The (G) Blog

Looking Beyond the Money

admin — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 20:57:15 +0000

One of the most amazing things to me is that nature of education being offered to children across the country is being challenged on many fronts. School districts, like never before have been challenged to manage or cut their budget in uncharacteristic fashions. Yesterday, I was listening to CNN on Sirus Radio, and learned of a school district that was going to a four day week, simply because that was the only solution that would have the least amount of impact on the students, classrooms, teachers etc. I thought to myself, wow, all of this to manage rising fuel costs, budget restrictions and the decline in the per pupil monies, teacher salaries, all while there is a rising costs of living. The list is certainly a lengthy one but it seems to be one bursting bubble that education law makers are attending to fix while others are busting, graduation rates, school interest, fighting, teasing, bullying, test scores. In all, I often wonder is the concern in our nation really education, health care or is it something more foundational then that.

I would venture to say that as a nation we must return to morality, having ethics and amplify values. What happened to love, integrity, citizenship, humanity, loyalty and the like. School is important but for hundreds of years people didn’t go to school for 180 plus days, so thats cant be the answer~ A nations growth, and prosperity hinges on this very truth, “A nation as a society forms a moral person, and every member of it is personally responsible for his society,” as stated by Thomas Jefferson.

I personally would have a call to morality. We have accepted largely as a society the perverse and the ungodly. To think that the love of money has effected, every decision and everything that we do as a nation. Whatever happened to the concepts of Freedom, Liberty, and Justice. Grapple with these thoughts for then and only then will we be able to truly educate our children.

The Power of Choice Part 1

admin — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 02:33:37 +0000

One of the most important lessons that a teacher or parent can give to her students is the ability to choose. Often times we don’t allow kids to fail or make mistakes, we are so hard on them. One day I was in class and I was teaching a lesson on money. It was the end of the day and clearly my students were tapped out, but I was trying to push through the remainder of the day even though most of my class was clearly disinterested in the content, so I said “If you want to learn how to do this meet me at the rug, if not you can continue to talk at your seats.” To my dismay only two of my students met me at the rug! I was hurt, but my hurt didn’t matter. What mattered most was that my students had the opportunity to choose, decide, judge and evaluate the importance of my lesson against their need to connect, play, or express themselves through art. I could have easily used my power as the teacher to tell all of my students to stop what they were doing, however, I learned early in my career that if I want students to value what I am doing, I need to value what they are doing.

One student who came to the rug asked another student why they didn’t make the “right” choice to come and learn the math. The student responded by saying “Well we have been working really hard and I really wanted to draw.”-Sounds like she used a lot of analytical skills in which she deduced, if I draw it wont hurt anyone, because I have been working really hard. The next day this student told her family that it was her decision and if she wanted to make a bad decision it was up to her. I realized that what she was really saying to her family was, trust that I will make decisions that wont hurt me, but that I will be very thoughtful and use wise judgement and if it turns out the wrong way I just want you to support me and love me through it. This student is just six years old- How powerful is it to have had this epiphany this young. Parents, Teacher and Care givers, allow kids to start making choices at an early age. To often kids get their first taste of choice when they are in junior high or high school and they are so excited for the freedom that they are easily swayed and make costly, life altering decisions. If you get anything from this post make sure you give your child the ability to choose its a powerful life skill to learn.

To Many Kids Getting An Edu-Waste-tion:

admin — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 05:47:19 +0000

[Shaking my head…] Here is my dilemma, how is it that very few people are privy to the that fact that schools are failing our children. How can we spend more time discussing celebrity news, wondering what the president is wearing or talking about reality TV shows, than dealing with the issues affecting millions of students everyday. Unfortunately it must be said that too many kids are getting what I am calling an edu-waste-tion. It’s the curriculum of fear, confusion, and shattering of the soul. The goal of this sort of education is to cripple the human and impede his progress, kill her imagination and suppress his thought. Essentially, denying the child the very gift from God, humanity.

I thought to myself, I know someone has written a book about this, so to settle the issue I went to the bookstore. I walked in with the hopes of finding one good book written about the state of our country and its education system. I was eagerly searching the bookstore and finally stumbled upon the quaint section designated for education, instantly my feelings of excitement dropped down to confusion and frustration. To my surprise, I could only find two books that painted the picture of the turmoil dripping from the walls of American schools.

The book that was most intriguing was entitled Shame of the Nation: The Restoration of Apartheid Schooling in America by Jonathan Kozol. I gotta admit seeing this book saved my experience. I was introduced to Jonathan Kozal as in undergraduate at Occidental College by reading his book Savage Inequalities. Hence my relief upon reading his name on cover. Jonathan Kozol is a social justice advocate for children, the poor and education. He is well known for his research on injustice, discrimination and his up close and personal accounts revealing the alarming high rates of illiteracy, continued racism/segregation and inequalities that currently exist in American Schools. After skimming the text, I shook my head in disbelief, again wondering why many aren’t engaging in the dialogue of the Shame of a Nation.

Suffice it to say, I have settled the issue knowing this one thing, we are all responsible for ensuring that our kids, nieces, nephews, cousins, neighbors and friends get a complete and compelling education. I encourage you to visit a classroom, engage a child, be an advocate, talk to the classroom teacher, and go to a school board meeting. Whatever you do, take a vow and make certain that all the children you know are getting an education.

Compulsory Schooling: Killing Creativity

admin — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 05:54:12 +0000

In the last week I have heard the horror stories of at least ten different children whose creativity and spirit were threatened by cumpolsory schooling. After each story, I found myself completely saddened and every time I asked myself what has the world come to when “trained” professionals are ripping the genius and blowing out the creative spark from our children. For the past two weeks, all I could hear were echoes of one third grader telling his parents not to worry because he wouldn’t stop thinking. I actually had the opportunity to teach and work with this child for two years and found that he could look at any material, manipulate it, and transform it into a work of art- His mind was filled with endless possibilities of innovation and creativity. I was always enamored by his beautiful ways of thinking but, after three days of compulsory education he noticed that his new teacher was out to ‘kill’ his creativity and thought. After all, he told his dad not to worry because he wouldn’t stop thinking. He said he realized that as long as he shuts up, and does what the teacher tells him to do he would survive the school day.

Can you believe that an eight year old has completely figured out the matrix of fear, control and self-doubt in seventy-two hours of operating in it and our politicians cannot. Stories like this are rampant across the country yet they are often silenced and swept under the carpet. Think about it, imagine yourself being eight years old sitting in the classroom eager and ready to learn and then you realize that your teacher doesn’t actually want you to “think” or participate in the learning experience she just wants to tell you what to do. The sad part is most teachers believe that they are doing amazing things in their classroom if children are quite and being “good” by thinking just like they want them to. Very few realize that learning happens when children construct meaning for themselves. Because of this miseducation of teachers, the imagination, creativity and innovation of our children are being shred to pieces by predetermined ways of thinking set forth by the teacher. In this system a child learns all to soon that he must abandon his innate genius, talents and ways of thinking in order to survive. Instead they learn how to please the teacher, compete against their peers, depend on the teachers intellectually, and loose their self-esteem all instead of thinking about ways to use their innate talents to think about concepts and ideas and how to use their gifts to change the world.

As an educator, I must admit there are times when you might ask a child to think in a particular way, however this is always a means to an end, its never the end itself. In the end, children must be given the opportunity to accept or reject a teachers ways of thinking by generating and demonstrating their own ways of thinking that support the learning that is going on in the classroom environment. Simply stated, the end is creativity and innovation not learning the state mandated standards and passing standardized test. Psst. Here is a little secret, creative minds pass standardized test and learn state standards not the other way around.

Getting a “Good” Education in the 21st Century

admin — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 23:29:10 +0000

Many debates are brewing across the country on how to ameliorate our failing school system. Billions of dollars are being poured into the latest curriculum, all with the hopes of delivering our children to the promised land of the intelligentsia. Amidst this political discourse are children who innocently await the hope of a competitive education and as a parent; you might find yourself fearing that your child will not be ready for the ‘real world.’ With all of this, what can you as a parent do to ensure that your child has a first rate education? Surprisingly you don’t have to spend a lot of money. There are a few simple strategies that you can naturally introduce to your child.

First, you can start by asking your child authentic questions. Give them an opportunity to grapple with real issues. If you child is 4-6 years old, it can be as simple as asking them what ingredients will you need to prepare a particular meal or you can extend this question for children 5-8 years old by asking them to calculate the cost of the ingredients. Next, by engaging your child in discussions such as, should everyone get free healthcare, is an important conversation that you should partake in with your child regardless of their level of understanding of the issue. The point is that you are valuing their voice about a particular topic. Just remember the goal is to give children plenty of opportunities to dialogue about authentic issues and the world around them. Doing this will enhance your their educational development.

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