Friday, October 11, 2013

Honoring Malala

So, I woke up today hoping to hear that Malala had won the Nobel Peace Prize for her courage, advocacy, and persistence in promoting education for girls. (and boys!) Alas, it was not to be, but she is one of the few contemporary teenagers whose voice has inspired change in the world.

Although her story is a complex one, I felt it was more than timely to include in our discussions on people who have impacted their communities. Her work continued today in our small town, changing perspectives of even more students, and hopefully inspiring them through her examples.

After reading and discussing the article "Malala Yousafzai Attends Her First Day Back at School" , the kids impressed me with their eagerness to understand, and they asked many questions.
It's hard to explain why girls are banned from education. It's also hard to explain why sometimes people in charge aren't thinking of "how dumb the girls will be if they don't get to learn anything". (quote from one student) It's even more complex to explain why the girls can't "just run quick, if they're covered up, no one will know who it is"(quote from another student)...but yet, they were intrigued by this glimpse into another world.

Indeed what we take for granted can be another's luxury.

And so, after talking about courage, risk, and different beliefs, when asked what my students would risk their lives for, their answers ran quite the gamut.

We challenge you to ask yourself the same question. Then read their responses. They are compiled below.
How would you answer the question? What would you risk your life for? Why?
Or would you risk it at all?  Only one student said she wouldn't risk her life for "nothing", but
then changed her mind when she realized she was the only one. 

Close up of their thoughts.

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