In the fall of 2017, I spent a lot of time in a eighth-grade social studies classroom as an education student. Anyone who has spent a great deal of time with young teenagers can only imagine how eclectic this learning experience was for me. As a student I had become versed academically and as a person, I strive to bring awareness and kindness to those who may need it. As an educator I had a moment that shifted my perspective of the world we live in today.
I was teaching a lesson about coordinates and United States Geography where teams of students were using maps to chart as many state capitals as they could. I had been checking in with all the teams as noticed one of my students hesitating to participate. Knowing that this student was usually a key classroom leader, I went and sat down with her to check in. As I pondered why she was not participating I heard her classmate’s question why she was not helping. When I went over to check in on her she still seemed hesitant, then a lightbulb went off. This student was a recent immigrant to the united states. It became clear to me that she did not have the same cultural information as all of the other students who had grown up in the United States did. Seizing this opportunity to bring the students together, We all had a discussion about how she knew a lot of things about her native country that we do not know, and they know a lot about the US that they could help her learn.
When I heard about this class I was instantly intrigued to learn more. I saw an opportunity to learn about migration.Which is important because migration has built this country in the past, but has been polarizing recently. As a future educator and human I feel as though it is important to amplify the voices that are not always heard. I think that these voices are important because in my experience if anyone in your community is struggling, then as a whole, your community could be better. Recently I have felt that due to the wedges our political climate has put between some of the population and our migrant population, that people in are communities are being underserved, undereducated, stereotyped and held back. As a person I find this to be tragic, and by being a part of this class I hope to help these voices be heard.
In the coming few months Christa, my project partner, and I will be conducting interviews with migrants in our surrounding communities. In reading this blog you will be able to join us on this journey through posts that will be shared here. Through these interviews we hope to hear the stories of some of the immigrants that are a part of our community. To effectively tell these stories we will be using many technology mediums while collecting and sharing the histories of these people.