Beyond School

Clay & Dean,

You’ve given me a lot to think about! Particularly taken by the phrase “Learning with baggage” and the idea of teachers as connectors.

Working on that idea of catching them while they’re young: a 6th grade teacher wants to collaborate on some projects. Maybe if we’re successful, I can cast my net even farther.

Love my high school students but they’re far more set in their ways than I am.

Will the podcasts continue as a regular feature? [Couldn’t wait for a Snow Day, had to listen tonight].

Thanks, gentlemen.

diane

diane’s last blog post..The Electrifying Sign Language of Images

Where my ears really perked up was the part about our temptation to script everything to death, to do all the good, hard work of learning that students should be doing. This strikes me as such a pervasive bit of truth. We’re effort-averse. Dean mentioned needing to reorient his conceptual frame when talking about his network to non-participants, remembering that they may not have the schema to understand what he’s talking about. And remembering that his network didn’t just arise out of thin air—it took endless hours of nurturing and work. There’s that effort word again. If students are addicted to inauthentic learning, it’s no surprise—so many of us adults are still addicted, still looking for the get-it-over-with exam. Break the cycle, right? I’m thinking about this from a professional development perspective; so many of Clay’s observations apply to adult learners, too. The compelling lesson of natural, networked learning ends up foundering on the rocks, and we valiantly try to script a safe passage through, mad PD cartographers all. We brainstorm ways to package the concept, make it accessible, make it a five-minute bite, easily digestible, non-threatening and cuddly. Or we craft elevator speeches. Or we construct airtight arguments. I’m a little skeptical lately about the power of persuasion. Didn’t you say something a while back about unthirsty horses? But if not persuasion, what else is there? I have a germ of an idea here that the persuasion shouldn’t be geared so heavily toward the big picture; maybe we just need to get people out the door enough to give them a fighting chance at rekindling a love affair with useful effort. How’s that for a V-day wish?

Scott Schwister’s last blog post..twitku tuesday: the sweetheart edition