The 9/11 We Remember

          

          As my co-librarian and I transformed our library into an auditorium-style venue,  I began to wonder just what memory my students had of the 9/11 tragedy.  They are in high school, I thought to myself, they should remember a significant amount.  We planned to show a four minute montage of the events that took place followed by a lively discussion on thoughts and feelings conjured up.  Before I pushed play, I asked the students: “Raise your hand if you have any memory of the events on 9/11.” Three out of sixty students raised their hand.  I quickly followed up with: “Ok, raise your hand if you understand what happened that day.”  Two hands went up.  I realized this life changing event in my generation was something that my students could not relate to.  The vast majority of them have never been on an airplane and like many typical teenagers, have a hard time fathoming the concept of national security when the world they know revolves around school, friends, and Friday night football.   Who can blame them?  I was the same way as a teenager.  I thought social studies was boring and didn’t know anyone personally who had fought in a war other than my old grandpas. 

          So where does this leave us as educators?  As I watched the video, tears filled my eyes.  This reinforced my belief that we must teach our students in ways they can relate.  We have to make our lessons relevant and real in the eyes of our youth while emphasizing the human element that is timeless. 

I think this quote by the author, David Levithan speaks to the underlying message we need to focus on at next year's 9/11 ceremony.  

"What separates us from the animals, what separates us from the chaos, is our ability to mourn people we've never met." -David Levithan, Love is the Higher Law