Today’s keynote speaker was Spike Lee. He was invited to speak because his last project was a documentary about post Katrina New Orleans called, "When the Levees Broke." My Spike Lee memories are of Mars Blackmon and MJ commercials, Reggie Miller dropping 8 points in 11 seconds on the Knicksand giving Mr. Lee the choke sign, and the lovable pizza delivery guy in Do the Right Thing.
It was immediately obvious that he is not a public speaker. He speaks through film. But he did give a few great sound bites:
In reference to President Obama, “…even if you didn’t vote for him, you gotta give the man respect. Give him some applause. You might as well get with the program it’s gonna be 8 years!”
“Our values system has been turned upside down. When I was a kid, (Spike Lee is now 52) we looked up to three types of people, athletes, the guys who could talk with the ladies, and the smart guys. Now, if you speak a whole sentence without cussing or using incorrect grammar, you are a sell out. If you are a drop out on the corner smoking a blunt, drinking a forty with your pants hanging down past your ass and your hand on your privates, you’ve made it. How the hell did that become what it means to be black?”
“1865 (the year slavery became illegal in the US) wasn’t that long ago. I’m only 4 generations removed from slavery. But the greater crime in our country’s history is all the land grabbing that went on from the Native Americans. You wanna see some messed up stuff, go to a Native American concentration camp. Yeah, I didn’t say reservation…”
“Reality shows have poisoned the mind of young people by perpetuating the lie of the overnight success. If you want to be successful you have to bust your ass.”
“Parents kill more dreams than anybody. In their supposed infinite wisdom, they think they know best.”
In reference to the digital revolution and Youtube – “I think its great, everyone has a voice now, but unfortunately not everybody has something to say.”
Saturday, February 28, 2009
Friday, February 27, 2009
Caring Economics
"The people we entrust with our pipes (plumbers) make $50 to $100 an hour. The people we entrust with our children (teachers) according to the US Department of Education make $10 an hour."
-Riane Eisler
I am currently soaking up the Big Easy at the National Montessori Conference. While I am attending various workshops and seminars, I thought I'd take the time to blog about the three keynote speakers.
Today's speaker was Riane Eisler. One word...Genius. Growing up in World War II era Austria, her and her family fled for their safety. Today, she is an economist and futurist, president of the Center for Partnership Studies and an author of several books - The Chalice and the Blade, Tomorrow's Children, and True Wealth of Nations. The focus of her work and her conversation today was something she refers to as caring economics.
In my own humble summary: (which is much less eloquent than her delivery, especially since she is Austrian and has this great accent which only adds emphasis to her already academic language) we as a society must experience a fundamental cultural transformation. We need to leave the old hierarchy of domination and fear and freedom for those on the top to do what they want and move toward a new hierarchy of mutual respect, mutual benefit and actualization. This new movement is a partnership in which leaders illuminate, provide, and empower life instead of trying to dominate it.
In our American culture, we only measure time by length and order. How long something lasted, did it happen before or after. We don't measure time's depth, the value or richness of a moment. Greek culture has a word for this called Kairos. A Kairos moment is a moment pregnant with great potential and lasting impact. According to Eisler, the current economic crisis is a Kairos moment. As we shift from industrial to post industrial, the opportunity is there to move to an economy of caring where value is given to life sustaining activities. The beauty of everything she was communicating, is that the Montessori philosophy fully promotes the ideals she speaks of, giving us as Montessorians a huge opportunity to play a role in creating the future.
-Riane Eisler
I am currently soaking up the Big Easy at the National Montessori Conference. While I am attending various workshops and seminars, I thought I'd take the time to blog about the three keynote speakers.
Today's speaker was Riane Eisler. One word...Genius. Growing up in World War II era Austria, her and her family fled for their safety. Today, she is an economist and futurist, president of the Center for Partnership Studies and an author of several books - The Chalice and the Blade, Tomorrow's Children, and True Wealth of Nations. The focus of her work and her conversation today was something she refers to as caring economics.
In my own humble summary: (which is much less eloquent than her delivery, especially since she is Austrian and has this great accent which only adds emphasis to her already academic language) we as a society must experience a fundamental cultural transformation. We need to leave the old hierarchy of domination and fear and freedom for those on the top to do what they want and move toward a new hierarchy of mutual respect, mutual benefit and actualization. This new movement is a partnership in which leaders illuminate, provide, and empower life instead of trying to dominate it.
In our American culture, we only measure time by length and order. How long something lasted, did it happen before or after. We don't measure time's depth, the value or richness of a moment. Greek culture has a word for this called Kairos. A Kairos moment is a moment pregnant with great potential and lasting impact. According to Eisler, the current economic crisis is a Kairos moment. As we shift from industrial to post industrial, the opportunity is there to move to an economy of caring where value is given to life sustaining activities. The beauty of everything she was communicating, is that the Montessori philosophy fully promotes the ideals she speaks of, giving us as Montessorians a huge opportunity to play a role in creating the future.
Saturday, February 21, 2009
Ten Tips for Creating a 21st Century Classroom Experience
Here is a link to an article in Metropolis magazine. It highlights key elements of a 21st Century classroom that will allow education to move forward in a way that some think will best benefit the greater good. The list of 10 elements are all generally found in a Montessori classroom.
The Google Boys
Sergey Brin and Larry Page, the founders of Google, give a presentation at a TED conference.
"We started Google because we wanted to make the world a better place. Both of us went to Montessori school, and this has been incorporated into Google." At Google, they have a concept called 20% time. Employees get to spend 20% (the equivalent of a whole work day) of their time, doing what they think is the best thing to do.
The solutions to today's problems will come from people who are able to dream new ideas. One of the beautiful aspects of the Montessori Philospophy is that it enables students to develop the type of question asking and creative thinking skills necessary to be the dreamers of solutions. It also helps them develop the desire and concern to care enough to follow their dreams for the greater good.
"We started Google because we wanted to make the world a better place. Both of us went to Montessori school, and this has been incorporated into Google." At Google, they have a concept called 20% time. Employees get to spend 20% (the equivalent of a whole work day) of their time, doing what they think is the best thing to do.
The solutions to today's problems will come from people who are able to dream new ideas. One of the beautiful aspects of the Montessori Philospophy is that it enables students to develop the type of question asking and creative thinking skills necessary to be the dreamers of solutions. It also helps them develop the desire and concern to care enough to follow their dreams for the greater good.
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