Great article on the Design Observer Group's site about one teacher's efforts to inspire civic engagement and journalistic practice among students and citizens alike...on the subways.
Read Article here:
"Much more than we do now, we need to use civic engagement to achieve education goals. Being educated starts with being a citizen of your community. Right now in urban centers across the United States, there is a dearth of motivation and interest among students who believe that so-called "progress in the real world" is disconnected from their classroom experiences."
-Alexander Heffner, Taking the A-Train
I've often mulled over interesting and productive ways to utilize time spent on public transportation. Obvious choices are reading, catching up on your organizer or even just taking a moment to do nothing and rest. But I love this idea of starting a trickle of dialogue among passengers. One thing I thrived on when being a student was that opportunity to connect academic projects to "real world efforts"...to in fact make the project a real world effort.
I hope Heffner's students have a ball with it. Their work would probably certainly make for a great publication....one that would no doubt be a great read for anyone in transit between point a and point b who has some mental time to spare to chew on thoughts about society.
