Teachers Help Students Understand Violence at US Capitol

 

Social studies teachers across the United States are changing their plans for lessons this week. They want to help young people make sense of the news about the violence in Washington.

Fighting apathy¹ about politics

Karley Reising is a social studies teacher at Robert E. Fitch High School in Groton, Connecticut. "In almost every single one of my classes, the students brought it up before I even could," she said. And she added, "...my seniors were really struggling with what this meant about the future of our country in a way that was pretty heartbreaking."

Reising and others said they talked about the importance of being involved with the process of government. They wanted to lead students away from the idea that there must be violence to end a political fight.

Michael Neagle teaches at Lowell High School in Massachusetts. After finishing his class on Thursday, January 7, he said it was one of the most important days he had as a teacher. He wants his students to be active in civic² life. "We don't want kids to tune³ out and just say, 'Well, this is how it is. Nobody gets along. Politics.' That voter apathy is so dangerous," he said.

Teaching with morning newspapers

South St. Paul, Minnesota, teacher Mark Westpfahl showed the morning newspapers to his sixth-grade students learning online. His school is near the place where George Floyd died. His students asked questions about the police response that will carry into later lessons. He planned to talk in future classes about how the two events can be compared to each other. "What was the response like? What was the media presence like?" he said.

Parents are watching

As Westpfahl taught his 10- and 11-year-old students on a video conference, three or four parents appeared without speaking. He wondered about their thoughts.

Many teachers working online record their lessons so parents can study them with their students at home. One Washington, D.C. area teacher heard that some of her students had parents in the National Guard group working at the Capitol on Wednesday. This made her think carefully about the feelings of her students and their parents.

In Alabama, 10th grade teacher Blake Busbin said he, too, thought about how students and the community would respond to his actions and words. He said he chooses his words very carefully.

Busbin is a teacher at Auburn High School. He made a point to let students watch the unrest on TV. He was a high school senior on September 11, 2001 when terrorists⁴ attacked the United States with hijacked⁵ passenger jets. At that time, the school chief did not permit television in school. Busbin felt he lost an opportunity to watch history in the making.

Careful thought and writing

The day after the attack on the U.S. Capitol, he woke early and gathered 25 photographs. He showed each one for 10 to 15 seconds without saying anything, then asked students to write poems. He wanted students to first think quietly about what happened.

The students did not write their names on the poems, and they did not read them in class. Busbin said they helped him understand students' thoughts and guide his future teaching. The poems, he said, show a desire for a more harmonious⁶ government, a more cooperative⁷ approach and a belief that things can get better.

In David McMullen's classroom at Great Path Academy in Manchester, Connecticut, students argued about the identity of the attackers.

He asked his students to write their thoughts about the event for future historians⁸. "I tell my students, they are the future's primary sources," he said.

Hopeful note for involvement

Teachers usually stay away from voicing their opinions, or if they do talk about them, identify them as their own opinions.

Reising said the conversation among her students was difficult because many have never met face to face. She tried, however, to end the discussion on a hopeful note. As young adults, she sees her students as citizens who can be active in government without using violence.

Conor Murphy teaches at West Genesee High School in Camillus, New York. He remembered the 9/11 attacks, when he was in an American history class and watched the second plane hit the World Trade Center in New York.

He said it was important to help students understand the historical importance of such an event. A year ago, he had a similar job teaching participation¹⁰ in government during President Donald Trump's impeachment¹¹ trial in Congress.

"But," he said, "I've never really had to teach anything quite so, in my opinion, profound¹²."

Words in This Story

kids – n. young people or children

tune out – phrasal verb. to stop caring

apathy – n. the state of not caring about something

response – n. something that is done as a reaction to something else

make a point –v. to place importance on something so it receives attention

harmonious –adj. not experiencing disagreement or fighting

primary source – n. a document or story created at the time of an historic⁹ event

participation –n. being involved with others in doing something

profound – adj. difficult to understand or requiring deep thought or wisdom

1 apathy   

n.漠不关心，无动于衷；冷淡

参考例句：

• He was sunk in apathy after his failure.他失败后心恢意冷。
• She heard the story with apathy.她听了这个故事无动于衷。

2 civic   

adj.城市的，都市的，市民的，公民的

参考例句：

• I feel it is my civic duty to vote.我认为投票选举是我作为公民的义务。
• The civic leaders helped to forward the project.市政府领导者协助促进工程的进展。

3 tune   

n.调子；和谐，协调；v.调音，调节，调整

参考例句：

• He'd written a tune,and played it to us on the piano.他写了一段曲子，并在钢琴上弹给我们听。
• The boy beat out a tune on a tin can.那男孩在易拉罐上敲出一首曲子。

4 terrorists   

n.恐怖主义者，恐怖分子( terrorist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The terrorists have halted their bloody campaign of violence. 恐怖分子已经停止了他们凶残的暴力活动。
• They were finally forced to capitulate to the terrorists' demands. 他们最后被迫屈从恐怖分子的要求。

5 hijacked   

劫持( hijack的过去式和过去分词 )； 绑架； 拦路抢劫； 操纵（会议等，以推销自己的意图）

参考例句：

• The plane was hijacked by two armed men on a flight from London to Rome. 飞机在从伦敦飞往罗马途中遭到两名持械男子劫持。
• The plane was hijacked soon after it took off. 那架飞机起飞后不久被劫持了。

6 harmonious   

adj.和睦的，调和的，和谐的，协调的

参考例句：

• Their harmonious relationship resulted in part from their similar goals.他们关系融洽的部分原因是他们有着相似的目标。
• The room was painted in harmonious colors.房间油漆得色彩调和。

7 cooperative   

adj.有合作意向的，合作的；n.合作社（企业）等

参考例句：

• The workmen are very cooperative,so the work goes on smoothly.工人们十分合作，所以工作进展顺利。
• We decided to set up a cooperative.我们决定开办一家合作社。

8 historians   

n.历史学家，史学工作者( historian的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Historians seem to have confused the chronology of these events. 历史学家好像把这些事件发生的年代顺序搞混了。
• Historians have concurred with each other in this view. 历史学家在这个观点上已取得一致意见。

9 historic   

adj.历史上著名的，具有历史意义的

参考例句：

• This is a historic occasion.这是具有重大历史意义的时刻。
• We are living in a great historic era.我们正处在一个伟大的历史时代。

10 participation   

n.参与，参加，分享

参考例句：

• Some of the magic tricks called for audience participation.有些魔术要求有观众的参与。
• The scheme aims to encourage increased participation in sporting activities.这个方案旨在鼓励大众更多地参与体育活动。

11 impeachment   

n.弹劾；控告；怀疑

参考例句：

• Impeachment is considered a drastic measure in the United States.在美国，弹劾被视为一种非常激烈的措施。
• The verdict resulting from his impeachment destroyed his political career.他遭弹劾后得到的判决毁了他的政治生涯。

12 profound   

adj.深奥的，造诣深的；深度的，极度的

参考例句：

• I give you my profound thanks for saving my life.我对您的救命之恩深表谢意。
• He has a profound knowledge of mathematics.他数学知识渊博。