I had the honor of being a part of an Indiana Montessori Teacher's Conference today. I participated in several sessions, and helped facilitate a couple.
I found myself in the middle of a great conversation that went along with a thread that is being woven on this blog.
Maria Montessori, the founder of the philosophy was a scientist. The philosophy is based on years of observation research. The data has already been gathered. It is continually gathered every time each one of us as Montessori teachers makes an observation and differentiates instruction. Montessori is not a fad, or a new way of trying to band aid a problem. It is a century old philosphy and methodology of education.
The genius of the Montessori Philosophy isn't the math and language standards that are measured on standardized testing. (Although we can show the students being successful by those standards.) The genius is the standards that students measure up to that are not measured by the department of education: Standards of humanity and development as people, as thinkers, as self motivated, creative, teamworkers, as caring peacemakers. While the department of education may not see these as important, leaders in many other fields do.
Saturday, March 14, 2009
Friday, March 13, 2009
Tell the stories!
In response to my last post, regarding beating the legislators at their own game, and in light of the recent conversations with my peers regarding data, statistics, ISTEP scores, AYP, blah, blah, blah...
'Art addresses us in the fullness of our being....There are some truths about life that can be expressed only as stories or songs or images. Art awakens, enlarges, refines, and restores our humanity.'
-Dana Gioia
Tell the stories. The numbers only tell one fraction of a much greater story. We must tell the Montessori story. We must tell the stories of our students. We must put ourselves in a place where we are daily awed by what is happening in our midst and find ways to creatively communicate those occurences.
'Art addresses us in the fullness of our being....There are some truths about life that can be expressed only as stories or songs or images. Art awakens, enlarges, refines, and restores our humanity.'
-Dana Gioia
Tell the stories. The numbers only tell one fraction of a much greater story. We must tell the Montessori story. We must tell the stories of our students. We must put ourselves in a place where we are daily awed by what is happening in our midst and find ways to creatively communicate those occurences.
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
The ISTEP Coup
ISTEP is Indiana's version of yearly high stakes standardized testing. Last week the students finished their first of two weeks of testing they will endure this spring. Schools around the state, urban, suburban, and rural, were in an uproar regarding the difficulty of the new test. Higher order thinking skills are being tested in a way they have not been previously, and many students were not prepared to deal with this, which leads me to the point of this post.
As a Montessorian, and someone who generally operates by common sense, I am passionately opposed to standardized testing and all the baggage that comes with them. My preferred course of action would be to fight for the elimination of them. Yet, this seems like an unbelievably steep uphill battle.
A ray of sunshine perhaps? The new move toward testing higher order thinking skills in theory, should favor Montessori schools, as that is what we see being fostered in our students as we follow the Montessori philosophy. If this leads to Montessori students scoring noticably higher, especially in urban areas, could it then lead to getting the attention of legislators and decision makers? Is the way to seeing more schools adopt the Montessori philosophy, to beat legislators at their own game?
The coup has begun.
As a Montessorian, and someone who generally operates by common sense, I am passionately opposed to standardized testing and all the baggage that comes with them. My preferred course of action would be to fight for the elimination of them. Yet, this seems like an unbelievably steep uphill battle.
A ray of sunshine perhaps? The new move toward testing higher order thinking skills in theory, should favor Montessori schools, as that is what we see being fostered in our students as we follow the Montessori philosophy. If this leads to Montessori students scoring noticably higher, especially in urban areas, could it then lead to getting the attention of legislators and decision makers? Is the way to seeing more schools adopt the Montessori philosophy, to beat legislators at their own game?
The coup has begun.
Sunday, March 1, 2009
Three Cups of Tea
The first cup of tea, you are a stranger.
The second cup of tea, you are a friend.
The third cup of tea, you are family.
Greg Mortensen was today's speaker, the final speaker of the conference. I recently finished Mortensen's book, Three Cups of Tea, and was so interested in hearing him speak, that I missed my flight home. Fortunately, I was able to catch another flight on standby. In January, Mortensen was nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize. I don't know when I'll have another chance to personally meet and listen to a Nobel Peace Prize winner, so carpe diem.
Similar to Spike Lee, Mortensen isn't a public speaker. But he does have such an amazing story to tell. What started as a failed attempt to climb the second highest peak in the world, became a promise to build a school for the Pakistan village that nursed him back to health, and is now an organization that has built 78 schools throughout rural Pakistan. The Central Asia Institute now helps to educate thousands of children, giving them a future that was never an option for them before.
I won't attempt to re-tell his story here because that would diminish it's beauty. It is a story that greatly moved me. Mortensen didn't start with a goal to build 78 schools in rural Pakistan. He saw a need, one school in one village, and he was moved to meet it. Greatness is simple. Maybe that is why it is so hard for people to obtain.
Mortensen's work has drawn the attention of the Pentagon, as he is considered an expert in an area of the world that our government is generally pretty ignorant about. The schools he builds are also seen as an alternative to the extremist jihad schools that poor Pakistani children would potentially attend. Mortensen as acutally been referred to as a fighter of terrorism. He likes to think of himself as a promoter of peace. In an address of Pentagon officials, he noted that the striker missiles used to bomb Afghanistan cost $800,000 a piece. These missiles may or may not strike their target. At their most "effective" they destroy alqaeda strongholds. At their worst, the kill innocent women and children, or maybe make a new hole in the side of a mountain. $800,000 could build 30 schools in Pakistan and Afghanistan, educating thousands of children and keeping them from attending the extremist jihad schools. Which one is the most effective "fighter" of terrorism?
"Fighting terrorism" Mortensen says, "is based on fear. Fear is perpetuated by ignorance, which is the real enemy. Promoting peace is based in hope."
The second cup of tea, you are a friend.
The third cup of tea, you are family.
Greg Mortensen was today's speaker, the final speaker of the conference. I recently finished Mortensen's book, Three Cups of Tea, and was so interested in hearing him speak, that I missed my flight home. Fortunately, I was able to catch another flight on standby. In January, Mortensen was nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize. I don't know when I'll have another chance to personally meet and listen to a Nobel Peace Prize winner, so carpe diem.
Similar to Spike Lee, Mortensen isn't a public speaker. But he does have such an amazing story to tell. What started as a failed attempt to climb the second highest peak in the world, became a promise to build a school for the Pakistan village that nursed him back to health, and is now an organization that has built 78 schools throughout rural Pakistan. The Central Asia Institute now helps to educate thousands of children, giving them a future that was never an option for them before.
I won't attempt to re-tell his story here because that would diminish it's beauty. It is a story that greatly moved me. Mortensen didn't start with a goal to build 78 schools in rural Pakistan. He saw a need, one school in one village, and he was moved to meet it. Greatness is simple. Maybe that is why it is so hard for people to obtain.
Mortensen's work has drawn the attention of the Pentagon, as he is considered an expert in an area of the world that our government is generally pretty ignorant about. The schools he builds are also seen as an alternative to the extremist jihad schools that poor Pakistani children would potentially attend. Mortensen as acutally been referred to as a fighter of terrorism. He likes to think of himself as a promoter of peace. In an address of Pentagon officials, he noted that the striker missiles used to bomb Afghanistan cost $800,000 a piece. These missiles may or may not strike their target. At their most "effective" they destroy alqaeda strongholds. At their worst, the kill innocent women and children, or maybe make a new hole in the side of a mountain. $800,000 could build 30 schools in Pakistan and Afghanistan, educating thousands of children and keeping them from attending the extremist jihad schools. Which one is the most effective "fighter" of terrorism?
"Fighting terrorism" Mortensen says, "is based on fear. Fear is perpetuated by ignorance, which is the real enemy. Promoting peace is based in hope."
Saturday, February 28, 2009
Do the Right Thing
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.”
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.”
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.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
