Project+Fresa

Printable Version[[file:HW3EDU580Project Fresa article review.doc]]
Your Name: Jake Bogar Your Group Name: Group A Your Group Members Names: Kim Fuller and Kurt Rowley Your Article Citation: Cummins, J., Brown, K., & Sayers, D. (2007) Literacy, Technology, and Diversity: Teaching for Success in Changing Times. Boston: Pearson.

Co-teachers Amada Irma Perez and Michelle Singer envisioned a unit of integrated student inquiry led study growing from a common local thread in their community that would give legitimacy to their students own lives, in a highly motivating context, that could advance the students literacy and academic skills. Amanda and Michelle were inspired by the work of Paulo Freire who focused not only on helping students “read the word” but also “read the world”. This project was grounded on their deep interest in education for social justice and that by connecting curricular objectives to students lives “learning begins to breathe”.
 * Go back in time prior to the project/idea you read about. Describe where the need for this idea or innovation came from, additionally think about who saw the need for the innovation.**

Project Fresa (“strawberry” in Spanish) multi-class project of third and fifth graders of farm-working families at Mar Vista Elementary School in Oxnard, California. Students investigated the work of their parents in the surrounding strawberry fields and shared their results online. As they investigated and shared further insights gained from asking deeper questions in their community and of their parent’s employers the students began partnering and communicating with classes in California’s Channel Islands, Puerto Rico, India, Paraguay and Chile. The insights that the students gained were also shared with current and aspiring teachers and professors.
 * Give a summary of the project include relevant locations, organizations, people and technologies**

Alphasmart keyboards, one computer per classroom.
 * What technology did/does the project employ?**

- Give legitimacy to their students own lives - Provide a highly motivating context - Advance the students literacy and academic skills - Foster mentoring relationships between different age groups
 * Intended Outcomes**

+ Global interest + Level of student motivation + Awareness of civic responsibilities + Transformation of children into active empowered, enlightened young citizens + Community dialogue - Potential negative repercussion from the strawberry companies - Potential parental and community concerns for "rocking the boat"
 * Unintended Outcomes or Potential Unintended Outcomes (+ and -)**

It empowered students ask deep questions about the power structures (strawberry companies) in their community. Then, by sharing their insights and initiating a dialogue with other groups connected to the strawberry crop around the world, allegiances of dominated groups connected to the strawberry crop across nations formed. These allegiances can be a beginning for dominated groups to better their current social-economic conditions or even embark on creating their own economic institutions. Similar to how the Afrocentric education movement described by Molefi Asante can “create a new consciousness that invades our behavior” the students begin to look at everything in their community differently. Even Joel Spring, author of Wheels in the Head, considers schools modeled after Afrocentric education may be the most realistic approach for dominated groups gain equity and protect themselves from the exploitative practices of nation hopping corporations.
 * How did this project promote or conflict with a goal of social justice?**

1. [|Project Fresa overview]
 * For More Information: please include three relevant links that your classmates might use to learn more about the topic, project or organization you read about.**

2. [|Molefi Kete Asante’s website]

3. [|Paulo Freire on Wikipedia]