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-I think Malala's story is so valuable for us to hear, and especially for our students to hear. In the U.S., many of our students are very privileged and take their education for granted. They mostly have a very basic understanding of what is going on across the world. I know that history teachers are moving away from the "great men" type of teaching, in which we focus on a few strong leaders without recognizing the larger social movement behind those men; however, I also think we need to hear individual human stories in order to develop empathy and hopefully take action.

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- Malala's family values were particularly powerful: their passion for education despite the monetary barriers and the Taliban pressure was admirable.
- Malala's optimism is refreshing - especially for such a young girl
- Learning about the Pakistani culture was interesting - I enjoyed learning about their religions, traditions, lifestyles, etc. Reading about the Pakistani culture, however, opened up a blind spot for me - I realized that in America, we lump Asians into one category that includes countries such as: Pakistan, China, India, Japan, and many more diverse cultures, yet they are all so different. This seems unfair and it also seems like this might lead to misconceptions in education as Asian is therefore an ambiguous term.

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Current events connection: Pakistani-American mother speaks out

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Ghazala Khan's son, U.S. Army Capt. Humayun Khan, was killed in Iraq in 2004.

Donald Trump has asked why I did not speak at the Democratic convention. He said he would like to hear from me. Here is my answer to Donald Trump: Because without saying a thing, all the world, all America, felt my pain. I am a Gold Star mother. Whoever saw me felt me in their heart.

Donald Trump said I had nothing to say. I do. My son Humayun Khan, an Army captain, died 12 years ago in Iraq. He loved America, where we moved when he was 2 years old. He had volunteered to help his country, signing up for the ROTC at the University of Virginia. This was before the attack of Sept. 11, 2001. He didn't have to do this, but he wanted to.

When Humayun was sent to Iraq, my husband and I worried about his safety. I had already been through one war, in Pakistan in 1965, when I was just a high school student. So I was very scared. You can sacrifice yourself, but you cannot take it that your kids will do this.

We asked if there was some way he could not go, because he had already done his service. He said it was his duty. I cannot forget when he was going to the plane, and he looked back at me. He was happy, and giving me strength: "Don't worry, Mom. Everything will be all right."

The last time I spoke to my son was on Mother's Day 2004. We had asked him to call us collect whenever he could. I begged him to be safe. I asked him to stay back, and not to go running around trying to become a hero, because I knew he would do something like that.

He said, "Mom, these are my soldiers, these are my people. I have to take care of them." He was killed by a car bomber outside the gates of his base. He died trying to save his soldiers and innocent civilians.

That is my son. Humayun was always dependable. If I was vacuuming the house and he was home, he would take the vacuum from my hand and clean the house. He volunteered to teach disabled children in the hospital how to swim. He said, "I love when they have a little bit of progress and their faces, they light up. At least they are that much happy." He wanted to be a lawyer, like his father, to help people.

Humayun is my middle son, and the others are doing so well, but every day I feel the pain of his loss. It has been 12 years, but you know hearts of pain can never heal as long as we live. Just talking about it is hard for me all the time. Every day, whenever I pray, I have to pray for him, and I cry. The place that emptied will always be empty.

I cannot walk into a room with pictures of Humayun. For all these years, I haven't been able to clean the closet where his things are - I had to ask my daughter-in-law to do it. Walking onto the convention stage, with a huge picture of my son behind me, I could hardly control myself. What mother could? Donald Trump has children whom he loves. Does he really need to wonder why I did not speak?

Donald Trump said that maybe I wasn't allowed to say anything. That is not true. My husband asked me if I wanted to speak, but I told him I could not. My religion teaches me that all human beings are equal in God's eyes. Husband and wife are part of each other; you should love and respect each other so you can take care of the family.

When Donald Trump is talking about Islam, he is ignorant. If he studied the real Islam and Koran, all the ideas he gets from terrorists would change, because terrorism is a different religion.

Donald Trump said he has made a lot of sacrifices. He doesn't know what the word sacrifice means.

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Ghazala Khan: Trump criticized my silence. He knows nothing about true sacrifice.

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Ghazala Khan's son, U.S. Army Capt. Humayun Khan, was killed in Iraq in 2004. Donald Trump has asked why I did not speak at the Democratic convention. He said he would like to hear from me. Here is my answer to Donald Trump: Because without saying a thing, all the world, all America, felt my pain.

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This event was described in less detail than I expected. I was struck by how matter-of-fact her tone is as she describes two men stopping the bus, and the last thing she remembers was thinking about revisions she would have to do for her essay for school. Later, she reflects upon how her attempted murder was also an attempt to silence her father, by taking out his "comrade in arms" (p. 246). It is amazing how close Malala came to death, that the bullet just missed her brain, and it does seem like a miracle that she was able to survive and recover. She was operated on by an army doctor, who had experience treating gunshot wounds. Later, the Taliban claimed responsibility for the shooting not because of her campaign for education but because Malala had been pro-West and praised President Obama, which they did not like due to the U.S. drone operations in Pakistan.

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"I thought, One day I will be a politician and do these things myself" (p. 215). When Malala accepts Pakistan's first ever National Peace Prize, she is given the award and a large check by the Prime Minister, and in turn presents him a long list of demands for increasing the number of schools and universities for girls. She reflects that she never believed he would take her demands seriously, so she thinks to herself that one day she will change the system from within. This part is a powerful reminder of how difficult it is to truly make change-- even those praising her didn't want to actually further her cause. It is also a reminder of how rare it is to have truly selfless people in leadership positions.

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In class yesterday I had an opportunity to share Malala's story with my students and connect it to the book we are reading, Haroun and the Sea of Stories by Salman Rushdie. I asked the students questions about the message of Rushdie's allegory, and they were able to get that he is illustrating (in a very imaginative world) the damaging effects of extremism and controlling leaders. At one point in the novel, the villain Khattam-Shud explains that he wants to get rid of stories because they are the only things he can't control. I shared with them Malala's quote that "extremists have shown what frightens them most: a girl with a book." My students were able to understand why a girl with a book would be threatening in some parts of the world in terms of destabilizing hierarchies of power, and they are realizing the ability of stories and education to empower us all.

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Malala's passion for education & women's rights

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Malala's passion for education & women's rights

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The integrity of Malala is inspiring; she speaks so humbly about her experience and her success, yet behind this hero is a inner passion for education and women's rights. As a female educator, Malala's role as a leader is noteworthy, and her stand on these issues calls for more people to take action like hers.  As Americans, we live in a mostly cushy world that has so many opportunities for change and betterment, yet we often settle in our routine and daily life without consideration of the bigger picture. Malala is a reminder of our human purpose on this Earth; we only have one life and we should live for something bigger - whatever that bigger purpose may be.

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In reference to her safety, Malala says, "No, I don't worry about my safety. The truth is, I think about the safety of all people all around the world...there are millions and millions of people who are homeless, who are forced to leave their countries, who are suffering because of war. I get very worried about them and think that we should make a stand for their safety and for peace. We should all work together for this. It is very important that we all think about bigger solutions to these problems because a country is nothing without its people."

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Some people in Swat say that Malala did not deserve the Nobel Peace Prize in 2013 and that she was a threat to the people of Swat. This viewpoint highlights the fear of the people of Swat, for if they support Malala, they might be targeted by the Taliban. This also might illustrate the power of the Taliban over the thinking of the people of Swat - they seem to agree with the Taliban's belief that Malala is a bad person

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The reaction is commonplace in a country with a complicated relationship with terrorism and the West.

Many political leaders prefer to talk about the way foreign hands are to blame for the country's ills rather than tackling home-grown threats.

As a result, analysts say Malala has found herself at the heart of that confusion as she tried to confront the extremists, accused of being a British or American agent and often viewed as a deserving Taliban target.

So while the rest of the world watched and waited for the announcement to be made in Norway, it was business as usual in Green Square, Mingora, a place where the Taliban executed their opponents when they controlled the region from 2007 to 2009.

Few people discussed Malala unless asked.

Iqbal Khan, a hotelier, said the schoolgirl had left the local population at risk of attack.

"We all know that secular forces were conspiring against Islam and these forces were using Malala to defame Islam, something in which they would never succeed," he said.

A day earlier the Pakistan Taliban had renewed its threat to kill the 16-year-old and also warned bookshops not to stock her new memoir or risk attack.

The militants overran the town in 2007 and their influence is still keenly felt in this conservative corner of Pakistan, where women are largely expected to stay at home

Only her former classmates and teachers at the Khushal Public School in the Swat Valley town of Mingora expressed disappointment.

"All her friends wanted to see her winning the award," Yasmin Begum, a pupil at the school said after learning her friend had not won the award.

"I don't believe my ears, because I was confident after everything she'd been through that she would get the prestigious prize."

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Malala did not deserve Nobel Peace Prize, say residents of her Swat Valley home

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The reaction is commonplace in a country with a complicated relationship with terrorism and the West. Many political leaders prefer to talk about the way foreign hands are to blame for the country's ills rather than tackling home-grown threats.

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Never stop learning

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schools in pakistan malala - - Yahoo Image Search Results

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Malala and her family are educated, but beyond that they are passionate about education; this seems to be the key factor that allows them to see through the black veil of the Taliban. Education is both the enemy and the friend. Education is the forbidden practice that makes many students wary of attempting to attend school; but education is also the factor that would have prevented the rise of Fazlullah in the first place. People were so quick to believe his teachings because they didn't take the time, like Malala and her family did, to break down the Quran and understand that Fazlullah's teachings were faulty. Because of Malala's education, she was able to see past the manipulation of the Taliban and not give into their power. Essentially, the people, in their ignorance, supported Fazlullah, simply because they did not know any better - they never thought to question.

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Malala's father
As I delve further into this book, I am realizing how necessary Malala's father is in making her story happen. He is the one who continually fights to keep his schools open and educating as many students as possible. It shows how in order for marginalized groups to get power or to have a voice, it is necessary to have an ally in the dominant culture.

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Cara's personal connection:
I went to an all-girls Catholic high school called St. Basil Academy. There, like Malala, I was encouraged to pursue academic success and gender equality.

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Saint Basil Academy is a private Catholic high school that provides a college preparatory education for young women.

We provide a unique learning environment where traditional values are affirmed & upheld.

The Latest News & Events at SBA

Our students are required to submit a PIAA Sports Physical form before trying out for a Sports Team. Please return the Physical Form to the Coach or Athletic Director. A student may not attend tryouts if PIAA form is not complete and submitted.

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Saint Basil Academy - All Girls Private Academy

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Saint Basil Academy is a private Catholic high school that provides a college preparatory education for young women. We provide a unique learning environment where traditional values are affirmed & upheld. The Latest News & Events at SBA Our students are required to submit a PIAA Sports Physical form before trying out for a Sports Team.

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Being an avid news reader, it is interesting to read Malala's vantage point regarding the resurgence of the Taliban. It's heart wrenching. As a school teacher, I think about the selflessness that Malala is undergoing as she thinks first of the rights of her people and then of her own life. I also think of the teachers who continue to teach, despite the threat of the Taliban. I love what I do, and reading Malala's story makes me consider how far I would go to fight for education. I don't have an answer to this.

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Who are the allies?
-The American government should be an ally, but in order to defeat the Taliban they align themselves with oppressive Pakistani dictators.

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Who has the power?
- The Taliban holds a great deal of the power - they use force and violence to maintain their stronghold
- Malala and her other schoolmates also hold power, essentially, because they are empowering themselves through education

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- Threat of violence - from the Taliban
- Threat of power and domination - from the government
- Women in their expected role of domesticity
- Allegiance to culture/ethnicity vs. nation

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Women are not expected to have power or education at all. Men are only supposed to be educated in a certain interpretation of the Quran.