The purpose and function of this blog has always and continues to be to educate both ourselves and our readers about the topic of violence against women, specifically within India and the United States. Our hope is to provide all of us with enough information on this topic so that we can all construct our own ideas and opinions about this overwhelming and troubled concept, with the hope to make us all more informed and involved citizens. James A. Duplass, the author of “Teaching Elementary Social Studies,” relates our primary beliefs and anticipations in terms of education, stating that the ultimate goal of/for “citizenship education is for students to mature into productive, wise citizens of their country and the world. Citizenship education draws on history, government, economics, geography, current events, and the social sciences” (31). As we ourselves are discovering through our own research, the issue of violence against and abuse towards women is hardly one that is confined to the United States, that, “regardless of which nation one happens to [be] born into or immigrates to, there are concepts about national identity and citizenship which are shared across the planet,” as well as dilemmas that extent far beyond our field of vision (Duplass, 34). As well, we hope to relate the critical attributes of this lesson and topic, a “teaching strategy that focuses on transmitting the procedural knowledge of identifying the essential elements of a concept so that students do not form inaccurate concepts and ultimately inadequate ideas and insufficient beliefs that are necessary to be effective citizens… Teaching children to distinguish the noncritical and critical attributes is a systematic strategy that leads to the most accurate conceptualization and sound decision making” (Duplass, 42). With those principles in mind, we hope that this humble source will be a means and place for you to develop and forge your own conceptions, understandings, and, in the end, your own ideas and opinions about this troubling dilemma. 

In light of the current evens within India (and the national discussion at hand regarding rights for women and how our government can improve its abilities to protect them and prosecute their abusers), we have seen and witnessed the power and value associated with social criticism, how the bonding together of a single country can urge reform and make an exponential difference and alter accepted terms and ideas. We understand that “social criticism is intimately tied to free speech,” that, as both the creators of this blog and as future teachers, we should “encourage social criticism but demand and ensure that students base that criticism on facts and logical arguments and create a civility in the classroom that communicates to students the importance of listening as well as talking” (Duplass, 34). On a global scale, the Indian people, in response to their government’s hesitation and leniency towards abusers and rapists, saw and intrinsically felt that the laws governing them were not stringent or demanding enough, a passion and decision that led them into the streets to demonstrate their unhappiness and desire for change. As Duplass states, “combined with passions… strongly held beliefs lead to social activism,” an aspect that is “essential to a democratic state, and student should be given opportunities to act on their beliefs and values in constructive ways” (34). The actions and protests of the Indian peoples, a nation coming together under the same ideas, principles, and cause, is an excellent and captivating example of the possibilities associated with social criticism and activism, a sign of hope and faith in humanity and our ability, as humans, to become active, engaged members of both our immediate society and that of the globe.

A great correlation between this blog and our (future) role as teachers is to recall that our goal is not to simply hand you, our readers (or students), our beliefs, to force our own conclusions and interpretations upon you. On the contrary, the opportunity afforded to us through these various mediums is to exemplify and model the thoughtful, deliberate, and open disposition needed to be a productive citizen, that, through demonstrating our own process of learning and constructing our own ideas and opinions, that you, as well, can engage in a similar, individualistic process that is unique to you alone. As stated previously, our goal with this blog, as well as as teachers, is to “create an environment and process where students are expected to be full participants in a dialogue that is in search of each student’s personal truth by expecting students to consider their own biases, share their ideas in a thoughtful way, justify their positions with logic and facts, and demonstrate a willingness to consider others’ ideas” (Duplass, 39). Our sincerest wish is to provide a resource for you so that you, too, can become more involved and knowledgeable, contributing members of this global community.

In terms of dividing this current event into informational knowledge and procedural knowledge, the informational knowledge originates with the issue and problem itself, specifically the accounts of the attack within India, the societal and communal desire and protest for reform to current laws and prosecution proceedings, and the changes currently underway in India. As well, as we turn this issue towards ourselves, our own nation, this knowledge consists of our current state and national regulations and current policies regarding violence and abuse towards women, including the recent proceedings and laws being discussed and enacted in order to improve our efforts and abilities to protect all citizens. For procedural knowledge of this current event, we agree that that would include the results and conclusions that you, the reader, form independently after reading and interpreting all of the presented informational knowledge, as well as your own conclusions as to whether or not our nation, the United States, is doing enough to prevent these violent acts, as well as if they are acting accordingly and justly in light of these events.   

In order to achieve our (rather lofty) goal for this blog, we will begin our research and work delving into the current events within India, finding valid and well-informed information to relate to you about what specifically happened, as well as the power behind the demonstrations in its wake, the (supposed and proposed) alterations that the government plans to take, what the implications for these changes are, and, of course, any and all new updates on the current situation. Additionally, we will then focus our attention on the United States’ own policies regarding this issue, examining the current legislations in place and those that are being created and validated at the present moment, looking at how the current events overseas are affecting us as a nation. Finally, we will be researching the laws and legal activities of our own state, Massachusetts, to see what we are doing to address and prevent these horrid acts. Specifically, the content that will be needed and required to understand the intent and knowledge provided within this blog are: violence – rough, injurious, and purposeful physical force, action, or treatment against another person; assault – a sudden, violent attack; rape – “Penetration, no matter how slight, of the vagina or anus with any body part or object, or oral penetration by a sex organ of another person, without the consent of the victim” (“UCR Program Changes Definition of Rape”) (the legal definition of the FBI; the legal definition changes depending upon the government and the nation – “Currently, section 375 of the Indian Penal Code is defined as vaginal-penile intercourse against a woman’s consent. Excluded from the law is the rape of a woman by her husband if the woman is above 15 years of age” [Thirani, “India’s Rape and Sexual Assault Laws Under Scrutiny”]).