| Guest speakers bring real-world issues into classes (4/08) | | Print | |
| Written by Lydia O'Connor | |
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Students are working on writing assignments related to speakers who visited to discuss current events in their English class. Yesterday, Debbie Lee from the Family Violence Prevention Fund spoke to English teacher Gloria Daffner’s Expository Writing class about abuse and abuse prevention. On March 20, San Francisco State University student Cleopa Omandi, who is from Kenya, spoke to the class about recent events in his country. Follow-up assignments included reflective essays about the problem of abuse, written comparisons of Kenya and Zimbabwe and thank-you letters to Omandi. Daffner chose the speakers because of their knowledge of current events around the world, which is a focus of the class. “I want them to be informed,” Daffner said. Daffner said she felt Africa deserved specific attention in her class. “Africa is the forgotten continent,” she said. “Many people across the globe ignore Africa, but it’s wrong to just ignore the whole continent.” Omandi’s talk included information about Kenya’s 2007 election, as well as about the “cross-section of dialects, types of food and the values that they hold,” he said. He also discussed a clash between the four Kenyan tribes and mentioned other nations, such as Sudan and Ethiopa. Students appreciated the opportunity to hear Omandi speak. “It was nice getting his perspective on what’s going on in Kenya because it’s firsthand, from an actual citizen,” junior Joyce Mar said. “I learned that we need to do something about issues in foreign countries. Whether we realize it or not, their issues affect us too.” Daffner invited Lee to speak to her class because she feels educating students about abuse is relevant to their daily lives. “We want the profile of the abuser and abusee,” she explained. “I want the kids to know the signs and the profile of an abuser. I want the kids to be knowledgeable and safe.” Lee said that she hopes to teach students “to understand the problem and think about how they can prevent it in their own lives and those of their friends.” Daffner has involved current events in her class throughout the year, including leading discussions of the presidential primaries and urging students to attend “Art and Film” events, which are student excursions to independent films, museums and operas. |
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to listen.
