What thousand words?

Yesterday, my students began presenting their Visual Autobiographies. After dedicating weeks to creating these intricate and complex infographics, it was finally time to reveal them. But this wasn't like other presentations; this presentation was silent. The stage was already set with the visuals, now it was up to the viewers to analyze and synthesize the presented Visual Autobiography. The viewer was the ultimate authority, writing the story based upon interpretation, having the final say.

My 6th graders struggled analyzing their friends. They focused on the surface. "Matt loves his dog. He spends time with friends and family." They caught the main ideas, but were stuck on the literal, on the true subject of the image.

The 7th graders were starting to get it, beginning to realize that these images told deeper, more complex stories. They began connecting the dots: "She is artistic. She has a good relationship with her family. Went to Paris. Loves to travel. She is adventurous. Went to Venice." They dug deep to make strong inferences: "Grace is happy with herself and her life. She has siblings, one sister and brother. She loves them a lot. She has a dog which she loves a lot and likes animals. She is clumsy and broke her arm by having fun on a bouncy ball. Grace in on the swim team and enjoys swimming with friends. She is a shining star." 

But the 8th graders, well they just could not be bothered by this activity. This answers fell flat. They lacked the depth that their life experiences had given them. "He has two sisters and one brother. He likes the beach. He plays baseball. He likes to watch baseball. He likes batting. He likes technology. He has an iPhone." 

I was stumped.

Could it be that they did not see the bigger purpose? Did they not understand that they were training themselves to be critical readers of the world around them? Of the images they are bombarded with each day? Of the binaries, stereotypes and social constructions that run our world?

Yesterday, I stumbled upon the incredible series by Joel Pares called "Judging America". This breathtaking collection photographs successful men and women in two juxtaposing portraits: one an authentic, natural portrait, and the other a stereotyped portrait, highlighting and showcasing the most prominent social construction applicable to that person.

Yesterday, the words of Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's TED talk "The Danger of a Single Story" echoed in my head. She reminded me of the importance of learning the stories of many, not just those in power or those we want to hear.

Today, I refocused my efforts to help my 8th graders--and all my other students as well--learn how to read images. If we want to avoid dangerous stereotypes and assumptions, we must teach students how to examine these ideas, teaching them to question the truths they have come to believe. These are not fairy-tale skills; they are essential, necessary to the creation of a fair and just society. If we want students to understand multiple stories, they must know how to read the ones that they are given, in order to find or appreciate others.

Today, I seek your help. What are you doing to help your students develop their visual literacy? How are you challenging students to question the images in their lives? How do you help students avoid stereotypes or single stories? Comment below to help add to our pool of resources and ideas. 

Tomorrow, we can begin to make changes. As teachers we can and should:

-Avoid single stories of any group

-Discuss social constructions with our students

-Teach students about binaries and hierarchies

-Provide students with the skills to break down images, not just texts

-Show students examples of artists and activists who are positively combatting these notions

-Ensure that we are not contributing to any single stories or perpetuating social constructions

Our world and well being depends on this.
-Brittany

Getting a Little Creative

This year I took a leap. 

After years of studying and teaching English, I've begun a new journey: teaching technology. My new position has brought with it a flood of creativity and energy. I'm challenged in new ways, and I am able to challenge my students in new ways. 

As I revamp my curriculum and step into such a radically different position, I find my thoughts continually returning to one central question: What is the purpose of school?

Attempting to answer this question, I have been turning to the one place I know I can always receive some expert advice--TED talks. As I began watching some of my favorites, one key theme appeared.

Schools should and must cultivate creativity. 

Sounds simple enough. So why don't we see it more? Why does it seem so challenging? Why do students resist this type of free thinking? I found a few answers in these thought-provoking talks. 

1. Schools are NOT made for creativity.

In his talk, the witty and poignant Sir Ken Robinson discusses the progressive and radical severing of the body from education. He argues that schools are designed to address only our brains "and slightly to one side" (Robinson, 2007). In one of his most convincing points, he highlights the fact that there are no education systems that teach dance to children everyday. Instead, as we all know, students spend the vast majority of their time pouring over math textbooks and reading materials. 

By placing so much emphasis on the subjects valued by higher levels of academia, we are suppressing the other areas of the brain and body. Students are pigeon-holed into the select and elite subjects, and physical education, the arts and technology become viewed as fluff. (As in any binary, if it is not the valuable piece, it must be worthless). We have limited the creative outlets in our schools, and--even worse--we are killing the little creativity that is left inside our students.

2. Creativity means failure, and we just can't have that in our schools. 

Dr. Tae enters into his analysis of the lack of creativity in schools through the lens of skateboarding, his personal passion. What Dr. Tae reveals is that skateboarding requires A LOT of failure. He shows videos of mess ups, goofs, misjudgments and even some bad spills. But he argues that this failure is necessary for learning, for creativity, for expression. He also critiques the fact that most schools do not tolerate failure. Failure is stigmatized. And after enough time, students begin to internalize this concept; in their fear of being "wrong," they often shed any last glimmers of creativity. Our schools must accept failure as part of the journey, as necessary for the development of a growth mindset. Only when this paradigm changes can creativity really take hold and thrive. 

3. We still believe that creativity is something that you are either born with or without.

In a her seemingly outlandish TED talk, Elizabeth Gilbert, author of Eat, Pray, Love, discusses ancient notions in regards to creative success. She reminds listeners that the Ancient Greeks and Ancient Romans believed that exceptional displays of creativity were from external, divine, inspirational beings that would grace artists, providing them with the innovate fruits necessary to create. Although I expect that most creative minds will run into trouble while trying to communicate with these geniuses (that's the Ancient Roman name for these beings), the underlying principle is extremely relevant. 

We have become so dedicated to the belief that artists are born with this these supernatural gifts of creativity. Our schools must shake these notions, acknowledging the external factors that help plant, foster and sustain our creativity.

Start Getting Creative

The best ways for us to break this mindset is to first identify it. Do you value some subjects or classes more than others? Do you tend to assign a specific types of projects? What is your personal relationship with creativity? What about failure? 

As you begin deconstructing these answers, check out the world around you. Does your school value creativity? How is this demonstrated? Does your school stigmatize failure? Do your students have growth mindsets?

And of course, start talking about it! Feel free to post insights or questions here! We teach students to co-construct their knowledge, let's do the same!

References:

Gilbert, E. (2013). Your elusive creative genius. [Video File]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4HBJa279i8M 

Robinson, K. (2007). Do schools kill creativity? [Video File]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iG9CE55wbtY 

Tae, Y. (2011). Can skateboarding save our schools? [Video File]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lHfo17ikSpY