| Dr. Simona Sharoni | My Background & Teaching Philosophy |
| Office: Seminar Bldg., Room 4165 | Course Description |
| Phone: 360-570-8860, ext. 6196 | Course Outline |
| Email: sharonis@evergreen.edu | Readings |
| Office Hours: Wed. 4-6 PM & by appointment | Assignments |
| Room: TTH LIB 2220; SAT LIB 2218 | Weekly schedules |
My Background
& Teaching Philosophy
I grew up and lived most of my life in the Middle East and my career path, experiences and interest reflect the impact the Palestinian-Israeli conflict had on my life. In the fall of 1989, I arrived in the United States from Israel and enrolled in the Ph.D program at the Institute for Conflict Analysis and Resolution at George Mason University, which at the time was the only academic institution offering a degree in this field. The program was interdisciplinary in scope, focusing primarily on the social sciences and stressing the nexus between theory and praxis. Like many other activists in different parts of the world, I thought that pursuing a doctorate degree would allow me to reflect on the work I have been involved in both in dialogue and reconciliation between Palestinians and Jews and in the women's peace movement in Israel.
Against the backdrop of the Palestinian uprising, known as the intifada, that was unfolding on the worlds stage, I studied theories of conflict and models designed to resolve them. The process was fairly frustrating. The theories seemed too general and abstract and, like my fellow students who came from other conflict-torn regions, I was put off by attempts to use a one-size-fits-all model for conflicts that seem to have very unique histories and dynamics. Two other things, which I struggled with in the course of my graduate studies, were the privileging of official diplomacy and the lack of attention to women and gender issues in both theory and practice. Notwithstanding my frustration at the time, in retrospect, it seems that graduate school did have a very positive impact on my development as a scholar-activist. I identified areas that I feel strongly about and that have not been adequately addressed in the existing bodies of literature on peace and conflict resolution.
Teaching for me entails more than the mere transmission of knowledge from teacher to student. I am committed to a type of pedagogy that focuses not only on the presentation of content, facts, and information, but also on the ways in which particular theories and topics could be taught so they resonate with your every day lives and experiences. I see academic institutions as sites for personal growth and social transformation, and teaching, mentoring, and supervising as the means to bring about this transformation. My professional training as a teacher, which includes a Masters of Arts degree in Education and Counseling and almost two decades of teaching experience, has provided me with a strong theoretical and practical basis in critical pedagogy and in experiential teaching.
Over the years, I have experimented with a range of approaches and activities. Rather than assuming that I as the teacher have the knowledge and my primary task is to share it with you, I view the class as a learning community, as a context wherein we all learn and teach. As we read, meet with various people and participate in class activities, we will experience a range of emotions, generate an enormous amount of insights and identify many questions. Throughout this process, you will be encouraged to think critically and independently and to question taken for granted assumptions. While most students find this approach to teaching and learning more stimulating than the traditional formats of lectures or seminars, the practice of critical pedagogy can sometimes be experienced by both students and professors as painful and unsettling. At the same time, most students, including those who initially don't like this approach, acknowledge the transformative effects it had on their lives. I have been working on an ongoing research project on students’ responses to critical pedagogy.
If you who are interested in learning
more about this pedagogical approach and especially about Paulo Freire
writings and work, you can check out the following books and web pages.
Recommended Books:
Paulo Freire, Pedagogy of the Oppressed
____________, Education for Critical Consciousness
____________, Teachers As Cultural Workers : Letters to Those Who Dare Teach
http://www.paulofreire.org (mostly in Spanish)
This course will introduce students to the growing body of literature in the interdisciplinary field of conflict resolution. We will analyze and explore ways to resolve conflicts in various settings from the home and workplace to the national and international arena. We will employ a case-study approach, starting with an analysis of conflicts involving questions of identity and difference as well as power disparities. As a particular case in point, we will focus on conflicts in the US, which involve race or racism and examine ways to approach them. The next central theme we will explore is violence and nonviolence. In this context, we will critically analyze the phenomenon of school violence and some of the program designed to address it. In addition, we will examine the relationship between gender and violence in various international settings. Finally, we will compare and contrast conventional conflict resolution approaches with more critical ones as we examine their applicability to the cases studies in the class.
The course will be taught in a dynamic
workshop format. In addition to lectures, films and guest presentations,
students will participate in class exercises and simulations and learn
basic communication skills and rudimentary conflict analysis and resolution
skills.
| Week 1 | Introduction to Conflict Analysis & Resolution
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| Week 2 | Conflict Analysis: Identity/Difference and Race in America
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| Week 3 | Analyzing Violence: From US Schools to Gender and Conflict in the International Arena |
| Week 4 | Conflict Resolution: Conventional vs. Critical Approaches
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| Week 5 | Summary & Final Presentations
|
These assignments are designed primarily to help you integrate theoretical
concepts and reading material with your life experiences. A few assignments
are designed to prompt you to think about certain issues and questions
in preparation for in-class workshops or discussions. Therefore, it is
very important that you don't fall behind and submit ALL your assignments
on time.
Most assignments would best fit an essay format, combining description
and analysis and allowing you to use first-person as you write..
Please note that you will have the option of re-writing ALL your
assignments and re-submit them with your final portfolio.
If you panicked when you saw the reading list, you are likely to
have a similar reaction to the list of assignments. Before you get
alarmed, please read the instructions for each assignment very carefully.
Once you do, you would realize that all the assignments combined require
you to write less than 15 double-spaced pages, which is really not much
for an 8 credit class.
Conflict history essay
Write a short essay reflecting on major turning points and significant
people and experiences in your life that shaped your worldview in general
and your interest in conflict resolution in particular.
Length: 2-3 types and double-spaced pages
Due: Thursday 7/27
Conflict style analysis
Recall two interpersonal conflicts you have been involved in recently.
Analyze the ways in which you dealt with these conflicts, trying to identify
some patterns. Reflect on the extent to which your behavior resonated with
the typology of conflict styles described in the assigned article.
Length: 1-2 double-spaced pages
Due: Saturday 7/29
Identity/difference essay
Recall your earliest memory of becoming aware of and dealing with difference.
Describe the type of difference and how your dealt with it? What were the
power relations? What has changed in your approach to difference over the
years? Which questions or issues remain unresolved for you? These are just
some questions that come to mind.
Length: 2-3 double-spaced pages
Due: Tuesday 8/1
Response to NYT article
The New York Times has been running a special series with features
articles on the topic of race in America. For this assignment, you
should choose an article that appeals to you, read it and write a brief
response to the article. When relevant, your response should include
some reference to relevant readings and class discussion on the topic.
--To choose an article click on the series title: How
Race is Lived in America?
Length: 1-2 double-spaced pages
Due: Saturday 8/5
Analysis of newspaper clippings
of violence
Choose 3-5 newspaper clippings dealing with violence, preferably in
different settings. What are the patterns of similarity and difference
between these stories? How relevant are some of the readings and class
activities we've had to the analysis of these cases?
In choosing your clippings, you can use the print media, radio and
TV as well as online news. Ideally, your clippings would be taken
from various sources.
Length: 3-5 clippings, 2-3 double-spaced pages
Due: Tuesday 8/8
Book review
You should write a brief review of Jacobs et. al States of Conflict:
Gender, Violence and Resistance. Since this is an edited collection,
you don't have to mention all the contributors. Instead you can focus
on those chapters you found particularly interesting.
Length: 1-2 double-spaced pages
Due: Saturday 8/12
For detailed instructions on how to write a book review click here.
Class presentation
Your presentation should reflect your learning in this class, preferably
in some creative manner. You can a particular question, issue, experience
or reading that had a profound impact on you. Please let me know
in advance if you would need any audio-visual equipment for your presentation.
You may choose to collaborate with your classmates on this assignment.
Each student will be allotted 15 minutes for presentation plus the same
amount of time for class discussion and feedback from the class.
If you are working in a group, you will have more time for your presentation.
For example, a group of 3 students will have up to 45 minutes for presentation.
Dates: Thursday 8/24 or Saturday 8/26
Final portfolio
The portfolio should contain ALL your written assignment during the
class plus anything you wrote or created inspired by the class. If you
decide to re-write any of your assignments, please include both the original
and the re-write. The portfolio should include a draft of your self-evaluation,
which together with the portfolio will assist me in writing my evaluation
of your work in this class for discussion during our conference the following
week.
Length: 12-20 double spaced pages (not including your self-evaluation)
Due: Saturday 8/26
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