10.12.2011 Uplift Community High School

10.12.2011

Uplift Community High School: 4 hr

900 W. Wilson Chicago, IL, 60640

Mr. Pesa Nicholas 
School link: http://www.uplifths.org/
 

- This high school is a social justice school in Uptown Chicago, there were 80 % of African American students, 15% of Mexican American and 5% of others.

·      -Mr. Pesa has been teaching about social justice in this high school about 3 years.

·      -In this school, it has program for students who needs special care such as disability in different level.

·      -In classroom, those students who need special cares were sitting at the very end of the classroom. Those students were assigned for different kinds of works depending on their ability.

·     - In Mr. Pesa’s art class, the subject he was teaching is called map research project. Students were first asked to create a flag that represent certain country and they have to try to create some changes inside of the country.

Flag Design for a Country

Map Project

·      -To practice the idea of social justice to students, students need to understand the meaning of flags and their representations.

·      -Collaboration is one of the main practices in the classroom because to achieve the idea of equality, communication is crucial in social justice practice.

Student Works about social issues 

·     --Some students in that class were not really giving respect to the teacher, they yell in the class, kick chairs, walk around the classroom randomly, sleeping and eating in the class.

    -Mr. Pesa tried so hard to help them to understand what they could do differently in their lives. 

    -Mr. Pesa said students were used to their lives and the social value they have. Therefore, it is sometimes hard for him to push the idea of social justice.

·    -  However, the zing project Mr. Pesa designed was really interesting. Students create a zing and there were questions they have to answer for both students and artist they researched:

-Who are you?

Student: I am Black African America who is 18 years old….

-What do you believe?

Student: I think that we as human people should have equal rights on both sex and colors. People should be treated the same. Getting same care as us. African American people and education!

-What do you want to say?

-How to create change?

Student: A way to create change from all of the violence is having more jobs opportunities for teens community service more sports activity. Having teenagers staying __ and stop killing each other out in the streets.

-What do she/he want to say?

There were some amazing ideas wrote by students, they do have very important idea to address and they do care about the society.