Rationale
The district I teach in is quickly growing to become the largest school district in Oklahoma, but defies the expectations of many. Tulsa Public Schools sprawls across a primarily urban area, with pockets of crime and poverty scattered throughout. Hale Junior High came into being in the wake of a district-wide shake-up that combined schools. Due to this, there are still several factions of students within the school that don’t identify with the mascots, colors, or school activities and feel unjustly relocated to a place that isn’t their home. Additionally, ten percent of the student body comes from homeless shelters and safe havens for abused individuals. The projections for the 2015-2016 school year place over half of our students as having a language other than English as their first, with most of these students still struggling as English language learners. For all of these reasons and more, many students feel alienated from their education and community.
Within the school where I teach, there exists an array of situations that reflect the conflicts and truths in Shakespeare’s works. There are divides along racial lines with some deciding to cross those boundaries for love. There is peer pressure to participate in gang activity, often coming from quarrels passed along from older generations. Drug usage is also a common activity for many students. Combine all of this happening alongside the confusing middle school years and we often have a difficult constituency to serve adequately. This population is also very modern and progressive, with a large LGBT population and a number of youths who are enthralled by the idea of transgender dressing. In this environment, I believe an exploration of Shakespeare’s characters could help students not only to see the world around them better, but to understand themselves on a deeper level. I teach both 7th and 8th grade English Language Arts and will be responsible for assignments that enhance comprehension, vocabulary, speaking, listening, and writing skills.
My classes are composed of mostly English language learners, the majority being male and all of them on free-lunch programs for those living in poverty.
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