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Heywire: Running towards mental health

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Teenager girl smiles beside lake
Heywire: Running towards mental health

SUBJECTS:  English

YEARS:  9–10


Would you accept someone's argument if you didn't think the person presenting it was credible?

Explore Nakita Sobczyk's Heywire audio story and reflect on what makes her an ideal person to educate others about mental illness. As you do, consider the ancient Greek philosopher Aristotle's discussion of how 'ethos' can be used in the art of persuasion.

To talk with someone about anxiety or depression visit www.headspace.org.au or www.beyondblue.org.au, or call the Kids Helpline on 1800 55 1800.

Could you write or record a similar story about yourself and/or your community?

The ABC's Heywire competition calls for stories from 16-22 year olds in regional Australia. Enter to get your story featured on the ABC and score an all-expenses-paid trip to the Heywire Regional Youth Summit in Canberra. More: https://www.abc.net.au/heywire/


Things to think about

  1. 1.Who do you respect and listen to when they speak? Brainstorm five qualities, such as experience or qualifications, that encourage you to believe in this speaker. Define the terms 'credible' and 'credibility' and find five synonyms for them. Aristotle suggested that there were three methods of persuading an audience: ethos, pathos and logos. If you don't know what ethos means in this context, find out.
  2. 2.Why do you think Nakita reveals that her father and sister both suffered from mental illness? Nakita says she was a 'frequent visitor' to health services, with 'many unsuccessful attempts' to resolve her issues. What does her choice of words suggest? Why did Nakita avoid treatment? What does this tell the audience? How is Nakita giving back to the community?
  3. 3.Why do you think Nakita has shared her story? Explain how she establishes her credibility as someone who can speak authoritatively about mental illness. Nakita ends her speech by explaining what she is now doing to raise awareness about mental illness. What effect might this have on the audience? How does this help develop ethos?
  4. 4.Aristotle suggested there are three categories of ethos by which speakers establish their reputation: 'phronesis', 'arete' and 'eunoia'. Find out what these terms mean and apply them to a persuasive task. Find out about the range of accessible mental health services for young people in your area. Create a poster that raises awareness of these services.



Date of broadcast: 31 May 2013


Copyright

Metadata © Australian Broadcasting Corporation and Education Services Australia Ltd 2012 (except where otherwise indicated). Digital content © Australian Broadcasting Corporation (except where otherwise indicated). Video © Australian Broadcasting Corporation (except where otherwise indicated). All images copyright their respective owners. Text © Australian Broadcasting Corporation and Education Services Australia is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License (CC BY-SA 4.0).

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