What Julie Joseph wrote yesterday made a very important distinction that is relevant to all students, both hers in America and mine here in Israel – the difference between “knowing†and “seeingâ€.
The fact that we are constantly bombarded by news updates and pictures and videos of terrorists and knife attacks is a serious problem – and also the reality of life in Israel, and perhaps even in America today. An article today in the English edition of Arutz Sheva noted that psychological hotlines all over the country have been inundated with calls in the past weeks and that “it is not just witnesses who were at the scene (calling) but people who were exposed to pictures and videos of the attacks.â€
Last week I made time in my ninth grade class for a discussion about the “Matzavâ€. I started by asking the girls how many of them felt scared. 95% raised their hands. I asked them what was scaring them and was shocked by the number of girls who referenced visual images. “I can’t get the picture of the Arab with the knife out of my hand.†“I keep imagining myself standing in placed of the person he stabbed.†“Everywhere I turn I see the face of the terrorist from yesterday’s attack.â€
It turned out that most all of the girls were watching the footage of the attacks. And, no, this wasn’t because their teachers were showing it to them in school at Mishmar. They saw it on Facebook, and on Youtube, and on the websites of all the Israeli media outlets. One girl said she couldn’t escape it – her friends just kept Whatsapping her videos.
This led to a talk about the difference between seeing things and reading them/knowing them. I took a step away from the current situation and talked about “Harry Potter†– the difference in fear factor between reading the descriptions of Voldemort and various monsters, and then actually seeing them on the screen. The girls shuddered as the image of on-screen monsters flashed through their minds. I helped them understand how when you read something, the visual image you create only goes as far as what you can imagine – but when you see something it moves beyond the bounds of your imagination and experience, and stays with you in a more powerful way.
I then gave the girls homework – for one night not to watch ANYTHING about what was going on in Israel – not a Whatsapped video, or a picture, or even a news site with photographs. The next day I asked one of the most panicked girls if she did her homework. She responded, “Mrs. Smilowitz! Can’t you tell I did my homework? I’m so much calmer and less scared today. I’m going to start deleting all the videos my friends send me!â€
Yes, the reality in Israel (and America as well) is that we can’t always shelter our students and children from terrible things that happen. We also can’t always control how they encounter and are exposed to the information. What we can do, is, as Julie says, empower them. We can empower them to “do their part†for Israel, but we can also empower and educate them to learn to control their own exposure to media, and to realize the immense effect that visual media can have on their lives.
Michelle Smilowitz
Beit Shemesh, Israel
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/20/2015 06:53AM by mlb.
