Tuesday, September 27, 2011
Saturday, September 24, 2011
dougald hine
define ourselves around enquiries: in other words, by what we are curious about, rather than what we are authorities on.
new post of Dougald's via @venuex - thank you Amanda
mary catherine bateson
more from her Peripheral Visions:
p. 8: self observation is the best teacher (detox and swim videos)
p. 10: to enjoy and to live is a precondition for the capacity to learn
p. 48-50: what we have learned not to see, ... and what we have learned to impose
p. 62-63: membership both acknowledges and bridges separateness, for it is constructed across a gap of mutual incomprehension, depending always on the willingness to join in and be changed by a common dance. ...persons are human individuals shaped and succored by the reality of interdependence
p. 64: learning is fluid like the web, not linear
p. 109: to attend, to notice, ..... changes the world
p. 112: chocolate milk
p. 113: where boredom is simply irrelevant
p. 135: fractals (metaphors) make us endlessly fertile, perpetual beta
p. 138: our habits of attention work agains seeing
p. 139: groups dealing
p. 175: participation often involves skills in coping with ambiguity. "common sense" is often assumed to be truly common and to precede specialization, but it may be that "common sense" is mastered only in old age, when it is revered as "wisdom."
one conspicuous strand of contemporary debate attempts to inventory what every member of society needs to know, whether in curricula and proposed standard examinations in such more fanciful forms as e.d.hirsch, jr.'s cultural literacy, or in so-called canon. no one, it might be argued, is a full participant in american society who is not numerate and literate in english does not know enough of the rules of baseball and civics to take sides, and so on and so forth perhaps at very great length. depending on how we define full participant, it may be essential to have read melville or to understand the theory of relativity. it may also be necessary to know how to program a vcr or how to fill out an application for food stamps. no one, it might be argued is a full participant in american society who does not have some basic knowledge of histories and folkways of the diverse groups that compose that society. some knowledge of buddhism and some of vodun. but are there any competent participants in american society? young people must be prepared to feel like newly arrived immigrants through much of their lives. they need to know how to observe, how to learn, how to adapt, how to draw on other people's expertise. how to improvise and cope with only partial knowledge and how to imagine alternatives.
p. 8: self observation is the best teacher (detox and swim videos)
p. 10: to enjoy and to live is a precondition for the capacity to learn
p. 48-50: what we have learned not to see, ... and what we have learned to impose
p. 62-63: membership both acknowledges and bridges separateness, for it is constructed across a gap of mutual incomprehension, depending always on the willingness to join in and be changed by a common dance. ...persons are human individuals shaped and succored by the reality of interdependence
p. 64: learning is fluid like the web, not linear
p. 109: to attend, to notice, ..... changes the world
p. 112: chocolate milk
p. 113: where boredom is simply irrelevant
p. 135: fractals (metaphors) make us endlessly fertile, perpetual beta
p. 138: our habits of attention work agains seeing
p. 139: groups dealing
p. 175: participation often involves skills in coping with ambiguity. "common sense" is often assumed to be truly common and to precede specialization, but it may be that "common sense" is mastered only in old age, when it is revered as "wisdom."
one conspicuous strand of contemporary debate attempts to inventory what every member of society needs to know, whether in curricula and proposed standard examinations in such more fanciful forms as e.d.hirsch, jr.'s cultural literacy, or in so-called canon. no one, it might be argued, is a full participant in american society who is not numerate and literate in english does not know enough of the rules of baseball and civics to take sides, and so on and so forth perhaps at very great length. depending on how we define full participant, it may be essential to have read melville or to understand the theory of relativity. it may also be necessary to know how to program a vcr or how to fill out an application for food stamps. no one, it might be argued is a full participant in american society who does not have some basic knowledge of histories and folkways of the diverse groups that compose that society. some knowledge of buddhism and some of vodun. but are there any competent participants in american society? young people must be prepared to feel like newly arrived immigrants through much of their lives. they need to know how to observe, how to learn, how to adapt, how to draw on other people's expertise. how to improvise and cope with only partial knowledge and how to imagine alternatives.
Friday, September 23, 2011
mary catherine bateson
chocolate milk.. what a great analogy
from her Peripheral Visions:
how much are we doing this today.. with pbl, gaming, tech bling...?
not that any of those are bad if that's what geeks you out.
but used for even a kind-hearted cohersion... we're getting at the wrong thing..
let's resign from pre-scribed learning.
from her Peripheral Visions:
there have been a series of experiments in educational television, devoted to packaging reading or geography in the frenetic cadences of quiz shows, cartoons, and commercials.
it is hard to criticize programming that seems to work in conveying something useful, but children who are given chocolate milk to get calcium into them grow up as chocolate eaters, not as milk drinkers. children prepared for school by children's television arrive better prepared for the content of their lessons but perhaps less tolerant of the rhythms of reflection and multiple return appropriate to gradual growth in understanding, for attention that is exacted tips over easily into boredom, while learning flourishes on the subtleties of recycled attention. recognizing that education should be enjoyable rather than punitive, we sometimes attempt to alleviate boredom by making bits and pieces of education entertaining, instead of discovering and supporting those modes of activity to which the experience of boredom is simply irrelevant.
how much are we doing this today.. with pbl, gaming, tech bling...?
not that any of those are bad if that's what geeks you out.
but used for even a kind-hearted cohersion... we're getting at the wrong thing..
let's resign from pre-scribed learning.
when a people at war become mirror images of the enemy, the war is already lost.
Sunday, September 18, 2011
alex reid
the learning assessment alternatives dml badges
1. how are those around you doing
welcome to badge world
rethinking assessment and the dml badge competition
a call out for ideas is wonderful. i wish it wasn't so directed/restricted to the badge idea.
especially as it's coming from places i admire/respect for their previous work, ie: you and dm&l.
people won't think about the parameters you are setting, they will just jump in submit their best ideas - within the parameters of a badge idea - because of who it's coming from. to me, that's not open. and what's worse, we'll be missing potential creativity on something we all care deeply about.
we've become addicted to educational credentialing, and we're missing what it means to be human and alive. breaking away from that addiction, in my thinking, is what will address equity. our labling need/frenzy only creates more inequity.
Education does not make you a more valuable human being; that notion is noxious.
How do we design learning to inspire students' intrinsic motivation?perhaps we don't design it... no?
1. how are those around you doing
2. help players become reflective about their own play. In other words, student activities need to mirror the practices we actually wish them to perform and should be designed to encourage autonomy and reflection.
Honestly I don't care about badges one way or the other. It's about what you do and why you do it. What I believe we must resist is mistaking real motivation and meaningful learning for increasing our value as a human commodity in the marketplace. I'm fairly sure that education doesn't make us "better" humans. I don't even think learning can make us "more" human (whatever that might be), though it could expand our experience in interesting ways. The one thing we have to prevent is schooling making us feel less human.
welcome to badge world
So when the federal government and corporations start lining up behind badges, you really should know they have a terrible track record.But I don't want a badge. I want to be able to do something just because I want to do it, without the panoptic glare of the badge police (or the police badge for that matter). Can't I just be part of an academic blogging community where people are there because they want to be instead of pursuing some commodity?
rethinking assessment and the dml badge competition
If you learn, you are transformed. Your medals won't help you run faster or farther, but the hours of running will.If I spent long hours practicing music and learning studio recording by trial and error, which I did, the proof was in the music I produced. If I studied creative writing for my MA, the proof was in the poetry I wrote and the readings I gave. Today, I am still marked by learning and that mark is visible in the writing I publish, the courses I teach, the program I administrate, and so on. As we all know by now, you just do it. During the presentation, one of the speakers remarked that today Google is your resume. I'm fine with that. Google me. Read my blog. Download my vita. Read my Twitter feed or Facebook page. Find my articles. Read it all. I mean, that's why I wrote them, right?From the perspective of the learner, my advice would be to pay as little attention as possible to assessment. Feedback? Advice? Real engagement with your work? These are all valuable things. I welcome your comments here. Do I care if you rate my post a 1 or a 10? Do I care if you give me the "good post o' the day" badge?
Real learning occurs without assessment
or at least w/o outsiders assessment.. self-directed feedback loops helps learning no?
Cathy reference Reid above in her post on the badges
pasting my response - as every time i hit submit - my internet connection is lost..
Cathy.. you write above:That's what this competition is about, seeing who has ideas, who can make ideas work, how they work, and then doing the research to learn more about what is or is not working in these new illustrative and exemplary systems.this is what i guess i'm not seeing from my read on the competition. it's like pbl as it's being played out in public ed. we're asking kids to be creative, self-direct, but within a given set of parameters.
a call out for ideas is wonderful. i wish it wasn't so directed/restricted to the badge idea.
especially as it's coming from places i admire/respect for their previous work, ie: you and dm&l.
people won't think about the parameters you are setting, they will just jump in submit their best ideas - within the parameters of a badge idea - because of who it's coming from. to me, that's not open. and what's worse, we'll be missing potential creativity on something we all care deeply about.
we've become addicted to educational credentialing, and we're missing what it means to be human and alive. breaking away from that addiction, in my thinking, is what will address equity. our labling need/frenzy only creates more inequity.
prejudice decreases as discrimination increases. - Ellen Langer
Saturday, September 17, 2011
bud hunt
on badges
response to Bud..
i'm thinking this is grades of a different color Bud. a prettier color. a friendlier color. a better color no doubt. but grades/labels just the same. i'm afraid it's another distraction that will keep good people from their potential, from being alive. i love dm&l. i love people. i hope we question more deeply - why..
response to Bud..
i'm thinking this is grades of a different color Bud. a prettier color. a friendlier color. a better color no doubt. but grades/labels just the same. i'm afraid it's another distraction that will keep good people from their potential, from being alive. i love dm&l. i love people. i hope we question more deeply - why..
Friday, September 16, 2011
dm&l
badges competition
can we use detox data in a badge manner..
at least for the time being while we're still so concerned with credentialing...
perhaps a transition..
can we use detox data in a badge manner..
at least for the time being while we're still so concerned with credentialing...
perhaps a transition..
Thursday, September 15, 2011
Wednesday, September 14, 2011
getting to bif 7
crazy request.
kids have crafted a 4 year plan to redefine school. we are in year 2.
getting global attention. we've experimented with phases of it the last 3 years. writing a book to share it out.
fees and place to stay have been waived/paid for 3 students and myself to attend bif 7. we believe exposure/connections to this specific group of innovators would be huge.
in need of 4 plane tickets from dia sept 19 to pvd, return trip on sept 22.
please pass along to whoever might be able to help. we believe plan will be vehicle to social change.
kids have crafted a 4 year plan to redefine school. we are in year 2.
getting global attention. we've experimented with phases of it the last 3 years. writing a book to share it out.
fees and place to stay have been waived/paid for 3 students and myself to attend bif 7. we believe exposure/connections to this specific group of innovators would be huge.
in need of 4 plane tickets from dia sept 19 to pvd, return trip on sept 22.
please pass along to whoever might be able to help. we believe plan will be vehicle to social change.
Tuesday, September 13, 2011
seth godin
confusing obedience with self-control
structure is a given. who's creating it.. makes all the difference.
Monday, September 12, 2011
Sunday, September 11, 2011
ivan illich
p 79
when maddening behavior becomes he standard of a society, people learn to compete for the right to engage in it. envy blinds people and makes them compete for addiction.
p. 82
growth becomes addictive. like heroin addiction, the habit distorts basic value judgements. addicts of any kinds are willing to pay increasing amonts for declining satisfactions. they have become tolerant to escalating marginal disutility. they are blind to deeper frustration because they are absorbed in playing for always mounting stakes.
withdrawal from growth mania will be painful, but mostly for members of the generation which has to experience the transition and above all for those most disabled by consumption. f their plight could be vividly remembered, it might help the next generation avoide what they know would enslave them.
when maddening behavior becomes he standard of a society, people learn to compete for the right to engage in it. envy blinds people and makes them compete for addiction.
p. 82
growth becomes addictive. like heroin addiction, the habit distorts basic value judgements. addicts of any kinds are willing to pay increasing amonts for declining satisfactions. they have become tolerant to escalating marginal disutility. they are blind to deeper frustration because they are absorbed in playing for always mounting stakes.
withdrawal from growth mania will be painful, but mostly for members of the generation which has to experience the transition and above all for those most disabled by consumption. f their plight could be vividly remembered, it might help the next generation avoide what they know would enslave them.
bikes and stealing
why does a person steal a bike.. ?
maybe it's less about a lack of money, a lack of ethics, a lack of ...
and more about a lack of relationship.
what if we were each known by someone.. how would that change a room? change a community? change a world?
we're building a culture of trust, a people agenda.
it will take some longer than others to believe someone wants to know them.
but once that happens.. we'll be more concerned with giving, than taking.
we're on our way Barry. we're doing it.
__________________________
maybe it's less about a lack of money, a lack of ethics, a lack of ...
and more about a lack of relationship.
what if we were each known by someone.. how would that change a room? change a community? change a world?
we're building a culture of trust, a people agenda.
it will take some longer than others to believe someone wants to know them.
but once that happens.. we'll be more concerned with giving, than taking.
culture of trust
View more presentations from monika hardy
we're on our way Barry. we're doing it.
__________________________
jodhbir singh
my mind is reeling... and today's reelings - i'm blaming on the power/potential when virtual meets face to face.
jodhbir is visiting, after maybe 2 years of virtual connections. the ideas/movies/conversations/doings/dreaming he brought with him are keeping me alert, waking me up, driving me to edges.
ghandi, the great debators, tools of conviviality...
messages:
our message/energy from a real, face to face space, is creating this focus:
many are doing/being/unleashing creativity/passion/innovation. what we are needing/missing/craving - the coming together of a movement so that it's not about equal rights, but equal work. not about equal outputs, but equal inputs (illich).
what we are needing/missing/craving - is a focus of dissatisfaction/essence/urgency into the root of our problem: prescribed learning, or prescription, or dependency.
whatever you want to call it.
it's the perpetuation of non-conviviality - of being programmed (rushkoff) - of non-empowerment - of non-urgency..
what if we focus more on why the prescription, then on how to improve it.
let's keep on doing these amazing things. it's such a simple/unleashing/empowering time. we can all connect/do/dream/be - but let's join in a responsibility to noticing why we are spinning our wheels. why now is not coming.. we're satisfied with the prescription. we're addicted to the prescription. that addiction/satisfaction is perpetuating mindlessness/insanity/belief that the time is not now. that tomorrow is the day.
the time is now. we can. today.
listen to seth's now message..from today.
thank you for making what matters, matter more.
thank you for making what matters, happen today...
______________________
jodhbir is visiting, after maybe 2 years of virtual connections. the ideas/movies/conversations/doings/dreaming he brought with him are keeping me alert, waking me up, driving me to edges.
ghandi, the great debators, tools of conviviality...
messages:
- when we unite, when we connect, movement happens. and it can happen in a humane/convivial way.
- when is now. why hasn't anyone?
our message/energy from a real, face to face space, is creating this focus:
many are doing/being/unleashing creativity/passion/innovation. what we are needing/missing/craving - the coming together of a movement so that it's not about equal rights, but equal work. not about equal outputs, but equal inputs (illich).
what we are needing/missing/craving - is a focus of dissatisfaction/essence/urgency into the root of our problem: prescribed learning, or prescription, or dependency.
whatever you want to call it.
it's the perpetuation of non-conviviality - of being programmed (rushkoff) - of non-empowerment - of non-urgency..
what if we focus more on why the prescription, then on how to improve it.
let's keep on doing these amazing things. it's such a simple/unleashing/empowering time. we can all connect/do/dream/be - but let's join in a responsibility to noticing why we are spinning our wheels. why now is not coming.. we're satisfied with the prescription. we're addicted to the prescription. that addiction/satisfaction is perpetuating mindlessness/insanity/belief that the time is not now. that tomorrow is the day.
the time is now. we can. today.
listen to seth's now message..from today.
thank you for making what matters, matter more.
thank you for making what matters, happen today...
______________________
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