One day in 1968, Jane Elliott, a teacher in a small, all-white Iowa town, divided her third-grade class into blue-eyed and brown-eyed groups and gave them a daring lesson in discrimination. This is the story of that lesson, its lasting impact on the children, and its enduring power thirty years later.
I first saw this documentary on Channel 4, many years ago as a secondary school student. Having had one or two excellent teachers by this stage and significantly more not so good teachers, I had some realization that educators had a huge impact on the success and / or "failure" of students. This film clarified this idea and has stuck with me ever since.
There is a saying in the Irish language "Mol an óige agus tiocfaidh siad" or "Praise the young and they will flourish". Learning is a life-long process ànd so indeed, we could say "Mol éinne agus tiocfaidh siad" - "Praise anyone and they will flourish". When teaching I'm often asked questions prefixed with "This is probably a stupid question but...". There are no stupid questions. Actually, I find it easier to teach when questions are asked rather than not. There are no stupid or dumb students - only not so good teachers...
