1. Find a theme in either of these 3 WOWO narratives that connects in some way to your community partner.
2. Choose one of the narrative styles* that the authors use to compose the WOWO "journey" (as we have discussed in past blogs) and write a short narrative (1 paragraph) in this style about how your community partner demonstrates or illustrates the theme.
3. Choose a theme from one of the other narratives (the one you didn't draw from above) that connects in some way to the interview that you conducted with a service provider. Using another narrative style write a short narrative using evidence from the transcription to illustrate the theme.
* WOWO pg. xvi: Immersion, Observation, Other Examples, Reflection
Themes in Community Service
ReplyDeleteThe narrative that I most connected with in WOWO was the narrative based in the United States. Many of the authors of WOWO had been around the world and found themselves surprised to be back in the United States, they had seen true poverty across the globe and didn’t expect to really see it when they got back in their home country. I related to this because when I had heard about MCCS, and the students there I was suprised because I knew that Marin was a very wealthy area, and I thought there would be little to no people who struggled with obtaining their education. Many people also think this way when it comes to Marin county and it makes it easy for apart of the population to be overlooked. It also reminded me of how Dominican closely works with MCCS, the same thing also happens in Ohio, because Ohio State University also works very closely with the food bank in Columbus, Ohio. On page 197 the Dean of Social Sciences discusses how important was to his department to work with the food bank, to better his curriculum.
In connection with my interview I had with the principal of MCCS, and the work that WOWO did in India, specifically about the Shinkshantar, or the learning center in Udaipur. In this area is where the poorest of the poor are, those which are called the untouchables “you encounter the double edges of frustration and joy in inventing anew the cycle mixie.” p. 132. This is similar to MCCS because, MCCS is considered the last place in the public school system. Despite this in the learning center in India they make great strides in making their community a better place to live. The same is at MCCS, although most do not think it is the best place to be the teachers work very hard so that the students can be successful once they leave.
Lauren Rocha
Creating a Sense of Community
ReplyDeleteI chose Greece for my service learning experience, as in Canal Alliance everyone seems to work together as one big family. “During the next ten days, we will practice this by feeding one another, working on the land together playing games and engaging in the questions that matter most”. “Our time is like a family reunion, gathering together the diverse threads of our tribe” (161). I always see these two girls sitting next to each other and thought they were sisters, as they are always doing homework together and turns out they are only good friends. I’ve noticed that most of the students at Canal Alliance talk to each other in a very comfortable tone, I always see them joking around and roughing around like brotherly love to one another, especially the guys. I feel that it is very important to go to a center where there is a family feeling, where each student is comfortable with one another and expressing their emotions in a family-like environment.
Observation- I feel that many people that are from foreign countries feel that California is the land of rich people, especially here in Marin County. I’ve talked to a lot of my foreign friends and they think I’m full with money because I live here. However, that is not the case for me as for many people living in Marin County. When we take a look at the Canal, we see a place were many individuals live in the same apartment in order to save money or just because of the lack of resources. Marin County is very diverse and there are a lot of low-income people living in this area.
I chose to relate the United States narrative for the interview with the service provider. There is one question that intrigued me about the United States narrative: “How do I help people be together better?” (194). I remember the interview with VinH with the Asian Alliance, he told me that we needed to work together as a whole. But that it was on every person the duty to work as a team to improve the Canal community. It is up to you to start making changes and be proactive within the community, it takes one person to make a difference, and imagine if one person becomes a whole group working together for one cause- we can do wonders to improve the Canal.
Carla Garcia
1.) The theme that best goes with my community partner is the India narratives. In the India narratives it talks about the idea of not needing materialized object in order to have happiness. I think this connects well with Karen's cooking classes at Bahia Elementary School. The kids are excited to learn new recipes and make food with their own hands. They have a lot of fun doing it, taking turns, and helping one another. They are excited to try new recipes, they are able to have fun with out material things like electronics or toys. Karen or Bahia Vista could easily just put the kids in a room with toys but they are learning life skills in Karen's cooking class and having a great time.
ReplyDelete2.) I was in my seat and I couldn't stop looking at the clock. The time was going by so slowly, these last five minutes of class seemed to drag on for a half an hour. I was getting very jittery in my seat and I could see others around me doing the same thing. My teachers voice seemed to drone on as she explained the homework the was due tomorrow. I started day dreaming when I heard the bell ring, signaling class was over. I jumped out of my seat and tried not to run to the door but fast walk. Our teacher finally let us out of the door and I could see my friend up ahead getting ready to go upstairs to the faculty room. I caught up to them and we all waked together. We made it up the stair and around the corner. The first thing we saw was Miss Karen and her Dominican helpers. She greeted us with a warm smile and said" Hello class, today is smoothie day!".
3.) The United States narrative connected to my interview the best. In the United States narrative they bring up the idea of having a lot of people who are willing to help and are trying to find new ways to lead change. In my interview with Coach Wayne this concept was brought up as well. He expressed the fact that a lot of people are willing to help in the Canal but they are all as individuals instead they need to work with others that are also trying to accomplish the same goal. This idea is also brought up in our research project because we are trying to find out how the better serve the Canal residence. It is better to work within a group to accomplish goals then to be a person alone.
Kailey Steele
Community Support
ReplyDelete1. The narrative that relates most to my community partner was the India narratives. Throughout this, I saw the theme of offering support and guidance. Whenever I work at MCCS, I always see students who are participative with their friends and others who need the support of people like us. If a kid finds or hears something new, he/she would share that information with another individual. As we share our skills and discoveries, and then have our gifts greeted with enthusiasm, we feel inspired to keep creating" (156). By offering our skills and service, we are giving these kids hope and the support that they need to succeed.
2. I'm walking to my classroom hoping that today will be a good day. I'm finally in class sitting down as the teacher starts the lesson. It's just like any other day. The sun is shining right down on me and I'm doing my best to pay attention. I get my math test back and see that I didn't do as well. Time goes on and the bell finally rings. The door opens and I see my Dominican tutor ready to help me out!I'm sitting with him going over my test and he's helping me understand what I got wrong.
3. The narrative that would relate most to my interview would probably be the United States narrative. This was most connected because it talks about people who are willing to make change in the world. "Leaders, and those they happily host, take on large-scale intractable problems and discover they're capable of solving them" (208). Throughout the interview, I noticed how Bob Sullivan addressed how his organization supports many find education, healthcare, and different programs that help people living in the Canal. He highlighted how the Opportunity Center works together to make sure that the communities needs are fulfilled and working with them to solve their problems. Even through our research project, we as individuals are looking for ways to improve and help better residents in the Canal.
- Rajiv Patel