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June 2001
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New York City
February2002

Teachers College Holds a Teach-In for Educators
By Bruce Myint

New York public school teachers face tough challenges in the wake of the September 11th attacks. Their task: to help young people face the complicated issues surrounding 9/11 while promoting cross cultural awareness and understanding. It is a difficult undertaking, but at a recent Teach-In, hosted by Teachers College, Columbia University, roughly 500 school teachers and administrators from the metropolitan New York area met to do just that.

“We’re trying to prepare children for a world that is in flux,” said Arthur Levine, President of Teachers College, in a speech welcoming participants to the day-long event.

The Teach-In for Teaching and Learning in a New Global Environment offered participants an eclectic mix of over 50 small-group workshops and forums including such topics as: “Designing Curriculum in Response to September 11th,” “The Impact of 9/11 on Kindergarten Students,” “Muslims in New York,” and “The Internet as a Vehicle for Helping Learners to Understand and Respond to Global Issues.”

The event, organized in only a matter of months by a group of curriculum and outreach specialists under the leadership of President Levine, brought participants together with scholars, political leaders, and experts on teaching and learning in a rapidly changing global environment.

Keynote speakers included Carol Bellamy, Executive Director of the United Nations Children’s Fund, Harold O. Levy, Chancellor of New York City Schools, and middle-school teacher Stacey Fell-Eisenkraft with members of her 8th grade class.

The need for the Teach-In was urgent. Keynote addresses described that in the weeks following the attacks students asked questions that teachers often found difficult to answer. Chancellor Levy shared heartrending stories of young teachers, some in only their fifth day of their career, bravely guiding their students out of the chaos of September 11th.

Carol Bellamy underscored the immediate need for students “to think about war and political violence in an informed and open–minded way.”

The Teach-In aimed at helping such teachers and their students cope with the effects of the attacks by emphasizing suitable content for a post 9/11 curriculum.

Acknowledging the trauma experienced by both teachers and students, Barry Rosen, Executive Director of External Affairs at Teachers College, remarked, “We see this as a community service for the teachers of the metropolitan area.”

Making matters even more complicated for teachers is the fact that in order to create a post 9/11 curriculum, they must often include content not found in typical lesson plans. Topics such as the role of women in Islamic societies, globalism, and human and civil rights may be unfamiliar but are nevertheless crucial. “Schools can teach intolerance and anger just as they teach diversity and freedom,” said Chancellor Levy. “We need to be cognizant of both.”

Such complex curricular changes involve a long-term commitment. However, it is one that is well suited to the educators who play a vital role in helping the metropolitan area on its road to recovery. Says President Levine, “I don’t know any slower way to change the world than education. But I also don’t know a more effective way.”

Although many workshops focused on curriculum design, the Teach-In also included a panel discussion on civil liberties and human rights during war time. Panelists included Maxine Greene, Professor Emeritus of Philosophy and Education at Teachers College, Ira Glasser, former Executive Director of the ACLU, Norman Siegel, former Executive Director of the New York Civil Liberties Union, and Anne Nelson, Director of the International Program at Columbia University’s School of Journalism. Darlyne Baily, Vice President for Academic Affairs and Dean at Teachers College, moderated the discussion.

Organizers of the Teach-In are planning a summit that will be held later this year on developing curriculum materials that will include experts in the field.#

Bruce Myint is an intern at Education Update and a doctoral candidate at Teachers College.

 

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