Vee, I am glad you got so much out of the reading. I really enjoyed watching the video first to be able to connect to the author and see where it is he is coming from. I like that you talked about moving outside of the box when you are creating. I feel that so many teachers get stuck in a rut, and with the restrictions that we have in districts it is hard to move further.
I too thought that the getting an A right off the bat was interesting. I love taking away the pressure and letting students reach their full potential. I think about the very bright kids in my class who just do the bare minimum. Maybe if they didn’t worry about grades and tried to picture their life in the near future they would succeed and enjoy the work more.
One last reaction I had to your writing was thinking about how I contribute in my building. I was thinking about what do I do for my homeroom class, and what do I do beyond that. I really thought the idea of writing each week how you contributed was a great idea. It makes all of us very aware of what we are doing. And since kids do love competition they can compete with themselves on doing more each week. And beyond the kids I think it is good for teachers to know what they are doing to contribute. Some teachers seem to be involved with everything and do their best to help their students. Others maybe need to take a closer look at their contributions.
Original Post:
Week 2 Reading Post (Art of Possibility, 1-4)
Chapter 1: The answer to the question, how can we think outside the box we live in was illustrated by the “join all nine dots” example. We truly “struggle” in our assumptions when we fail to invent. We tend to limit our solutions to problems by drawing the square first, fencing in any hope of what’s possible. The idea of inventing a new solution is so engaging, too. In a recent initiative I’m involved in at our school district, I’ve been privileged to work with a team who’s culture is to “invent” solutions. We do this by mapping our the problem, then innovating a new map, solutions included. That’s one way we invent in order to gain more choices.
Chapter 2: While measurements have their place (I would readily want to fly with a pilot who has passed his flight simulator tests), our thoughts and actions are affected by the assessments that surround us. The need to survive is certainly at the core of this thinking, as the Zanders indicate. Yet, the idea that is presented in chapter 2, that developing an attitude that life does not depend on achieving a certain mark, but values connecting with our goals (eg. people), we tend to think bigger and broader. Here, thoughts and actions break through the constricting reflection of the measurement world and open up the “universe of possibility.”
Chapter 3: I’m always for getting an “A.” That said, I understand the concept behind the Zander’s experiment. The letters received by the students after receiving the “A” and then being free to become more complete individuals made them better students. The removal of the “measurement world” gave them unlimited possibilities to repair and modify their thinking in many areas (as indicated in the above letters). As he concluded the chapter about his father, I related to this a lot in having a similar situation. (The note falling out of the book that his father wrote him was particularly touching.)
Chapter 4: To begin, asking yourself the question, “Will I be a contribution is essential.” I’ve been challenged by this as I find myself on more and more committees in education. I have to say that I connected something from the video and the book in this chapter and that was the reference in the video to the “bird who flies over the field and doesn’t care about the fences underneath.” That’s how I seek to be a contribution. I would rather fly over the challenges and boundaries in order to contribute something fresh and valuable to the discussion. I run into many people who only look at the walls instead of fly up and get the 30,000 foot view. So the combination of a willful decision to contribute along with a big picture approach help me to participate in the solution to a difficulty.
I too thought that the getting an A right off the bat was interesting. I love taking away the pressure and letting students reach their full potential. I think about the very bright kids in my class who just do the bare minimum. Maybe if they didn’t worry about grades and tried to picture their life in the near future they would succeed and enjoy the work more.
One last reaction I had to your writing was thinking about how I contribute in my building. I was thinking about what do I do for my homeroom class, and what do I do beyond that. I really thought the idea of writing each week how you contributed was a great idea. It makes all of us very aware of what we are doing. And since kids do love competition they can compete with themselves on doing more each week. And beyond the kids I think it is good for teachers to know what they are doing to contribute. Some teachers seem to be involved with everything and do their best to help their students. Others maybe need to take a closer look at their contributions.
Week 2 Reading Post (Art of Possibility, 1-4)