Creativity....not oppression

I had my usual "post-exam class" this week. To my suprise I had a student turn in their homework assignment (all be it) 2 weeks late. I thought to myself...what does that really matter if the project they had been working on meant something to them. She handed it to me like it was nothing special and walked away. She had always been a good student but, like myself, was also very very quiet.

I opened her assignment (which was in a box) to find she had created a puzzle for me to figure out. It was a huge puzzle which she obviously went above and beyond to create. When other fellow TA's and I put the puzzle together, we found a massive collage of pictures bringing together the big picture of socialization. I thought to myself, did she know she had cleverly done a metaphor for human beings to be able to put the pieces of society together to understand the big picture (of course she did). When in pieces, it it hard for us to decipher what the world around us means. But if we take the time to put things together (despite it being difficult and unclear), then we can begin to shape the world around us. Then, I remember her telling me that there was a suprise. Underneath the puzzle was a message that said "hope." That underneath all the craziness of society we can never lose hope. The project really made my day because in class I don't know how many times I've stressed the importance of praxis. And that was it, in her own way she engaged in praxis, creativity, and a sprinkle of hope.

Again, I am very fortunate to be part of this experience. I think to myself where in higher education can students actively engage in creativity. And not only in creativity, but work that is not oppressive. Oftentimes assignments given by professors engage in multiple levels of oppression, from the language that keeps students out of higher learning to busy work that means nothing to them. More often than not, these assignments are even used to recreate social hierarchy that is already in place in society. If these students did not have a good experience with statistics (as one of my students always points out), then how are they supposed to be put in a situation where they can suceed? Rather than finding work to keep them chained down, there needs to be a shift in work that enables students to be the change.