Teaching English at Oakland High in the late 1990s, Ernest Morrell faced the age-old problem of how to get modern students interested in a canon of long-dead writers and poets. He watched kids muddle through class, heads down, interest limited. Then one day, while teaching Beowulf, a student’s eyes lit up when he realized the story was similar to a popular rap song. That day, Professor Morrell saw a spark of joy, enthusiasm and engagement and wondered how he could give that spark to all his students.He started bringing in other contemporary tangents – pop culture references, movies, music – but without losing the basis in classic literature. His students were learning. They were engaged. And, most importantly, Professor Morrell says, they were learning to love school and love themselves.Since then, Professor Morrell has authored K-5 and 6-12 curricula which are being taught by schools in every state. He’s advocated for teaching that not only improves academic outcomes, but also personal and social ones. And he’s teaching Notre Dame undergraduates and ACE students to find that spark in their lives and the lives of those around them.Learn more: https://go.nd.edu/LiteracyAcrossAmericaWWYFF
More from What Would You Fight For?
- 2:01Fighting for the Lives of ChildrenWhen your child is diagnosed with a rare, genetic disease, it feels like you’re rolling down a mountain, just waiting to hit rock bottom, says Doug Berns. When his daughter, Samantha, was diagnosed with Niemann-Pick Type C, an incurable, neurodegenerative disorder, he and his wife watched as Samantha’s energy depleted, her balance became shaky, and her laughter quieted.At Notre Dame, researchers in the Boler-Parseghian Center for Rare and Neglected Diseases seek to identify and advance treatments for a number of rare diseases, including Niemann-Pick Type C.For more information: http://ntrda.me/LivesofChildren
- 2:01Fighting to Walk AgainPerhaps no greater motivation exists in this world than hope. For the 450,000 Americans with spinal cord injuries, the hope that they can regain mobility, walk again, run again is often what pushes them through each therapy session. But those same patients often plateau in their recovery, and hope dwindles.Though he’s not a physician or physical therapist, Notre Dame engineering professor Jim Schmiedeler’s work may contribute to better success for these patients. In his locomotion and biomechanics lab, he uses tools from his biped robotics research to better understand the challenges spinal cord injuries present for those learning to walk again. By partnering with researchers at The Ohio State University, Schmiedeler can also test how lessons learned from experiments with the robots, which involve no risk to humans, can be translated into innovative therapeutic strategies that benefit patients. In doing so, he believes his work can help many of those individuals with a spinal cord injury to walk again.Read More: http://ntrda.me/WalkAgain
