Sunday, April 29, 2012

Did your family arrive in the United States through Ellis Island!

Students will be visiting with scholars at the Council for Foreign Relations, checking their family history on Ellis Island, visiting the Statue of Liberty, holding a discussion at the 9/11 Memorial and Museum, seeing the internationally recognized Islamic Exhibit at the Metropolitan Museum, St. John the Divine, the Intrepid, the Apollo Theatre and the Harlem Renaissance, Central Park and the John Lennon Memorial.

Research on each site has been done in advance, and students will be making short, informational presentations to the entire group at the site and a reflection on the visits as part of the "final exam."

Global Issues and Human Geography, with Professors Terry Sherer and Chad Dewaard, have joined forces in looking at the United Nations'  Millenium Goals as they take off for the United Nations in New York City! The U.N. Millenium Goals have an expansive but straightforward purpose: to improve the lives of extremely poor people around the world.

I can’t wait to travel to New York,” says Sara Allen, freshman elementary education major from Rock Island, Ill.  My father is working in Iraq, so I’m anxious to visit the 9/11 Memorial and Musuem and learn more about the impact it has had on current world affairs.”

Jordan Thompson, sophomore elementary education major from Clarence, Mo (population 800) says, “I’m really waking up to the world and New York City--I’ve never dreamed of visiting, much less studying there.”

Students will be reporting on the "news" each day, incorporating the five themes of geography, looking at the foreign policy ramifications, investigating the progress toward the Millenium Goals of each of the seven continents as we move toward 2015, and engaging in thought/discussion about how they, as citizens, "make a difference" locally while thinking globally.

Reading and research in these classes focus on the National Council of Social Studies Standards as they are integrated in the development of experiential class work. Standards focus on culture, people/places/environments/individuals/groups/institutions, global connections, and civic ideals and practices.