Lenses
Humans are 99.5% genetically similar11, and yet we spend a lot of time and energy worrying about the other 0.5%. Conflict over race and social and economic disparity is one of the most significant issues facing youth today and they will need tools to rationally discuss sensitive political topics. We will examine identity through the lenses of names, speech, and teenagers. I chose these because I felt they were universal and provided an engaging but non-controversial point of entry into the content. Each of these lenses will provide a specific means of looking at human differences, while also addressing identity as a social construct (imposed from the outside) as well as a psychological formation (developed and experienced from inside). Each of the three lenses through which we will examine identity, (names, speech and teenagers), will take approximately one week. This will allow for an extra week for students to pursue a lens that is of particular interest to them (race, gender, religion, socioeconomic status, etc.) and engage with the entire writing process.
Comments: