Thursday, January 29, 2009
Contact Zone
My “Concepts of the Self” class was definitely a contact zone. The students in the class came from various backgrounds and had differing political and social philosophies. There were many instances when students would clash with one another but more often that not, the students would always be in conflict with the teacher. There was an asymmetrical relationship of power between him and his students. Opinions and thoughts were heard but not necessarily listened to. This attitude created an environment of tension and subdued discord. Towards the end of the semester, a full on passive aggressive war was in progress.
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Hi Dan,
ReplyDeleteGood example of a CZ. Considering Pratt's pedagogical arts of a CZ, can you think of one that might have prevented the "tension and subdued discord." How, for example, could each group (students and teacher)identify with the ideas and interests of the other? How could better understanding be established in such a zone?