Today we are going to discuss and respond to chapter 17 in our text book, Art Education For Social Justice, and finally make a piece of work in response to this chapter.
To begin this discussion, I want to discuss the term Social Imagination.
- What is a Social Imagination, and what roles does it play in school?
- Maxine Greene, American educational philosopher, social activist, teacher and author, believed that being wide-awake opens the door to the "social imagination". Although the imagination is perceived to be a private experience, the social imagination focuses on bringing this idea to the public space in order to imagine what a community can envision (Greene, 2001).
- "The the role of imagination is not to resolve, not to point the way, not to improve. It is to awaken, to disclose the ordinarily unseen, unheard, and unexpected” (Greene, 1995).
- The idea of the Social Imagination is taken from Maxine Greene's book, Releasing the Imagination (1995). The authors discuss Greene's work and share what they feel students need to develop this imagination. “They need opportunities to research, debate, and form their own ideas about issues, and time to learn the art concepts and develop the technical, representational, and expressive skills that will enable them to communicate their socially imaginative ideas to the world” (p. 132).
- We need to develop ways to awaken our students to this way of thinking, believing and imagining... "Students development of informed views and individual voices instead of teachers simply presenting their own personal, social, and political views" (p.127).
- Please watch these videos that relate to our chapter, check out the websites related to the chapter, and think about the quotes shared above.
- Maxine Greene website and video at the bottom of this webpage page.
- Fallen Heroes video and Website
- Frank Warren video and Website
- Hopes, Wishes and Regrets video
Answer the following questions on your blog :
1.) How can you lead a conversation in your classroom where everyone can feel safe and welcomed to share their views and ideas? (Develop a list of ground rules for developing a safe environment for meaningful discussions in your classroom.)
2.) How do we avoid pushing our values onto our students as we teach social responsibility?
3.) How can you explain the importance of the social imagination to your middle/high school students? How can you move your students imagine a better a future and act on it?
3.) How can you explain the importance of the social imagination to your middle/high school students? How can you move your students imagine a better a future and act on it?
Activity: Write a story (about 1 page) about a time in your life when you bullied someone, were bullied by someone else, or witnessed bullying. Bring this story with you to class on Tuesday on a piece of notebook paper and please do not include your name. Be thoughtful in your selection and writing of your story. Bullying comes in many forms and everyone is guilty of it.
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