Trip to Birmingham: Civil Rights Museum and 16th Street Baptist Church

Lucy Lastovic
March 12, 2015
Mrs. Lawson- H Block

What did you learn on the field trip?
On this field trip, I learned a lot more about the 16th street baptist church bombing and the Child March. It blew my mind how many children came to the church and to Birmingham just to get arrested. It really shows children are the voices of the future. I liked getting to walk through the museum and see all of the staged buildings like the comparison of the white and black classrooms. It really helps you understand what happened during a time period when you can visualize and see it before your own eyes.
Whats the difference between hearing about these events in a classroom and "experiencing" the places, people, and artifacts?
Hearing about events in a classroom makes me want to fall asleep because I feel like I am getting lectured, so I tune out and start to daydream. However, when I can experience an event, even if it is just watching a film, it helps for me to be able to visualize it in my head and for me to get a "hands on experience" instead of listening to a lecture.
Did this experience in any way change your own perspective on Civil Rights' issues? If so, how?
This experience did not change my perspective on the Civil Rights' issues because we have learned and heard about them for so long that I had already had a perspective for a while. I remember in second grade we were sitting on Mrs. Grey's rug learning about Rosa Parks and she told us that she died that day.
Imagine a conversation with someone who is arguing that the Civil Rights Field Trip is a waste of time. Even if you personally feel that way too, empathize with the teachers, administrators, educational experts, and community members who have decided that the field trip is worth taking. How can this trip for busy Randolph 11th graders be justified? In a time when it is easy to view anything on screens, whats the value of actually going to a historic site?
On behalf of all of the busy Randolph juniors, I can say it was nice to take a break from reading text books and computer screens to actually being at the historical site where so much history took place. Even though we could have easily looked at pictures online and taken virtual tours, you wouldn't have gotten the same experience as actually being there and taking in everything around you. For instance, sure you could pull up a picture of the Grand Canyon and say that you have already SEEN it, but until you have actually been there and EXPERIENCED it, you have seen nor learn nothing.