Issue link: http://educator.cta.org/i/5535
TOP: Montebello Teachers Association member Giovanni Torres discusses parts of a story in his AVID class at Bell Gardens High School. the purpose of journal writing is not just about finding one’s self, says Tor- res. Hopefully it will lead students to embrace higher education and become contributing, compassionate members of society. Two years ago, Torres was one of 28 teachers selected from among 10,000 applicants by the Freedom Writers Foundation to work with Erin Gru- well. In the film Freedom Writers, Hi- lar y Swank por trayed Gruwel l , a brand-new teacher in Long Beach fac- ing a diverse classroom of at-risk teens who showed no interest in school . When Gruwell discovered they were surrounded by violence, she interested them in reading Anne Frank: Diary of a Young Girl, took them to visit the Holocaust Museum, and eventually ar- ranged a visit by Miep Gies, the coura- geous woman who hid the Frank fam- ily in her attic. Her students’ diaries described drug use, violence and struggles with physical and mental abuse. Eventual ly their stories were righT: Amanda Alvarado reads from the The Freedom Writers Diary during an assignment at Bell Gardens High School. 22 California Educator | december 2009 • january 2010 published — and 1 million copies of The Freedom Writers Diary have been sold. Many of Gruwell’s students went on to graduate from college and be- come success stories. Torres’ students have many of the same issues facing the original Free- dom Wri ters and also keep diaries telling of their daily struggles living in poverty, broken homes and violent surroundings. Torres, a Montebello Teachers Association member, also has them write about tolerance, which has helped unify the classroom. Some of his classes’ best entries over the past two years will soon be published and housed in the school’s library. A personal entry from Torres was re- cent ly published in Teaching Hope: Stor i e s f rom The Fre edom Wr i ter Teachers and Erin Gruwell. “Writing as a growth tool prepares them for applying to colleges and writ- ing personal statements,” says Torres. “Kids come into my classroom hating to write and leave as confident writers who like writing. I love knowing I’ve given them an outlet as well as the op- portunity to become the writers they’re destined to be.”