The daily meanderings of a teacher

Tag: Alfie Kohn

  • Determining what to learn

    Bird Droppings December 30, 2011 Determining what to learn   “Suppose that we are wise enough to learn and know — and yet not wise enough to control our learning and knowledge, so that we use it to destroy ourselves? Even if that is so, knowledge remains better than ignorance. It is better to know…

  • Naughty or Nice !!!!

    Bird Droppings December 29, 2011 Naughty or Nice   “The best portion of a good man’s life: his little, nameless unremembered acts of kindness and love.” William Wordsworth   One day when you look back and try and remember what was that act or when, you may not remember but the person to whom that…

  • Where is the passion?

    Bird Droppings December 28, 2011 Where is the passion?   “How do preschool children, full of natural inquisitiveness and a passion for learning, turn into apathetic or angry teens with a profound dislike of school?” Robert L. Fried, The passionate Learner   Every day I hear the simple phrase from at least one student of,…

  • Why do we WORK?

    Bird Droppings December 27, 2011 Why do we WORK? “Pleasure in the job puts perfection in the work.” Aristotle How many times do we all hear how difficult the job is or how “I hate my job” I am always confused when I hear this. I want to ask why are you doing this if…

  • A new day fille with questions and perhaps answers

    Bird Droppings December 26, 2011 A new day one filled with questions and perhaps answers   “No such thing as a man willing to be honest –that would be like a blind man willing to see.” F. Scott Fitzgerald   “No man, for any considerable period, can wear one face to himself, and another to…

  • High stakes testing and/or inspection does it work?

    Bird Droppings November 12, 2011 High Stakes Testing and/or Inspection does it work? I was thinking back this morning to several months of getting ready for a peer review, GAPPS Review. If you throw in the Georgia High School Graduation retests and PSAT, and End of Course tests all about the same time that was…

  • Our wonderful world of paradox and confusion

    Bird Droppings September 7, 2011 Our wonderful world of paradox and confusion “What can we surmise about the likelihood of someone’s being caring and generous, loving and helpful, just from knowing that they are a believer? Virtually nothing, say psychologists, sociologists, and others who have studied that question for decades.” Alfie Kohn Yesterday in my…

  • Teaching can be successful

    Bird Droppings September 3, 2011 Teaching can be successful So as I do on many mornings when I can, I walked out to a quiet corner of my back yard nestled in a patch of weeds and brush and looked toward the east. In the morning with the sunrise the threads of life as I…

  • Why do we fail?

    Bird Droppings August 30, 2011 Why do we fail? Many the time, I wonder why people stop learning. I see it in high school students and in college and graduate students. Almost as if a switch is thrown and poof no more learning I have reached my limit. I had a teacher approach before school…

  • Sitting, pondering and grandbaby sitting

    Bird Droppings June 25, 2011 Sitting, pondering and grandbaby sitting I spent the better part of last week up on the side of Black Rock Mountain assisting in my own way the facilitating of a Foxfire Approach to teaching class for teachers and teachers to be. I am being somewhat sarcastic as I am doing…