Have you read War and Peace? In ‘Cultural Literacy’ E.D. Hirsch, Jr. wrote that: “To be culturally literate is to possess the basic information needed to thrive in the modern world.” Thriving is a lovely word, would that we all could. We should quibble with Hirsch’s use of the word ‘basic’ and think about what … More What Books Should a School-kid Read?
In order to celebrate ‘International Mindlessness Day’ the school had decided on holding a ‘Mindlessness Week’. Children and teachers had to wile away the time in mindless activities and, as usual, not much thought had gone into what this might mean. Teachers were expected to interpret the mindless edict in ways that they might see … More New School Initiative: Mindlessness Week
Schools awash with targets, data, and objective assessments seem to belong to a different world to that of the human being. Measures have been taken and each droplet of objectivity drips into our consciousness. At some point each school will become different, their core purpose will have moved from that of educating a child and … More Education is Subjective, May It Remain So
Today, according to the TES : “Professor Sugata Mitra, of Newcastle University, suggested that the conventional skills taught to children today were mainly “obsolete” and could be carried out by machines.” He went on to say: “Reading, writing and arithmetic should be deemphasised and replaced with comprehending, communicating and computing. That’s the world we live in … More Sugata Mitra’s Inhuman Belief in Machines
Everything I know about morality and the obligations of men, I owe it to football- Camus Camus was a better writer than he was goalkeeper, but he owed a debt to football. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if we could all write a pithy aphorism that sums up our relationship to our work, wouldn’t it be wonderful … More Schools Should Learn From Football
O chestnut tree, great rooted blossomer, Are you the leaf, the blossom or the bole? O body swayed to music, O brightening glance, How can we know the dancer from the dance? WB Yeats: Among School Children The Sutton Trust report A Winning Personality identified: …extraversion (sociability, confidence, assertiveness), self-esteem, and a positive outlook as … More On Character: Can We Know the Dancer From the Dance?
Are you or do you know of a ‘Microsoft Innovative Educator (MIE)’ ? I am sure they are all very nice people. Their job is to: “…advocate and share their thoughts on effective use of technology in education with peers… They provide insight for Microsoft on new products and tools for education, and they exchange … More Bye-Bye Ronald McTechdonald!
“I’ve always cited who my influences are. I felt it was important for people to be able to see how things are put together at any given stage. I let people know what’s going through my head. I’ve been quite vocal about that through the years… I’ve always loved the process – to see how things … More Bowie, my Gatekeeper, RiP
…all my means are sane, my motive and my object mad. Herman Melville Moby Dick Thank goodness for the efficiency culture in which the purposeful classroom is extolled as a place free from ideological baggage. This is schooling that has reached some sort of ‘end of history’; where classroom doors are closed to the intellect … More A Purposeful and Efficient Education
Target setting and pupil tracking can distract teachers and pupils from what they are meant to be studying. By being concerned about grades over and above learning many teacher pupil conversations can avoid talking about the things themselves. When there is an over-emphasis on the marking criteria, where it replaces the thing being learnt, teacher and pupil can spend … More To the Things Themselves!
Trivium 21c 