How to Escape Education's Death Valley: Ken Robinson

 

If you have not heard of Sir Ken Robinson, you are really missing out, he is the author of The Element: How Finding Your Passion Changes Everything and Finding Your Element: How to Discover Your Talents and Passions and Transform Your Life.  I highly recommend both books, and if you have never heard him speak, what he has to say is truly worth listening to, and here is his latest TED Talk.

SUMMARY:

Sir Ken Robinson outlines 3 principles crucial for the human mind to flourish -- and how current education culture works against them. In a funny, stirring talk he tells us how to get out of the educational "death valley" we now face, and how to nurture our youngest generations with a climate of possibility.

Creativity expert Sir Ken Robinson challenges the way we're educating our children. He champions a radical rethink of our school systems, to cultivate creativity and acknowledge multiple types of intelligence-TED Talks

 

 

“ The dropout crisis is just the tip of an iceberg. What it doesn't count are all the kids who are in school but being disengaged from it, who don't enjoy it, who don't get any real benefit from it."-Ken Robinson

Ken Robinson Ken Robinson: How to escape education's death valley

 

Have you heard of Ken Robinson?  What do you think of his ideas?  I'm a firm believer in his work/message and I'm trying to make a difference in my classroom and in the lives of my own children keeping his teachings in mind.  Let us know what you think here at The Things You Can Read.

 

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A Warning to College Profs from a High School Teacher

A Warning to College Profs from a High School Teacher

Here is an excerpt from a Washington Post article entitled "A Warning to College Profs from a High School Teacher".  The article is filled with memorable quotes to help those who are not in the classroom understand the realities of teaching in our public schools today.  

Please do not blame those of us in public schools for how unprepared for higher education the students arriving at your institutions are. We have very little say in what is happening to public education. Even the most distinguished and honored among us have trouble getting our voices heard in the discussion about educational policy. The National Teacher of the Year is supposed to be the representative of America’s teachers—if he or she cannot get teachers’ voices included, imagine how difficult it is for the rest of us. That is why, if you have not seen it, I strongly urge you to read 2009 National Teacher of the Year Anthony Mullen’s famous blog post, “Teachers Should Be Seen and Not Heard.” After listening to noneducators bloviate about schools and teaching without once asking for his opinion, he was finally asked what he thought. He offered the following:

Where do I begin? I spent the last thirty minutes listening to a group of arrogant and condescending noneducators disrespect my colleagues and profession. I listened to a group of disingenuous people whose own self-interests guide their policies rather than the interests of children. I listened to a cabal of people who sit on national education committees that will have a profound impact on classroom teaching practices. And I heard nothing of value. “I’m thinking about the current health-care debate,” I said. “And I am wondering if I will be asked to sit on a national committee charged with the task of creating a core curriculum of medical procedures to be used in hospital emergency rooms.”
The strange little man cocks his head and, suddenly, the fly on the wall has everyone’s attention.
“I realize that most people would think I am unqualified to sit on such a committee because I am not a doctor, I have never worked in an emergency room, and I have never treated a single patient. So what? Today I have listened to people who are not teachers, have never worked in a classroom, and have never taught a single student tell me how to teach.”

What are your thoughts on how public schools are doing educating our children?  Are you concerned?  Why or why not?  Let us know your thoughts, here at The Things You Can Read.

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The Things You Can Read

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The Secret to Fixing Bad Schools 

Here are a few quotes which are "food for thought" from the New York Times article entitled "The Secret to Fixing Bad Schools."

"Ask school officials to explain Union City’s success and they start with prekindergarten, which enrolls almost every 3- and 4-year-old. There’s abundant research showing the lifetime benefits of early education. Here, seeing is believing."

"From pre-K to high school, the make-or-break factor is what the Harvard education professor Richard Elmore calls the “instructional core” — the skills of the teacher, the engagement of the students and the rigor of the curriculum. To succeed, students must become thinkers, not just test-takers."

"From a loose confederacy, the schools gradually morphed into a coherent system that marries high expectations with a “we can do it” attitude. 'The real story of Union City is that it didn’t fall back,' says Fred Carrigg, a key architect of the reform. 'It stabilized and has continued to improve.'"

Take a gander at the full New York Times article.  What are your thoughts?

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The Things You Can Read

Believe In Truth, Beauty, Freedom, Love, and the Power of Books!