Web-based mentorship: Learning Through Character Play (3 credits)
Offered Fall & Winter
Meets Tuesdays/Thursdays 1-2:30
Wolverine Access #10524
Be a mentor for the Place out of Time project, in which we seek to bring the wisdom of history and literature to a controversial question of our day. This winter, our main trial has to do with considering what restrictions should be placed on young people’s access to social media and at what age people should vote.
Each participant in the virtual gathering—whether middle school student participant or college student mentor—selects a historical character they will portray, and seeks to get enough of a sense of the passions and the experiences of their character to be credibly represent them and to speak in their voice. The class is a kind of lab in supporting the intellectual work of middle and high schoolers, and it is often the case that the camouflage of character allows the participants to be less aware of the age differences, and to simply play with words and ideas.