Agents of Change: Students in Civic Action

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Agents of Change: Students in Civic Action

Graphic illustration of three students

Author: Tori Phù
Grades: 9-12

Suggested Amount of Time: Month Long Project
Area of Study: Framing the Vietnamese American Experiences Model Curriculum

Compelling Question

  • Why is it important to learn about Vietnam, Vietnamese refugees, and Vietnamese American experiences?

Lesson Questions
  • What is civic engagement, and why is it important?
  • What are some pressing issues within Vietnamese American communities that require attention and action? How can students raise awareness about these issues within their schools and communities?
Lesson Objective

Students will be able to generate civic engagement within Vietnamese American communities by identifying a specific issue, planning a project to address it, and presenting their proposals to the class.

Lesson Background

Vietnamese communities in the diaspora face a range of social, economic, and cultural challenges. Issues such as intergenerational trauma from war, cultural preservation and identity, mental health stigma, educational disparities, and lack of access to healthcare are just a few examples of areas where civic engagement can make a meaningful impact. The Vietnamese American experience, shaped by historical events such as the Vietnam War and subsequent migration waves, has led to unique challenges and opportunities for civic participation. Understanding these issues can inspire students to learn more about their culture while taking action and making a difference in their communities. Prior to engaging in this civic engagement lesson and project, it would be beneficial if students already have learned about the Vietnam War or about refugees from Vietnam.

This lesson contains content that may be sensitive for some students. Teachers should exercise discretion in evaluating whether the resources are suitable for their class and provide a content warning to their students at the beginning of the lesson.

Image Citation: (2024). Afterschoolnetwork.org. https://www.afterschoolnetwork.org/sites/main/files/imagecache/lightbox/main-images/solidaritystories.org_.png

Ethnic Studies Theme: This lesson connects to the ethnic studies theme of community and solidarity from the Asian American Studies Curriculum Framework (Asian American Research Initiative, 2022). Students analyze community resistance and alliances between communities, as well as the complexities within these experiences. Students execute a civic engagement initiative that enables them to collaborate with the community to address a passionate issue in their community. Teachers may enhance this lesson by having students partner with other groups in solidarity to overcome racism and societal issues.

For additional guidance around ethnic studies implementation, refer to the Ethnic Studies Model Curriculum (2021) https://www.cde.ca.gov/ci/cr/cf/esmc.asp.

Historical Thinking Skills: This lesson will facilitate student proficiency in continuity and change, one of Seixas’ historical thinking skills (Seixas & Morton, 2013). To help students see change as a process, and see periodization as interpretation, students consider how progress and decline are broad evaluations of change over time. Depending on the impacts of change, progress for one person may decline for another.

  • Supplies:
    • Access to laptop device
    • “Vietnam: The Real War – in Pictures” Images
    • Poster Board
    • Markers 
  • Readings:
    • “Mental Illness Public Stigma and Generational Differences among Vietnamese Americans”
    • “Trauma at Root of Mental Health Issues Among Vietnamese”
    • “Vietnamese Community Needs Assessment Summary Report” 
    • “Status of Vietnamese Health” (pages 28–49, 72–86) 
    • “My Experience With Racism As a Vietnamese American” 
    • “#advanceAAPIpower: Asian American Pacific Islander (AAPI) Political Leadership” 
    • “Asian American Voter Survey” 
    • “Cultivating Identities in a Place Called Home: Intersectional, Ever Changing Identities of Vietnamese American Youth in Culturally Sustaining Spaces” 
    • “The Design Thinking Process”
  • Videos:
    • “What is Civic Engagement?” 
  • Handouts: 
  1. Cultural Energizer (5 mins)
    1. Prompt students to think about the question: “What are three things you wish for yourself, your community, the world?”
      1. Have students share with a partner and the class.
  2. Anticipation Guide (10–15 min)
    1. Pose the following task to students (This can also be done as an interactive forum such as Padlet, or PearDeck on slides)
      1. What are you most proud of in your school, community, city, society?
      2. Jot down 1–2 issues you wish you could change that impact students at your school.
      3. Jot down 1–2 issues you wish you could change that impact the community you live in.
      4. Jot down 1–2 issues you wish you could change that impact your cultural community groups.
    2. Have students share their list with a peer and encourage them to find any similarities in responses. 
    3. Teacher to solicit student responses and write down common issues on the board. 
    4. Teacher to introduce the idea of civic engagement to students by sharing the video “What is Civic Engagement”. (link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x6bNwmrBPXI) 
      1. Have students write one line that best wraps up their understanding of civic engagement. 
        1. Then, have students share their responses with an elbow partner. 
      2. Teacher to solicit student responses of the definition of civic engagement and display a co-constructed definition on the board. 
    5. Introduce students to lesson objective, lesson questions and lesson background. 
  3. Building Background (20–25 mins) 
    1. Teachers should provide content warning to class: “Today we will be discussing and viewing photos from the Vietnam War that may contain graphic and violent content. These images help us understand the impact and the war. If you feel uncomfortable or distressed, please feel free to step out of the room. As we engage in analyzing the photos to better understand the events that unfolded, please remain respectful of the victims.”
    2. Teacher to start with explaining that before we look at today’s society and the problems that are prominent in current times, we must understand the background and history from which the Vietnamese communities derive. We will do that by analyzing a series of photos from the website, “Vietnam: The Real War – in pictures” at https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/gallery/2015/apr/22/vietnam-the-real-war-a-photographic-history-by-the-associated-press-in-pictures 
      1. As students view the photos, have them complete the thinking routine (independently or with peers): “See-Think-Me-We” (recommended 3–4 responses per section).
        1. See - Look closely at the images. What do you notice? What details stand out to you? Make observations. 
        2. Think - What thoughts do you have about what is going on in the photos? What do you think happened during and after the war from looking at these photos?
        3. Me - What connections can you make between you and the images? 
        4. We - How might the impacts from the Vietnam War seen in the photos be connected to bigger stories - about the world? What issues and topics might stem from the Vietnam War photos and impact the larger Vietnamese American community? 
    3. After students have had sufficient time interacting with the images, have them share their responses to the “We” section. 
      1. As students share, teachers can make a word bank list on the board of common impacts and issues that students mention. Teachers can also share 1–2 from the list below to prompt students to think in alignment with the lesson objective.
        1. List of possible responses: intergenerational trauma, mental health, poverty, environmental impact or destruction, shifting family dynamics, politics, economic stability, health issues
  4. Shared Learning: Modified Jigsaw Activity (25–30 mins)
    1. In the next part of the lesson, students will each be responsible for conducting research on a pertinent issue or topic impacting Vietnamese American communities in present day society. These issues and topics have influences from the Vietnam War and carry over into the subsequent generations. 
    2. Students will engage in a modified jigsaw activity in which they are assigned a topic or issue and source(s) to analyze. They will be responsible for exploring that issue and sharing a brief overview with their peers. This will serve as a window and introduction for students of the potential issues they can conduct their civic engagement project on. 
    3. It is best to place students into groups. Each group will examine the same issue or topic and accompanying source(s). (If students are interested in researching a topic/issue not listed below, teachers can use best discretion to approve the topic).
      1. Topic or Issue: Mental Health or Intergenerational Trauma
        1. Source: “Mental Illness Public Stigma and Generational Differences among Vietnamese Americans” https://ucdavis.box.com/s/87uck8qnlmp4bg3q74vy7jb6o9ghv7ue (Original website source: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8085811/) 
        2. Source: “Trauma at Root of Mental Health Issues Among Vietnamese” https://voiceofoc.org/2013/02/trauma-at-root-of-mental-health-issues-among-vietnamese/ 
      2. Topic or Issue: Health Conditions/Healthcare
        1. Source: “Vietnamese Community Needs Assessment Summary Report” https://ucdavis.box.com/s/782ikap8cgm410rugecb4nklk1e0qrkq (Original website source: https://www.aahiinfo.org/english/pdf/needsAssessment/AAHI_FocusG_M_Vietnamese.pdf) 
        2. Source: “Status of Vietnamese Health” (Chapter 2, pages 28–49, Chapter 4, pages 72–86) https://ucdavis.box.com/s/lya92xisr4nfv7pbrjkoi6hwlnsakdct (Original website source: https://publichealth.sccgov.org/sites/g/files/exjcpb916/files/vha-full-2011.pdf )
      3. Topic or Issue: Discrimination
        1. Source: “My Experience With Racism As a Vietnamese American” https://www.ican2.org/my-experience-with-racism-as-a-vietnamese-american 
      4. Topic or Issue: Income, Education, Workforce
        1. Source: “Vietnamese Immigrants in the United States” https://www.migrationpolicy.org/article/vietnamese-immigrants-united-states#age_education_employment 
      5. Topic or Issue: Representation in Government/Voting Patterns
        1. Source: “#advanceAAPIpower: Asian American Pacific Islander (AAPI) Political Leadership” https://wholeads.us/research/aapi-political-leadership/ 
        2. Source: “Asian American Voter Survey” https://apiavote.org/policy-and-research/asian-american-voter-survey/ 
      6. Topic or Issue: Community Organizing
        1. “Cultivating Identities in a Place Called Home: Intersectional, Ever Changing Identities of Vietnamese American Youth in Culturally Sustaining Spaces” https://ucdavis.box.com/s/apcgjdwgpe2dl04xtz257x0h37ozfiwg (Original website source: https://docs.lib.purdue.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1203&context=jsaaea )
      7. Encourage students that they are welcome to complete research on the issue or topic beyond the sources provided. There are additional websites that include information and multiple topics and issues in the “supplementary sources” that should be made available to students.
      8. As students are researching, have them work together to prepare a (digital or physical) poster to include the following: Topic or Issue (as a headline), 3–5 key details, 2–3 statistics, and image or symbol of the topic or issue.
  5. Gallery Walk (15–20 mins)
    1. Once students are done with reading their sources and creating posters as a group, there will be a gallery walk for students to learn about the other prevalent issues impacting the Vietnamese American community.
    2. Supply students with a notetaker that allows them to take note of the topic/issue and their key learnings.
    3. Students can move as a group between posters, and allow 3–4 minutes at each poster. Once time is up, each group will move to the next respective poster.
    4. Once students have a chance to preview all topics or issues, have them return to their groups and discuss the following:
      1. What connections can be made between the issue you researched and the influences of the Vietnam War?
      2. Which topic/issue was most interesting to you, or which topic/issue are you most passionate about? 
  6. Civic Engagement Project Introduction (15–20 min) 
    1. Teachers will introduce the civic engagement project assignment. 
      1. Task: Choose one major issue or topic that impacts the Vietnamese American community. Over the next month, conduct thorough research, and then execute a civic engagement initiative that enables you to collaborate with the community to enhance conditions and address the problem. (Teacher can modify the length of time dedicated to this project).
    2. Allow students to consider their options and narrow down on a specific focus. If it helps, encourage them to sit with students who are choosing a similar issue/topic. 
      1. Teachers can decide whether this is an independent project, or if students can work with others. 
      2. Students can also pose additional project ideas that are not on the list above, with teacher approval.
    3. Have students consider the following guiding questions on the “Civic Engagement Project Proposal” form (see handouts section) to support project design.
      1. Students should submit a “Civic Engagement Project Proposal” Form (see handouts) to the teacher for approval, prior to starting on the project.
  7. A “Design Thinking Process” to Get Students Started (1 week)
    1. In order to help students hone in on a particular topic/issue, and the appropriate project, students should start with gathering information and inspiration to guide the process.
      1. For ways to encourage students to gather inspiration, educators can use the following resource titled, “The Design Thinking Process” https://www.ideou.com/blogs/inspiration/design-thinking-process 
      2. Have students conduct empathy interviews or surveys with community members who are directly involved with the students topic/issue of interest. 
    2. After students have gathered information and inspiration to help frame their projects, they can brainstorm their advocacy project idea.
  8. Civic Engagement Project Execution (2–4 weeks)
    1. Menu Board of Options for Project Assignment (encourage students to choose a medium that best reflects the desired goals of their civic engagement):
      1. Raise Awareness
        1. Create a PSA for an organization or media outlet  
        2. Create a Social Media Campaign  
        3. Create and Distribute a Leaflet  for an organization or media outlet
        4. Start a New Club on Campus  
        5. Write and Circulate a Press Release 
      2. Demonstrate Support 
        1. Contact an Elected Official 
        2. Create a Petition  
        3. Initiate a Policy Proposal to Local Policymaker to Address the Issue 
        4. Organize a Town Hall Meeting that Includes a Variety Of Stakeholders  
        5. Reach out to a local Vietnamese community organization and attend their events or committees 
          1. Possible list of Vietnamese organizations: 
            1. United Vietnamese Student Associations of Northern California, or NorCal UVSA: https://norcaluvsa.org/ 
            2. Vietnamese American Arts and Letters Association, or VAALA: https://vaala.org/ 
            3. Southeast Asia Resource Action Center, or SEARAC: https://www.searac.org/ 
            4. Asian & Pacific Islander Youth Promoting Advocacy and Leadership, or AYPAL: https://www.aypal.org/ 
            5. Union of North American Vietnamese Student Associations, or UNAVSA: https://unavsa.org/ 
            6. VietRISE: https://vietrise.org/ 
            7. Viet Rainbow of Orange County, or VROC: https://www.vietroc.org/ 
      3. Donate to a Cause
        1. Apply for a Grant  
        2. Host a Fundraiser for a Cause 
    2. Allow for student(s) to work on their civic engagement project during specified class times. Students may have to complete parts of the project outside of class time as well.
    3. Throughout the weeks, teachers should build a consistent routine for students to have check-ins with other peers and teachers to provide updates, meet benchmarks and get support and feedback on their project. 
  9. Civic Engagement Project Presentation (30–60 mins)
    1. Presentations can look differently for each set of students depending on the context of their work. Teachers are encouraged to use best discretion in determining a presentation style that works best for the students and their projects. The final product can be open to a written, visual, or audio narrative. 
    2. Below are two suggested presentation formats:
      1. Open Showcase: Teacher to reserve an open, public space on campus (i.e: library, quad, cafeteria) and set up tables for each project.
        1. Invite community members, parents, educators, staff, and students to the showcase event. 
        2. Each student/student group will have a poster board display to share their civic engagement project and outcomes (including pictures, text, research, outcomes, process).
        3. Students will prepare speaking parts to share about their project.
        4. During the allotted showcase time, attendees will walk around and hear from student presenters and engage in questions.
      2. Closed Showcase: Students will prepare a 3–5 minute digital presentation (i.e: Google Slides, PowerPoint, Canva) outlining their civic engagement project
        1. Once student(s) are done presenting, allow listeners to ask questions and provide feedback.
  10. Reflective Dialogue (15–20 mins)
    1. Have students complete a reflection of their civic engagement project, experiences, and successes. 
      1. In small groups of four, or in a whole class discussion, pose one or more of the following questions to students:
        1. What were some successes and wins? What worked best to reach these successful markers?
        2. What were some surprising insights?
        3. What were some challenges along the way?
        4. How can you or peers continue to push the work to create a better future for our communities?
        5. What were some parts you enjoyed about this experience?

 Students will select a topic or issue concerning the Vietnamese community and explore various assessment options from a menu board to propose ideas for advocacy and fostering change. Students will present their advocacy idea and initiate the first steps toward implementation.

  • Representation: Consider the following method to support with multiple means of representation:
    • Use advanced organizers (e.g., KWL methods, concept maps)
    • Give explicit prompts for each step in a sequential process
  • Action and Expression: Consider the following method to support in presenting their learning in multiple ways:
    • Provide models or examples of the process and product of goal-setting
    • Provide guides and checklists for scaffolding goal-setting
  • Engagement: Consider the following method to support with lesson engagement:
    • Differentiate the degree of difficulty or complexity within which core activities can be completed
    •  Construct communities of learners engaged in common interests or activities

For additional ideas to support your students, check out the UDL Guidelines at CAST (2018) http://udlguidelines.cast.org.

  • Emerging: Consider the following method to support with emerging students:
    • Speaking: Provide sentence frames for pair interactions
      • In response to a prompt, the teacher offers a sentence frame orally and/or in writing to support expression of student thinking. Frames are adjusted based upon specific grammatical structure, key vocabulary, content learning, and language proficiency level descriptors, etc. Frames are a temporary scaffold that require modification
  • Expanding: Consider the following method to support with expanding students:
    • Speaking: Scaffold oral reports with note cards and provide time for prior practice
  • Bridging: Consider the following method to support with bridging students:
    • Speaking: Include oral presentations in the content classroom

For additional guidance around scaffolding for multilingual learners, please consult the following resources:

  • State Seal - Students can use this project to satisfy goal area three of the State Seal of Civic Engagement which includes: “Participate in one or more informed civic engagement project(s) that address real-world problems and require students to identify and inquire into civic needs or problems, consider varied responses, take action, and reflect on efforts;” Each LEA needs to adopt their own local criteria for earning the State Seal of Civic Engagement but this project should fit into most district plans.  You can learn more about the State Seal of Civic Engagement on the California Department of Education website: https://www.cde.ca.gov/pd/ca/hs/hssstateseal.asp
  • Internship Opportunities - Students can also pursue internships working with nonprofit organizations as well as local government agencies working in the area of their project. Encourage students to get involved by becoming an active member of the respective community groups.

American Initiative. 2022. Asian American Studies K-12 Framework.  https://asianamericanresearchinitiative.org/asian-american-studies-curriculum-framework/ 

#advanceAAPIpower: Asian American Pacific Islander (AAPI) Political Leadership. 2021, May. Reflective Democracy Campaign. https://wholeads.us/research/aapi-political-leadership/

Asian American Health Initiative. 2007. Vietnamese community needs assessment summary report. https://www.aahiinfo.org/english/pdf/needsAssessment/AAHI_FocusG_M_Vietnamese.pdf

Asian American Voter Survey. 2022. APIAVote. https://apiavote.org/policy-and-research/asian-american-voter-survey/ 

Batalova, J. B. J. 2023, October 11. Vietnamese immigrants in the United States. Migration Policy Institute. https://www.migrationpolicy.org/article/vietnamese-immigrants-united-states#age_education_employment 

Britt, K. 2020c, May 11. English learner toolkit of strategies. California County Superintendents. https://cacountysupts.org/english-learner-toolkit-of-strategies/

California Department of Education. 2021. Ethnic studies model curriculum. https://www.cde.ca.gov/ci/cr/cf/esmc.asp 

California Department of Education & English Learner Support Division. 2012. California English Language Development standards (Electronic Edition) kindergarten through grade 12 (F. Ong & J. McLean, Eds.). California Department of Education. https://www.cde.ca.gov/sp/el/er/documents/eldstndspublication14.pdf

California Educators Together. (n.d.). ELA / ELD framework. https://www.caeducatorstogether.org/resources/6537/ela-eld-framework 

CAST. 2018. The UDL guidelines. http://udlguidelines.cast.org

Do, M., McCleary, J. S., Nguyễn, D. J., & Winfrey, K. 2020. Mental illness public stigma and generational differences among Vietnamese Americans. Community Mental Health Journal, 56(5), 839–853. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10597-019-00545-y 

Trần, C. G. (n.d.). My Experience With Racism As a Vietnamese American. ICAN. https://www.ican2.org/my-experience-with-racism-as-a-vietnamese-american 

Nguyễn, T. V. 2020. Cultivating Identities in a Place Called Home: Intersectional, Ever Changing Identities of Vietnamese American Youth in Culturally Sustaining Spaces. Journal of Southeast Asian American Education and Advancement, 15(1). https://doi.org/10.7771/2153-8999.1203 

Presidential Precinct. 2019. What is civic engagement? [YouTube]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x6bNwmrBPXI 

San Diego County Office of Education. (n.d.). Providing appropriate scaffolding. https://www.sdcoe.net/educators/multilingual-education-and-global-achievement/oracy-toolkit/providing-appropriate-scaffolding#scaffolding

Santa Clara County Public Health. 2011. Status of Vietnamese health. https://publichealth.sccgov.org/sites/g/files/exjcpb916/files/vha-full-2011.pdf 

Sexias, P. & Morton, T. 2013. The big six: Historical thinking concepts. Nelson Education.

Tulare County Office of Education. (n.d.). Strategies for ELD. https://commoncore.tcoe.org/Content/Public/doc/Alpha-CollectionofELDStrategies.pdf 

The Design Thinking Process. (n.d.). IDEO U. https://www.ideou.com/blogs/inspiration/design-thinking-process

The Guardian. Vietnam: The real war – in pictures. 2015, April 22. https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/gallery/2015/apr/22/vietnam-the-real-war-a-photographic-history-by-the-associated-press-in-pictures 

Voice of OC. 2013, February 25. Trauma at Root of Mental Health Issues Among Vietnamese. https://voiceofoc.org/2013/02/trauma-at-root-of-mental-health-issues-among-vietnamese/ 

Model Curriculum

Vietnamese American Experiences

Standard(s)

HSS 11.11 RL.11-12.1 W.11-12.7

Grade(s)

Grade 9 Grade 10 Grade 11 Grade 12