Remembrance Day CANCELLED!

      Recently, Remembrance Day passed. I was absent from school on that day because I was home sick. When I went to school the next day I was told that our Deputy cancelled the one minute stand-still. Her decision was based on the grounds that 'some of the students may be offended'. I go to a multicultural school and she was just concerned for some of the kids. But what she and most of the students at school fail to realize  is that Remembrance Day is a national day of mourning. It is the day when we stand still for one minute to remember the people who fought for our freedom. It is not a day to celebrate a victory or to celebrate the men who killed in war. No, it is a day to recognize their efforts and to recognize their deaths. it is also the day when we think about the suffering families they left behind for their country. Families lost fathers, brothers, uncles, husbands,friends, and some even lost sisters.
If our deputy was afraid of offending some students, what would that offense be? That students want to show gratitude to those who died for us - not killed for us? That students want to recognize that those people are the reason for the life that we know today? That students want to appreciate the fact that safety is now a right to society and not just a privilege thanks to them?
    
      I understand that some of these students come from the countries that Australia went to war with. So of course it's only natural for some of them to have strong feelings about this day. But nevertheless, the only reason that they would be offended is because they don't understand what Remembrance Day is about. In primary school we were taught about this day and ANZAC day, but at that age it is difficult to understand the importance of it. All we knew was that we were supposed to  bow our heads in respect (but respect for what?). It is not taught or reminded in high school, which is the ideal age to explain such events because we are capable of having a better understanding. In high school we learn modern history and in English we learn about the social issues of the time, yet it is still not taught.
    
      So the only people who have been offended that day were the students who actually understand the true meaning of Remembrance Day. Why? Because it was cancelled on unthought-through grounds.
I admit, I still haven't completely grasped the concept. Maybe because I'm young, inexperienced, or have never experienced war. But I do understand how important it is to my father who has served the army; for his grandfather who served; and for the ex-war veterans who march on TV on Remembrance Day, tears glistening from their eyes.

      These people have real feelings, real memories, real wounds, and real burdens. But what for? So that people will complain? No. If Remembrance Day gets cancelled every year, then we won't remember the soldiers and families who suffered and died for us. Lest We Forget - Soon We Will Forget...

Using the Internet as a way of Collaborating with Students

      This term some of my teachers have introduced a social network site for school students and teachers, called Edmodo. It's basically like Facebook, except that Edmodo is productive and an effective way of learning. Students can go home and check for any homework they may have and they can get the best out of their time on the computer.
      But I didn't start this post to promote Edmodo, so moving on. A teacher of mine posted a link, onto Edmodo, to a blog called Perceptions of Belonging. It's a great blog that talks about the AOS and the sections of the exam for English students. You can post questions and they will email you, and they have also put up some really useful links that will help you with your understanding of the concept Belonging.
      So here are the links:

          - Edmodo
            http://www.edmodo.com/?language=en&auto_selected_lang=true

          - Perceptions of Belonging
            http://aos12.wordpress.com/


Thanks,
Ness

Belonging - Living in a Multicultural World

Belonging - A Multicultural World on Prezi