SCS-90: Non-Canonical Greek Pedagogy

Organizers

Daniel Golde, The Jewish Theological Seminary

Description

The many dialects and genres of ancient Greek present both a challenge and an opportunity for innovative pedagogy. Although Attic Greek has become the standard dialect of early Greek education and Attic prose that of intermediate Greek courses, the opportunity cost of such an emphasis deserves consideration. This workshop challenges the presumed utility of Attic Greek for beginning and intermediate Greek education by considering alternative Greek pedagogy that stresses inclusivity. The three panelists in this workshop advocate three discrete pedagogical shifts with the hope of demonstrating the diversity of characters and personalities within Greek literature and the multilingualism that is embedded in certain Greek dialects. This move away from Attic Greek allows instructors to showcase different kinds of Greek literature at the beginning and intermediate levels of Greek education while also teaching the grammatical concepts necessary to read Attic Greek in advanced courses.

Each panelist will give a short presentation of 5-10 minutes, each of which will be followed by a brief discussion of eight to ten minutes. After all the panelists have presented, we will have a group discussion and then break out into small groups. Participants in the small groups will be asked to discuss a few prompts about inclusivity in early Greek education.

Note

This will be a hands-on event! Participants are warmly encouraged to bring materials, ideas and strategies to share, including syllabi, exercises, assignments and assessments.