The IDEA Blog
Charting a new path forward in education by sharing positive stories of change, providing perspective on key issues, and giving you the news and analysis you need to take action.
Regaining My Stride
I've recently proclaimed that I find Education Reform is like a dip in the floor that I can't help towards; that this is the thing I cannot NOT do. Even if I have good reason to be on the other side of said floor, the dip invariably changes my course and I at least veer toward it. Lately, though, I find that I'm just walking right into it, stopping right there in the middle and settin' a spell.
Perhaps - from the outside in - it appears that I am taking the most circuitous path to my destination - which at this time, feels like the actual path itself. I'm OK with that though. The oft-quoted ... er... quote that the journey is the destination is very clearly defined by my path...
Posted on Oct 20, 2011 - 02:02 PM by Cian Sawyer
And I’m Not Saying There’s Only One Way
You may be shocked to learn that I am an idealist. (Take a moment to collect yourself.)I wish I could pin it down and say THIS is the only way to do education. But that's the very problem we are having right now.
I am currently auditing a course offered by AERO called School Starting 101. In the course I get to interact with people from around the U.S. and the world who are passionate about education reform and who are - you guessed it - starting schools. Thanks to Jerry Mintz, founder of AERO, for facilitating such a tremendous opportunity!
All that to say that, through the course, I have had the amazing opportunity to have a brief discussion with Chris Mercogliano, longtime and...
Posted on Nov 21, 2010 - 08:27 AM by Cian Sawyer
I’m Late! I’m Late! For a Very Important Date!
This whole idea of "Late Reading" has surfaced in my sphere of consciousness quite a bit lately and I feel the need to talk about it. "Late" readers. Who decides what qualifies as an on time reader? How do we know for SURE that age five is the absolutely perfect time for people to begin learning to read? That any time after that is Late?Well -- we don't! Have a gander at this article in which we learn about some interesting findings by researchers in New Zealand. As sited in the article, Waldorf schools do not teach their learners how to read until they are age seven. SEVEN! Gasp! Surely, those children are TERRIBLE readers who are completely illiterate as adults.
Surely, my...
Posted on Oct 22, 2010 - 07:10 PM by Cian Sawyer
My Letter to The Minister
As we all know, The Village School is not exactly "text book". (Pun totally intended.) Having witnessed my dear friend go through a Colossal Struggle to register a playgroup for two to four year olds, I can safely say that registering this newSo, I figured, why not go straight to the top? Get the reigning Minister of Education - The Honorable Mr. Desmond Bannister - to be a supporter of the school so he can, well, put in a good word for us. (Read: Tell them to approve the school and don't ask any questions because I said so.)
I rang the Ministry and spoke with his very kind and helpful secretary,...
Posted on Oct 10, 2010 - 06:13 PM by Cian Sawyer
Been There, Done That
I'm sitting here "braising" - not quite stewing, this heat is lower but it's still getting the job done. But what, you may ask, am I braising about?I can't seem to type a single sentence to talk about what's on my mind without holding down the backspace key because it's too plain or inflammatory. (Here's my final attempt:) What I really want to say is that some of what qualifies as a Good Education (here and also "there") is failing our children in ways much more far-reaching than we as a society are really capable of thinking about (right now).
I am speaking, specifically, about they way children are treated in pre- and elementary schools. About all the ways and means teachers...
Posted on Oct 07, 2010 - 07:09 AM by Cian Sawyer
Balancing Act
Often times revolutionary movements are reactionary (I don't have any data to back that up, but let's just go with it). The People become frustrated with the status quo and when they are sick and tired and had it up to Here, someone stands up and says NO MORE! We know this isn't right, we know there is another way, we know that we can all move closer to this working for more of us. We are now dreaming very loudly in public of a different way; a different world.Some times we go overboard and dive headlong into the other extreme and that doesn't serve anyone either.
Then we sit back - or are deep in the trenches - whichever you prefer, and watch the pendulum sway back and forth until...
Posted on Sep 15, 2010 - 07:22 PM by Cian Sawyer
The Public I
Just under a week ago, I made my local television debut as a “Progressive Education Specialist” (as it appeared on the screen under my name). I am still a bit iffy about the term “specialist”. It was the best I could come with on the spot when the host of the talk show asked me for a descriptor. My husband, whom I had asked to accompany for moral support, wasn’t gung ho about it either. We back-and-forthed about maybe using “advocate” instead but when we told Etoile (show host), she thought “specialist” brought more of an air of authority on the subject, whereas an “advocate” comes across more as a person who simply believes in a cause without much inside knowledge on the workings.
That...
Posted on Sep 05, 2010 - 07:03 PM by Cian Sawyer
Deed Poll for “Alternative Education”
Herbert Kohl made a comment in his keynote at AERO that we need to stop using the term "alternative education" as it doesn't do the movement any justice. That was in June and it has taken me just about two months to really absorb his statement, shake it up and make something new out of it. Suffice to say, I think he's absolutely right (about that) and I am taking his advice and I am changing how I refer to the movement for educational reform.You see even though "alternative education" functions wonderfully well as a quasi umbrella term for all forms of other-than-(so called)-traditional methods, the word alternative tends to make some implications that may not necessarily be true. Think...
Posted on Aug 25, 2010 - 06:21 PM by Cian Sawyer
Democratic Education: A cure of for the common Ism?
I've been thinking a lot about this recently. Is Democratic Education a cure all for the social ills that plague our society? Is that asking too much from one methodology? What I am talking about specifically, is our tendency to discriminate against that which is different from what we know; as individuals and collective "us against them" mentalities. I doubt that I need list the myriad of "isms" of which I speak. You know what I'm talking about. We've all either been an "us" or a "them" - often times, if we take a good look at ourselves, we'll see these attitudes tucked away behind our good will.And then there is Democratic Education. Time and space dedicated to allow rapidly...
Posted on Aug 16, 2010 - 06:59 PM by Cian Sawyer
Education Theology
Thesis Statement: The fear-based nature of the traditional education system renders it incapable of effecting the kind of change we need for humanity to realize it's true self.Call me an idealist but I wholeheartedly believe that the primary goal of the evolution of our species is to move toward Oneness. And that the path to Oneness is Love - pure and simple.
The way our schools and our world works today it is very much about separation through labels, competition, comparison, and judgment. Ways of being that fail us as a race; as citizens of the planet.
In school, children are pitted against one another - grading on a bell curve, being one of the ways it is a standardized...
Posted on Aug 16, 2010 - 09:32 AM by Cian Sawyer
Pray For Doubt
Pray for Doubt...is a phrase I read sometime somewhere. "Pray for doubt," the author advocated. At first I didn't understand why anyone would want to ask for Doubt. Isn't it better to be sure? Isn't Certainty the ironclad, surefire way to know something Good and Right and True and to hell with all the rest of it? I mean, what would doubt do for anyone on a mission?!
I'll tell you what doubt does: It gives you pause. And pause gives you time to step back. And stepping back gives you perspective. And perspective gives "you" (yes, ME) a chance to see things more clearly.
I had a moment of doubt the other day. Oddly enough this occurred while I was reading this article about...
Posted on Aug 06, 2010 - 05:29 AM by Cian Sawyer
No “How” = “Know” How
As I travel the world of non-traditional education, specifically democratic education, I am learning that like unschooling - there is no "One Right Way" to do it.We humans like to have things neatly laid out and pristinely wrapped in clear cellophane packaging with labels including ingredient lists so we can take it home feeling safe that we know exactly what it is that we have bought (into). None of this "Well it's really up to the individual" business. Tell me exactly what alternative education is complete with formulas and predictable results. Describe in detail how unschooling works and how you Do It. Give me a list (which must have references and bibliography) of all the...
Posted on Jul 28, 2010 - 07:41 PM by Cian Sawyer
Horizon: Mireless
I’ve been asking the question lately, What is the point of (traditional) school? What is it for? What purpose is it serving?
But then I had to ask, What is the point of this “Alternative Education” that I am espousing? What is it for? What purpose will it serve?
Answer: Humanity.
You see, even though I am very much about creating a school that respects its learners and creates an atmosphere of equality for all, the larger vision is really restoration of Humanity.
Under or behind all the labels - words we use to keep our distance from each other - are real live actual human beings; daughters, sons, cousins, sisters, mothers, fathers, best friends, lovers - People. At the risk...
Posted on Jul 21, 2010 - 07:40 PM by Cian Sawyer
The Big Why
Why do I want to start a school anyway?First and foremost, there is one key person who played a major role in diverting my life onto this track (though thinking about it now, I know it was inevitable). So in some ways she was more like an turning point in the course of this river of my life's work that was always bound to end up in the ocean of education(al reform).
A woman by the name of Lisa Sawyer McCartney took a chance on me and hired me to teach at her well respected and very succesful pre-school (now elementary school), Unicorn Village in April 2001. In hindsight it feels like I blinked and went from working in retail (to somewhere in between starting my Bachelor's in Early...
Posted on Jul 10, 2010 - 07:23 AM by Cian Sawyer
AERO Conference Digest
I've just returned from the 7th Annual AERO Conference in Albany, NY and to say it was phenomenal is a bit of an understatement.The truth is that, in many ways, it already feels futile to try and capture the experience I have just had. In telling it to friends I find myself using the same words -- like "incredible, inspiring, amazing" -- over and over again. I struggle to articulate what has been a deeply perception-altering experience. I say “perception-altering” instead of “life-altering” because while I am certain that my life is in fact altered, it is born out of a greatly expanded awareness of my own ideas and beliefs particularly those I had held regarding the people I am hoping...
Posted on Jul 01, 2010 - 10:11 AM by Cian Sawyer
Introducing Me
Well hello IDEA readers and bloggers!I have to confess this is a teeny bit nerve-wracking as it's my first time blogging for someone else. Usually it's a ramble about stuff that I hope someone will eventually read. This time, I pretty much know it's being read. By you!
So let me tell you a bit about me, because this is really a segue to another post that I would like to add after this.
I was born and raised in Kingston, Jamaica and I am now living as a resident of the archipelagic island nation of The Bahamas. I am a passionate unschooling mother of two and an unwavering advocate for what I believe is every human being's birthright to organic learning/self-directed education....
Posted on Jul 01, 2010 - 09:59 AM by Cian Sawyer
Posts by Cian Sawyer
