Not So Silent Voices: Facilitating Perspective Through Assessment Design

A colleague recently told me ‘the problem with Classics is that too many people who teach it think that if they got in a time machine and went back to ancient Rome they would be a senator.’ This association with the aristocratic, male gaze is problematic as we try to diversify Classics and make it accessible to students from all backgrounds. The question for instructors at all levels then becomes how we enable students to break free from this gaze and engage with the diverse reality of the ancient world. By decentering the traditional gaze of the ancient world in every classroom, we make Classics a more inviting field for everyone. This panel provides us with the opportunity to focus on strategies for highlighting diverse perspectives that apply across both secondary and post-secondary classrooms. Encouraging this pedagogical dialogue between institutions breaks down the barriers that have limited accessibility to Classics by recognizing the importance of diverse perspectives in our understanding of the ancient world. This paper provides a template for different types of assessment which encourage students to see the ancient world from the perspective of under-represented groups (e.g. women, slaves, children) through both active learning and reflective writing. The real strength of these assessments is that they can be easily adapted to either the secondary or post-secondary classroom. The paper will consist of two parts:

1. The framework for each assessment will be laid out in detail but is summarized here.
   1. Gaining Perspective Paper: Students are asked to respond to a piece of ancient literature or art as someone from an underrepresented group. For example, they might respond to Aristophanes’ Lysistrata as an Athenian woman or the art of the Acropolis as a Persian visitor to Athens.
   2. Debate: Students are able to take on an array of diverse personas and navigate some of the most difficult issues of the ancient world while simultaneously developing their public speaking skills. For example, a mixed group of people living in Rome after the 2nd century AD might debate whether gladiatorial entertainment should continue.
   3. Tactile Tacticians: The narratives of ancient warfare are often told from the perspective of the generals, but students should think about the role of the average soldier. In this exercise, students train with the equipment of a Greek hoplite (proxy spears, shields, blinders, etc. some of which will be brought to the panel). They then write letters home from the perspective of a soldier after a battle, or, alternatively, from a soldier’s family to the front lines.
2. The audience will be invited into the conversation to apply this framework to their own teaching. How can they adapt these assessments to their own needs? With this exercise, this paper models the engagement and dialogue we hope to see with our peers when we return from this conference. It is only when instructors of all levels collaborate that progress can be made.