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Christina Katopodis
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English

Sample Assignment: Science Fiction Social Justice Story

Sample Assignment: Science Fiction Social Justice Story

Overview

This assignment is inspired by the learnings that arose from the workshop, “Fostering Play in the Classroom - Pedagogies to Build Creativity, Connection and Light to Oppressive Spaces”. Based on group dialogue, feedback, and the desire to build on pedagogies of play in the workshop, this science fiction short story assignment has been created as an additional layer of liberatory, contemplative learning for students that can be used/tweaked to work in a variety of courses. Powerful conversations arose in the workshop surrounding power/oppression, positionality and how this impacts our ability to engage in play, and the importance of holding both/and (i.e. - joy/sadness, pain/pleasure, restriction/liberation). This assignment attempts to deepen these reflections through creativity, storytelling, and removal of limits for dreaming in a world with obstacles. 

Sample Assignment

This assignment is inspired by the learnings that arose from the workshop, “Fostering Play in the Classroom - Pedagogies to Build Creativity, Connection and Light to Oppressive Spaces”. Based on group dialogue, feedback, and the desire to build on pedagogies of play in the workshop, this science fiction short story assignment has been created as an additional layer of liberatory, contemplative learning for students that can be used/tweaked to work in a variety of courses. Powerful conversations arose in the workshop surrounding power/oppression, positionality and how this impacts our ability to engage in play, and the importance of holding both/and (i.e. - joy/sadness, pain/pleasure, restriction/liberation). This assignment attempts to deepen these reflections through creativity, storytelling, and removal of limits for dreaming in a world with obstacles. Additionally, important points regarding scaffolding of play were mentioned in the workshop. Therefore, the practice of scaffolding is included in the assignment through reading other peoples’ science fiction work, listening to a podcast, and finally developing a short story or comic that speaks to each students’ interests/passions. The assignment guide follows below.

 

Gabrielle Cuesta serves as a Faculty Lecturer in the SEEK Department at John Jay College. Gabrielle’s passions as an educator include liberatory pedagogy and healing practices. As a queer cis-woman of mixed race, white-adjacent identity, Gabrielle feels a strong responsibility to dismantle structural oppression and violence.

 

Monika L. Son is an Assistant Professor, Chair and Director of the SEEK Department of John Jay College of Criminal Justice. Her scholarship integrates trauma informed methodologies to build connection, compassionate and healing oriented spaces. She is skilled at supporting discomfort and ambiguity in challenging dialogues about race, power, privilege, and oppression through a contemplative and embodied lens.