Lesson 6

Borders Within: Social Interaction on the Border

Objective: Students will analyze social interaction, racism, and prejudice on the border through exploration of their own experiences.  Note: Lesson 5 should be completed before this lesson. 

NCSS Standards Met By This Lesson: I, III, IV, XI, X

Introduction: The identity issues in Lesson 5 are extended in this piece on social interaction.  From the class work on kinds and labels of identity, a discussion can be generated on social interaction within and between certain identities of people that live on the border.  By necessity, the issue of social interaction also brings up the issues of racism and prejudice.  Teachers should be prepared for a lively discussion.

Materials/Preparation:  Students should have paper and pen/pencil ready for writing.  The teacher may want to set some ground rules on how the discussion will be conducted.  In fact, the teacher may want to structure the discussion along some kind of debate or parliamentary format.  It might be wise to have certain ground rules in place such as: each speaker will be allowed a certain length of time to speak, there will be no interruptions and only one rebuttal, there will be no shouting and no personal remarks, etc.

Instruction/Practice:

Part 1 -- Group Discussion

Looking at the lists and Venn diagrams generated by the class in the previous lesson, let's take our work in identity a step further. Let's begin by positing some arbitrary distinctions--high, middle, and low degrees of interaction.  We might have to define what we mean by that. Or we might use terms such as "easy acceptance," "difficult acceptance," "polite exchange," "mere tolerance," "intolerance/rejection."  What we are doing is looking at the ways and degrees to which different groups of people interact on the border, in general. In doing so, we raise the question of racism and prejudice, although that is not the main focus of the lesson.

Perhaps the best way to begin is by individual work.  Using the lists from lesson 5, what identity or identities do you share with others?  What groups do you belong to?

Then, looking at the whole list generated by the class, what is your relationship to other groups?  Is it one of "easy acceptance," "difficult acceptance," "polite exchange," "tolerance," "rejection," etc.  In each instance, who is doing the accepting?  Who is doing the rejecting?  How much and what kinds of effort do you go through in order to find acceptance and/or evade rejection?

Questions to consider:  How easily do you get along with people of different skin colors?  Social class?  Income?  Language?

Activity--Have each student write a brief reflection into the realities of his or her own interaction with other people on the border. I f students want to, they may share by reading aloud afterwards.  However, some students, if not all, may prefer to hand their reflections to the teacher to retain privacy.

Part 2 -- Group Work/Creating a Chart

Is it possible to chart or in some other visual way represent the interaction of groups on the border?

Have students work in groups with butcher paper and markers to find ways to visually represent ways in which groups interact. T he use of Venn Diagrams or circles may be one way to represent the phenomena--perhaps there are other ways.  The chart may be a mixture of words/phrases and images--whatever the group creates is fine as long as it seriously addresses the assignment.

Closure: Have a spokesperson describe each group's representation.  What patterns seem to be true overall?  Display group charts either inside or outside the classroom.

Another Option for Closure: This issue can get very heated and difficult. It may come about that some overt & subtle kinds of prejudice are at work.  For example, even within Mexican society, light-skinned Spanish-descent Mexicans enjoy higher class privileges than darker-skinned Mexicans of Indian-descent.  This form of prejudice and difference is readily apparent on Mexican TV.  On this side of the border, prejudice exists not only based on skin color, but on language and other cultural differences.  Thus, Anglo people may not socially interact with light-skinned Latinos because of language or other differences. Anglo and even Chicano prejudice against Mexicans exists as well. 

Recognizing the varieties and subtleties of racism, isolation, alienation, and antipathy may be very difficult for the class to discuss, and will require a very level and skilled moderator.

Optional Closure/Group Discussion: However, recognizing the realities of social interaction on the border does not have to end in a negative way.  Do students see new trends of interaction and cooperation among different groups?  Can the class, either as a whole or in groups, suggest ways in which improved interaction and cooperation can be attained?  What can each individual do to ensure that an improved climate of acceptance and cooperation can be attained?

Extensions: Have each student write a short report in which they A) describe and analyze their pattern of interaction with various groups; B) discuss concrete measures they will be willing to take in order to increase cooperation and understanding among groups; and C) individuals can also speculate as to how racial and social interaction on the border may be better, the same or worse than it is in other parts of the country, especially those in which students have lived previously and can discuss from first-hand experience. 

For the final Border Project (Lesson 20), students may consider a longer research paper into racism and prejudice on the border.

Updated October 2004.