Tuesday, February 1, 2011
Goal of Education
I've been wondering what the goal of education is for a while. And, I think it might be communication and dialog. Here's why: snuggling_on_the-beach.wmv
Monday, January 31, 2011
Blogs I love
There are so many wonderful blogs out there on the Web that the list could be outrageous, so I'll try to mention just a few that I think you might like:
Here is where I draw sustenance: http://muse.jhu.edu/journals. When I need to remind myself that girls and education are a priority for a civilized nation, one capable of vibrant discourse, engaged populace and successful women!
- http://www.pbs.org/teachers/mediainfusion/ Lots of stuff to think about here and it may be applicable to the way that you teach. Take a peek and let me know.
- thinkfinity.org is so rich that I urge you to go there without further adieu. Where else can you find Black History Month side by side with Super Bowl math?
- edutopia.org is a blog that I reluctantly love. Yuck, technology, yah teachers is sort of my mentality, but then, such a well done site as Edutopia with all the money that George Lucas can throw at it and I love it! What can I say?
- http://www.roomtoread.org. Yes, it is about girls and education. Did you think I could be in the blogosphere without some information on girls and education?
Here is where I draw sustenance: http://muse.jhu.edu/journals. When I need to remind myself that girls and education are a priority for a civilized nation, one capable of vibrant discourse, engaged populace and successful women!
Daniel's 2250 Blog: Some Blogs I like...
Daniel's 2250 Blog: Some Blogs I like...: "Edutopia is really good and has a lot of different types of information http://www.edutopia.org/math-and-science-classroom Instructify ha..." Daniel, that is a smorgasbord! I will cruise them for goodies for my classes - many thanks. As a person who preferred poetry to physics, I am really trying to catch up so my students won't miss the science that they can know and love! Thanks.
Friday, January 28, 2011
Observations and Interviews
I am eagerly looking forward to observations and interviews. I have a range of schools and teachers. I will try to keep my neutral hat on because each of the schools and teachers have unique educational philosophies and strengths of teaching styles.
It will be a great way for me/you/us to try out our ideas in the real world of a classroom, a school, a playground, a campus. What will be the most energizing, the most creative, the most sustaining, and the utilitarian to the greatest numbers of students? How does a teacher address the disparate needs of student, parent, curriculum and standards?
It will be a great way for me/you/us to try out our ideas in the real world of a classroom, a school, a playground, a campus. What will be the most energizing, the most creative, the most sustaining, and the utilitarian to the greatest numbers of students? How does a teacher address the disparate needs of student, parent, curriculum and standards?
Daniel's 2250 Blog: Personal Education Experiences & Reflection
Daniel's 2250 Blog: Personal Education Experiences & Reflection: "There are many educational experiences that have contributed to my 'Toolbox' of educational tools and guides. This toolbox is pretty big and..."Yep, I loved the toolbox analogy, too. It just was so charismatic that it could not be ignored. And, I, too, want to teach the way that I would like to learn, but I am concerned about that point of view on both of our parts. Are there students who learn like us? Will they learn quickly and easily in some tasks and lethargically and dulled-out? It is possible. What do we do then?
I'm formulating that now and would love to hear what you think, too.
In the meantime in my observations, I'll be looking for clues, cues and hints. I bet you are, too.
I'm formulating that now and would love to hear what you think, too.
In the meantime in my observations, I'll be looking for clues, cues and hints. I bet you are, too.
Tiffany's 2250 Blog: It's interesting for me to sit down and consi...
Tiffany's 2250 Blog: It's interesting for me to sit down and consi...: " It's interesting for me to sit down and consider what I think is most important for students to learn. What i..."
Hey, Tiffany,
Your words are wonderful about the art and craft of teaching, the schools, the processes. I feel very similarly and am eagerly looking forward to that happy occasion. In the meantime, though, I wonder if we can sharpen our focus and say more precisely what education is. Is it a process, is it a building, is it the people? I do think education happens spontaneously as well as in a scheduled manner; I do think it can be heightened by some mechanical aspects (good school building, appropriate technology) and by many intangibles (the mix of teacher with students, the subject matter and the students all by themselves, too). I was in a class last semester that reminded me of all these things and what an extraordinary class it was. Not only did I learn, but I wanted to learn more, I didn't want to stop learning and I really didn't want the class to end. For me, that was real education. So incredibly delicious you can't bare to have it over.
Hey, Tiffany,
Your words are wonderful about the art and craft of teaching, the schools, the processes. I feel very similarly and am eagerly looking forward to that happy occasion. In the meantime, though, I wonder if we can sharpen our focus and say more precisely what education is. Is it a process, is it a building, is it the people? I do think education happens spontaneously as well as in a scheduled manner; I do think it can be heightened by some mechanical aspects (good school building, appropriate technology) and by many intangibles (the mix of teacher with students, the subject matter and the students all by themselves, too). I was in a class last semester that reminded me of all these things and what an extraordinary class it was. Not only did I learn, but I wanted to learn more, I didn't want to stop learning and I really didn't want the class to end. For me, that was real education. So incredibly delicious you can't bare to have it over.
seths blog: purpose of education and schooling today
seths blog: purpose of education and schooling today: "fundamental purpose of education: to understand and be able to think critically within a range of mediums, ideas, and subjects fundamental ..."
Hey, Seth, I think you are onto the critical thinking part of it, but there is so much that exists with education, as a result of the educational process, with students and with students and teachers.
Building on what you said, and adding to it, the following: creating and dialoging on are essential energies for an educated and open mind, having already been fostered by critical thinking. When we educate ourselves, we still will seek others for enriching our perceptions, adding to our knowledge and bringing a sense of community to our efforts.
Is this what the founding voice of American education had in mind when he said that education was psychological and sociological? Maybe, maybe not. But, it does free the student from being in the classroom and moves forward the dialog on what education really is.
Keep your comments coming!
Hey, Seth, I think you are onto the critical thinking part of it, but there is so much that exists with education, as a result of the educational process, with students and with students and teachers.
Building on what you said, and adding to it, the following: creating and dialoging on are essential energies for an educated and open mind, having already been fostered by critical thinking. When we educate ourselves, we still will seek others for enriching our perceptions, adding to our knowledge and bringing a sense of community to our efforts.
Is this what the founding voice of American education had in mind when he said that education was psychological and sociological? Maybe, maybe not. But, it does free the student from being in the classroom and moves forward the dialog on what education really is.
Keep your comments coming!
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
Apologia for date confusion on my part
Hey, my fellow bloggers (blogaroos?),
I missed the Friday deadline, thus not giving you a fair and square opportunity to blog on what I said. I didn't mean to convince you so early on that I was less than perfect!
So, in light of that, and the need to compensate for opportunities lost, I give you the background statement from the Waldorf School (Rudolf Steiner) that gives me so much joy and hope and belief that education can, does and will change the world.
Enjoy!
Here it is:
See you in class tonight.
I missed the Friday deadline, thus not giving you a fair and square opportunity to blog on what I said. I didn't mean to convince you so early on that I was less than perfect!
So, in light of that, and the need to compensate for opportunities lost, I give you the background statement from the Waldorf School (Rudolf Steiner) that gives me so much joy and hope and belief that education can, does and will change the world.
Enjoy!
Here it is:
- A college-preparatory high school with a deeper, well-rounded and academically rigorous approach.
- A “culture of performance” from 1st through 12th grade with oral presentations, memorization skills, class plays, musical and eurythmy performances including culminating in student independent, interdisciplinary research projects in 8th and 12th grades.
- “Project-based learning” that allows depth of learning, research and creativity from 1st through 12th grades through intensive blocks of study of core themes.
- Classrooms beyond the walls: outdoor, experiential and environmental education through the entire curriculum that includes gardening, ecology, farming, forestry, geology, workplace internships, extensive field trips to Chaco Canyon, Carlsbad Caverns, river rafting, mountain climbing, and canyon trekking.
- “Communities of learning” in the faculty and staff (a key component in Waldorf school communities). Each week, five sectional meetings occur with an additional seven departmental meeting take place as well. Teachers study relevant pedagogical and cutting-edge themes together, fructifying their work with child, youth and curricular topics.
See you in class tonight.
Saturday, January 15, 2011
My educational philosophy grew from my community and block organizing in the mid 60s to the early 70s. Wherever I looked, there were people who were being dissed by the press, the pundits, the common folk, too. And, what I found was that they - those unusual folks with a spark, a commitment to a better world and the drive to collaborate and make things happen - were everywhere and they were doing interesting things.
They helped stop the Vietnam War, they rolled into poverty-striken neighborhoods and changed the shools, got the food stamps, shoved the bugs and the rats out and brought in neighborhood stores, restaurants and after school centers. There were many feminists, few traditionalists and lots of energy to subvert the dominant paradigm as that phrase went.
And, I learned that no matter what I was doing, I was learning and that this was sweet in the vernacular of today's speech. Learning is change and it feels good. Is there a more cogent philosophy than that?
They helped stop the Vietnam War, they rolled into poverty-striken neighborhoods and changed the shools, got the food stamps, shoved the bugs and the rats out and brought in neighborhood stores, restaurants and after school centers. There were many feminists, few traditionalists and lots of energy to subvert the dominant paradigm as that phrase went.
And, I learned that no matter what I was doing, I was learning and that this was sweet in the vernacular of today's speech. Learning is change and it feels good. Is there a more cogent philosophy than that?
This is the official blog for Educ 2250 and the incipient educator, Lorraine. My previous blog, learnlikeagirlnow.blogspot.com, should not be followed for this class.
My education is broad and deep: Catholic school, public school, Catholic college, land grant colleges, private colleges. My life was my priority and my education in college was secondary to that. Life in the 50s and 60s was fabulous and school had some fabulousness to it, but proved a dim possibility in contrast to the uproar of Sputnik, the integration of schools and colleges in the time of Civil Rights, the blooming consciousness of Women's Rights and Social Unrest and Ethical Quandry of the Vietnam War.
Though I came from a conservative Catholic background blended with Quaker insights and actions, I wanted to live on my own terms, not learn on others' terms, and so that is what I did. Unwittingly, of course, I was learning, but you couldn't have told me that then.
My education is broad and deep: Catholic school, public school, Catholic college, land grant colleges, private colleges. My life was my priority and my education in college was secondary to that. Life in the 50s and 60s was fabulous and school had some fabulousness to it, but proved a dim possibility in contrast to the uproar of Sputnik, the integration of schools and colleges in the time of Civil Rights, the blooming consciousness of Women's Rights and Social Unrest and Ethical Quandry of the Vietnam War.
Though I came from a conservative Catholic background blended with Quaker insights and actions, I wanted to live on my own terms, not learn on others' terms, and so that is what I did. Unwittingly, of course, I was learning, but you couldn't have told me that then.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)