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Subject: [NIFL-ESL:8587] Re: RE: War as a cross-cultural issue
Date: Mon, 24 Feb 2003 10:48:14 -0500
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From: Anna Silliman <anna@handsonenglish.com>
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Previously, Cindi Riley criley@lowcountryliteracy.org wrote:
>Your students want to know why the U.S. goes around attacking people all the
>time? Do they study the history of Japan during the 20th century? I have
>great reservations re: the present action being contemplated, but I do know
>if we really wanted the oil in Iraq we could have had it long ago. Yes, the
>U.S. makes many mistakes, but we don't go around attacking people all the
>time.
Hi, CIndi--
I believe that Charles was reflecting the concerns/impressions
of his students, not (necessarily) his own. The question he is addressing
is,
what is the best, most honest, most pedagogical way to respond
to students' queries about this? Even if the students are incorrect
in their impressions, one can't just brush them aside--all learning
starts from where the students are.
I lived overseas for a number of years and taught English in
Germany. Students were eager to ask me about the US and its policies,
and often they expressed criticisms. Some of these were valid concerns
in my opinion, and some of them were ridiculous. My job, as a teacher
as a humanitarian and as an informal representative of my country,
was to be as open and honest as I could and always present the human
side of things. The adult Germans I taught were well able to understand
there's a difference between the people and the politics.
It's quite tricky to be an American overseas, because you do
represent your country, but the country consists of a wide range of
opinions and a wide spectrum of actions, some of them good, some bad.
The same is true to a somewhat lesser degree in the classroom
here in the U.S. The common thread, though, and what we share with
our overseas friends is the democratic process.
It might be productive to focus on process issues. How does change
come about? What rights do we have? How do we use them? How do we NOT use
them? What can a citizen do, both short term and long term? Specifically,
where can you take your concerns? What responses are proactive? What ones
are destructive? I can think of a lot more questions that would be
interesting to discuss both here and abroad.
Best wishes,
Anna
Hands-on English
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