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Title: Anti-violence & Peace-building - Arts Education: Creating Music Together
Location:
Categories: Peace & Conflict
Education
Child & Youth Rights
Status:
Completed
Timeline:
Ongoing
Description:
New Anti-Violence Program launches in Toronto schools:
Students create peace-building songs.
January. 9, 2006 - Toronto - As students across Toronto return to school today, The 411 Initiative For Change (411), and Tough Dumplin Records are launching a new program providing anti-violence and diversity appreciation education in Toronto elementary schools hardest hit by violence, racism, and integration issues. As experts in using musicians as media to engage students in social issues, 411’s program “Creating Music Together” teams elementary classes with producer/rapper MC Collizhun to express themselves by analyzing, constructing, writing, recording and packaging their own tolerance and peace building songs.
This innovative educational program uses visual art and hip-hop music to bridge students’ interest in discussing peace building, tolerance, anti-violence, anti-racism and respect. Running from Jan. 9 – Jan. 20, the program will reach 10 schools across Toronto communities including Rexdale, Flemingdon Park, Scarborough, Jane and Finch, among others.
“Young people own unique, introspective voices and yet their opinions are often overlooked in the mass media. Through this program, they are being given an opportunity to learn new arts skills, express themselves, and share their stories on issues affecting them in their communities,” explains 411 Program Director Anita Wong. “411 is proud to be able to provide this outlet for young people and vehicles for critical peace-building initiatives starting in classrooms. Diversity appreciation and anti-violence sensitization starting at a young age – as a part of school curriculum, is an important part to curbing crime and violence in our cities.”
MC Collizhun best know for his membership in Toronto hip-hop group Nefarious and his credits for numerous US and Canadian artists, including film and television productions, heads up this program as the artistic mentor to the students. Collizhun teaches students how craft lyrics, express concepts in writing, associate words with ideas, and then works with students to create their own song as a group recording each student’s lyrics. Following the in-class work session, final mixed versions of the songs are distributed back to each student on professionally packaged CD’s so that each student is able to own their own sound recording, hearing the result of their own creative outputs.
“This program puts young people in a position of power while also teaching them valuable lessons about how to express and promote their ideas and feelings,” explains Collizhun. “I am honored to be able to contribute my expertise to work with and empower students on such timely and important issues for Toronto.”
411 programs provide teachers with curriculum and activity kits for ongoing use in the classroom; copies of these kits are available online at www.whatsthe411.ca
The 411 Initiative For Change is a not for profit organization which runs programs nation wide focusing on issues such as violence against women, racism, human rights education and HIV/AIDS awareness using the mediums of arts, culture and heritage as portals to engage young Canadians. The unique nature of The 411 Initiative For Change’s model of using artists and music as key agents in social change – from within the education system, demonstrates innovative, timely and effective response to the growing need to practice sustainable models for social development. 411 will also be running an anti-violence program for Toronto high schools as part of their annual Black History Month in February 2006.
The Honourable Raymond Chan, Minister of Multiculturalism, who attended 411’s fall ‘Human Rights Education’ program in Toronto, emphasized the importance of supporting critical programs, such as 411’s, in order to embrace Canada’s multicultural and diverse social fabric; in his address, he affirmed that young Canadians, “are going to set the example to model for the rest of the world!”
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Background:
Project Description:
Through a partnership with Tough Dumplin Records, this program provides a working session between contemporary musicians to provide arts education to primary level students � grades four through six, facilitating the creation of creative collaborative works with the students and musician.
Objectives:
Project Objectives:
* Facilitate the creation of content through creative collaboration between children and artists;
* Create new collaborative works that are representative and inclusive of children�s expression;
* Increase the presence of the arts within the education system and in the community;
* Use timely and relevant vehicles for engagement with genres of music such as hip hop and rhythm and blues;
* Impact on shaping students� self-esteem;
* Provide students with an innovative practice that encourages creativity, learning and participation;
* Arm students with a new artistic skill for self-expression at a critical stage of social development; and
* Voice children�s ideas and concerns through an arts outlet.
Activity Overview:
The collaborative process begins with a discussion between the artist and students, this educates students on the music production process and stimulates participation and brainstorming on issues and ideas raised by the students. The artist � Tristan Graham, teaches students how to write rhymes, associate words and express ideas and concepts for their lyrical contribution. Graham works with the students to create their own song as a group, alongside music; he then records each student�s lyrics. Once there is ample content, Graham takes all of the contributions back to the recording studio where the final song is produced. The song is then distributed back to the students. Thus students are able to own and hear the result of their own creative outputs.
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