“I define love as a combination of
care, commitment, knowledge, responsibility, respect, and trust.” –bell hooks
I
participated in the “Models of Urban Educational Reform” Immersion Project
during Spring Break. During our stay in Baltimore, we led an after-school
program--the College and Career Institute--at Midtown Academy, a charter school in Baltimore. We worked
with 7th or 8th graders, aiming to help them to look into
options for their futures. Last Thursday, the group of students from Midtown
Academy visited Gettysburg.
Many
relationships I built throughout the Baltimore visit have inspired me. But I would like
to spend time here talking specifically about one I built with Ellie*, a 7th
grader at Midtown. When I led the after-school program at Midtown, I designed
activities that encouraged my students to reflect on their past experiences,
their passion and aspirations. In the first session, I asked them about the
things they enjoy doing and encouraged them to bring anything that relates to
their interests into class for the next session. Some brought drawings. Some
showed their poetry pieces. Ellie, who had spoken about her interests in
fashion and design, brought a pair of miniature jeans she sewed. I asked her to
pass the pair of jeans around so anyone who wants can take a close look at it.
I was very impressed by the little piece of work.
In addition to being artistically talented, Ellie is also mature and reflective. When I
asked them to write down three things they expect to do when they would come to visit
Gettysburg, she wrote that “I want to meet someone who share my interests and
can give me good advice.” Unlike some other goals such as to eat at SERVO, I
was not able to guarantee Ellie that her wish would come true. But I take on
the responsibility as the teacher and put in my effort to create opportunities that may help her to
realize the vision.
One
thing I planned for Ellie was visiting our art gallery on campus. After lunch
on Thursday, I took Ellie and another student to the art gallery, where some
students were working on installing their senior project. It was a very dynamic
scene. The moment we stepped into the gallery I heard Ellie gasped: “This is so
cool!” with her eyes wide open. The artworks opened up conversations among the
three of us. We talked about our feelings, memories and emotions evoked by the artworks. By sharing the emotion and feelings we projected onto the
same artworks, we were able to connect with each other emotionally. By the time we walked
out of the gallery, I felt our relationships had opened up to a new front.
They became more comfortable sharing their ideas and started to ask me
questions. Growing up without having this type of cultural enrichment due to the lack of resources, never had I known the power of art in education till this gallery visit with my students.
What was more exciting was the Gettysburg student whose fashion work
was displayed in the gallery happened to be in the art class I arranged for Ellie
to visit later that day. Ellie had a great conversation with the student,
exchanging ideas and asking questions. At the end of her visit, I asked her if
she enjoyed the art class. She told me that she really enjoyed talking to the
student who had given her some good advice and suggested some books for her to
read. In seeing Ellie fulfilling her wishes and they way that the visit had turned out to be a meaningful one to her, I see the purpose of my work in education, aka making human connections with love.
What
fascinates me about education has always been this process of connection-making.
The loves for knowledge, expansion of experiences, and mindful awareness and compassion,
which cannot be quantified but can only be achieved through human connections,
are the reason why I want to devote myself to the process to foster such
growth within individuals as well as communities.
*Name changed.
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