Day 7

Today, I've had "Revolution" by The Beatles stuck in my head.  Check out my earlier post about it.

And I guess I'm thinking:  DO we want a revolution?  And if so, what steps are we willing to take?  What lines are we willing to cross?  Megan's post about what we could actually do to improve our situation as teachers was very thought provoking to me today and stayed at the back of my mind with all my thoughts about revolution.

Today, I did my demo, and I was fascinated to hear the discussion about identity formation and specifically how we form ourselves in online spaces.  Aileen's question: "If you create an image of something [or yourself] can you revise it?" really made me wonder about the permanence of identities.  If we are constantly performing our identities and recreating them, how permanent are our identities?  But at the same time, people are people and impressions last a long time.  Like Rebekah mentioned in class today, we perceive people the way that knew them first/best.

I am really excited about the corporate aspect of our portfolio for SI.  The thinking we have done together has really influenced my independent take on things (if it's even possible for that to exist).  I think collaborating will enhance our views of the learning done in the time we've had together.

As I continue to think about my inquiry, I'm really into the performance aspect again of things that we've done this week.  Thinking today of the Circle of Oppresion, there was so much performance.  For instance, since I started in the center of the circle, I wanted to find my way out.  Once I had found a way out of the circle, I imagined myself to be motivated by the fact that I didn't want to re-enter the circle.  I wanted to avoid it at all costs--I knew what it was like to be on the inside and I didn't want any part of that--the need to seek approval from others and risk rejection.

In theater, we often talk about keeping up with the "inner dialogue" of the character--very similar to what Lil had us do today with the story of Charles.  You explore the characters thoughts that are going on under the surface of the character's lines or the narrative.  Though we call it stream-of-consciousness in the world of English, it serves the same purpose as inner dialogue in theater--letting you know what the character is thinking and moving beyond the surface level to character motivations and choices.

I'm still pulling pieces together.  And I was fascinated by our discussion of shaping identities today.  Thanks for really digging in with me and pushing me to reflect.  Awesome work, team! :)