Should we really always guess C?!?

by Alisha

The school semester is starting and with that comes the use of brain cells many of us have put into hibernation over the summer. As we enter into new classrooms it makes me wonder what type of new thinking will be encouraged.  It seems that students are constantly taught to the test; thinking critically is not often encouraged. We're not taught to ask questions, but instead memorize text books or powerpoints and fill in the appropriate bubble... remember: if you don't know, always guess C!

So what's the benefits of thinking critically and why is it so important? Check out the video above and you'll find out why, but here are a few key points. 

1. It's the key to intellectual independence
2. It helps us solve complex problems:  If we only think of problems as black and white, then we will never find the proper answer. As stated in the video, "if we think in false dichotomies, we draw false conclusion.s" 
3. It helps us to move away from mystification and rash conclusions
4. We widen our knowledge bank 
5. It allows you to accept personal responsibility for your own knowledge 

So my challenge for you is to start changing ignorance to knowledge. Think critically, ask questions, use your brains cells, have engaging conversations, and love life! 

How can we make a difference if we're afraid to try and start?

by Alisha 

When I think of the important things in life, education is definitely on my top 10 list (other items include family, friends, eating amazing food, wonderful art, a good latte + book combo, and kittens to name a few). Someone recently told me that "choosing education is the safe option, there's no courage in that," I was highly offended. With constant budget cuts looming around every corner (check out the California State University budget cuts here), and the fear of future debts looming in my mind, I feel like education is anything but safe right now. As I look forward to my last year of undergrad, which includes grad school applications and taking the GRE on Monday, I’m constantly asking myself why I take education so seriously. 

For me, someone may be able to take away my job, my house, or my car, but no one can remove the knowledge that I possess. Education, traditional or otherwise, is often the basis for empowerment of both students and teachers. It's about taking risks and challenging yourself emotionally, spiritually, and intellectually. This allows you to expand your knowledge bank so you can better understand yourself and others. Education is a practice of liberation and freedom (for more on this theory check out Pedagogy of the Oppressed by Paulo Freire).

One of my favorite education/feminist theorist, bell hooks states, “I think that part of what we connected to was a concern… with not just the academic work we were doing in the classroom, but how that academic works affects us beyond the classroom” (Teaching to Transgress: Education as the Practice of Freedom, p. 134) . As I reflect on my academic career, it's becoming more and more apparent that my studies are consistently interlaced with my "real world" life. Experience allows me to retain knowledge in a more thorough way than reading out of a book. My most effective teachers have been those who have made connections between personal and classroom experiences, not to mention what I’ve learned outside of the traditional classroom setting. 

So, my question is why is school so darn expensive? Why am I forced to be afraid of continuing my education because of the debt and lack of job security in my future? As Congress works on this new budget deal, what are they doing to screw over our students? Check out this article on Fosters Daily for more info.  

I always hear that this next generation is the only hope for our future, but how can we make a difference if we're afraid to try and start?

Following the long legacy of old, white men...

by Rosemari

Photo by Geoffry Berliner

This morning, the Library of Congress announced the appointment of Philip Levine as the Poet Laureate in a press release issued here. If I had the opportunity to write it, it might start out like this: 

"Following the long legacy of old, white men, yet another old, white man has been appointed as the Poet Laureate by The Library of Congress." 

Since 1937, only 14 Poet Laureates have been women. A mere two African Americans have held the post, with no apparent representation from Latinos or Asian Americans. I am aware that diversity takes on many shapes and sizes. I am sure that Levine, as a son of Russian Jewish immigrants from Detroit, he has an interesting perspective.

Still, it's hard to imagine that the United States lacks qualified poets from groups other than this demographic of old, white men, whose their unique perspective and art would further enrich our national culture.

Why Do We Worry?

by Karrin

If we didn’t worry we wouldn’t be alive.  Worry is the necessary beginning of self-awareness.  However, without the tools to process it, it can lead to disease in the form of accidents, illness, behavior and learning problems and anxiety disorders.  Understanding the link between our future worries and our past memories while making a conscious effort to see things in a balanced way is a fundamental key to all personal growth and healing. 

Revisiting the past in order to gain insights as to how to handle the future helps us dissolve our worries. The ability to perceive the future and the past is a remarkable human trait.  The things we worry about in the future can always be linked to a past memory.  Every specific worry reminds us of a past experience.

  

A worry is just a problem without a plan.  In the present moment whatever we are worried about is only an idea.  It is a future projection based on anxiety and panic.  Seeing how we handled the past can help us become aware of how capable we are of handling our current situation. As we dissolve our worries we dissolve our past issues.  When the future and the past are at ease our body relaxes. We become more present, poised, and clear minded.  

Worry, if handled correctly, can lead us to a plan of action.  When worry is transformed it can lead to a balanced viewpoint and gratitude replaces worry and fear.

Appreciating the past automatically gives us more confidence to face the future. The desire to appreciate the past is the key to resolving the fears of our worried minds. Appreciating the past does not make it better or worse.  Appreciation encompasses every emotion and feeling we have in a balanced way. The past is not more negative than positive and the future will also bring a balance of pain and pleasure. The art of appreciation and seeing the balance is a practice. 

Here are a few ways to help:

1.       Pay attention to the things you are worried about.  

2.       Define your worries in terms of emotions.  All future fear is linked to an unresolved past emotion.  

3.       Stop the idea that you worry too much or that you are not worried at all.  Everybody worries.  Everybody worries according to their nature.  

4.       Learning new skills and strategies to cope with your worries helps them transform.

5.       Judging oneself for the way one worries is just another thing to worry about.

Each time we worry we have an opportunity to become self-aware.  When we wisely respond to our worries we become more mature and introspective.  Worry is not a dead end, it is an invitation to see the past and respond to the future in a whole new way. Worry can be a valuable catalyst to living in the present.

What About the Good Stuff? On Art and Social Change

Guest blog by Ashley

In my work against sexual violence, I am commonly referred to as a “prevention evangelist.” While I embrace the term, I kind of wish people would instead call me a “promotion evangelist.” Doing statewide training and technical assistance on the prevention of sexual violence certainly requires that I be an enthusiastic advocate for all things prevention. But what about promotion? As some fellow prevention evangelists have pointed out, we’re so good at articulating and addressing what we are against, but what about the things we are for?

This is where art and pop culture, particularly music, comes in. I can’t tell you how many times I get requests for songs and media that highlight all the harmful norms and conditions that support sexual violence. And they aren’t hard to find.

Pick out any mainstream hip hop or rap lyrics you’ll find an example within less than a minute. Search YouTube for Lil’ Wayne’s latest video. Finding the bad stuff is easy. But what about the good stuff? In our quest to create a peaceful and just world, we point the spotlight towards the violent and the unjust. And we do it in a limited and predictable way that has serious ramifications – demonizing entire genres of music that not only have deep social and political histories, but that have also been co opted by mainstream, White, male business leaders (check out Byron Hurt’s Beyond Beats and Rhymes).

But what about the good stuff?

As organizations like Arte Sana know, art is a powerful, positive tool for social change. If you love or even just like various forms of art just a little, you know that it reaches people in ways that PowerPoint presentations never will. Art is a living medium through which we can promote the healthy beliefs, attitudes, and behaviors we need for strong, vibrant communities.

Folks who work for peace and justice are missing out if we only focus on the ways in which art can do harm. It’s so much more than that.

Some time ago, I asked fans of the band The Material for stories about the impact of their music on theses individuals’ lives. I received story after story about how the band’s music helped fans make it through parental divorces, unhealthy relationships, and even prevented suicide attempts. And that’s one band. Think about all the music that is out there.

Bands like Vedera have written entire albums about relationships that highlight both the good and the bad and promote love and respect. Artists like Deizel P and Dead Prez use their music for social justice. Organizations like Artists United for Social Justice, Music Saves Lives, and Air Traffic Control engage musicians in social change work. Groups like Revibe provide critical analyses of both the good and the bad within art and culture, with a focus on building strong, vibrant and healthy movements.

Social change is about more than simply eliminating the bad stuff. What kind of society and communities would be left if we just extracted all that is harmful? Instead, we must also look at what we put into society and our communities. How are we modeling and promoting the healthy norms we want people to identify with
and spread?

I don’t need to show you research to convince you that people look to art and pop culture to find out what’s cool. Instead of simply trying to convince folks that the unhealthy stuff they see in art isn’t cool, let’s show them what is.

Ashley Maier is the Prevention Program Coordinator at the Oregon Sexual Assault Task Force and Co-Editor of Connect the Dots. Find out more about her work at www.oregonsatf.org and www.connectthedotsmovement.com.