Course Syllabus, Spring 2017

Education 266:  Schools in American Cities

Jody Cohen                                                                                                                            

TTH 12:55-2:15                                                                                                                    

Office: Bettws-y-coed 302    

Meetings by appointment                                                     

Email: jccohen@brynmawr.edu                     

The course

           For our collective exhibit, I researched oriki, or praise songs, which are part of the Yoruba oral traditions. I specifically looked at the oriki poem about Ọlọ́wẹ̀ of Isẹ̀ , who is considered by many art historians and art collectors to be the most influential Yoruba artist of the 20^th century. I researched how Ọlọ́wẹ̀ of Isẹ̀ made his doors and some of the carving techniques he used, such as high and uneven relief work.

Hair is a physical marker of difference onto which social signifiers are imprinted. Hair of all kinds is reshaped and chemically altered by different processes in order to exploit socially established notions of beauty. In this way, hairstyles and hair function as social capital. Nevertheless, hegemonic interpretations of Black hair and hairstlyes inscribe additional levels of cultural and political meaning onto the ways that Black womyn decide to style their hair.

Brian Arao and Kristi Clemens, "From Safe Spaces to Brave Spaces: A New Way to Frame Dialogue Around Diversity and Social Justice." The Art of Effective Facilitation: Reflections from Social Justice Educators (Sterling, Virginia: Stylus Publishing, 2013), 135-150: https://ssw.umich.edu/sites/default/files/documents/events/colc/from-safe-spaces-to-brave-spaces.pdf

English 244 (TTh 2:25-3:45, English House Lecture Hall) and
Education 244 (W 1:10-4, Thomas 104), Bryn Mawr College, Spring 2017

Dear Anne,

Having chosen and came to this class is one of the luckiest thing I have in the first semester of Brynmawr. I was born and raised in a small town of China until I was 15, then I came to an international high school in Shenzhen alone, an international city, for four years. Now I come to US, a totally different country and culture for me. This is how my story changes. The esem topic “changing our story” is hence an appealing topic for me, I hoped it would help me to understand different cultures and also ourselves. At the end of the semester, it turns out to be true.

By the end of the semester, our presentation project topic also comes to an end. Compare to the conclusion and the process of presentation that lasted for 7 minutes, our process of drafting the plan and the research process that lasted for more than a month is much more meaningful and significant.

                                                        IN COLE’S SHOES

Dear Anne,

Changing our environment, altering our identities! I was so excited when I was allocated this class for my Emily Balch seminar. I didn’t know what it entailed nor who my colleagues would be but still, I was so happy that my family members didn’t have peace that day because of me, who apparently was trying to explain to them so that we could share in the joy. Looking at things right now, I must say that deep down I am happy even more than I was back then. Happy because of this journey we partook together which I believe has been key to my final academic path in life and more so, because of the memories; good or bad that I will forever carry with me.