Period 1 - Natalia Carrillo

[CALIS]

Thank you for participating in TIRP service-learning outreach!

Your reports are the basis for academic credit.  Whether or not you are seeking a credit option, reports are required as a university record of service-learning efforts and impact in local schools.

Required Format:
Session 1 materials: [The first line of your report is the session number and full title of the database item(s).]
Focus Q: [On a new line, list your focus question from your TAP form. If you changed the question then add the new version after the TAP version.]
*** For the minimum of 3 student specifics, do not refer to students by name; instead call them Student A, B or C.
*** For the minimum of 500 words, guiding questions are here: https://www.forums.usc-calis.net/showthread.php?tid=297

Use clear paragraph structure. If you include too much focus on the step-by-step process of the lesson rather than substance, you may be asked to revise your report.
*** The webboard is public. If you include names, commentary or observations, you will need to revise your post.

To Post:
1. For each report, select Post Reply.  (Do not select New Topic)
2. Copy/paste from your Word file and save a copy until after the semester is over.
3. Before pasting, confirm that you have met the minimum of at least 500 words.
4. Each report must be submitted by midnight within 3 calendar days after each session.

A CALIS staff member will review your report each week and post a message below of the scoring for your performance evaluation.
We welcome any questions or concerns you have about scoring.
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Session #1
On Time: 0/3
Substantive: 6/6
Student Specific: 3/6 - Please mention the participants in the class discussions by referring to them as Student A, Student B, Student C etc. You need to highlight a minimum of three student's viewpoints during the discussion.
Total: 9/15
-PS, 11/7

Session #2
On Time: 0/3
Substantive: 6/6
Student Specific: 3/6 - Please highlight the views of at least 3 by referring to them as Student, A, B and C in your reports.
Total: 9/15
-PS, 11/7

Session #3
On Time: 0/3
Substantive: 6/6
Student Specific: 4/6
Total: 10/15- Thank you for your report! It's great to see that interactive activities seem to help students understand the concept better.
-PS, 11/7

Session#4
On Time: 0/3
Substantive: 6/6
Student Specific: 3/6
Total: 9/15- Thank you for your report! I'm happy to hear that you got an opportunity to teach about something you are passionate about!
-PS, 11/7

[Elsa Natalia Carrillo Diaz]

Session 1: Understanding US Foreign Policy in Simple Terms; The US-Mexico Case from NPR

Main Question: What is foreign policy? How can we break it down into parts? What can we learn from security issues in US-Mexico relations?

In our first class about foreign policy, we started by explaining what foreign policy means. We used a mix of talking, discussions in pairs, and a group game called Kahoot to teach these ideas and see if the class got it. Since we're teaching a class about Latin America, we picked an example related to the region - US-Mexico relations and security. We used the 4 worlds model to refer back to it for that and the following sessions.

We began by introducing ourselves, saying what we wanted to do in the course, and talking about the basics of foreign policy. We used pictures on a screen to help explain these ideas. For instance, we showed stuff like the European Union to explain foreign policy. Then, we talked about the different parts of foreign policy so the students knew what we were talking about before our class activity. We also used pictures to show examples for each part. One example was the situation between Russia and Ukraine and the important roles played by Putin and Zelensky. We also showed them the three levels of analysis and we were able to show examples of the individual (Putin and Zelensky), National (what the country does as a whole) and international ( such as the UN),

 First, we had students listen to a story about US-Mexico relations.  each group talked about what the story was about and why it mattered. One student said it's important because the US and Mexico are neighbors, and they need to get along. Then, we had students work in their groups again to match each part of foreign policy with a description from the story. We went over the answers together as a class. Another student said that the national part of foreign policy looks at what's happening inside a country, which is why they picked things about US and Mexican politics as the right answer. Another student pointed out words like "power" when matching the part of foreign policy that looks at the whole world. To end our class, we played a fun Kahoot game to test what the students learned. For our first session, two groups were very active and they were answering most of the questions. Through their participation, others seemed to be courageous to participate as well.

In general, the class went well, and the students were interested. Teams were incentivized to work together for prizes for the kahoot and we had great levels of participation. But one thing we can do better is manage our time. We finished the class about ten minutes early because we thought the activities would take longer. 

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Four Worlds of International Relations; Case on Salvadoran Civil War
Focus Question: How did the United States influence the Salvadoran Civil War?

Our second session on foreign policy focused on continuing our analysis of US foreign policy towards Latin America. For this session, we used the case of US involvement in the Salvadoran Civil War and applied the Four Worlds framework to help break down the complex themes of the war.
We began this lesson by establishing key vocabulary- something that Mr. Johnson advised us to do-and reviewing some takeaways from our first session. First, we used a slide deck to project some review questions on the levels of analysis and Latin American geography, which the students were to answer in groups.
The students were able to answer these questions, and some still had their handouts from last week, which helped us confirm that the students retained what they had learned. Since war key terms are a bit complex, we defined some key terms like civil war, capitalism, and communism since these were central to the Cold War context of the Salvadoran Civil War. When asked to share what they thought these terms meant, Student A noted that civil war was a war within a country, not between countries, much like the US Civil War. 

The case reading was intended to give students some background information about the Salvadoran Civil War. Students participated by reading sections of the case out loud and then discussing three comprehension questions. The students discussed these questions with their group and then shared their answers with the class. One of the questions was which actors were involved in the war, to which Student B responded to the US, the Salvadoran government, and the FMLN. Having the students answer these questions was important in establishing the main actors and context for the war, and this student’s response showed that the class had this context. reading sections
I asked a question about the social problems that arose during the war. The question was: Do you guys know at what age the govenrment and guerrilla recruited men for the war? and one student answered 12 and that was the correct answer despite us not introducing that topic before. It felt nice that students know their history

Our next part of the class included a mix of talking and videos to explore the political, economic, social, and cultural aspects of the war. We divided our presentation into sections that discussed the causes of the war, and the main conflict, and used real examples to explain each aspect. We aimed to give students the background they needed to complete the Four Worlds Activity. 

After our lecture, students worked in their groups to fill in a chart that connected the facts about the Salvadoran Civil War to each of the four worlds. When we discussed the activity as a class, one student mentioned that rising prices, or inflation, were an economic effect of the war, which we thought was an important insight. After finishing this activity, students competed in a fun Kahoot quiz.

I felt that we prepared different ways for students to learn in this session through the Ted Talk video we played, the video showing the consequences of the war, the PowerPoint and the Kahoot. They were all using the three levels of analysis and they memorized the four worlds to help themselves with our activities. 

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Session 3 - Exploring the Impact of Foreign Policy on Local Communities: The Prisoner's Dilemma Exercise
Main Question: How does foreign policy affect local communities in the Lithium Triangle?

In our third class on foreign policy, our primary focus was to delve deeper into the intricate ways foreign policy decisions influence local communities. To illustrate these complexities, we employed the case study of lithium mining in the Lithium Triangle, which encompasses Argentina, Bolivia, and Chile.
As is our custom, we initiated the session with a brief recap, ensuring continuity and reinforcing the knowledge gained from our previous two sessions. 

We engaged the students in a classroom conversation, fostering an environment of open dialogue where their thoughts and ideas could flow freely. Following this warm-up, we launched into a review session, commencing with a group Kahoot activity. This approach served as an excellent way to refresh the students' memories, covering essential concepts such as levels of analysis, the Four Worlds framework, and fundamental geography questions. Commencing the class with the Kahoot activity proved to be a valuable strategy as it not only stimulated the students' attention but also ensured active participation from the start, setting a dynamic tone for the rest of the session.

Subsequently, we conducted a concise yet informative presentation on lithium, shedding light on its inherent properties, its significance within the Andean region, and the various challenges it poses to the local communities. In an attempt to engage the students and tap into their prior knowledge, we invited them to share their familiarity with lithium and its applications. This engagement was crucial in gauging the level of understanding the students had on the subject. A notable contribution came from Student A, who astutely noted that lithium is a critical component in electric vehicles like Teslas. This valuable insight reinforced the idea that certain students were already well-informed about the topic.

Following the lecture on lithium, we dedicated the remainder of the class to the modified Prisoner's Dilemma activity, which turned out to be a highlight of the session. We carefully explained the instructions and provided background information to ensure the students grasped the scenario fully. In this activity, each group assumed the role of a local community and faced the decision of whether to accept or reject a new lithium mining project. 

This exercise prompted students to weigh the pros and cons of their choices. The majority of students opted to accept the deal, primarily driven by substantial financial incentives. One student argued persuasively that accepting the project was the most sensible choice as the money could be channeled into critical resources like education, housing, and water, benefiting the community as a whole. On the other side of the debate, another student argued for rejecting the proposal, emphasizing that there was no need to spend money to recover a resource that was already accessible to them. One thing that I noticed from most of the groups is that they struggled to choose for either yes and no due to their morality when it comes to protecting the community but at the end, through our rundowns of helping them through the activity by helping them, they took their decisions. Most opted for a positive yes and just two groups declined the offer. in

The Prisoner's Dilemma activity ignited passionate discussions within the student groups, and active participation was notably high. This interactive exercise brought to light the intricate trade-offs and decision-making processes local communities might encounter when faced with foreign policy-induced changes.

In conclusion, our third session demonstrated that the Prisoner's Dilemma activity was a powerful tool for student engagement from start to finish. This realization underlines the importance of incorporating such interactive activities into our teaching approach. We concluded the session with a fruitful sharing of key takeaways and engaged the students in a brief discussion to consolidate their learning. This class exemplified exceptional participation, attentiveness, and overall exemplary behavior throughout the session.

[Elsa Natalia Carrillo Diaz]

Session 4: Migration in Latin America
Focus Question: Why does migration occur in Latin America?

For our last session, we started by making them play a Kahoot as this was something that worked really worked for the 3rd session. The Kahoot was a review of the third session and some other questions about different topics that we covered. The same team that won the last time, got them all right and the participation of this specific group had always been impeccable.  Then, we moved forward to our last topic which was migration in Latin America. 
This topic was important, as we covered different reasons why people migrate to different countries. We introduced the topic with an agenda followed by a power point. We structured our slides in a way that students could see the different issues in Latin America that led to the decision to migrate to another country and we also made it clear what is the U.S. position in allowing immigrants from Latin America. PowerPoint
To make it easier, our activity for this session was the 4 worlds. In our PowerPoint we went through the four worlds and why people move based on economic issues, social issues, cultural issues, and political issues. To engage in a small conversation, my teammates and I asked the student if they could think of different reasons why people move. One student pointed out that a reason why peopl emigrate is because of inflation. This term was not usually used in the class, but based on the presentation on the Salvadoran Civil War, students learned this term. 


afterward, they engaged in a conversation about an article concerning the Darian Gap. Subsequently, the students were tasked with responding to inquiries regarding the article's key focal points and the parties involved. In the course of this phase of the exercise, while making their way from table to table to assess how students were addressing the questions, Student A took notice of how religious persecution in locations like Guatemala could be considered a significant influence on the cultural realm. Student B later contributed by discussing how the level of freedom could serve as a factor impacting the political sphere. In summary, the students not only displayed their grasp of the concept of the Four Worlds but also showcased their understanding of the development of migration patterns.

After the article, we had planned to use Jeopardy as a different way to test out students' knowledge, but due to technical issues with LAUSD permissions to engage in the website, we were not able to play it. Instead, we did the same activity but through collecting points. The team with the most points would win. At least most of the students in the class actively participated either through helping team members or volunteering to answer. While doing this, it was hard to choose a contestant as they were all equally excited to answer! this showed how much they were paying attention and how much they cared for the material that we presented to them 

While I have always been passionate about the different issues happening in Latin America, I felt like we accomplished one thing: make students know that immigrants come here for different reasons and why they sacrifice their lives to come here. We engaged in a small conversation at the end and we thanked them for letting us teach them a little bit of what we wanted to teach them. This class participated a lot in the activities we had planned and we smoothly worked with them while encouraging them to think and defend their thoughts. Through this educational journey, I've always been deeply passionate about the myriad issues that unfold across Latin America. The class and I embarked on a remarkable exploration, striving to foster a comprehensive understanding of the factors that drive migration from this region. As the session drew to a close, I couldn't help but reflect on the invaluable lessons we had collectively absorbed.
Our efforts were not just about transferring knowledge but about illuminating the complex and multifaceted reasons that prompt individuals to embark on perilous journeys to new lands. We delved into the economic, social, cultural, and political determinants that shape the choices people make when leaving their homelands. It was a moment of realization for both educators and students, as we peeled back the layers of these intricate forces that shape human movement.
[font=Söhne, ui-sans-serif, system-ui, -apple-system, 'Segoe UI', Roboto, Ubuntu, Cantarell, 'Noto Sans', sans-serif, 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, 'Apple Color Emoji', 'Segoe UI Emoji', 'Segoe UI Symbol', 'Noto Color Emoji'][size=1]In [/size][/font]conclusion, our last session on migration in Latin America not only broadened the horizons of the students but also empowered them to think critically, discuss, and defend their viewpoints. They now possess a more comprehensive perspective on the complexities of global migration and the stories of those who undertake these journeys. It is our hope that these experiences will instill in them a sense of empathy, tolerance, and the motivation to make a positive impact on the world by acknowledging the struggles and aspirations of immigrants from Latin America and beyond. This session, along with the entire course, serves as a reminder of the transformative power of education and the importance of fostering a deeper understanding of the world and its diverse inhabitants.

Before we left we told them that if they needed any help with college applications or if they needed to talk about the process, to contact us, that we are always willing to help them.