My Students and I at the Small Schools Rally

I should have posted this a long time ago. Well, here's my reflection on the rally. It's excerpted from my reflection for my 452B class at UCLA:

“…Steve [Barr] asked teachers from all of his schools to have our students participate in a rally for small schools. So, last night [February 28^th, 2005], 34 of my students and I rode a chartered bus to CBS studios, where the mayoral debate was taking place. We joined 3 other schools, and the organizers gave each student a green and white picket sign that said “Small Schools Now: www.smallschoolsalliance.org” and marched them up and down the sidewalk chanting “What do we want?! Small schools now!!” We then split into four groups and stood at the corners of the CBS studio intersection, getting cars to honk in support. It wasn’t until then when it hit me how much the public cares about education. It was amazing how many people slowed down and honked in support—literally an accident waiting to happen. For me personally, the rally was an eye-opening experience because my political participation has so far been limited to voting, which has been spotty to say the least. I grew up in Taiwan when it still had martial law, and the first presidential election there wasn’t until after I left for college. So, the whole idea of the democratic process still remains foreign to me, even though I attended a private (international) school. It seems like my students, who are attending a public school, are learning more about the democratic process than I did in high school…"