It is fascinating how children all want to be alike, and yet stand apart. They want to fit in, but they also choose, if given a chance, to stand apart from each other in ways that demonstrate strength, intelligence and expertise. This happens in individual families as children choose their individual interests. One may choose sports, another science, and yet another, the arts, music or the culinary arts. And then when it comes to the design of American education, all animals must jump through and be measured by the same hoops.
When the National Endowment for the Arts attempted to come up with a means to measure their effectiveness, joy was suggested as a means of measuring student engagement and learning. If expressed joy was to become the primary means of assessing educational progress(both individual and collective) in the US, we would have schools much different from what we have now. Let's aim in that direction.
Today I am in Connecticut for day one of a week-long class at the Connecticut Valley School of Woodworking. For adults and children alike, learning is a joy, or can be if given a chance.
Make, fix, create, and increase the likelihood that others learn to love learning likewise.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment