Global reflections
Southland students share pandemic experiences with international peers
While travel restrictions and stay-at-home advisories have many people focusing inward on their immediate surroundings, a group of area students is busy doing the opposite.
The students at Morgan Park Academy have been taking an inside look at what their peers around the country and world are experiencing during the global pandemic, and they’re learning that while many of those experiences are very different from their own, many are similar aswell.
“A few of the other students who lived in India and Africa said it was partly good because there … used to be a lot of poaching,” said Dante Kolak, one of the Morgan Park Academy students who participated. “But since the lockdown, the amount of poaching has been reduced.
“Also, some of the other students in India said that there are fake vaccines being put on the market.”
Dante, who lives in the Beverly neighborhood, and several other Morgan Park Academy students said they had wanted to take part in the exercise to learn about the worldwide differences and similarities. They also got to share their own challenges with the pandemic.
For Dante, the discussion brought on his sense of responsibility as a citizen.
“Sometimes I get mad when people I know aren’t taking it seriously and are risking their health and me and my mom’s health evenmore since we have certain conditions that would make the fatal risk much higher,” he said.
The discussion, overseen by the school and the nonprofit Global Education Benchmark Group, was just away to expose students to worldwide perspectives. In previous years, students at the Morgan Park school took trips across the U.S. or overseas and the curriculum included a global outlook. Students also study global literature, such as “I am Malala,” about the girl in Pakistan who defended education and was shot by the Taliban.
Emily Fitch, a Morgan Park sixth grader teacher, who facilitated one of the dozen or so virtual breakout rooms for the event, said she was impressed with the ease of the conversations as well as the students’ observations.
In her group, students discussed families who owned small businesses, some who were doing well and some not, delivery services and their challenges, as well as hopes of coming vaccines.
“I think just having that hope that there’s life at the end of the tunnel and there will be an end to this,” Fitch said.
There was also discussion about the importance and drawbacks of masks.
“As far as masks, the consensus inmy groupwas they didn’t like wearing masks but needed (to),” Fitch said.
Cecelia Drown, a sixth grader from Orland Park, said
she learned in India certain religions won’t allow people to get vaccines.
“So it’s like, how do we go back to all in-person, stores, restaurants?” said Cecelia, whose mom, Emily Drown, teaches science and is an assistant principal at the school. “Some people won’t do it because of their religion or they don’t think it’s real or will help.”
Learning about students who lived in a different place was fun for Cecelia and the other students.
“I liked it because I got to hear different people’s experiences,” she said.
Some of those experiences are universal.
“(A girl from India) didn’t get to see her grandparents,” said Simone Whitt, a sixth grader from Chicago’s Morgan Park neighborhood who also missed seeing some of the people she loved. “One girl from Georgia said her dad had to start working more hours.”
Fitch also said she was struck by her students’ awareness of how the virus was affecting life
“It surprised me how aware they were of economic ramifications of COVID-19 and the impact it had on families and communities,” Fitch said. “As a teacher, when it was over and I was reflecting, I was really hopeful for our future and really impressed by how insightful the students were.”
“It brought me a lot of hope for the future because these will be our leaders moving forward,” Fitch said.