Human Rights Education

Human Rights Education
On Friday and Saturday I attended a Human Rights seminar/workshop hosted by the university I attend. It was two full days of eye opening, jaw dropping education that I will probably never forget. Various representatives from such organizations as the American Red Cross and Human Rights Educational Resources Associates participated. As an American, I live a pretty good life: I have a nice house, a car, food, clean water, and freedom. I am free to do or be whatever it is I want- in my case a teacher. Sometimes that bubble I live in is very comfortable and I don't look outside it as often as I should. This workshop helped me learn not just about myself, but how I will teach my future students.

When I was growing up, I don't recall getting much of a human rights education. We touched on the holocaust in social studies and discussed civil rights in English. Today with the help of technology we have access to all kinds of resources to educate our kids. Unfortunately it doesn't seem to matter. Here in the states we can't even cover the basics properly let alone human rights education. Regardless, I promised myself to work hard to incorporate this important subject into my curriculum. Learning to be a decent human being is just as (if not more)important as learning read and write effectively.