Linda Purrington, Title IX Advocates <lpurring@earthlink.net>
KatherinH wrote:
>
> This EDEQUITY discussion on violence, sexual harassment, etc has got me
> thinking..
>
> There is a real issue out there...violence is real and it's a manifestation of
> a number of things. It was always assumed "boys are violent" but now federal
> stats show a rise in violence among females...and females are reporting that
> they are sexually harassing others as well..... The murders of the female
> student and teacher in Arkansas is chilling; as are the violent deaths of
young
> men, particularly young men of color. How do we focus on addressing violence
> across the board, and how do we sort out our growing fear of violence from
> actual violence, especially in light of stats that show a reduction in violent
> crime among our youth.
>
> Given this, Id' like us to think about the broader context of violence,
> education and what we can do about it. I'ld like help in thinking this
through.
>
> *How do we create a culture shift--one that supports peaceful and
supportive
> relationships among all people, that moves males and females away from
this
> oppositional stance?
> *What changes in the culture will help stop young men from hurting
> themselves or one another?
> *How do we share the programs, approaches, materials that work to shift
the
> dynamics of violence, that support gender equity and all equity, that
> increase engagement in the classroom.
>
> I believe that positive adult expectations and genuine engagement in the
> classroom, with curriculum that speaks to the students goes a long way to
> shifting the dynamics of violence and disengagement. Whether it's the sexual
> harassment programs such as those developed by Nan Stein at Wellesley or Susan
> Strauss in Minnesota, the GESA model, the materials Craig Flood and others
have
> listed here, the new constructivist curriculum, the WEEA materials...how do we
> use these as building blocks...how are people using these and others? With
what
> results? And what do we as a national center, what do we as participants on
> EDEQUITY, what do we as individuals in our schools, communities, families do
to
> change the culture's belief that violence in all its forms is an answer.
> Perhaps we can use this forum to strategize about this.
>
> Katherine Hanson, WEEA Equity Resource Center, katherinh@edc.org
>