September 11

You probably remember exactly where you were and what you were doing on the morning of September 11, 2001.  On that day, history gained a new day of infamy that will be a part of American History classes from now on.  Although this piece of contemporary history is seared in their parents’ minds, it might be just another story for many students who are too young to remember the events themselves. In remembrance of the tenth anniversary of this tragedy, many teachers are planning to cover the events and the aftermath in some way.  Teachers have a chance to use this awful event to continue the learning for future generations.

Studying September 11 brings up a whole list of issues for educators.  This blog post from Teaching Tolerance is a good overview of things to think about before presenting lessons on 9/11 to your classes.  One point I thought was especially important was that we need to be careful not to scare primary students with too many graphic images and audio clips, although they are sure to be inundated with these images on television during the tenth anniversary of the attacks.  The site for the National September 11 Memorial & Museum has some excellent lesson plans and resources for teaching about the events and related topics with your class.  Their K-2 fact sheet explains the events for a young target audience.  This would make a very good introduction for elementary students who might be learning the facts of September 11 for the first time. A more detailed explanation that includes pictures and sound clips can be found in this interactive timeline.

Joann has collected and catalogued resources on the topic for the Gateway that we will feature in our columns and in our daily Facebook and Twitter posts.  Be sure to look there first as you plan activities for your classroom.  If you don’t live in New York, there is a good chance your students haven’t been to the site of the twin towers in New York City.  When you introduce the topic of September 11, it would be really nice to take your students there.  A good place to start introducing the events of September 11 to your students is a virtual field trip to the site using Google Earth.  If you search, you can find some that have already been created, or you can create one of your own.  The following animation will show you what the site looks like today and what the planned memorials look like. 

In addition to teaching the history of the events of the day, the topic provides a good context for presenting lessons on tolerance, cultural differences, disaster response, heroes, and other related topics.  A search of the Gateway for any of these topics will bring up a list of standards-aligned resources you can use. 

One major issue brought up by the study of September 11^th is students’ understanding and acceptance of Islam.  Studying the attacks might stir up feelings of prejudice in your students against Muslims or even the Middle Eastern culture.  It’s important to study this religion in a balanced way so your students can form their own opinions.  Read our blog post, Peace Through Knowledge to find some ideas and resources for incorporating the study of Islam in your classes.   Another blog post from Teaching Tolerance discusses confronting Islamaphobia, and would be a good post to read before teaching about the subject.

Whether you study the events of September 11^th from a purely historical perspective or if you decide to take a different angle and study other issues related to that day, I hope you find some good resources here and on the Gateway.  We’ll continue to share ideas all week, and we hope you do, too!

~Peggy's Corner - September 9, 2011~

Peace through Knowledge: The study of Islam and other World Religions

Putting the words school and religion together in a sentence is enough to make many people cringe. Separation of church and state is an important facet of the U.S. government, and teachers tend to avoid religious topics so they don’t run the risk of crossing that fine line. Joann’s featured resources this week on the Gateway give teachers tools to teach students about world religions in a fair and balanced manner.

Religious conflicts have fueled wars throughout the ages. Gaining a deep understanding of the differences and similarities between these conflicting religions is an important part of growing up and becoming a contributing member of society. Since people tend to fear the unknown, they can develop an unhealthy fear and prejudice towards particular religions and cultures. Since it is somewhat of a taboo topic, students might not feel comfortable asking questions about different religions at school, and there aren’t many other places they can go to find the answers to these questions. With the current unrest in the Middle East, an important religion for students to understand is Islam. Most children in United States are familiar with Judeo-Christian history and beliefs, but the ideas and practices of Muslims (those practicing Islam) may seem foreign and scary to them.

Islam is the second most popular religion in the world. Most of the followers live in the Middle East, Asia, and the horn of Africa. Because of this geographical separation from the United States and because of the extensive coverage of Islamic extremists in the news, the religion is not well understood by many Americans. According to one Gallup poll, 43% of Americans felt at least a “little” prejudice against Muslims. As teachers, we might be able to help alleviate this fear of the unknown to prevent this prejudice.

By teaching about religions such as Islam in school, we can arm our students with knowledge so they can make informed choices. We don’t want stereotypes to fuel their decisions; we want our students to base decisions on unbiased facts. Studying the history of Islam is just an example. There are many different religions in the world that students can compare and contrast to gain a better understanding of historical and current events.

New York’s Morningside Center for Teaching Social Responsibility has some valuable resources for teaching world religions in the classroom. There is a “Teachable Moment” section on their site that has some good ideas for activities and critical thinking about Islam and other major religions. One example is Islam and the West: An Overview and Suggestions for Study, which has lots of good ideas for incorporating the study of religion (specifically Islam) into your curriculum. You will find more good resources on Morningside’s site.

Thirteen.org is also a good source of lesson plans and tips for including the study of world religions in your classroom. “How have World Religions Shaped Who I Am Today?” is an introductory lesson to a unit on world religions. In this lesson, students take an inventory of their beliefs. The whole unit is well-planned and would be a good place to start when you incorporated a unit on world religions into your teaching.

There are a huge amount of resources available on the Gateway to help you introduce and study religion with your students. If you go to the main page of the Gateway and search for Islam, you will find plenty to use. The following two examples are other types of resources available. Check them out to see a preview of what is available.

USA Today Special Report Comparing Religions: http://www.thegateway.org/browse/36803

Islam or Christianity:

http://www.thegateway.org/browse/dcrecord.2007-12-04.7081243883

~Peggy's Corner - July 21, 2011~

A Priest, a Rabbi, and a Buddhist Walk Into a…

For the past several years, the intermediate public school in my town has hosted a World Religions Day for the 6^th graders. For an entire day, sixth grade classes move with their teachers from classroom to classroom every 40 minutes or so to learn about different religions and cultures. Each presentation is led by either a local religious leader or a practicing member (usually a parent) of a particular faith. There is absolutely no proselytizing, “recruitment” efforts, or one-upmanship regarding the speakers’ personal faiths in relation to other faiths. Rather, the sessions are warm, informational, and meant to educate the students on the various religions in our region. The presentations highlight the commonalities and differences among various religions, as well as the history and cultural influences behind each respective religion’s specific beliefs. Students are strongly encouraged to ask questions, and after a few brief moments of hesitation, a barrage of questions invariably flows from the kids. Parents and town residents are welcome to attend the sessions, and a healthy number do. This past year, sessions were hosted by a Catholic priest, a rabbi, a Buddhist monk, a Presbyterian minister, a Congregational pastor, an imam, and a parent who practices Hinduism. Follow-up surveys to the students indicate that the overwhelming majority find the experience interesting and valuable (much to their surprise). They appreciate the exposure to the religions of some of their peers, and the opportunity to ask questions that they normally would be too embarrassed or too shy to ask in another environment. Against some fairly substantial odds, the event has been a success each year.

The topic of religion in public schools has a long and highly controversial history in the United States, and remains the cause of much conflict. Religion is certainly a “hot button” subject in many regions, and many schools understandably decide to distance themselves from the topic as much as possible. There are fears of possible indoctrination, the belief that any mention of religion in public school is unconstitutional, and the concern that introducing discussion about religion in the classroom could provoke clashes between students of different faiths. Some schools, however, have decided to tackle the subject head-on by incorporating lessons about world religions into the curriculum.

Some decades ago, schools adopted materials on multiculturalism and diversity education in order to foster better student understanding of racial and cultural differences, and to promote tolerance. Lessons on world religions may be viewed in a similar vein, with many of the same goals. By law, public schools in the U.S. may not provide religious instruction, but they may teach about religion. There’s a vital difference, and it’s critical to distinguish between teaching religion, and teaching about religion. Teachers and outside guests must remain neutral when teaching about religion in public schools, and embrace the idea that at its heart, education is about broadening students’ horizons, and teaching them to develop the necessary critical thinking and reasoning skills that will prepare them for a thoughtful and well-informed life ahead.

My picks this week focus on lessons that teach students about various world religions and how they influence the local and global cultures. I will also be featuring many more lessons and educational resources on world religions on our Facebook and Twitter pages, so be sure to give those a look.

The Golden Rule of Reciprocity

http://www.thegateway.org/browse/dcrecord.2010-09-03.5099174322

Subjects: World Religions, Social Studies, English Language Arts

Grade: 4-6

The Silk Roads encompassed a diversity of cultures embracing numerous religions and worldviews from Venice, Italy to Heian, Japan. Between these two ends, belief systems that are represented are Buddhism, Confucianism, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam, Judaism, Shinto, and Daoism. In this lesson, students will review, compare and contrast The Golden Rule of Reciprocity from different religious teachings, and will analyze primary texts of sacred and philosophical writings. This lesson was produced by the Asia Society, a global non-profit organization that seeks to strengthen relationships and promote education in the fields of arts and culture, policy and business in the U.S. and Asia.

Five Major World Religions

http://www.thegateway.org/browse/dcrecord.2011-07-07.2899234832

Subjects: World Religions, Research Skills

Grade: 7

This activity allows students to research and identify various aspects of five major world religions including Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, and Judaism. Students will use the World Wide Web to conduct research, recording their findings in tables. This lesson is a product of C·R·E·A·T·E for Mississippi at Mississippi State University. C·R·E·A·T·E for Mississippi provides on-site, on-going technology professional development, "just-in-time" support for technology use, and technology-infused curriculum modules.

An Approach to Teaching Religious Tolerance http://www.thegateway.org/browse/dcrecord.2011-07-07.6359379322

Subjects: World Religions, Social Studies, English, Character Education

Grade: 9-12

The United States of America is a nation founded upon freedom. Our Founding Fathers attempted to frame a flexible document to live through the ages which would protect and promote freedom. It is the responsibility of the people in a democratic society to educate their children to understand our freedom, but also the responsibility that goes with it. The primary focus of this lesson will be that of religious freedom. It is a sensitive subject area, but a critical one to developing an understanding of our rights as United States citizens. Students should learn to be open-minded, independent thinkers in this area so that freedom may be guaranteed throughout the ages. This lesson is a product of the Academy Curricular Exchange at the Organization for Community Networks (OFCN). The Curriculum Exchange offers a variety of lesson plans by teachers attending the Columbia Education Center's Summer Workshops, as well teachers nationwide.

~Joann's Picks - July 21, 2011~