NOTE: If you are short on time, watch the video and complete this See, Think, Wonder activity: What did you notice? What did the story make you think about? What would you want to learn more about?
SUMMARY
Colum McCann's Narrative 4 organization is bringing the power of story to students in a time of division. The project helps young people around the world share their stories and bridge divides in politics and culture. Senior arts correspondent Jeffrey Brown reports for our series, Art in Action, exploring the intersection of art and democracy, as part of our CANVAS coverage.
View the transcript of the story.
News alternative: Check out recent segments from the NewsHour, and choose the story you’re most interested in watching. You can make a Google doc copy of discussion questions that work for any of the stories here.
WARM-UP QUESTIONS
- Who co-founded the organization to help young people around the world share their stories and perhaps bridge divides of politics and culture?
- What is the point of the story exchange initiative?
- Where is the story exchange program being piloted?
- When was Narrative 4 founded?
- How does this initiative allow us to step outside of ourselves to see a different perspective?
FOCUS QUESTIONS
What would your version of an empathy-building story sharing exercise look like?
Media literacy: As consumers of media, are you able recognize when sources are simply informing or swaying you to a specific narrative?
WHAT STUDENTS CAN DO
- Look into your school's involvement with organizations like Narrative 4. If no partnership exists, consider advocating for a program that achieves similar objectives.
- Collaborate with your school to spotlight a wall where students are able to share — anonymously or openly — experiences that might otherwise not be at the forefront of conversations.
- Watch this PBS NewsHour segment with Paul Solman that looks at multiple efforts to bridge major political and cultural fissures in the U.S., beginning with smaller steps forward. Learn about the American Exchange Project, a domestic foreign exchange program for high school seniors based on the underlying principle of coming together and overcoming stereotypes, which Solman founded. Teachers: there is a stipend for you to be AEP point people in your communities!
Written by Kevin Roodnauth, PBS News Hour Classroom's intern and senior at Amherst College, and News Hour's Vic Pasquantonio.
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