Why Are We Like This?

Cultural Partner(s): Kimberly Zambrano - Crocheting, Painting and Sculpting

School: Sequoya High School, Grade 10-12

District: Eastern Suffolk BOCES https://data.nysed.gov/profile.php?instid=800000055835

Summary

This partnership explored “the importance of seeking and deciphering unbiased information that does not perpetuate stereotypes, microaggressions, or further marginalization against underserved groups.” The students who have been identified with alternative learning abilities collaborated with an art therapist and their journalism teacher to deeply investigate difficult issues that were important to them and to our larger social world. Their work also inspired a documentary video undertaken by the school district to inspire others.

Rationale

This project helps students to analyze intercultural communication and how stereotypes work to limit and change the way we interact with one another in society.

What learning goals/standards did this meet?

Arts

Create and Generate

Develop and refine new artistic mediums.

Connecting selected literary choices to artistic concepts to develop new works.

Create and understand art mediums
Produce artworks that connect with a topic of their choice
Present

Select, analyze, interpret, develop, and refine artistic work for conveying meaning and sharing with others.

Respond

Interpret and analyze to evaluate meaning in artistic work through social, emotional and historical connections

Creating such pieces add a personal perception along with historical and cultural relation.

Connect

Investigate how social, cultural, and historical contexts impact artistic production and, in turn, how artistic ideas shape societies past, present, and future by connecting and synthesizing information and experiences.
Students will produce artwork that is driven by a clear purpose that is personal to them.
Students will produce creative works that, both inside and outside of the classroom, show off media literacy, verbal, critical analytical, and communication abilities in a variety of civic ready scenarios.

Students will create original artwork inspired by their written literary works to relate under the social emotional pillars.

Students will be able to relate their multi-media artworks by supporting the presentation of the creative works to their social, cultural, and historical perspectives.

CCCR

Personal Choice in College & Career Development

Connect overlapping skills and relationships among personal, academic, extracurricular,

and work activities.

Civic Knowledge

Apply knowledge of government, law, history, geography, culture, economics, and current events including inequities within democracy in different circumstances and settings.

Civic Skills & Action

Model critical analytic, verbal, communication, and media literacy in a variety of activities

inside and outside of school.

Civic Mindset

Demonstrate understanding of self as part of and responsible to larger social society

through democratic, interpersonal, intrapersonal, and informed actions for meaningful

participation in civic life.

CR-S

Value and affirm the varied experiences, perspectives and needs that students bring into the classroom - whether they be connected to racial/cultural background, language, disability or other - as essential assets and resources for learning, and meet students there.
Foster critical consciousness about historical and contemporary forms of bias and oppression.
Identify and interrupt policies and practices that center on historically advantaged social/cultural groups and lead to predictable outcomes of success or failure for historically marginalized students.
Use curricula and pedagogy that are academically challenging, honor and reflect students’ diversity, connect learning to students’ lives and identities, challenge students to be critical thinkers, and promote student agency to end societal inequities.

Outcomes

Students’ learning has expanded as a result of this project because now they…

KNOW… how to create art and literature that allows for self expression and highlights the voices of marginalized groups.

UNDERSTAND… the importance of seeking and deciphering unbiased information that does not perpetuate stereotypes, microaggressions, or further marginalization against underserved groups.

ARE ABLE TO… explore and celebrate their own identity in addition to uplifting the identities of others.