of change and continuity in a society, place, or region.

Soundtrack: "Family Affair" by Mary J. Blige. Selected for today because of the connection to family. Lyrics here.

AGENDA 9/25/17:
Check In/Review Agreements
The Black Fatherhood Project
Review Atlantic Article

Homework: Read the blog! Complete your section of the Atlantic article by Ta-Nehisi Coates (read, annotate/mark the text, and come up with at least two discussion questions for a Socratic Seminar next class). Jordan Thierry will be here and there will likely be people from the district.
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Check In/Review Agreements: With this section, we talked a bit about what is going on outside of class, especially with the national anthem protests in sports this weekend. We also agreed the Courageous Conversations Agreements and Conditions.

The Black Fatherhood Project: This was the documentary we prepared for last class by passing out a timeline for vocabulary and defining these words:

Chattel slavery and colonialism
Introduction of Christianity
Sharecropping / Jim Crow
Menial jobs
Welfare
Redlining
War veterans
Drug use
Drug trafficking

We tried to pause for notes during the film. Here is the film again if you would like to watch it (password was given out in class - or you can email us to ask for it, as we would like to protect Jordan's intellectual copyright to his work):

Vimeo - The Black Fatherhood Project documentary (Educational Version)

Hopefully you found this interesting and insightful as to many of the issues in the black community surrounding fathers today! Again, we will discuss the film in connection with the Atlantic article next class.

Review Atlantic Article: At the end of class, there was a bit of time to keep reviewing/reading your assigned section of the Ta-Nehisi Coates article on black families in The Atlantic:

TheAtlantic - The Black Family in the Age of Mass Incarceration

Remember to come prepared next class with at least two discussion questions from your section of the article! As promised in class, here is the grading rubric for the Socratic Seminar discussion in class:

Google Drive - Socratic Seminar Grading Rubric

It will be great to have Jordan with us (even for such a short class, given it is a Wednesday). Please know in advance that it is likely the Beaverton School District will have representatives in the classroom and cameras to film Jordan's visit. See you then!

9/21 - Class Recap

Today, we started a mini-unit on The Black Fatherhood Project documentary. The filmmaker is Jordan Thierry, who is a Beaverton School District graduate. Photo credit: Ifayni Bell/OPB.

Dear class,

It is nice to feel a bit more in the swing of things with what we are doing with such a big class of students! Here's what happened today in class:

Learning Targets Addressed:

Communicate effectively, both verbally and in writing.

Explains the process of change and continuity in a society, place or region.

Soundtrack: "A Change Gonna Come" by Sam Cooke. Selected for today because this song is about the Civil Rights movement during the 1960s. Lyrics here.

AGENDA 9/21/17:

Review of Four Agreements & Six Conditions

Debrief Implicit Bias Test

Family Structure

Moynihan Report

Vocabulary Timeline

Atlantic Article

Homework: Read the blog! Post a comment if you have not. Start reading the Atlantic article on the Black Family in the Age of Incarceration.

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For in class work and activities today, please see the PowerPoint we went through together, here:

Google Drive - 9/21 Lesson PowerPoint

To recap:

Review of Four Agreements & Six Conditions: We will always do this at the beginning of class, as it sets the foundation for how we want class to approach the issues we are studying.

Debrief Implicit Bias Test: The first part of class was devoted to trying to understand the results of the implicit bias test we took at the end of last class.

Harvard.edu - Project Implicit

As we defined Implicit Bias last class, it is really unconscious attitudes and stereotypes - basically, there's not a ton we can do to counteract them, aside from knowing more about how we perceive others and adjusting our filters to compensate.

Family Structure: The essential question for our unit on the Black Fatherhood Project is: “How has family structure changed though conflict, power, and policy?" We will be investigating this by looking at the history of black families in America and governmental policies that have impacted black families.

Moynihan Report: To start this section of class, we asked students within small groups to read the abstract of the Moynihan Report (without actually saying what it was or when it was made) and to try and find current event articles that relate to the topics addressed.

The full Moynihan Report is here:

BlackPast.org - The Moynihan Report (1965)

When this came out, it was ULTRA controversial that the government of the United States was saying that black people were in this position of structural inferiority in American society. Of course, as we know, this has continued to result in inequitable outcomes to this day. Basically, we wanted to start the unit by linking the past to the present.

Vocabulary Timeline: Continuing this theme, we handed out a fill in the blank timeline for some vocabulary that we wanted students to define in small groups. The vocabulary words/terms that will be used in The Black Fatherhood Project that we will watch next class are:

Chattel slavery and colonialism

Introduction of Christianity

Sharecropping / Jim Crow

Menial jobs

Welfare

Redlining

War veterans

Drug use

Drug trafficking

The goal here was to get ready for next class in watching the documentary, so we know some of the key terms addressed. Then, next Wednesday, Jordan Thierry will (hopefully!) be joining our class for a discussion of his film, during a Socratic Seminar breakdown!

Atlantic Article: At the end of class, we had students start reading/breaking up into sections this article by Ta-Nehisi Coates in The Atlantic in 2015:

TheAtlantic.com - The Black Family in the Age of Mass Incarceration

This is a very lengthy article, so that is why we are starting to deconstruct it now - by the start of class next Wednesday, you will be responsible for reading a section of the article (it is split up into nine chapters) and coming to class with annotations and discussion questions ready.

That was class for the day! Lots to get into, for sure. Have a great weekend, everyone!

9/19 - Class Recap

This is where Abraham Lincoln gave the Gettysburg Address in Pennsylvania, after one of the most vicious battles of the Civil War, in 1863. Photo taken in 2014.

Hello DSJ students,

We continued our beginning of the year unit on race today. Here's what happened today in class:

Learning Targets Addressed:

Communicate effectively, both verbally and in writing.
Explains the process of change and continuity in a society, place or region.

Soundtrack: "Me Against the World" by 2Pac. Selected for today because Ms. Labossiere said it was her mood for the day! Lyrics here.

AGENDA 9/19/17:
Review of Four Agreements & Six Conditions
Small Groups
Where I’m From
Found Poem
Current Event
Harvard Implicit Bias Test

Homework: Read the blog! Post a comment if you have not.

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For in class work and activities today, please see the PowerPoint we went through together, here:

Google Drive - 9/19 Lesson PowerPoint

To recap:

Review of Four Agreements & Six Conditions: We will always do this at the beginning of class, as it sets the foundation for how we want class to approach the issues we are studying.

Small Groups: Using the small group poll from last week, we assigned students into small groups (noted in the PowerPoint, above). Some of them are bigger than others - basically, we tried to balance desires stated on the form with people who we thought you might work well with in class. If you perceive any immediate issues, please contact us and we will work with you on a solution.

Where I’m From: The first activity in the small groups was to share the completed Where I'm From poems, which were assigned either the first day of class (if you were in Ms. Labossiere's section) or last week (if you were in my section). This was meant as a sort of "get to know you" activity in the small groups. We are looking forward to reading through all of your poems! Make sure to upload them to Google Classroom if you have not already, please.

Found Poem: This was a poem that Ms. Labossiere constructed from all of the "found" poems that you created last class about Charlottesville. She read the poem out loud to the class and it is linked to in the PowerPoint if you want to see what we all created together!

Current Event: We want current events to play a large role in the class, so I modeled what a current event presentation could look like in the future. We would like each small group to present on a story of current interest to the group/class, and to make sure to include two small group discussion questions as a part of the presentation, then ending with one whole class discussion question. The current event I presented on today was this one:

CNN.com - There are certain moments in US history when Confederate monuments go up

The questions I posed were:

1) What have you been taught about why the Civil War started? What are your current thoughts about it?

2) Advocates for Confederate monuments and flags say they express "heritage, not hate." What do you think?

3) In your opinion, should Confederate monuments be removed from open public display?

Thank you for your participation and discussion during this time!

Harvard Implicit Bias Test: The last part of class was devoted to defining the term "implicit bias" as well as taking the Harvard Implicit Bias test on Race, which can be selected here:

Harvard.edu - Project Implicit

The goal here was to learn a little bit more about our own personal attitudes and biases, as we continue with this work. We asked that you share your results in your small groups, as a part of building up that community. Did you find anything especially interesting or surprising about your results?

Thank you for your work today! We will keep at it on Thursday. See you then!

9/15 - Class Recap

Photo from a subway station at Reagan National Airport in Washington, DC, in 2011.

Dear DSJ students,

Another eventful day! Today, we continued to get to know each other dived into what happened in Charlottesville, Virginia, right before the school year started. Here's what happened today in class:

Learning Targets Addressed:

I can communicate effectively both verbally and in writing.

I can demonstrate an understanding of how individuals and non-governmental institutions interact with each other and the government in shaping politics.

I can apply an understanding of ideas and concepts to a new context or problem.

Soundtrack: "Differences" by Ginuwine. Selected for today because it's an old school throwback and because we are continuing to talk about differences in America. Lyrics here.

AGENDA 9/15/17:
Check-In
Review of Four Agreements and Six Conditions
Vocabulary Packet – Peer definition of Race & Racism
Charlottesville
Exit Ticket – Writing Reflection

Homework: Read the blog! Post a comment if you have not. Bring in completed Where I'm From poem to class on Tuesday!

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For in class work and activities today, please see the PowerPoint we went through together, here:

Google Drive - 9/15 Charlottesville Lesson PowerPoint

For slide 3, on race and racism, we started building our vocabulary guide that was picked up at the end of last class, by asking fellow classmates for their definition, before we provided our own.

The rest of the lesson was based largely on discussing and deconstructing Charlottesville, in watching the tremendous VICE News short documentary. We excerpted it in class, but if you would like to watch the whole video (CAUTION: intense/graphic scenes of violence, explicit language), is is here to watch:

Our closing activity was to create a poem. The directions were: with a partner, write a poem about Charlottesville incorporating the facts, phrases, names, and reflection that you observed, read, or watched. Please make sure both your names are on the document. If you did not do so in class, please turn this in on Google Classroom before next class.

Thanks, everyone! See you next week!

9/13 - Class Recap

The Courageous Conversations Agreements, Conditions, and Compass that we went through today in class.

Dear class,

Our first day with us all together! Thanks for your patience as we develop this new structure and team teaching model. Here's what we did today in class:

Soundtrack: “Comin’ From Where I’m From” by Anthony Hamilton. Selected for today because students are continuing to work on the Where I'm From poem (due next Tuesday). Lyrics here.

AGENDA 9/13/17:
Introduction/Attendance
Yarn Map Review/Where I’m From
Google Classroom/Poll
Courageous Conversations Protocol

Homework: Read the blog. Post a comment if you have not. Complete “Where I’m From” assignment.
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Introduction/Attendance: For now, with the open walls, as we get to know all of the students in the combined class, we will take attendance by passing around a sign in sheet. Please make sure to sign in during class!

Yarn Map Review/Where I’m From: With this section, Ms. Labossiere described the Yarn Map on the side of her room, where students are encouraged to take a piece of yarn and pin where they were born to where their ancestors are from in the world.

The Where I'm From poem was assigned to Ms. Labossiere's class last week, but not the second class that met with her, so it is now due for everyone next Tuesday. Here is a copy if you forgot to grab one in class:

Google Drive - Where I'm From Poem Assignment

Google Classroom/Poll: This section was for signing up for Google Classroom and letting us know if there was anyone in the class you knew you did not feel safe with in a small group, as we start to make those groups. Thank you for your input here!

Courageous Conversations Protocol: This is the framework for our ground rules and expectations with what we are doing together this year. As Ms. Labossiere and I noted, we use this same framework in our own equity meetings and with staff here at Westview. We went through the picture linked to above at the top of this post, point by point. At the end of class, we had students get in groups based on their assigned quote from Ms. Labossiere's class and introduce each other, as well as talk about what they might struggle with the most in terms of the expectations outlined.

Finally, as students left, copies of this vocabulary guide were picked up. Here's an online copy if you did not pick it up in class.

Google Drive - DSJ Vocabulary Guide

We will start filling this out together soon. We realize it is a long document AND we want to make sure that everyone has working definitions of what we are discussing in class, so we have a common language and framework for what we are doing.

Thanks everyone! See you on Friday!