Reading list for inspiration, for insight, for fun!

Just a quick note as I start the spring term about a few books I've been reading. People often ask me, "What are you reading?" Well, here ya go!

Some of these are texts, others are just for fun, and some are challenges to see the world in a whole new way:

Last Child in the Woods by R. Louv (2008)- Puzzled by why your kids won't go outside and play? Louv explains it!

Ecological Literacy: Education and the Transition to a Post-Modern World by David Orr (1992) Orr can get preachy and be a bit of a downer at times, but he can also be divinely inspiring, clinging to hope for a better future!

Ecological Education in Action: On Weaving Education, Culture, and the Environment, edited by Smith and Williams (1999)- real stories about educators making a difference around the world. Wanna know what Portland State University is doing to engage students in a new worldview? Check out chapter 8.

Ecological Literacy: Educating our Children for a Sustainable World, a great collection of essays edited by Stone and Barlow (2005)

Canadian Journal of Environmental Education, volume 12 (2007)

Gaviotas- A Village to Reinvent the World by Alan Weisman (1998), an inspiring story of an ecovillage in Eastern Colombia's llano region and how they set out to change the world.

Tangled Routes- Women, Work, and Globalization on the Tomato Trail by Deborah Brandt (2008), an ethnographic look at the impacts of globalization and industrial food production on poor workers in Mexico, the US, and Canada. This puts a real face to the workers who are making individual steps toward creating a more sustainable approach to food production.

and just for fun and inspiration:

Tales of a Female Nomad - Living at Large in the World by Rita Golden Gelman (2001)

The Hidden Reality- Parallel Universes and the Deep Laws of the Cosmos by Brian Greene (2011)

How to Teach Physics to Your Dog by Professor Chad Orzel (2009)

Women of the Raj by Margaret MacMillian (1988).

Humor in Service-Learning, a serious business...

On a Lighter Note: Humor in the Service-Learning Experience

International Service-Learning can be overwhelmingly serious at times as students wrestle with issues of power, unearned privilege, social justice, and cultural imperialism. It’s in moments like these that I remember how humor can bring balance and perspective to the weightier issues of service-learning. Bell hooks (2010) writes that positive humor can bring healing, equanimity, and openness to the classroom. The shared experiences of an international service-learning team can range from profound to light-hearted, especially when we laugh at ourselves and our own reactions to new situations.

And so, I wrote an Ode to the Cockroach Coach as a light-hearted way of seeing what for some might have been a traumatic event (the train ride from Kanyakumari to Madurai with more cockroaches than we could count). When we are able to laugh at our reactions to hardships or even petty events, we find new freedom and positive energy. The ode was written so that students could laugh at their reactions and over-reactions to less than pleasant conditions on the train across India.

Ode to Cockroach Coach

From Kanyakumari to great Madurai,

We count up the critters,

My friends and I.

Cockroaches crawling all over the train

As we play, “would you rather…”,

Bam! There’s a new stain.

There’s one over your shoulder!

There’s one in your hair.

Ewwww. Cockroaches, cockroaches everywhere.

Slap! goes a sandal.

Smack! The bug is down.

The travellers around us disapprove with a frown.

Gina got forty!

Matthew got ten!

How many want to play this game again?

Anyone? Anyone?

Anyone at all?

The train is leaving…final call.

No? well, don’t worry

If you didn’t play.

Maybe you’ll ride another day.

On the Cockroach Coach

from Kanyakumari to Madurai,

We count up the hits,

My friends and I.

And as we pull into the station,

We heave a sigh.

Though no one is sorry to say, “Good-bye”

To the Cockroach Coach

from Kanyakumari to Madurai.

I think one goal of service-learning trips is to try to maintain balance. In our enthusiasm to respond to the needs at Mother Teresa Home, we returned the next day with more than what Sister Jennifer had asked. In our good intentions to be generous, we inadvertently created chaos. I forgot my plan of action when we got to Mother House and the women swarmed us. Though we could have listened better to what the needs were and could have executed our plan in a more organized manner, I don’t believe we did permanent damage. My teammates were beside themselves with approbation at the minor fiasco. Though I recognize that service-learners can create more problems than they help, I think maintaining a sense of humor can bring much needed perspective and balance to a serious situation. To my team members, I’d like to say, “Lighten up!” By all means, remain sensitive to the needs of those we are trying to serve, but do not get so lost in the gravity of the circumstances that you cannot laugh at yourself or our foibles and mistakes.

Reading Resources

Barnet, S. and Bedau, H. (2004). From Critical Thinking to Argument: a Portable Guide.

Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s.

Chisholm, Linda A. [ed.] (2005). Knowing and doing: The theory and practice of service-

learning. International Partnership for Service-Learning and Leadership.

Chisholm, L. (2003). Partnerships for international service-learning. In B. Jacoby and

Associates (Eds.). Building partnerships for service-learning, pp. 259-288. San

Francisco: Jossey Bass.

Crabtree, R. (2008). Theoretical foundations for international service-learning. Michigan Journal

of Community Service Learning, 15(1), 18-36.

Cress, C. Collier, P., Reitenauer, V., & Associates (2005). Learning through serving: A student

guidebook for service-learning across the disciplines. Sterling, VA: Stylus Publishing,

LLC.

Freire, P. (2000). Pedagogy of the Oppressed: 30^th Anniversary Edition. New York:

Continuum.

Hooks, b. (2010). Teaching Critical Thinking. New York: Routledge.

Lutterman-Aguilar, A., & Gingerich, O. (2002). Experiential pedagogy for study abroad:

Educating for global citizenship. Frontiers: The Interdisciplinary Journal of Study

Abroad, 8, 41-82.

Montrose, Lynne. (2002). International study and experiential learning: The academic context.

Frontiers, Winter, 1-15.

Parker, B. & Dautoff, D. (2007). Service-learning and study abroad: Synergistic learning

opportunities. Michigan Journal of Community Service Learning, 13(2), 40-53.

Sperling, R. (2007). Service-Learning as a Method of teaching Multiculturalism to White College Students. Journal of latinos and Education, 6 (4): 309-322.

What I learned from India...2011

“The world is weary of hate. We see the fatigue overcoming the western nations. We see that this song of hate has not benefited humanity. Let it be the privilege of India to turn a new leaf and set a lesson to the world.”- Mahatma Gandhi

January 31, 2011 Writing prompt: What is service?

For me, service is about others. It takes the focus off of me and puts others first. I’m reminded of the little song I used sing as a child: “J-O-Y. J-O-Y. This is what it means: Jesus first, and Yourself last, and Others in between.” There is an indescribable freedom that comes when I get my eyes off of myself and focus on others instead, when I stop thinking about myself first and put others’ needs first!

So when I am at Mother House, I put aside my germ phobia, my discomfort or uneasiness about being around handicapped people and I look into their eyes. I connect soul-to-soul and I reach out in love. Hugging, touching, smiling, talking, singing, playing, coloring, and dancing are just forms for communicating love, for celebrating the beauty of each person I meet. Paolo Freire (2000) warns that multicultural service-learners may inadvertently engage in acts of cultural invasion and domination under the guise of a helping friend. So how do we avoid this exploitative relationship in international service-learning? I truly believe that our aim must not be to “help” other cultures or people, but to love. When we love, we find that our relationships tend to be reciprocal and transcendent. Hatred and insecurity have led to kingdoms, realms of domination. Only love can liberate, set free, and abolish oppression.

February 1, 2011- Quote: “I expect to pass through this life but once. If, therefore, there be any kindness I can show or any good thing I can do to any fellow being, let me do it now and not defer or neglect it as I shall not pass this way again.”- William Penn

Theme for today is “carpe diem” or “seize the day.” I went back to Mother Teresa Home today. We danced for two hours, laughing and celebrating each woman who joined us. I gave hand, foot, arm and leg massages with lotion to the women whose skin is very dry and cracked. They lined up by the dozens to get a massage. And then we danced!

The best part about dancing is that we celebrate each other. Joy bubbles up. The women praise each other as they step out to the music. While I “entertained the troops”, Melissa, Tommy, Matt, and Sarah went inside and had a talk with Sister Jennifer, the nun in charge. The women call her “Amma” or mother. Sister Jennifer said that the women need basic items like laundry detergent, hand soap, and coconut oil for their hair.

Many women are bedridden. Others just lie outside on the ground, covered in flies. Some have mental handicaps, others violent mental illness, still others don’t have use of their bodies. But when I look in their eyes, I see incredible, deep, accepting love. These women have become so precious to me. Rosie, Betchy, Sylvie, and the little ones are beautiful to me!

How do we teach global citizenship without it turning into acts of cultural invasion or another form of imperialistic dogma and domination? We help students discover their capacity to love, to embrace humanity in all of its beautiful forms, to celebrate the ordinary, to celebrate every individual, and to accept each person as a precious gift endowed with beauty and glory however humble or great their circumstances in life may be. We cultivate a culture of love and care. I believe this is foundational to any affective engagement or effective service-learning. Love is a subject we shy away from in western society. It is often relegated to the realm of emotion as somehow less desirable than an empirical approach to learning. Yet, feminist research (Lutterman-Aguilar & Gingerich, 2002) shows that learners who think critically and connect emotionally to a subject (head + heart learning) find their own voice in constructing knowledge and are more proactive about positive social transformation.

As bell hooks (2010) writes: “To me the classroom continues to be a place where paradise can be realized, a place of passion and possibility; a place where spirit matters, where all that we learn and all that we know leads into greater connection, into greater understanding of life lived in community” (p. 151.). Service-learning pedagogy must accommodate room for spirituality and for love, because spirituality is about how we live and love in the world and how we interact with self and with others.

Reading Resources

Barnet, S. and Bedau, H. (2004). From Critical Thinking to Argument: a Portable Guide.

Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s.

Chisholm, Linda A. [ed.] (2004). Visions of service. New York, NY: The International

Partnership for Service-Learning and Leadership.

Chisholm, Linda A. [ed.] (2005). Knowing and doing: The theory and practice of service-

learning. International Partnership for Service-Learning and Leadership.

Chisholm, L. (2003). Partnerships for international service-learning. In B. Jacoby and

Associates (Eds.). Building partnerships for service-learning, pp. 259-288. San

Francisco: Jossey Bass.

Crabtree, R. (2008). Theoretical foundations for international service-learning. Michigan Journal

of Community Service Learning, 15(1), 18-36.

Cress, C. Collier, P., Reitenauer, V., & Associates (2005). Learning through serving: A student

guidebook for service-learning across the disciplines. Sterling, VA: Stylus Publishing,

LLC.

Freire, P. (2000). Pedagogy of the Oppressed: 30^th Anniversary Edition. New York:

Continuum.

Hooks, b. (2010). Teaching Critical Thinking. New York: Routledge.

Lutterman-Aguilar, A., & Gingerich, O. (2002). Experiential pedagogy for study abroad:

Educating for global citizenship. Frontiers: The Interdisciplinary Journal of Study

Abroad, 8, 41-82.

Montrose, Lynne. (2002). International study and experiential learning: The academic context.

Frontiers, Winter, 1-15.

Parker, B. & Dautoff, D. (2007). Service-learning and study abroad: Synergistic learning

opportunities. Michigan Journal of Community Service Learning, 13(2), 40-53.

Sperling, R. (2007). Service-Learning as a Method of teaching Multiculturalism to White College Students. Journal of latinos and Education, 6 (4): 309-322.

Posting about India soon...

Sorry kids. I've been remiss in posting lately. I'll fill you in on the details of the trip to India as soon as I can wade through the eight papers which are due in the next week.

I'm meeting with the India team from Portland State University tomorrow night for dinner: Indian food, of course!

I will say that this trip was heart-expanding and heart-opening. My capacity to love has grown exponentially in light of the love shown to me by the kind people of southern India. To be the recipient of so much love and generosity over and over again is a truly humbling experience.

But more details next week...