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.
IDEA Community Organizing, Year 3
Today on July 16, 2012, IDEA has sent out a Call for IDEA Organizers for 2012-2013. The 2011-2012 year of organizing has come to an end, and our 2012-2013 organizing year is now finding its fresh beginning. I'm excited to say that this next year's organizing model will take quite a different shape than it has had over the past couple years. That said, I will use this space to bring you up to date on some of the changes in organizing structure that are coming. I will only briefly summarize the upcoming changes - to view the full details of what's to come for our organizing model, go on and check out the Call for IDEA Organizers for 2012-2013.
About two years ago IDEA launched a...
Posted on Jul 16, 2012 - 05:53 PM by Shawn Strader
Real Education is Relevant
In high school, I maintained consistently horrible grades in math. It was mainly Algebra that killed my GPA. I just didn't get it you know? But gosh... I wanted to. I wanted to understand all those letters and symbols so bad. I've always had trouble learning something if I didn't understand the practicality and usefulness of it though. So in my Algebra class... the one I took three years in a row in high school... I asked more than one teacher, on more than one occasion,"How is Algebra useful in a real world situation?"
"Why do the rules of Algebra work the way they do?"
"How do we know that this stuff is really true anyway? How is the truth of Algebra confirmed in the world and not on...
Posted on Nov 03, 2011 - 01:39 PM by Shawn Strader
A Review of Democratic Education: A Beginning of a Story, by Yaacov Hecht
Ever since I was a middle aged teenager, I've wanted to work for a social revolution. I've wanted to help create a world where all people can collaborate and pursue their own personal goals, unhindered by oppression from the state, their communities, or any bully for that matter. To this day, I still can't pinpoint what got me passionate about working for a better tomorrow. I suppose if I had to narrow it down to one main influence, I would say it was politically charged Punk Rock music. I listened to a lot of Propagandhi growing up, and still do. That style of Punk Rock often contains lyrics that tell a story about a person or community that was oppressed and how they either won or lost in...Posted on Aug 01, 2011 - 04:45 PM by Shawn Strader
Is Testing and Quizzing Good for Learning?
According to a blog posted in the education section of the online magazine, Good, Kent University conducted a study which, scientists claim, has shown that practice tests and practice quizzes are good for learning. It's a short blog, and if you've got time, I suggest reading that before you read the rest of this blog. Just click here.Basically, the study conducted an experiment between two groups of people preparing for a Swahili vocabulary test. One group studied for the test by whatever methods they chose, and the other group took a pop-quiz prior to the actual test, and were given a list of English words which correlated to the Swahili words in some fashion (by meaning or phonetically)...
Posted on Oct 15, 2010 - 11:02 AM by Shawn Strader
I Can’t Wait to Have Kids
I don't have kids of my own, but I absolutely plan on having some in the near future. It is something I am very eager about, and I can honestly say that I am not very worried about the situation at all.Right now, I work 3 days a week, and my wife works about the same. We both work at restaurants and make pretty good money. We own our home, have just bought a new car, and we are living very comfortably. If you're wondering what my sort of comfort looks like, after considering that together my wife and I work 6 shifts a week, I am not surprised. We live very minimalist, communal lives. Our bills consist of our mortgage (which we share with 3 roommates), car payment, cell phone bills,...
Posted on Sep 22, 2010 - 09:24 AM by Shawn Strader
Race To The Top
I do not mean for this writing to provide a summary, synopsis, or full blown analysis of our nations most recent plan to stimulate the effectiveness of our education system, Race To The Top (RTTT). Rather I will offer some thoughts and concerns in hopes to stimulate the thoughts of readers in regards to RTTT, and provoke independent research and analysis of the effort. For an accurate description of RTTT, visit the US Department of Education website here.In a nutshell, RTTT is the United States' most recent federal program to stimulate teachers, schools, and mainly statewide education officials and governors into practicing more effective teaching standards by offering monetary awards for...
Posted on Aug 16, 2010 - 12:41 PM by Shawn Strader
Ignorance Is Bliss, But Isn’t Learning More Important?
Sometimes, it is so begrudging learning new things. Does that mean that we should avoid learning certain things?To illustrate my first point, consider an educator who has been devoted to our nation's education practices for the past 30 years. Perhaps a person as such would be very upset to learn that educating democratically actually caters more to the child in many ways. Consider possible issues of personal pride being hurt, and issues of doubting oneself as a person who is able to accurately reason through situations and information so as to make conscious, and deliberate decisions. Or perhaps this information could come as an unpleasing update if one had been trying to best educate...
Posted on Jul 27, 2010 - 09:00 AM by Shawn Strader
An Inadvertent Lesson From My Nephew
As of late, I have been observing what it is like to maintain a high level of patience with my 4-year-old nephew. For example, he can sometimes take a very long time to complete a task that he knows how to do, because he is trying different methods. And sometimes, his experimental process can be a nuisance, depending on what kind of time frame we have to spend with each other. If we need to be at the park down the road to meet up with his parents at 3pm, and he needs to get his shoes on in the next 3 minutes, or else we will be late, then his efforts to successfully throw his flip flops onto his feet can be straining on whoever is responsible for him. But lately I have been allotting a lot...Posted on Jul 06, 2010 - 04:51 PM by Shawn Strader
Drop Down Thinking
Yesterday afternoon, I had a conversation with a rather pleasant woman named June about our nation's current population of youth, and the ways in which our youth seems to process thoughts. June provoked the conversation after we had discussed that I study philosophy at ASU.She began by mentioning that there seem to be many people, especially today's younger population, who seem to lack any notion of a creative way of thinking. That is, she recognized that many kids nowadays are being taught what to think, as opposed to how to think, which seems to be giving rise to a population of people who seem to struggle when problem solving alone, and sometimes even in groups. I was very excited that...
Posted on Jun 21, 2010 - 01:28 PM by Shawn Strader
The Power Of One
As I lock my bicycle up in downtown Phoenix, outside of a happenin' little cafe called Conspire, a child, belted into his stroller, is continually crying, nearly screaming, as he sits unattended to by anyone around. There are a lot of people here. I am glancing from person to person, hoping to bring attention to this crying kid, but nobody is receptive. I should have figured that a stony glance around would not amount to someone else coming to the aid of this child, considering that his scream can be heard from 50 yards in any direction and nobody seems to care.I've come to the Conspire to play their open-mic with my good friend Matt. Matt is much more confrontational than I am, and...
Posted on Apr 27, 2010 - 08:43 AM by Shawn Strader
Children Will Learn, With Or Without A Structured Education
Often I wonder, why do we send our children away to a classroom at all? I can only speak for myself, but I feel that I have an ample amount of knowledge and know-how which I would love to share with my future children. With my knowledge, plus the fact that I would be bringing my kid(s) with me on daily adventures and into my networks of other people, it seems that experience alone would provide a well-rounded atmosphere for learning. So unschooling, to me, seems to be a viable option for providing an education. But at the same time, it seems odd, intuitively, to even think of planning an educational route for my future children.To me, it seems that just by living, and getting by in...
Posted on Apr 12, 2010 - 05:43 PM by Shawn Strader
Colin Wants To Go To South Africa
Recently I stumbled upon an interesting article on NPR's website entitled, Age May Be Barrier For 13-Year-Old College Student. The story tells about a 13-year-old boy who maintains a 3.9 GPA at the University of Connecticut. The boy, named Colin Carlson, is a double major and seems to be deeply motivated in his studies, which include environmental studies and evolutionary biology.The article revolves around Colin's university prohibiting him from enrolling in a class that would take place in South Africa over the summer, due to his young age. The University reasons that a boy at such a young age may be at higher risk of something undesirable happening while in South Africa than a typical...
Posted on Mar 31, 2010 - 09:18 AM by Shawn Strader
The Social Gap Between Child and Adult
This past week, there was a Hawaiian Music Festival at Tempe Town Lake, not far from my neighborhood. I did not attend, but a good friend of mine checked it out before coming over to my house for a visit. He said it was a fun time with plenty of ukuleles to play and good music all around. But when he got to the front of the line of the 'Make Your Own Hawaiian Lei' booth, the staff told him that adults were not allowed to make a lei, that the artful activity was for kids only.Was he heartbroken over it? Nah... but he was pretty bummed out. He had never made a lei before, and here was a great opportunity to broaden his horizons, but he couldn't participate...apparently, he's too old for...
Posted on Mar 15, 2010 - 10:13 AM by Shawn Strader
Within Earshot and Eyesight
I live in a pretty relaxed neighborhood in Tempe, AZ. For most of the houses throughout my neighborhood, to walk out the back yard and into the alley is to come face to face with someone else's backyard, or usually their 6-foot cinder-block wall. Past my back gate, however, is the school yard of a middle school. The yard is used for Physical Education, and recess at lunch, mainly.Every day, I hear the school bells chime, and multiple times a day, big groups of children come out for P.E. and once for recess. During P.E. the kids usually begin by running laps around their rather large yard. They will holler and run, walk and talk, and some eventually begin to drag their feet and pant. Boy,...
Posted on Mar 01, 2010 - 01:42 PM by Shawn Strader
Patience For Those We Teach
There are many variables to being a great teacher. And not every great teacher necessarily teaches the same way, nor shares the same traits.I have marveled at amazing teachers of my past and present, as I'm sure many other folks have with their own instructors. And likewise, I have thought back to those teachers that just did not seem fit for educating.
I write to discuss one quality, in particular, which can be found in educators that just don't seem to be made for teaching. That quality is impatience.
So many times, at least in my life, teachers have grown upset at me or others for not quickly and easily grasping concepts that they were trying to teach in class. They've grown so...
Posted on Feb 15, 2010 - 06:34 PM by Shawn Strader
My Personal Understanding of Democratic Education
The concept of democratic education was not introduced to me until summer of 2004. I was aware of homeschooling, and slightly familiar with unschooling, but had never really pushed to find an understanding of either approach. But in 2004, The Village Free School, of Portland, OR, was undergoing its first stages of creation, and I was fortunate to be around for it. It is something I took a deep interest in.The idea of children having the freedom to do what they feel inclined to, all under the premise that they are receiving their education during that time....boy, that was a bizarre concept for me.
As strange a concept as it was, though, I was very intrigued by it, and in theory found it...
Posted on Feb 03, 2010 - 11:08 PM by Shawn Strader
Thoughts on Bullying
Recently I listened to a discussion on the Diane Rehm show that centered on bullying in school and showcased some of Carl Pickhardt's theory on why bullying takes place and how it is possible. It was fascinating. You can listen to this segment here.In public school, it is wrong to bully. Often times when a bully is discovered in a class of children, there will be some sort of sit-down talk. The bully might be told that it is not okay to do what he or she is doing to other children, and that if bullying is being used to achieve some goal, then there are surely other ways one can go about meeting that goal without harming others. Most times some sort of further repercussion is dealt to the...
Posted on Jan 19, 2010 - 04:55 PM by Shawn Strader
Of Life and Learning
Isn't it great how when we are struggling with something, the people who care about us will sometimes help us through our challenging times so that we will prosper? Great not only because of the loving sentiment that arises from helping one another, but great also because that learning is many times a byproduct of such group efforts.It would be wrong to say that we are not learning when people show us how to do things we otherwise would not know how to do, or when they assist us in challenging matters. Even with the help of somebody who does not break down step-by-step how to perform whatever task is at hand, we as humans still observe and take mental note. We have an amazing ability to...
Posted on Jan 04, 2010 - 10:08 PM by Shawn Strader
Teacher and Student Roles
Just about anybody who has attended public school has experienced the distinction that seems to often exist between student and teacher.The teacher calls the shots, runs the show, sets the agenda and the deadlines, informs students of how things will go on in their classroom, and is the person who has the knowledge -- which is to be passed on from his or her mind to the students of the classroom. And this is all usually done through teacher-led discourse and method, within the constraints of school curriculum of course.
The students (in theory) are to absorb all of the knowledge being offered to them, respond diligently and respectfully to the teacher's commands and direction, raise...
Posted on Nov 20, 2009 - 11:52 AM by Shawn Strader
Welcome to Op-Education
Hello, and welcome to Op-Education. I am delighted to have you as a reader. My name is Shawn Gaillard, and it seems like I will be blogging pretty regularly for IDEA. I must say that I am truly excited!As this is my introductory post, I suppose offering some background information about myself might be nice. I am twenty-three years old and live in Tempe, Arizona where I attend Arizona State University as a student of Philosophy. I am a passionate musician, a good friend, a dedicated vegan, and an open-minded biped if I do say so myself. I enjoy thinking outside the box, as well as exploring many different methods for accomplishing goals that are usually pursued in routine ways. I...
Posted on Oct 25, 2009 - 07:50 PM by Shawn Strader
Posts by Shawn Strader
