Welcome to
PARALLEL
WARS
Why ?
Too often student work dies at the teacher’s desk existing only to satisfy a rubric and obtain a grade. We believe that when students have agency over the creative process, a professional presentation to an authentic audience can elevate engagement at all steps of the learning process.
This site is a companion to a presentation we gave that focused on how to boost learner agency by leveraging a student-curated exhibition to an authentic audience. Please feel free to modify any of the content or strategies contained herein to suit your own context. We hope you find it useful.
Agency
Leadership
Audience
Curricular Alignment
The Parallel Wars Exhibition as a pedagogical method grew natively from the existing standards-based social studies curriculum at Shekou International School. In previous years we had students showcase their learning via keynote presentations, performances, and even documentary filmmaking. We developed the Parallel Wars exhibition as a natural extension of those methods in order to boost student agency, but also in a way that aligned with our curriculum standards and gave us the opportunity to reach existing targets in a more meaningful way.
How Parallel Wars Works:
We intend this exhibition to allow visitors to compare and contrast the experiences of the First and Second World Wars. Students have created both videos and podcasts which examine those experiences. There are seven video rooms, each focusing on a common topic:
ELI5 | Causes | Weaponry | The Front | Civilians
Propaganda | Peacemaking
Parallel Wars, Shekou International School
© 2017