EDUC91B was truly the highlight of my second semester. Although I never imagined that our independent study would turn into a dependent study and then finally culminate into a student-run course, it was surely for the better!
In the beginning of the semester, I wrote down what I was looking forward to as our class progressed. I immediately jotted down the tangible: a database of curricula, a network of educators, an archive of coursework material, etc. None of that felt out-of-place at the time: I had originally wanted to cultivate this space as an academic research project, something that can be produced into a journal article or more broadly — legislative change — as those tangible goals were what I thought was most important to becoming an educator.
When we had our end-of-semester showcase, I got to look back at those original comments for the first time. It was pretty hilarious seeing my bullet point of goals alongside phrases like joy, healing, community care, and others, but their presence was a true reflection of how much I’ve grown with this class. Radical forms of pedagogy that center around growth, healing — and, most importantly — joy, were things I have learned to value and love. While I’ve made many mistakes over the duration of this course and have produced work I never would’ve expected to while developing it, these experiences taught me to constantly unlearn the process of my learning, become a more thoughtful educator, and rediscover the aspects about education that made me love it so much.
APIA Futures gave me hope in our community to cultivate futures full of empathy and kindness towards all people. In a world covered in headlines that make the prospect of living feel so bleak, this is just what I needed to feel some hope again. I loved laughing and crying (and profusely coughing — thanks, COVID..) from the graphic novels we shared, and loved exploring Philly in the hopes of seeing community growth happen beyond our campus. It made me feel like a kid again — in the most cherishable, purest way. And isn’t that what education is all about? I’ll never forget the community we’ve formed as a result of this class, and feel incredibly lucky to have met people who’ve transformed my approach towards pedagogy for the better. Thank you to everyone who made this possible, and most importantly, big shout out to Edwin for the noodles, they were so so good.
Nicole 🙂