For those who are denied…

For the well-being of those individuals in Iran who are vilified in their school by their classmates and teachers, are denied access to higher education, are arrested for providing education programs for underprivileged children, or are imprisoned for coordinating such programs, the following needs to be posted and read by all.

BAHÁ’Í INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY
United Nations Office
866 United Nations Plaza, Suite 120, New York, NY 10017 USA
Telephone: 212-803-2500, Fax: 212-803-2566, Email: uno-nyc@bic.org

4 March 2009

Ayatollah Qorban-Ali Dorri-Najafabadi
Prosecutor General
Islamic Republic of Iran

Your Honor,

Your recent announcement regarding the administrative affairs of the Bahá’ís of Iran has brought to the arena of public debate issues which not only affect the safety and livelihood of the members of that community but also have profound implications for the future of every citizen of that esteemed nation. The steps that have been taken to formulate the response of the Iranian Bahá’í community to your announcement have surely been communicated to you. The Yaran and the Khademin, the small groups that have been attending to the spiritual and social needs of the several hundred thousand Bahá’ís of Iran, the former at the national level and the latter at the local, have expressed their willingness to bring to a close their collective functioning. This decision has been made for no other reason than to demonstrate yet again the goodwill that the Bahá’ís have consistently shown to the government of the Islamic Republic of Iran for the past thirty years.

The Universal House of Justice has assured us that the disruption in the functioning of these groups need not be seen as a cause for concern. There is no doubt in the minds of millions of Bahá’ís residing in virtually every country around the world—nor in the minds of many others who are watching these events with impartiality and who are aware of the historical development of the Faith—that the Bahá’ís in Iran will find ways of managing the spiritual life of their community, as they have done for generations over the past one hundred and sixty-five years of persecution. However, given the gravity of the accusations leveled against the Yaran and the Khademin, we feel obliged, as the representatives at the United Nations of one hundred and seventy-nine National Spiritual Assemblies encircling the globe, to bring certain fundamental points to your attention in an open letter and request that you examine them with the sense of fairness they deserve.

Edify: to instruct and improve.

The first semester of my two years at the Graduate School of Education is under way. The class Development of Ideas in Physical Science paired with being a teaching assistant for Physics for the Sciences is the main point of my current academic, career-oriented learning. The dozen or so of us in the 2010 contingent of the science education program are reviewing the physical phenomena we have known our whole lives and studied in depth for the later part of them. We are approaching the topics as a teacher would introduce them in a classroom, and simultaneously learning from our mistakes and successes in doing so as TAs.

The definition in the title of this post makes me want to use the word in a personal statement of my vision as an educator. (subject to change)

To be patient, confident and determined in edifying children and youth in their development of knowledge, wisdom, and virtue. To be humble and sincere in letting them do the same for me. To be systematic and trustworthy in collaborating with the rest of the local, regional and global education communities to propagate sustainable, effective practices. 

New Orleans

First as an update, I am having my second experience as a summer researcher with the University of Minnesota’s Materials Research Sceicne and Engineering Center. My assigned experiment, which is on electrowetting on an ion gel, is rather fascinating, but it only matters to me in that it will allow me to convey certain concepts to my students as someone who has encountered them first hand.

Also, I have applied to take the online course “A Discourse on Social Action” offered by the LazosLearning Association. I am very excited about and a little intimidated by the possibility of studying its material. It was recommended to me very highly. Although it is not recognized fully by current academia, because of its origins with FUNDAEC, I view it as an essential step in unlocking my capacity to adequately contribute to the field of education. If logistics disallow my participation in the course, I am still thankful to have in my Minneapolis social network several people who are passionate about revolutionizing adolescent or early childhood education with whom I hope to have meaningful dialogue.

Now, to the point of this post. I met with the director of my research program this morning. What a great person! He lit up when I mentioned my aspirations to be an educator, deciding to connect me with professors who may be able to help me in this path. After he heard my hope to work abroad on education-based development in China, Zambia, Colombia or the like, this director began to share about the ineffectiveness of school systems in Louisiana, his home state. He was suggesting that I consider serving as a teacher within the United States.

On my way back to my dorm this evening, I was able to speak with two wonderful people from my program. Both already have valuable experience teaching youth. One of them is from New Orleans and can tell stories about the atrocities from the Hurricane Katrina aftermath. The theme of the conversation though was the need for transformation of the school system. Their anecdotes about scores of people who have fallen through cracks in the boardwalk towards functional and cooperative human development, their sincerity and perseverance – these are inspiring me to spend some time teaching in New Orleans.

For over two years I have felt a pressing need to move to another country after getting my degrees. Although I am still two years from deciding where to move, I am happy to now know of such an important opportunity for service within the country.

Next Steps Are Becoming Clearer

The Rutgers Graduate School of Education has allowed me to enter their science education program beginning in the fall. The default is physics certification, but I will aiming for the chemistry requirements of the more general physical science education. As soon as possible, I hope to take A Discourse on Social Action, an online course being offered by FUNDAEC, as a means to a clearer vision of how to best serve community development via education. Even though my subject-matter-focussed adviser does not see the value in it, I am convinced of its importance. It has been recommended by various individuals with seasoned experience in sustainable social and economic development.

If I do not take the course this summer, I will have to wait a while before it will fit. Increased on-campus responsibilities on more than one front, my heaviest course load yet, and a percentage of non-science classes, will make for an intense learning and growth period next semester.

Meanwhile, my Exploring Teaching as a Profession class is rather limited and superficial. Now and then we hear and read great points regarding effective teaching. But every comment and classroom observation is so far removed from implementation that most potential growth remains untapped. I am feeling the need for a tutorial learning system for teacher training, in which accompanied action and reflection are fundamental from the get-go. Most of my classmates were not blessed with exposure such systems. I sometimes worry that too many aspiring teachers might continue to become caught up with and jaded by the state tests or low wages before fixing their vision on what education can be.

Written in the Hour before Class

After finishing the this week’s readings (or skimming the last two), I was a pleasantly surprised to see that I am capable of writing the assignment so quickly. If you are how I was, you find great pain and extreme difficulty in (1) sitting down, (2) starting to write, (3) writing the first word, (4) first sentence… Fear not! That is the solution; do not be scared that the ideas that you have are not good enough. At least that was the barrier I had to overcome.

I thank my English teachers for their patience and encouragement. But it was not until after high school that I broke through and could write with confidence. I hope find and polish that courage in my students. For me the barrier was disbelief of my potential stemming from situations in my development; for others it might be the fear of harassment for being nerdy. How can a teacher be effective, though, when there are so many psychosocial walls to knock down?

Here is my first (non-lab report) paper since freshman year.