Currently there is a gap between what students at the secondary and post-secondary levels are learning about human rights violations, and what is being done to stop them. Many humanities’ classes and curricula have genocide and human rights as a unit, but assess their students using traditional assessments.
In 2008-2009 a group of students in my 10th Grade English class asked the question, “Why do we learn about all of this stuff (genocide and human rights violations), but never do anything about it?” This question sparked an idea and Project: Global Inform (PGI) was created. The students picked their own groups and researched current human rights violations. Each group picked a violation they felt particularly passionate about and began to develop an action plan. Their action plans allowed the students to judge how effective each method of media was at spreading information and creating awareness. At the end of Project: Global Inform’s first run, hundreds of people had been met face-to-face with information they did not know, while thousands of other teens and young adults saw videos, visited websites, and became Twitter and Facebook fans of media meant to create awareness.
In 2009-2010 Wissahickon High School took Project: Global Inform to the next level. Over 110 students participated and this time the students were even more creative. In addition to the video, web, and Facebook campaigns – groups began to host events dedicated to raising awareness for their cause. This time, not only was information spread, but money was also raised for organizations currently fighting against human rights violations. Thousands of dollars were raised in just under six weeks, showing that students do have the power to make a difference.
Project: Global Inform takes a peace education unit found in many schools (human rights violations and genocide) and infuses it with technology, experiential learning, and student-driven instruction. PGI has recently been developed into a non-profit organization that focuses on getting the project in as many schools as possible. As founder of PGI, I have had the unique experience of seeing first hand the impact these students have had on the world around them.
ProjectGI is a 21st century experiential project. First and foremost, students use technology and social media to create “awareness campaigns”. Instead of merely “learning” about human rights and genocide (which almost every school in American has a unit on) ProjectGI challenges students to “do” something about these violations. Students, teachers, administration, community members, and non-profit organizations all work together during this project-making it a true global learning experience.
If you’d like to learn more about Project: Global Inform, click through the presentation below and download the curriculum here: PGI CURRICULUM.
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[…] now the learning can really begin. This doesn’t work too well with tests…but with projects it is great! If you create a culture where failure is not only accepted, but embraced…your students will […]
[…] that would actually “do something” about human rights violations. It was called “Project: Global Inform” – and my students would go on to create awareness campaigns that informed thousands of […]
[…] to serve at a young age. He wrote about some different activities we had done in class like, “Project: Global Inform” and the “Flat Classroom Project”. Both had made him think outside the typical […]
[…] Project: Global Inform […]
I would like to incorporate this in my classroom but the link to the curriculum won’t work.
Ditto to what Kimberly said—check your link? This looks EXCELLENT and I’d love to steal it! 🙂
I did find it on his Teacher’s Pay Teachers after I already did my unit. Here’s the link to his: https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Project-Global-Inform-Human-Rights-Unit-342197
If you email me (kseabaugh@stcmo.org), I can send you the stuff I made as well.
[…] get started. Start with Genius Hour or 20% Time Project. Or maybe do an I-Search paper. How about a human rights project? Search for your content area (or grade level) and start […]
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[…] I was desperate for a new way to teach students about human rights violations and genocide. Having them read articles and watch a few videos wasn’t cutting it, because the students needed to “do something” about these issues. Out of this desperation came a collaborative project that my students helped create: Project Global Inform. […]
[…] fail because now the learning can really begin. This doesn’t work too well with tests…but with projects it is great! If you create a culture where failure is not only accepted, but embraced…your students will not […]
[…] Project Global Inform […]