Assignment task:
Remember to respond to two peers while being respectful of and sensitive to their viewpoints. Consider advancing the discussion in the following ways:
Post an article, video, or visual related to the development of the social self to reinforce a peer's idea or challenge them to see their point from a different perspective.
Paraphrase something from the original post. Then consider asking a question or sharing your personal experience. Need Assignment Help?
Shayna Post
The "A Class Divided" video really shows that kids aren't immune to the attitudes of those around them. They quickly picked up on the teacher's cues and started acting superior or inferior based on eye color, proving how easily children absorb social biases. This connects to the idea from Crash Course Sociology that social development is shaped by socialization, the process of learning norms and values from others.
Important milestones like forming friendships and developing empathy influence how kids understand fairness and inclusion. When those stages are disrupted it can lead to poor social skills later on. I don't think antisocial behavior in adults is only caused by bad childhood socialization since things like trauma, mental health, and environment matter too. Still, early interventions that teach empathy and perspective-taking could make a big difference.
Even if kids have already learned intolerance, I think it's possible to reteach inclusiveness through consistent modeling and open discussion. Without that follow-up in "A Class Divided," those kids might have grown up believing the eye-color bias was real. The lesson ties closely to emotional intelligence because understanding others' feelings and experiences is key to building tolerance and ethical behavior.
Alexis Post
In a Class Divided, Jane Elliot proved that children aren't somehow proof against group thinking. When children were led to believe that one group of children was superior because of eye color, they immediately responded as though it were true. During childhood, skills like acquiring empathy and understanding others' points of view, as proposed by Piaget's and Mead's work, are crucial in developing social skills in children. This is also an important part in understanding right or wrong.
While its existence in children cannot be attributed as a sole reason, it also has a part as a growing influence in a child's early stages through positive mentors and therapy. Kids can learn tolerance regardless of exposure to biases. Elliott's talk in class gave them an opportunity to reflect upon issues of fairness. This is because, without that talk, they could have continued possessing those biases.
This is related to emotional intelligence and social justice because learning empathy and fairness will lead one to build an understanding and just society.