I'm glad we were able to attend this forum on public education at UIC last night. It's the kind of event that I always intend to attend more of . . . but don't have a great track record of making it to. I think that with all of our wonderful academic dialogue at SAIC, it's really important to be mindful of our purposes beyond our school walls, and forums like that are a space where the academic and 'real world' meet, ideally to enhance both. And I think several of the speakers addressed that - that it's great for lots of voices to be able to come together and talk about how we want similar things, but a very crucial part of the equation is what we make happen on the ground, outside of those rooms. I'm a little unclear as to how I will continue to navigate these issues as a student, beyond attending events like this and attempting to raise awareness, but I do appreciate getting amped up like that - sometimes it's just what I need to get my head out of my books. And really, it's very exciting to be involved in an arena that so many people care about so deeply.
And on that note, I wanted to share that I think Jon Stewart has been really spot-on with his Wisconsin coverage. I've fallen out of my Daily Show habit in the last couple years, but I've been having a bit of a frienaissance in the last couple weeks, keeping up with the shows the day after (online, if you don't have cable like me). He's been really great about illustrating a lot of the systemic issues with union-busting, and has been an advocate for teachers and bargaining rights in general. Anyways, here is Monday night's episode, which I saw after the forum last night. (The Wisconsin/teacher bits are in the first half.)
I have also been thinking about what my role is in all of this. I felt a little guilty about not being more "active," actually being out on the ground level doing something, or attending more of these forums or meeting, and fantasizing about all of the additional reading I would love to do that would educate and inform my actions. But I realized that in my own way, I am already doing something just by being in school and preparing myself to be a critically engaged arts educator. I might not be doing everything I would like to at the moment, but I would like to think that I am, we all are part of the movement, in our own way. I don't think we are part of the problem, and we are preparing ourselves to better contribute to the solutions.
ReplyDeletepaulina is spot on with her assessment. all of you are taking steps towards becoming part of the solution right now, preparing to take action. after all, disorganized and uninformed action makes even less sense than inaction. gather, read, process, and find where you'll stand on the issues, and then locate one group/issue/space that you pour your efforts into and become really engaged with. perhaps right now you even begin laying the groundwork for what that work will be. whatever the case, you'll get there.
ReplyDeleteand i think john stewart is dreamy. (in an intellectual, progressive, and hilarious kind of way)
I agree that we sometimes feel that we should be actively be doing something rather than sitting and learning. But like what Paulina and Ray have said, becoming better prepared as art educators is the first step to a brighter future. These forums are a great avenue to segway for future events for us, whether it's partaking in a rally, join an organization, or volunteer teach a workshop.
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