The Progressive Minds Journal - February 2020 Edition

Warmest greetings to all our readers! It is indeed a pleasure to have the opportunity to address you a second time in this our February 2020 Edition of the Progressive Minds Journal. This month is even more important and dear to our team than our pioneering January Edition that signaled the launch of our Publication. This edition promises continuity and the realization of a long-term dream of building an international network of readers, content creators, business owners and NGOs. We aim to facilitate the creation of a small, medium and microenterprise-friendly advertisement platform, the creation of employment unbound by geographic borders, sensitization of movements and causes around the world - all in an effort to connect them with like-minded organizations with complementary corporate and social responsibility visions – but above all, our mission is to provide a trusted medium on which writers the world over have the opportunity to share their thought-provoking think-pieces with readers thirsting for insight and perspectives that exceed the often limited scope of mainstream media.

The Progressive Minds Journal and Team Firebrand are very proud of the work we have accomplished thus far, and what we set out to achieve in the upcoming months. We have partnered with some amazing people who are committed to ground-breaking work in their communities, countries and regions, and are committed to supporting and highlighting their efforts. Our team scouts internationally for budding talent – written or graphic – and charitable causes that can benefit from the largescale exposure of this publication. We invite you to connect with us! Shoot us an email at theprogressivemindsjournal@gmail.com if you are interested in joining the team. We are currently reviewing potential candidates to become full-time writers, photographers as well as to fill positions available on our executive board and international representative quorum.

I would to take this opportunity to thank all our readers and supporters, and to wish each and every one of you a fruitful and groundbreaking February! Happy reading!

Best regards,

Esther Dafna Armoogam Editor-in-Chief

The Progressive Minds Journal was created with today’s reader in mind. We are committed to expanding the scope of literature reaching the public, and pledge to bring interesting, stimulating information to readers the world over. We offer aspiring writers the opportunity to join us in our quest to bring to light global news and issues all too often ignored by main-stream media, or over-sensationalized to gain viewership. The Progressive Minds Journal invites you to join us on our journey of personal development and horizon expansion.

The Importance of equipping Teachers with Child Psychology and Mental Health Training for the Classroom.

There are several reasons why kids get left behind in the classroom. According to a study by Charles M. Reigeluth and Brian J. Beatty, they propose that there are four main reasons why children are left behind in the school system.

1. Unmet needs that effectively block or interfere with their learning.

2. They may lack the motivation to exert the effort necessary for learning

3. They may lack the foundation of knowledge ie. Skills, understanding and information

4. They may lack quality instruction to support their learning

Unmet needs refer to the fact that there is nothing we can do to help children learn if their basic needs are unmet. For example, if a child comes from a physically or emotionally abusive home, or are coming day after day without having any or adequate meals, there is nothing that educators can do to promote learning. Unless the underlying issue is addressed, the child would not be in a frame of mind to commit to serious study and would therefore have increased odds of being left behind.

The second factor, motivation, is imperative for the engagement of the child in their learning and understanding. Children are generally very excited to start attending school and begin the learning process. They have big dreams and aspirations of who and what they want to be “when they grow up”, and usually have a pretty good sense that school is the vehicle by which they would get to their desired destination. However, this motivation and excitement usually wanes when a child encounters embarrassment or failure at school, and develops a fear of trying. The child therefore does not exert the effort required to succeed. If this demotivation is not picked up on by the teacher, this lack of effort would progress and the child would continue to be left behind.

The third factor, foundation for learning, is extremely important as new knowledge is built from a point of reference that the child would have been exposed to in his formative years. This prior knowledge complements the work that would be covered in the class. The school curriculum is created such that it takes into consideration the information the children should have acquired at each grade stage. For instance, teaching a child to write takes for granted that the child would have been already exposed to the development of simple motor skills. Skills are often built upon each other and are usually made up of similar simple components that are structured such that there is a natural flow to the learning and understanding of related knowledge. Unfortunately, our education system forces slower or unexposed children to a new topic before they have mastered the current skill, leading to greater difficulty in learning future concepts.

The fourth factor, support for learning, is important as teachers must be able to gauge whether students need more reinforcement for a particular concept, while at the same time without overdoing it to create disengagement due to lack of stimulation and boredom. Different children move at different paces. While some children can grasp concepts with very little instruction, others may take a little more time to make the correct connections to cement the idea. This does not mean that the child who takes longer is “slower” than the child who takes less time to retain the information. In many cases, the child who takes longer has to fully understand the idea in order to properly assimilate it, whereas the child who seems to pick up the material faster, may in fact be better at retaining and reproducing information and does not necessarily understand the crux of the material.

The concept underpinning all of these proposed reasons as to why a student may be left behind is that these reasons must first be identified in order to be dealt with. If a teacher is unable to recognize the telltale signs of any one of these broad factors, no action will be taken in order to meet the needs of the student. Furthermore, the teacher needs to be adequately trained to deal with these issues or at least be able to refer the child to the necessary resources for assistance. Unfortunately, however, our teachers are sent into a classroom, grossly under-prepared for the challenges they would inevitably face when dealing with a group of kids from various homes with diverse backgrounds and upbringing. Classroom management flies out the window as personalities converge. Teachers are then left with the only weapon they know how to wield at this point in order to gain some sense of order – yelling. Several studies have been done citing the damage done to kids in a high-strung environment where they are exposed to a lot of yelling. The kids feel stressed, anxious and frightened as the stress levels in their brains and bodies begin to build up from anything that makes them feel attacked. Loud voices, the harsh tone of an adult’s voice, an angry look or scornful facial expression can easily trigger automatic physical and emotional reactions in children that cause traumatic stress which may continue way into adulthood. In addition, yelling increases the risk of depression in students, as they often fear that they are a source of displeasure, and often times, it worsens the misbehavior.

Many teachers are guilty of this. However, we must be sure not to simply cast blame on them as handling a classroom full of vastly varying individual personalities is definitely a challenge. Teachers have a lot of responsibility, are underpaid and do not have enough time in the day to cover everything that needs to be covered. They dedicate their professional, and often their personal lives to ensuring that the children who sit in their classes are well-equipped and adequately served and prepared for life. On top of this, they are required by their respective education administration bodies, to cover a certain amount of content per grade, of which failure to do so may incur harsh disciplinary action on the teacher, regardless of the conditions he or she may have to work under.

We often castigate teachers for trying to fit all children within a mold to produce non-thinking, fact-regurgitating robots who are unable to rationalize for themselves. The truth is, for the teacher, it is easier to make sure everyone covers the syllabus laid out by the education boards if all the kids are on the same page every day. Even if they do not fully understand the material, they would have at least interacted with it, and maybe, as they mature and come in contact with more advanced concepts later down their academic road, some of the previously missed concepts will reveal themselves unto them.

Yes, this is definitely not the most efficient method, but it is currently the best option given the lack of resources, overcrowding and increasingly withdrawn parents of children in the system. It is a fact that smaller class sizes would be optimal, but this is not fiscally possible given the magnitude of children entering the school system annually. Other than engaging parents in their children’s education to a higher degree, the next best option is to teach teachers how to recognize the pitfalls that students are prone to falling into, which severely retards or arrests academic development.

According to therapist, child psychologist and school counselor Thomas Winterman, there are three crucial elements of child psychology that will make teachers’ lives a lot easier if they are afforded the opportunity to receive training in better assessing classroom behavior.

1.All behavior is purposeful and goal-directed.

This suggests that teachers need to move past the overt manifestation of behavior, and delve into the understanding the reasoning behind it. Many times, children exert abrasive behaviours because it gives them a sense of safety or power in a situation, or they may be seeking the attention and feelings of adequacy that are important to developing their sense of self. If we educate teachers on recognizing these signs, and dealing with them according instead of responding in an equally abrasive or domineering fashion that would further dissuade students from settling down to work, many more students would be saved from falling through the cracks.

2. Understanding that a child’s “lifestyle” is crucial.

By understanding key elements of the child’s upbringing and environment, teachers are able to decipher the cause of certain behavioural triggers. Elements such as birth order (place among siblings or whether an only-child), family rules and roles, as well as the home environment and community within which the child lives, play a huge part in a child’s perception of and reaction to situations he may come in contact with.

3. The brain is plastic.

Everything in the brain is plastic, meaning that it is not static, but changeable and able to be molded and remolded. Children’s brains are most adaptable to change, and therefore, reinforcing good habits and positive notions of self will create new neural pathways to improve the way the child responses to external stimuli. Even though some areas of the brain are unchangeable, for the most part, an aware teacher can make significant steps towards reaching a student in danger of falling behind due to circumstance.

Child Psychology is a subdivision of Psychology that deals mainly with the mental care and conditions of children under the age of 16, while Mental Health education takes a developmental approach that spans across all ages. A teacher needs to understand the child psychology to transform from a good teacher to an effective teacher, as every child is unique and requires different techniques to enable learning. Children of varying IQs cannot be all met by using the identical teaching techniques.

There are different kinds of developments in children, such as cognitive, physical and socio-emotive development. Adequate training, not only helps to identify the belief system and social experience of the child, but also to assess the cognitive development of children to determine the ability to absorb the knowledge imparted, as well as their reasoning and though processing. Identifying whether children are within the healthy range of achieving their age-related milestones, and detecting the relationship between any lag in development and the arising of behavioural problems in the early stages is crucial to catching a child before he starts falling behind. It if often a small gap in the child’s learning that creates an increasing larger problem as more information is piled on.

Understanding a child’s aptitude and competence in accomplishing given targets is crucial to success and hence it is a key investment in our children to educate our teachers such that they can identify breaches in development and barriers to learning, and step in to address the problem in the early stages.

Sponsored by:

IfIcanhelpsomebody,asIpassalong IfIcancheersomebody,witha wordorsong IfIcanshowsomebody, that he'stravellingwrong Thenmylivingshall notbeinvain.

Alma Bazel Androzzo (1912-2001)

Pianist, songwriter and lyricist

NEXT LEVEL A Tradition in Blue DEVILS

High-pitched screams and wails, spitting fire, dancing and contorting to the beat of the fired steel drum, carrying pitchforks, blowing whistles and of course, glistening radiant blue in the night sky – the Blue Devils have come to town!

One of the most iconic characters portrayed in Trinidad and Tobago’s Carnival, the Blue Devil, or Jab Molassie is one of the oldest forms of ‘Devil Mas’ , and is a figure with its roots firmly set in the history of the island, dating back to the enslavement of black Africans toiling on the sugar estates.

The term “Jab Molassie” is a French Patois term, with ‘Jab’ - the patois term for the French word “Diable” meaning Devil, and Molassie from “Mélasse” meaning Molasses. As the name suggests, this character portrayal involves the smearing of molasses, a by-product of the processed sugarcane, on the bodies of the masqueraders. In addition to molasses, Jab Molassies, or Jabs were also smeared with tar, oil, lard, grease, body paint and various dyes. Although traditionally Jabs are painted black or blue (hence the alternate name of ‘Blue Devil’), they are increasing found in a wide spectrum of vibrant reds, yellows, indigo and green.

© Chad Lue Choy 2018

© Chad Lue Choy 2018

The Jab or Blue Devil is perhaps the most energetic of the Carnival characters, even though contemporary portrayals are more sedate than its predecessors. Originally, menacing jabs were out to scare their audiences with their gruesome antics and menacing taunting, which were only deterred by on-lookers gifting them with sums of money –a ritual rightly named “Pay de Devil”. Certain Jab Molassie will adopt aspects of other devil mas, such as “the beast”, whose portrayal incorporates shackles and restraints to hold back one of the more gruesome-looking devils in the group. The use of these restraints has been linked to slavery, while the molasses and soot pays homage to the sugar plantation fields of which they were slaves. The Jab Molassie are one of the few remaining traditional characters portrayed, but remain arguably the most anticipated characters on the road.

Progressive Minds Journal met with Trinidadian Blue Devil and Firebreathers portrayal troop, Next Level Devils (NLD) based in the hills of the village of Paramin, one of the highest points of the western area of Trinidad’s Northern Range. Although as an official group Next Level Devils are relatively young, the troop members have grown up in the artform, participating with elder family members from childhood. From a very young age they were immersed in the culture of the Blue Devil portrayal –a tradition spanning several generations back.Prior to donning the name Next Level Devils, the masqueraders were assimilated under other local groups, namely Flag Boys and 2001 Jab Molassie.

Although it is customary that the identities of the Blue Devils remain hidden, NLD Front man Steffano Marcano fondly known by his family, peers and supporters as “Steffy”– gained overwhelming traction with his live streams and posts via his personal and NLD group Facebook and Instagram pages. His popularity spread both locally and abroad, with swarms of visitors arriving at the NLD mas camp, where they experienced the quiet charm of the hillsof Paramin paired with the brewing excitement as the troop prepared for the Carnival season and slew of performances. Band Leader, Sterlyn Pierre along with the talented NLD squad comprising of masqueraders Jesse Fournillier, Jerron Pierre, Stephen Nicholas and Marcano were all the gracious hosts to their adoring fans.

Deep sea commercial diver by profession, Steffy maintains the Next Level Devil’s online presence throughout the entire year with his posts broadcasting the everyday life of the band members. The Next Level Devil experience does not begin and end with the Carnival season. Paramin, also a renown Parang village in Trinidad, is extremely vibrant during the Christmas season. Parang is a popular folk music originating from Venezuela and Trinidad and Tobago, which was originally brought to the twin island republic by their South American neighbours of Amerindian, Spanish, Mestizo, Pardo, Cocoa Pañol and African heritage.

© Chad Lue Choy 2017

© Chad Lue Choy 2018

The heritage of the people of Paramin is reflected in the music itself, as the members of the group represent an intricate blend of ethnicities, characteristic of the islands’ history of emigrants. In addition, the group actively celebrates various parts of Trinidadian tradition such as the annual Kite-Flying season, typically occurring in the month of March, during and immediately after the Lenten season.

© Chad Lue Choy 2017

Marcano recounts the origins of Blue Devil mas as a tradition where masquerading “devils” would move from house to house entertaining and often frightening residents in a bid for receiving gifts of money, food and other trinkets, and was more of a village attraction.

According to Marcano, the portrayal of ‘Blue Devils’ as opposed to Jab Molassie covered in oil and mud, stems from the legend of Archangel St. Michael being commanded by God to cast out Satan from heaven. Legend has it that St. Michael disguised himself as a devil, but took on the celestial blue hue to mock the devil in order to drive him away. In contrast, dark-coloured devilsare reminiscent of the long-departed slavesof the sugar plantation.

Next Level Devils was essentially formed from a collective drive to return totherootsofthe craft inorder to preserve its artistic integrity, in the midst of an ever-commercialized festival. The group is determined to keep the heritage alive through the use of traditional materials for their costuming, such as maintaining the use of laundry blue rather than body paints, as well as using rudimentary itemssuchasoldbottles, newspapers, pots, paint pans and of course, the original “Crix” biscuit tins in preparing for the role.

The role of the Blue Devil has its own spiritual implications as cited by the NLD team. Blue Devil masquerader Jeron Pierre spoke about how taking on the character for masquerading purposes can sometimes overpower the portrayer. The beat of the tin-pan drum fashioned out of fired biscuit tins is intoxicating says Pierre, and if one is not careful, they can get carried away in performance. “It’s both a psychological and spiritual affair” remarks Pierre. “… but we as a group keep our portrayal as simply that – a portrayal.” It is a commonly held belief that “Devil Mas” is steeped in the occult and that members participate in dark magic and rituals before performing.

“Before any performance, the group takes time to pray together in order to ensure the safety and well-being of the masqueraders” says Marcano, who says he has witnessed some shady activities by other groups in times past. “We are about preserving the tradition and sharing the Blue Devil mas with the world.”

Next

Level Devil Power-Couple Steffano Orlando Marcano and wife Stephanie Bailey-Marcano performing together.

Next Level Devils, like any other portrayal involving the use of fire or any form of explosives must ensure that they secure the proper fire permits in order to perform in public spaces. Team NLD has also been taking their art to new heights both locally and abroad with performances and collaborations with world-renown jazz musician Etienne Charles, and soca icon Derek Pereira, known on stage as Dawg-E-Slaughter, to name a few. Next Level Devils has also entered the music scene on their own with their 2020 soca hit “The Mountain.” For further information on this dynamic group, look them up on Facebook, Instagram and YouTube for all their new and exciting performances and cultural projects!

From the last quarter of 2019 international news coverage has been to a great extent consumed by the raging fires New South Wales, Australia - as was the terrain itself. Images of charred kangaroos, parched koalas and other states of heated disarray of the many critters which call Down Under their home.

Headline after headline – AUSTRALIA’S ON FIRE! – appeared everywhere from global news houses, social media platforms and WhatsApp statuses, while divers faiths from divers places called for prayer to bring the apocalyptic event to a swift end. The government of Australia was prompted to declare a state of emergency due to this environmental disaster, as an area about the size of South Korea continued to burn.

And it did – eventually. The fires were contained by the 2020 February rains and the media resumed its regular programming of politics, plagues, wars and rumours of wars, with the occasional red-carpet affair showcasing iridescent stars’ not-soenvironmentally-friendly get-ups and glam-ups.

But there was one thing the world largely forgot about in the midst of heart-wrenching stories of mass evacuations and loss of life and property – the plummeting air quality. The smoke emissions became a disaster unto itself, with Australia’s capital recording the worst air pollution ever witnessed of an air quality index of a whopping 23 times higher than what is considered hazardous. The air had become so putrid, that it causes hospital equipment to malfunction and triggered respiratory distress in several people, and proving fatal to at least one victim – an elderly lady who reported died soon after stepping off an airplane onto the smokefilled tarmac at the Canberra Airport.

The thick smoke reached New Zealand, approximately 1,000 miles away, with thick plumes visible from NASA satellites.

Melbourne, a city approximately 700km away from the fires, was plagued by the smoke and ash-laden air that resulted from the fires. The city was coated in brown dust after 25- 33mm of rain had fallen, bringing with it the burnt remnants from the north of Victoria. Local public outdoor pools were forced close and the Yarra River turned brown, and is expected to adversely affect the river’s biota over the short and long terms.

In order to measure the health risks of air pollution, the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) employs the use of an Air Quality Index (AQI) based on measurements of the concentration of particulate matter:

AQI of 67 to 99 – considered fair

AQI of 100 to 149 – considered poor

AQI of 150 to 200 – considered very poor

AQI of 200+ - considered hazardous

Smoke and ash obscuring vision in Melbourne

©

Stephen Morabito 2020

On New Year’s Day in Canberra, the capital city of Australia, the AQI hit an unprecedented 7,700! People were forced to continue evacuating from their homes, this time not because of the threat of fire, but the threat of toxic air plaguing the surrounding areas which had not been directly affected by the fires. The fine particulate matter carried by the winds, known as PM2.5, contain toxins linked to several respiratory ailments, cancer and heart disease. These particles are minute enough to cross the cellular barrier that protects the blood from external particulate invasion. These particles are extremely difficult to detect, because unlike smoke and soot, they are odorless and are easily overlooked when the smoky haze is lifted.

Wildfires release air pollutants such as carbon monoxide and nitrous oxides which harms not just those who are literally in direct line of fire, but those far removed from the blaze. Breathing in these emissions has the ability to worsen asthma among a slew of other health effects, and are particularly harmful to older people, the very young and persons with compromised immune systems.

Reports coming from hospitals nationwide saw an increase in for visits due to breathing problems. Stores sold out or air purifiers and protective masks as people rushed to protect themselves against the onslaught.

© Stephen Morabito 2020

Unfortunately, neither time alone, nor a few isolated showers can reverse the severity of Australia’s air quality emergency. Smoke can contain many different chemicals, including aldehydes, acid gases, sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), benzene, toluene, styrene, metals and dioxins. The type and amount of particles and chemicals in smoke varies depending on what is burning, how much oxygen is available, and the burn temperature. Due to the vastness of the fire, and the fact that not only wildlife was lost but also loss of homes and personal property, complicates the nature of the emissions. Inhaling smoke for a short time can cause immediate or acute effects. Smoke is irritating to the eyes, nose, and throat, and its odor may be nauseating. Studies have shown that some people exposed to heavy smoke have temporary changes in lung function, which makes breathing more difficult. Inhaling carbon monoxide decreases the body's oxygen supply. This can cause headaches, reduce alertness, and aggravate a heart condition known as angina. Fine particles are able to travel deeply into the respiratory tract, reaching the lungs or permeate the central nervous system and even cause neurological problems.

These unprecedented conditions have prompted questions over what effect they could have on the population’s long-term health. While the short-term health impacts are alarming, they are, at least, easily studied. On the other hand, physicians know almost nothing about the chronic and long-term effects of such events. It's possible that smoke inhalation could contribute to health problems including chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, lung cancer, vision problems, and chronic asthma, but academic studies on the topic are in short supply. There are also significant barriers to understanding how these smoky incidents may affect countries as well as entire regions down the line. While the immediate health effects of smoke can be monitored through indicators such as hospital visits, the health of one individual over a lifetime is more elusive.

In recent years, we have had a global rise in the incidence and magnitude of bush fires, ranging from the devastating 2019 Amazon Forest fires, the record-breaking Californian wildfire season and the Montana fires of 2017 and 2018, and the record blazes which also struck other places with arid Mediterranean-type ecosystems, such as Greece and Portugal.

The link between rising greenhouse gas emissions and increased bushfire risk is complex but, according to major science agencies, there is a clear chain reaction linked to global climate change. Climate change does not create bushfires but it can and does make them worse. A number of factors contribute to bushfire risk, including temperature, fuel load, dryness, wind speed and humidity One of the things changing globally is that the air is getting warmer As air warms, it holds more water, drawing moisture out of the environment, drying soils, and stressing trees. This makes ecosystems more flammable and trees more likely to be attacked by insects, which increases the number of dead trees, further exacerbating fire risk.

According to Craig Allen, an ecologist who studies the effect of climate change on forests at the U.S. Geological Survey Fort Collins Science Center in Los Alamos, New Mexico, “Places that people didn’t think could burn are now burning. Warming temperatures are making fuel more available and lengthening fire seasons,” he says. “The fire season in western North America is two to three months longer than 30 years ago.”

Are we to expect more such environmental disasters? And if so, what does that mean for the health of our global citizens? Declining air quality over an indefinitely extended period of time poses a multitude of health risks and even the risk of higher mortality rates. What is the inevitable fate of our planet should we continue to follow this trend, and what can we do to arrest it?

Nexus:ARTThe

Integrating Artistic Practice-Research and Teaching

Traditionally, in a university setting, faculty workload is divided into three sections, TEACHING, RESEARCH and SERVICE to community and university. But it can be quite daunting for a teaching artist to balance maintaining artistic professional standards with a university’s teaching schedule and research deliverables. In the last three decades, there has been substantial research into documenting the potential benefits, as well as the inherent challenges identified in the nexus of research and teaching, which acknowledges this complex relationship. I've found that the concepts behind the Artistic practice-Research and Teaching (ART) Nexus (Bennet, Wright and Blom 2010) can help you determine how to use your research to inform your teaching in actively engaging ways. However, for the ART Nexus to have true benefits for your students, these linkages need to be carefully cultivated and designed to fit your particular population of students.

In 2012 I had just completed a premiere with Ibis Ensemble in Trinidad of a new inter-disciplinary work, Little Red Riding Hood, composed by my British colleague, Dr. Adam Walters. Following the premiere, we published a hardcover book and cd, which we distributed both online and at performances that summer in the Olympic Village in London and at the Chautauqua Institution in New York to raise funds for the Caribbean Network for Arts and Education Foundation (CANOAE), the non-profit that houses my teacher-training string program. It was an exciting summer and it inspired me to look for another creative project to sink my teeth into. However, with a rapidly expanding teaching load and an active role in programming and performing with Ibis Ensemble, as well asa substantial commitment to outreach, I wasnot looking to add tomy schedule any further. In fact, I was worried I might burn out if I didn't find a better way to organize my life. I needed to find a way to work smart (SMITH SFEAH, 2018).

Around that time Adam and I attended the premiere of a new documentary about the enslaved African-Americans who had fought with the British in the War of 1812 in exchange for freedom and land in the south of Trinidad. The subject matter excited both of us, as it was about our collective history. We had collaborated with Che Lovelace, a Trinidadian artist, on Little Red Riding Hood and decided to put the artistic team back together for an arts-integrated performance piece about the journey of the 'Merikins', the name still used 200 years later by the community of people descended from the freedom fighters who had settled in the south of Trinidad following the war.

As I began some preliminary research, it quickly became clear that this was a part of history relatively unknown to younger generations in Trinidad. According to Professor Mick Healy, a specialist in linking research and teaching, "students are most likely to gain benefits from your research in terms of depth of learning and understanding when they are involved actively (Healy 2005)." In addition to my double bass studio, I teach several service-learning courses on the BFA program, courses that explore active engagement in learning, arts integration, and residency planning for budding teaching artists. These seemed like perfect opportunities to explore our collective history. And so I began to devise a plan to weave the subject matter for my research into my teaching.

Whilst researching the text, I worked closely with several descendants of the ‘Merkins’, who in turn introduced me to Ed Papenpuse at the Maryland Archives, whose research project, “Flight to Freedom” was especially informative. I loved this quote from him, “I am a firm believer that history is best explained and promoted through fiction and music. In many respects, the latter is far more important than the former as music sustains memory through time more effectively than the written word alone.” Building on this sentiment, I engaged a particularly talented student teaching artist of mine to work on

designing a residency that integrated history and music centered on the journey of the 'Merikins' to Trinidad. Her artsintegrated residency engaged school children through memory spirituals and storytelling and allowed them to construct and demonstrate their knowledge of history through music and theatre.

Other historical sources included the archives from the Sotterley Plantation, a national historic landmark in Maryland, dedicated to preservation and research into life on the plantation. I also corresponded with the celebrated historian Alan Taylor, who shared early excerpts of his book, 'The Internal Enemy: Slavery and War in Virginia in 1772-1832', which ultimately won a Pulitzer Prize. These were wonderful, inspiring sources of information to share with my students about our collective history. As I prepared to write the text, I assigned the subject matter to an enthusiastic group of student teaching artists, who joined up to put on a multi-media performance about the 'Merikins', to a theatre full of secondary school students at the Lord Kitchener Auditorium in Port of Spain.

We held our first workshop of River of Freedom in 2014 at the International Symposium on Art Music in the Caribbean, hosted by the University of Trinidad and Tobago (UTT), Academy for the Performing Arts (APA). The second workshop took place a few months later and included short presentations from the creators on the historical and musical research undertaken. Both workshops were utilized as master classes for Adam’s composition students, who had analyzed the score in class. In the lead up to the premiere, which took place in the south of Trinidad in the heart of the Company Villages, where descendants of the 'Merkins' still reside, student conductors prepared excerpts of the score and as a final exam conducted Ibis Ensemble during a rehearsal. Finally,

following the US premiere, which took place at the Chautauqua Institution in August 2018, a colleague on faculty chose to use the work in her Form and Structure course. Students dissected the piece and discovered multiple gems that Adam had hidden within the musical score and explored a variety of literary themes woven into my text.

The interplay of knowledge within the ART Nexus, coupled with the innovative approaches utilized by teaching artists, can help design the research models within our disciplines as well as in other creative areas. (Bennet, Wright and Blom 2010). By allowing my teaching to be informed by my research and service, I have not only learned to economize my time but have also discovered deeper meanings and utilizations for all of my deliverables, as well as identifying layers of opportunity for creative learning in the classroom. The response from my students has been overwhelmingly positive.

Our arts-integrated, inter-disciplinary work has now been performed to audiences across the nation and abroad, bringing our collective history to life through poetry, music, and art. Thanks to wonderfully supportive colleagues, I have managed to weave my research into five courses at UTT APA. And although there have been challenges with time management, by carefully selecting content to integrate into my teaching that is of great relevance to my particular population of students, I find the benefits of designing these linkages to be manifold

References: Bennet,D.,Wright,D.,andBlom,D.(2010). TheArtistic-practiceResearch-Teaching(ART) Nexus: Translating the Information Flow. Journal of University Teaching & Learning Practice,7(2),1-16.

Healey, M. (2005) Linking Research and Teaching to Benefit Student Learning.Journal of GeographyinHigherEducation,29:2,183-201,DOI:10.1080/03098260500130387

SMITH SFHEA, D.(2018, October 8). Connecting the Dotsin the Teaching-Research Nexus [Weblog post]. Retrieved January 8, 2020, from https://davethesmith.wordpress.com/2018/10/08/connecting-the-dots-in-the-teachingresearch-nexus/

An artist’s depiction of African-Americans fighting alongside the British in the War of 1812.

Artwork

CHE LOVELACE

Lovelace was born in San Fernando, Trinidad. He studied painting and engraving at L’ Ecole Regionale d’Arts Plastique de la Martinique. Lovelace has been involved in several international exhibitions, including shows in the 1990s and early 2000s featuring important artists of Latin American and the Caribbean. In 1998, with artists Peter Minshall and Christopher Cozier, he represented Trinidad & Tobago at Caribe. Exclusion, Framentacion y Paraiso at the Meiac Museum, Spain. Awarded the UNESCOASCHBERG Artist Bursary in 1999, Lovelace worked in London for several months under the auspices the International Institute of Visual Arts. Lovelace has had several solo exhibitions of his paintings, including at the National Museum of Trinidad & Tobago in 2004. His work has been exhibited at several Biennials, including at the VI Bienale de Pintura, in Ecuador. In 2003 he co-founded the Studiofilmclub cinema space in Laventille, Trinidad, with fellow artist Peter Doig. In 2010 he collaborated with Caitlyn Kamminga and Adam Walters on Little Red Riding Hood.

Music

ADAM WALTERS

Adam read Music at Cambridge University and at the Royal College of Music. As a French horn player, he then worked with orchestras including The Royal Opera House, English National Ballet, and BBC Concert Orchestra. Adam’s music has been given numerous performances in Trinidad and abroad. His Little Red Riding Hood (2011) was made into a book in collaboration with artist Che Lovelace. The Old Yard: Portraits of Carnival (2012) –poetry by Muhammad Muwakil and photography by Maria Nunes – was premiered in 2012. The Temple in the Sea (2013) for solo percussionist with poetry by Sandra Alcosser was premiered in 2014. From 2014 to 2018 Adam played tenor-bass steel pan with Massy All Stars Steel Orchestra in the National Panorama Championships. He has a particular interest in the music of Trinidad’s Spiritual Baptist faith and took lessons in djembe from a local player. These experiences have had a significant impact on his music Adam is an Assistant Professor of Music at the Academy for the Performing Arts (UTT).

River of Freedom

The story of the “Merikins”

Introduction

River of Freedom is an arts-integrated work written for narrator, solo voice and chamber ensemble. The piece brings history to life through words by Caitlyn Kamminga, music by Adam Walters and art by Che Lovelace. This is a tale of the journey of the enslaved African-Americans who fought with the British in America’s Second War of Independence of 1812 in exchange for freedom and land in Trinidad. According to their ancestors, who still reside in the south of Trinidad, these men were proud of being American and were known from then on as the ‘Merikins’.

The Merikins arrived in Trinidad in 1816. To mark the 200th anniversary of this arrival, we plan to take the work to America and to the UK during the course of 2016. River of Freedom marks the second collaboration between Adam Walters, Caitlyn Kamminga and Che Lovelace and was given its premiere performances in Trinidad in May 2015.

Music by Adam Walters - British composer and French horn player living and working in Trinidad

Script by Caitlyn Kamminga - American playwright and double-bass player living and working in Trinidad

Art by Che Lovelace - Trinidadian artist living and working in Trinidad

About the Author

Caitlyn Kamminga currently holds the position of Assistant Professor of Double Bass and Project Leader of Searchlight@Schools at the University of Trinidad and Tobago, the Academy for the Performing Arts. After graduating cum laude, with both a BM and MM from the University of Southern California in 1992, she joined the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra, where she held the position of Principal Double Bass until 1995. Subsequent positions include section member of the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra and Assistant Principal Double Bass in the BBC National Orchestra of Wales. After six years in the BBC NOW, Kamminga moved to London to freelance, where she worked and toured worldwide with the London Philharmonic Orchestra, Philharmonia and the London Mozart Players. She has recorded the symphonic repertoire with major symphony orchestras extensively and has several independent recordings of new chamber works for double bass.

Ms. Kamminga has been the recipient of major grants from the United States Embassy to Trinidad and Tobago and the Vincent Wilkinson Foundation for the creation of new works, including Jab Molassie and River of Freedom, which receivedan American premiere in 2018 at the Chautauqua Institution, where Kamminga performs annually with the Chautauqua Symphony Orchestra. River of Freedom will be performed at the African American Museum in Philadelphia in March 2019. Currently in development, Basses Are Loaded, Kamminga’s latest play, received a staged reading by the Friends of the Chautauqua Theatre Company in 2015 and will be workshopped at the American Dream Theatre in Norfolk, VA in 2020.

Caitlyn Kamminga

NATIVE CHILD

By: Lidon Lashley

Nativechild

Risemajesticallywiththetropical sun,

Toruletheterrain,

Youwereborntoconquer

Asoulmouldedmythecreator

Bestrong,

Standupagainstalloppressors

Fightlikeyourforefathers

Holdonyourdestinywillbe fulfilled

Nativechild

Shiningradiantlyinthegolden sands

Showingtheworldwhoyouare

ProudGuyanese, ACaribbeanheritage

Withskinasdarkasmidnight

Butafutureblindinglybright

Atorchinthedark

Awillforwhenthereisnoway.

Nativechild

Dancinginthehighwinds, Tellyourstory

Bebrave

Rememberyouareachildofgod

Blessedanddivinelyfavoured

Agemamongrubbles

Nativechild

Smilingwiththecrisptropical waters

Playingdodgewiththewavesofthe Atlantic

Rememberyouaremightyasthe ocean

Forgingawaywiththetides

Goinginsearchoftheburiedtruths

Returningtoteachandguidethe lost

Nativechild

Skippingpeddlesonacountrydam

Shadingunderthemangotrees

Withlove

Withuntaintedaspirations

Creatinginventionstorebuild

Wherehatedevastate.

Nativechild

Withallancestrallove

Hidingfromgrandmatoplayin fields

Runningtohelpthywounded brother

Foryoudowhatrulerscannot

Succeedwherescholarsbefore failed

Guyana’sown

Nativechild.

About the Author

LIDON. C. LASHLEY B.Ed., M.Ed., M.A.

A very innovative and highly experienced mainstream and special education needs teacher, with over thirteen years in practice as an educator across various levels; from classroom to administration.

A highly competent teacher with diverse skills, who has worked in more than one education systems in different countries such as: Guyana and The United Kingdom. Lidon Lashley is currently a lecturer in the areas of Curriculum and Special Education Needs, in Faculty of Education and Humanities at The University of Guyana, Turkeyen Campus. His key interests lie in curriculum modification, development, implementation and monitoring at the mainstream primary level and inclusiveness in mainstreams primary schools.

As a post-structuralist researcher, Lidon Lashley believes that knowledge which is beneficial to all educators in Guyana can be generated through discourse in the mainstream education system.

To connect with Lidon, kindly email: lidon_lashley@yahoo.com

This Month in History FEBRUARY

February is the second month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian calendars, with 28 days in common years and 29 days in leap years, with the quadrennial 29th day being called the leap day. The Roman month Februarius was named after the Latin term februum, which means purification, via the purification ritual Februa held on February 15 (full moon) in the old lunar Roman calendar. January and February were the last two months to be added to the Roman calendar, since the Romans originally considered winter a month-less period, and were added by Numa Pompilius about 713 BC. February remained the last month of the calendar year until the time of the decemvirs (c. 450 BC), when it became the second month. At certain times February was truncated to 23 or 24 days, and a 27-day intercalary month, Intercalaris, was occasionally inserted immediately after February to realign the year with the seasons.

Since 1976, every U.S. president has officially designated the month of February as Black History Month. Other countries around the world, including Canada and the United Kingdom, also devote a month to celebrating black history. The story of Black History Month begins in 1915, half a century after the Thirteenth Amendment abolished slavery in the United States. That September, the Harvardtrained historian Carter G. Woodson and the prominent minister Jesse E. Moorland founded the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History (ASNLH), an organization dedicated to researching and promoting achievements by black Americans and other peoples of African descent.

Known today as the Association for the Study of African American Life and History (ASALH), the group sponsored a national Negro History week in 1926, choosing the second week of February to coincide with the birthdays of Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass. The event inspired schools and communities nationwide to organize local celebrations, establish history clubs and host performances and lectures.

Legendary baseball player George Herman "Babe" Ruth (1895-1948) was born in Baltimore, Maryland ON February 6th 1895. Ruth held or shared 60 Major League records, including pitching 29 consecutive scoreless innings and hitting 714 home runs.

Ronald Reagan (1911-2004) the 40th U.S. President, was born in Tampico, Illinois on February 6th, 1911. Reagan spent 30 years as an entertainer in radio, film, and television before becoming governor of California in 1966. Elected to the White House in 1980, he survived an assassination attempt and became the most popular president since Franklin Roosevelt.

On February 8, 1587 Mary Stuart, Queen of Scots, was beheaded at Fotheringhay, England, after 19 years as a prisoner of Queen Elizabeth I. She became entangled in the complex political events surrounding the Protestant Reformation in England and was charged with complicity in a plot to assassinate Elizabeth.

British novelist Charles Dickens (1812-1870) was born in Portsmouth, England on February 7th, 1812. He examined social inequalities through his works including; David Copperfield , Oliver Twist , andNicholasNickleby . In 1843, he wrote AChristmasCarolin just a few weeks, an enormously popular work even today.

In February 8, 1910 the Boy Scouts of America was founded by William Boyce in Washington, D.C., modeled after the British Boy Scouts.

On February 11, 1990 in South Africa, Nelson Mandela, at age 71, was released from prison after serving 27 years of a life sentence on charges of attempting to overthrow the apartheid government. In April 1994, he was elected president in the first all-race elections.

In February 11, 1929, Italian dictator Benito Mussolini granted political independence to Vatican City and recognized the sovereignty of the Pope (Holy See) over the area, measuring about 110 acres.

On February 12th 1809, Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865) the 16th U.S. President was born in Hardin County, Kentucky. He led the nation through the tumultuous Civil War, freed the slaves, composed the Gettysburg Address, and established Thanksgiving.

On February 17, 1909 Apache Chief Geronimo (1829-1909) died while in captivity at Fort Sill, Oklahoma. He had led a small group of warriors on raids throughout Arizona and New Mexico. Caught once, he escaped. The U.S. Army then sent 5,000 men to recapture him.

Malcolm X (1925-1965) was shot and killed while delivering a speech in a ballroom in New York City on February 21, 1965. Malcolm X, was an African-American Muslim minister and human rights activist who was a popular figure during the civil rights movement. He is best known for his staunch and controversial black racial advocacy, and for time spent as the vocal spokesperson of the Nation of Islam.

“There may be people that have more talent than you, but there’s no excuse for anyone to work harder than you do.”

Derek Jeter