A collaborative partnership between the Department of Communication Studies
at California State University, Northridge and Grant High School.
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A collaborative partnership between the Department of Communication Studies
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Great Successes 2003-2004 In 2004, we expanded the Communicating Common Ground project and now have two curricular options that are implemented in alternate semesters. In Option 1: Bridging Difference/Building Community, CSUN students facilitate weekly sessions addressing issues such as stereotyping, ethnocentrism, cultural awareness, immigrant histories and conflict resolution. In Option 2: Globalizing Culture/Making Connections, CSUN students develop and facilitate weekly sessions for 9th grade Advanced Placement Geography students addressing the cultural dimensions of current global trends shaping our world. Student teams take a hands-on, interactive approach to teach high school students about culture, globalization, and social justice. The Globalizing Culture/Making Connections program allows CSUN students to gain experience working collaboratively in multicultural teams, gain in-depth knowledge about the intercultural dimensions of current issues and make connections between international, global trends and local issues. 2002-2003 This year brought an increased awareness of how CSUN students serve as role models for Grant High School students. We met students on the Grant High School campus, participants in the program two years earlier, who told us their decision to apply to college came as a direct result of making connections with CSUN students in our project. Many of our CSUN students grappled with issues when they were in high school similar to those Grant students face so their stories of struggle, setting and meeting goals--educational and personal goals--offer encouragement and advice. Through their mentoring role during the semester, university students report feeling a sense of empowerment--they can make a difference in the world around them--and an increased commitment to further their own and others’ education. One of our most significant areas of learning was how transformative it can be if people develop relationships with each other. Over the course of 8 weeks, CSUN students and Grant students shared their struggles, challenges, and dreams, which created strong bonds across ethnic and racial lines that they never imagined could have happened. 2001-2002 In terms of our work in the classroom, one of our most striking successes was seeing high school students learn to care about each other and develop friendships across different cultural backgrounds. At the beginning of the projects, students often espoused a fairly pessimistic view about the future of intercultural relations at the school. By the end of the project, we were encouraged to see them choose to work in groups that crossed cultural and ethnic boundaries and to say they actually liked their classmates. In one class, 28 our of 32 students were born outside the US. While their cultural and national backgrounds were different, they learned they have much in common as immigrants. The Grant High School students also stated that they learned alternative ways of thinking about cultural differences and actual skills for minimizing and avoiding conflicts. The project also offers university students a chance to develop their public speaking and leadership skills. Many CSUN students remarked on how the project helped them improve their ability to communicate more effectively interculturally and led them to take on greater leadership responsibilities. 2000-2001 We ended our year of hard work by producing a piece of artwork that captured the spirit and goals of our project. All students involved in the project, CSUN and Grant High School students, were give a 4 inch by 4 inch wood block and asked to decorate it in a way that depicted their cultural identity. After the individual blocks were completed, they were assembled on a black, plywood backing. The overall effect is one of a collage or mosaic that allows us to see our individual identities within a larger multicultural whole. The piece is stunning! While each piece is unique and interesting individually, the complex interplay between and among them and the overall design that is created as the blocks are brought together provides an inspiring metaphor for the possibilities of a culturally diverse world. We hosted reception on June 6th, 2001 at Grant High School to unveil the piece and celebrate our year of success. Parents, students, administrators, teachers and staff from both Grant High School and CSUN were there to join in the celebration. Representatives from both Armenian and Latino TV stations video-taped the event for future program. |
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Dr. Kathryn Sorrells with
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