Christian Educators Journal: December 2021

Christian Educators Journal December 2021 Vol. 61 No. 2

Speak Up Civil Discourse as Kinship Encouraging Conversations about Race and Culture I Hear You: Poetry as a Tool for Literacy and Education Highlighting Global Issues through Spoken Commentaries Are You an Indiginest?

Future Issues February 2022—School Staff: A Precious Resource Because the quality of teaching makes the most significant difference in the success of any school, the culture of a school faculty and the training and support given to teachers and staff plays a vital role in achieving a school’s goals. In a Christian school, this has implications for the spiritual development of students as well as their educational success. How do Christian schools develop cultures of learning and growth among their faculty? What types of leadership best help teachers succeed in their work with students? What kind of mentorship and support helps young teachers succeed, and what opportunities and experiences promote longevity and satisfaction in careers of experienced teachers?

What are the elements of successful professional development? And beyond a free pizza lunch, how can we make faculty and staff feel appreciated and supported?

April 2022—Resource Review Each year we highlight the best books, films, websites, teaching tools, and other resources for Christian school teachers. We publish reviews of student-facing material (like which books to stock in your classroom library) as well as materials relevant to school staff (like curriculums or books about teaching). Submissions are currently open. Contact Steve and Abby at cejeditor@ gmail.com to propose an article. Articles are due January 31.

Contents

3 Editorial STEVE TUIT AND ABBY ZWART

5 Civil Discourse as Kinship DAVID LOEWEN

12 Encouraging Conversations about Race and Culture EDITH van der BOOM

19 I Hear You: Poetry as a Tool for

Emotional Literacy and Empathy Education HAYDEN MacKINNON

25 Highlighting Global Issues

through Spoken Commentaries ANTHONY BIGORNIA

30 Are You an Indiginest?

GINETTE MACK

Christian Educators Journal December 2021 1

Christian Educators Journal Vol. 61 No. 2, December 2021 cejonline.com Co-­­­­editors Steve Tuit and Abby Zwart cejeditor@gmail.com The Christian Educators Journal (CEJ) encourages letters to the editor in response to articles presented in the CEJ. Letters must be accompanied by the author’s name and email address. The CEJ reserves the right to edit letters for length and clarity. Where a letter addresses issues raised by the author of an article, the CEJ reserves the right to invite the article author to respond to the letter.

Subscriptions Bill Vriesema 3075 Kissing Rock Lane Lowell, MI 49331 616-­­­­460-­­­­2926 business@cejonline.com Subscription Price (US dollars) US: $20.00 (one year)

$55.00 (three years) Canada: $25.00 (one year)

$70.00 (three years) Foreign: $50.00 (one year)

$150.00 (three years) US Postal Information Nonprofit Organization Postage paid in Grand Rapids, MI Permit No. 657 Return postage guaranteed to: Christian Educators Journal 3075 Kissing Rock Lane Lowell, MI 49331 Address Correction Requested Canadian Postal Information Registered under Publications Mail Agreement: No. 40022165 at Norwich, ON Return postage guaranteed to: Christian Educators Journal PO Box 39 Norwich, ON N0J 1P0 Indexed in Christian Periodicals Index Copyrighted 2000 CEJ. All rights reserved. Christian Educators Journal (130630) is published quarterly by Christian Educators Journal Association.

Scripture All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.com

Statement of Purpose The Christian Educators Journal Association publishes the Journal as a channel of communication for all educators committed to the idea of Christian day school at the elementary, secondary, and college levels. The views expressed are those of the writers and not necessarily those of the association.

Reprint Policy We allow free reprinting or photocopying of individual articles that have appeared in our journal, as long as the copied articles are used within the context of schooling and the source is acknowledged.

Co-­­­­editors Steve Tuit and Abby Zwart Copyeditor Bethany Murphy Design Editor Klaas Wolterstorff Business Manager Bill Vriesema Webmaster Heather Altena Board of Trustees Dr. Henry Algera Heather Birch Justin Cook Dan Diephouse (Secretary) Albert Kok (Chair) Gayle Monsma Ed Noot Jim Rooks Sean Schat Christine Scholma Tricia Stobbe Edith Van Der Boom Heather VanDyke Christine Webb Supporting Institutions Calvin University Edvance Christian Schools Association Institute for Christian Studies The King’s University Redeemer University College Trinity Christian College Tyndale University College Subscribing Organizations Christian Educators Association Christian Educators of British Columbia Prairie Centre for Christian Education Back issues available for 1–10 copies $7.00 per copy 11–30 copies $6.00 per copy 31+ copies $5.00 per copy (cost of shipping to be added to total)

Editorial

I

t takes courage to speak up.

Many social movements of the last several years (like #MeToo or #BlackLivesMatter or #StopAsianHate) have required a few brave individuals to speak up in the face of injustice in order to start a tidal wave of support and change. Anti-­bullying movements like “be nice” and Pink Shirt Day aim to teach students not to be passive bystanders, but to speak up and intervene in bullying situations they see happening around them. The popular YA novel The Hate U Give and its film adaptation follow the story of Starr, a young black girl who learns to harness the power of her voice, at great personal risk, throughout the story. Society highly values politicians and other leaders who are willing to challenge the status quo and speak their minds.

Speaking up is also a key skill in much of Scripture. Moses tries to use his poor speaking skills as an excuse to get out of leading the Israelites out of Egypt (Exod. 4:10). The prophets are called to speak to Israel on behalf of God, so they do—often at great length. The disciples are given the ability to speak in various languages at Pentecost so that they can share the gospel with a new audience (Acts 2). And even the apostle Paul, one of the greatest speakers of the Bible, needs some encouragement to keep him going. In Acts 18, Paul is in Corinth and has “devoted himself exclusively to preaching, testifying to the Jews that Jesus was the Messiah” (v. 5). This isn’t a popular message with the Corinthians, and they “[become] abusive” (v. 6). But God steps in: One night the Lord spoke to Paul in a vision: “Do not be afraid; keep on speaking, do not be silent. For I am with you, and no one is going to attack and harm you, because I have many people in this city.” So Paul stayed in Corinth for a year and a half, teaching them the word of God. (vv. 9–11)

In so many situations—whether they are preaching the gospel, standing up to a bully, or decrying mistreatment and injustice in the world—our students need powerful, practiced voices. They need training in posture, vocabulary, and confidence. They need tips on persuasion and how to be sensitive to diverse audiences. So how do we teach them?

This issue focuses on helping students—and teachers—learn to speak up. Contributors give suggestions for using poetry in your classroom, encouraging civil discourse, administering oral exams, and incorporating more BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, people of color) voices in your curriculum.

Whether you’re encouraging the quiet kid in the back of the room to share an idea or helping hone the already-­boisterous voices of a group of theater students, we hope there’s a tip here for you.

Christian Educators Journal December 2021 3

And remember: teachers have some of the most powerful voices in the room. So do not be afraid. Keep on speaking. God is with you.

Steve and Abby both coach forensics (competitive public speaking and acting) at Grand Rapids Christian High School. In their personal blurbs this month, they’ll share some of their favorite things about the activity.

One of my favorite things about forensics is watching how students grow and change over the course of just one year—especially the students who are trying forensics for the first time. These newbies are unsure of themselves, nervous, fidgety, and often so quiet you can hardly hear them from across the room. They slouch, they shift their weight back and forth, and they say “um” once per sentence. But after just a few weeks of practice, they start to catch on. Good speaking skills are surprisingly easy to teach—there are so many ways to make adjustments, the work is physical, and the results are clearly visible. Students can sense the difference in their confidence and delivery, and they can even see their audiences reacting differently as their skills improve. By the end of their first season of competition, every student has gotten better—and that’s a result we don’t often get to flaunt as teachers.

Forensics is one of the most fulfilling periods of my semester because I get to teach students that their voices matter.

—Abby Zwart Coaching forensics for over a decade means that I’ve gotten to teach a wide range of students, from those who started out with enough charisma to take over a room to those who were at first uncomfortable saying more than a few words in front of anyone they didn’t already know (including the coach).

The most exciting part of it for me has been helping students develop a culture of continually working to get better. Whether the speaker is vying for a state championship or just learning to be comfortable in front of the room, the process of working, speaking, and critiquing becomes the focus. While it’s still fun to challenge and encourage them, I know I’m successful when my students begin to realize they don’t really need me. After all, I won’t be there for the rest of their lives. Shouldn’t my goal be to make myself obsolete?

—Steve Tuit

4 December 2021 Christian Educators Journal

Civil Discourse as Kinship DAVID LOEWEN

O

ne of the greatest blessings of living in the Western world is freedom of speech. While we often experience tension and disagreement around where the boundaries to that freedom should lie, we can be thankful that we do not live in a country ruled by an oppressive regime and exist in constant fear that our words could cause us and our families to suffer. As followers of Jesus, we can “preach Christ and Christ crucified” in the public sphere.

We may experience disagreement or social pressure to quiet ourselves, but we do not experience government violence or imprisonment for talking about Jesus.

I live in the Greater Vancouver area of British Columbia. During my undergraduate days at a local Christian university, one of the large public universities in the city had a “Free Speech Alley” in which anyone could stand and speak about any topic. Students and faculty walking down that passageway were aware that, on a non-­rainy day in Vancouver, they might experience a wide range of talkers focusing on everything from Marxism to sexuality to the perils of the lake of fire. But here’s the thing: if you stopped and watched events unfold, you noticed that most people simply walked down the “alley” without stopping, kind of like it was some sort of unique exhibit. And this raises what I believe to be a fundamental issue with free speech; that is, just because we have the right to speak doesn’t mean anyone is listening! Another example can be found in our halls of government, where it often feels as though everyone is competing to have their voice heard, but I’m not always sure anyone is really listening. Might it be that this reality creates an opportunity for those of us who follow Jesus?

When we step back and reflect on how we grow as humans, how we develop and become more like Jesus, it is generally through intimate relationships of mentoring and discipleship. It is through the give and take of two humans sharing vulnerably and really seeing and hearing each other.

It is through listening well and being heard that we are able to process deep emotions, think through challenging issues, and make critically thoughtful decisions about what it means to be human. In essence, we grow through the support and accountability involved in being deeply known by another.

These are the relationships in which we know we are loved (support) and in that love are challenged to become more fully who God has created us to be (accountability). This is the fundamental truth and somewhat ironic process of following Jesus. We come to God to confess our sins knowing we are already truly known, hence the irony of any false pretense in our faith walk. This truth exposes the silliness of avoiding complete vulnerability with God, who already knows us and who loves us anyway! I believe that Christian Educators Journal December 2021 5

Encouraging Conversations about Race and Culture EDITH van der BOOM

R

Since racism is a learned behavior, it can be challenged, and new behaviors and attitudes can be learned.

ecently I was asked to lead a workshop on differentiated instruction.

Although this topic was not new to me, I decided to come at it from a different perspective and focus on racial differences within the differentiated classroom. Within this workshop I emphasized that a very important aspect of differentiated instruction is to know the learner. In the past, my focus on knowing my students considered their academic strengths and areas of need as well as what their preferences were in regard to learning styles and interests. Over the past couple of years, however, I have become increasingly aware of the need to celebrate the differences that students in my classroom have in terms of race and culture.

Race can be defined as “any one of the groups that humans are often divided into based on physical traits regarded as common among people of shared ancestry.” Culture is “the customary beliefs, social forms, and material traits of a racial, religious, or social group” (Merriam-­Webster). It can be determined by how we express ourselves, how we live out our faith, and how we see things. Culture is not based on physical characteristics but rather on a person’s way of life. Together, culture and race make up our identities, and it is our identity markers that shape how we perceive the world and how the world perceives us.

Racism is defined as “a belief that race is a fundamental determinant of human traits and capacities and that racial differences produce an inherent superiority of a particular race” (Merriam-­Webster). Consequently, racism is something learned, as a set of behaviors and attitudes in daily interactions (Brookfield 211). Although we may not intentionally hold racist thoughts, racism can be a part of the values and beliefs that we learn and assimilate over our lifetime and that make up our perspective on the world (Brookfield 211). Unconscious bias may lead us to racist behaviors that we may not even be aware of, which come into play as we unintentionally make judgements or show support toward others based on their race and/or their culture. Racism is also not limited to one’s individual perspective, but it can affect entire systems, structures, and institutions that hold the power to make decisions (Tisby 49), affecting individuals in all settings in which they live their lives.

Those who have been subjected to racism have described their experience as “the accumulation of racial microaggressions over one’s lifetime—some have referred to this as ‘death by a thousand cuts’—that contributes to the deleterious impact of racial microaggressions on one’s well-­being” (Kim para. 9).

Since racism is a learned behavior, it can be challenged, and new behaviors and attitudes can be learned (Brookfield 223). It is within this framework that I would like to challenge our practices of listening and speaking 12 December 2021 Christian Educators Journal

in the classroom. To do this, I start by writing about ways in which we can think about knowing ourselves as instructors and then knowing our students. What follows is an invitation to be a critically reflective educator and to apply critical reflection to our practice as a way to encourage conversations about race and culture.

Knowing Ourselves as Instructors Racial privilege has shaped and continues to shape experiences of educators from dominant cultures and requires an ongoing journey of de-­centering.

Reflecting on one’s racial identity is an important part of understanding another’s racial identity. I am aware that the way I learn and participate in racial and/or cultural identity is very specific to my own experience, and yet, as a woman with white skin, this is something that I have done very little of. Considering one’s racial identity, however, is a regular practice for those of color (Tisby 41). Racism functions at multiple levels—individual, group, and institutional. Although I am not intentionally racist, I am advantaged in inherently racist systems. There are things that I have done or have been a part of that have been racist, and I belong to a race that for much of history represents the oppressors. As a teacher, I have been in classrooms where whiteness has been made to be the standard by using only dolls, toys, and books in which white children are represented, and where adhesive bandages are used that only match white skin. Whether intentional or unintentional, conscious or unconscious, racism is still racism.

I can’t stress enough how important it is to create a safe environment for students to share about their own racial identities and experiences. Recently, a friend shared with me a hurtful experience that her son had when he was in high school. A teacher came up to him and asked him where he was from. When he informed this teacher that he was from a neighboring town, the teacher asked again, “No, where are you from?” Being of Asian descent, this teacher assumed that this student must have come from a different country. The fact, however, was that this student, with Asian features, was born and raised in Canada. Although the question asked by the teacher was not meant to be hurtful or racist, it was. Without having built a relationship with the student or having provided a safe environment, the seemingly innocent question created a hurtful and racist interaction.

Becoming self-­aware of the ways we learn and participate in a racial and/or cultural identity is important and challenging (Ramsay 20). For instructors in the dominant culture, confronting the evidence of racial privilege found in course and curricular development can be especially humbling (Ramsay 22). When we consider that racism is defined by “an interlocking system of advantage based on race that function[s] at individual, group, institutional, and cultural/symbolic levels” (Ramsay 21), “coming to terms with how pervasively privilege has and continues to shape our experience is an ongoing journey of de-­centering” (Ramsay 20).

Christian Educators Journal December 2021 13

Without having built a relationship with the student or having provided a safe environment, the seemingly innocent question created a hurtful and racist interaction.

Are You an Indiginest?

GINETTE MACK

N

By choosing to accept God’s call to wave a banner of love and support, of truth and reconciliation, we may help a new generation of First Nation children say that through their education, they were encouraged, included, and valued.

Indigenous voices continue to speak up; now is the time for all of us to hear the truth.

orthumberland Christian School (NCS) in Cobourg, Ontario, is uniquely positioned in proximity to the community of Alderville First Nation.

For over twenty years, NCS has enjoyed a partnership with Indigenous families who choose to send their children to Christian school rather than local public or separate schools. Over the last decade, Alderville students have accounted for up to 20–25 percent of the student population at NCS. With such a high percentage of students coming from Alderville, it became apparent that much could be done to support, encourage, and honor the history and traditions of our local First Nations community. This has been our journey.

I am a white, middle-­aged teaching principal of British descent. I live on land adjacent to Alderville First Nation, land that has been carefully stewarded by the Anishinaabe people and many other First Nations from time immemorial. I believe God has invited our school community into his incredible work. By choosing to accept his call to wave a banner of love and support, of truth and reconciliation, we may help a new generation of First Nation children say that through their education, they were encouraged, included, and valued. I feel equally responsible to ensure that non-­Indigenous students, my own included, grow up in relationship with, and as advocates for, Indigenous communities. We are all treaty people.

I did not grow up learning about residential schools or the failure of treaties as part of my education. Indigenous history has been completely misrepresented and misinterpreted in Canadian history lessons spanning more than a hundred years. Most settler-­Canadian adults today have little knowledge of past government decisions or the church’s role in the cultural genocide that a country such as Canada, that claims freedom and equity for all, was responsible for. Many still do not understand the complexities of the socio-­economic struggles on reserves today. Misguided popular opinion about Indigenous issues abound. Schools must become places of active listening and truthful interpretation. Indigenous voices continue to speak up; now is the time for all of us to hear the truth.

The Story of Shawundais Shawundais, an Annishinaabe man born on the banks of the Black River in Upstate New York, relocated to the Bay of Quinte after fighting for the British in the War of 1812. Displacement, disease, and decimation of village life were the gifts this war bestowed on his people, but Shawundais was resilient. He was a storyteller, a man of incredible humor and wit. His 30 December 2021 Christian Educators Journal

audiences, both settler and Indigenous, were captivated as he told of his life before and during the war and of his current dreams.

One night Shawundais dreamed that his two deceased sons had traded in their traditional clothing for the white robes of heaven. They were beckoning their baby sister to join them. Not long after this, his daughter died, leaving Shawundais devastated. The white settlers had healthy babies.

Maybe their God was true? he thought. It was soon after that dream that he converted to the white man’s religion and joined the Methodist mission under Rev. William Case, the big “black coat” man. Shawundais was no longer just a storyteller, but a missionary to his own people, and he was given an English name: John Sunday.

In 1826 the mission was relocated to Grape Island, three miles out into the Bay of Quinte. Here, the Methodist Church would keep the 130 Indigenous converts safe from the influences of the irreligious settlers, and the process of Christianization would be implemented. Within a decade, sixteen Indigenous missionaries, including John Sunday and William Beaver, would successfully spread the gospel across Southern Ontario and Upstate New York. The little community would also outgrow their island and find a new place to settle. Reverend Case secured 3,304 acres of reserve lands at Rice Lake, and by the spring of 1835, the exodus from Grape Island to Alder(s) ville began on foot and by canoe. The new settlement was named after Rev. Robert Alder, a man John Sunday met and admired on his travels to England.

Many from the community were returning to the place where their ancestors had once harvested wild rice, but with the coming of the settlers, the rice was already beginning to disappear from Rice Lake. The conditions were harsh. Some died and others nearly starved as they were forced to rebuild their lives once more, but they were resilient. The English names of those original families who travelled from Grape Island to Alderville included Simpson, Sunday, Crowe, Skunk (Marsden), and Beaver (Clark 31–59).

What would you say if I told you I have a student named John Sunday in my class? What if I told you he was the great, great, great grandson of Shawundais? This story is not fiction, but truth. It is both the story and the history of a community of people whose lives and work shaped Southern Ontario. Strangely, as a child growing up in Belleville, where I drove along the shores of the Bay of Quinte each day on my way to and from school, no one ever told me the story of Shawundais. It was not part of the curriculum.

What would you do if you had the descendant of Shawundais in your class? What if the last names of other students in your school included Simpson, Crowe, Marsden, and Beaver? Would it make you value this story more? Would it change the content of the curriculum? Would it transform learning for your students?

What if you don’t have any students with Indigenous heritage in your school? Does this history only matter if you do? What stories shape your curriculum choices, and who decides whose story is included or excluded?

Whose voice is heard in your classroom? Who gets to speak up?

If you work in a Christian school in Ontario, a province where the government mandated in 2007 that Indigenous education be included in the curriculum, do you heed the call to reconcile the wrongs of the past, to be justice-­seekers and truth-­tellers? Do you see yourself as uniquely positioned as a follower of Jesus to bring light and life in response to what is arguably Canada’s deepest darkness? Or have you, like so many, avoided the subject?

Christian Educators Journal December 2021 31

What stories shape your curriculum choices, and who decides whose story is included or excluded?

Whose voice is heard in your classroom? Who gets to speak up?