Posts by Zuleka Irvin
The Peer Matching Network
A good educational system should have three purposes: it should provide all who want to learn with access to available resources at any time in their lives; empower all who want to share what they know to find those who want to learn it from them; and, finally, furnish all who want to present an issue to the public with the opportunity to make their challenge known.
-Ivan Illich
The above quote was from "Deschooling Society," written by social critic and educational activist Ivan Illich. I read this book last month, and took away several ideas.
- Education should be universal and open, but not compulsory
- The current system, with its focus on certification before experience, fosters...
Posted on Aug 13, 2011 - 05:53 PM by Zuleka Irvin
Quote of the Day
I just finished reading "Compulsory Mis-Education by Paul Goodman, a recommended read. Here is a quote I found that remarkably summarizes IDEA's goals."Thus at present, facing a a confusing state of automated technology, excessive urbanization,
and entirely new patterns of work and leisure, the best educational brains out to be devoting
themselves to *various* means of educating and paths of growing up, appropriate to various
talents, conditions, and careers. We should be experimenting with different kinds of school,
no school at all, the real city as school, farm schools, practical apprenticeships, guided travel,
work camps, little theatres and local newspapers, and community service....
Posted on Jul 12, 2011 - 07:00 PM by Zuleka Irvin
Frugal Schools 2.0 - Open Sourcing
Choosing a computer is like choosing a soft drink: Coke or Pepsi, Sprite or Sierra Mist...Mac or PC. At least, that's what most people think. There are actually more choices out there. You may recall from my last post on the financial situations of schools, that I suggest that open source books and learning sites can help avoid costs. Well again, I think open source can be a big help.There are numerous distributions, "distros,” of an operating system by the name of “Linux”. Linux operating systems are free for the making and the taking. Computer programmers help to create and modify distros and release them for free on the Internet. The one I use is Ubuntu, because it's one of the more...
Posted on Jul 01, 2011 - 07:51 PM by Zuleka Irvin
Links and a Theory
I was going through old email messages when I came across a link a friend sent me about a contest. The link was dead, so I decided to shorten it to the main http. I was redirected to a site by the name of "energizestudents.org." They feature videos about the things that should change in education, have a running blog roll, polls, and the "your point of view" education video contest. This site reminds me a lot of what we're doing here at IDEA. So I invite you all to check out the link - it might lend itself to a cool connection.Other than that I've been pondering about the financial side of the education system. Schools complain that they aren't getting enough funding. Due to the issue of...
Posted on Jun 23, 2011 - 02:53 PM by Zuleka Irvin
Making Changes & Need Your Suggestions. Thanks!
Hello folks,I just had my spring break at Green Mountain College (GMC), and instead of going out, I stayed on campus. It was a rejuvenating experience, as it allowed me to focus on my work (and get crucial experience on the campus farm, Cerridwen). For my Voices of Community writing seminar this semester, I am working on a ten-page paper on a community and an issue it faces. This is the first paper I have written of that length. The community I have chosen is the higher education community. My thesis is, broadly, as follows:
*In recent times, college has come to be seen as an economic venture, with the end result being access to current, high paying jobs, and a boost for the economy....
Posted on Mar 14, 2011 - 11:25 AM by Zuleka Irvin
Reporting on Education
For my "Writing for Media" course, I need to follow a "beat." Unlike general news reporting, doing a news-beat involves continuously covering a specific topic. That means an in-depth understanding is required. One beat is the minimum for my class, although I thought of two issues. The first I thought to do is coverage of my school's organic farm. I attend meetings every week where important announcements are made, and I do farm chores five times a week. I think that the farm (and its connection to the school's food system and the local community) is a topic narrow enough for me to do small (unpublished) news stories. However...I *really* want to give a shot at covering news about...
Posted on Jan 31, 2011 - 12:16 PM by Zuleka Irvin
Online Education…in a Physical Classroom?
One of my classes for this semester is "Writing for Media." In this class I will get to snack on the practice of and theory surrounding media writing. The professor has put the entire class on the internet. The class is even held in the Mac Lab in the school library. Our writing assignments will be done on blog posts in the school's online education companion, epsilen.com. Also part of the course, I have created a twitter.com account, which is supposed to be used to follow and tweet about media happenings.As a person who can be painfully addicted to the internet, I have a serious problem with this class.
When I am at school, I try to avoid the internet as much as possible. At home in...
Posted on Jan 22, 2011 - 11:38 AM by Zuleka Irvin
Quote of the Day
*from thefreedictionary.com"As long as learning is connected with earning, as long as certain jobs can only be reached through exams, so long must we take this examination system seriously. If another ladder to employment was contrived, much so-called education would disappear, and no one would be a penny the stupider."
-E.M. Forester
He has a point. This is the system that was made, and is the system we value for success and development in "western society". What are your thoughts?
Posted on Jan 17, 2011 - 05:16 PM by Zuleka Irvin
Help Us Venture into Homeschooling
How can we start homeschooling?My dad has agreed to enter my younger brother in a homeschooling program. He is currently a high school freshman, attending the high school I graduated from. This high school has recently become charter. It is now more undemocratic than it was when I went there. They are adopting a $65 gray, black, and white uniform. The principal cuts down the decisions of student government, and cuts activities when she is upset by the students. I have started to see a change in my brother. He is even more tired than he was in middle school. He lacks direction - but I know he likes to learn. He is always talking about history. He is teaching himself how to draw Anime. He...
Posted on Jan 11, 2011 - 04:58 PM by Zuleka Irvin
A Perspective on Chinese Schooling
Having grown tired of partisan news and tabloid journalism, I recently started to watch Link TV. Link is an independent media network that reports and features documentaries about global news affairs. They will be featuring a Chinese documentary soon called Kindergarten. You can watch the full version online, which is what I did. I'll be honest - it is a real tear-jerker, with music in minor harmony and shots of distressed 2- to 4-year-olds who have very little idea of what their parents got them into. Looking beyond what was captured for emotional effect, I saw that this film highlights some of the facets of traditional education: parental detachment due to work demands and the idea of the...Posted on Jan 10, 2011 - 02:49 PM by Zuleka Irvin
My Second Semester
At my school, Green Mountain College, I gained acceptance into what is known as the “Progressive Program”. It is one of the opportunities at my school to “chart [my] own course of study”. At my school there are four core “environmental liberal arts” classes: Images of Nature, Voices of Community, Dimensions of Nature, and Voices of Community. These courses are meant to prepare me with a liberal arts education in the context of environmental conscientiousness. However, there are seven smaller “ELA” classes that I am no longer required to take as a Progressive Program Student (PPS). As a PPS I will keep a traditional Art major, while also incorporating studies of education, philosophy,...Posted on Dec 25, 2010 - 12:26 AM by Zuleka Irvin
So Long For Now
*Hello IDEA community,
I think I will be taking an official hiatus from the blogging team. I have been preoccupied with trying to comprehend my college life. Time really isn't an issue as much as a lack of motivation and access to news media is. My de-motivation derived from the constant feeling I have that continuing to receive formal education is neither relevant to nor financially viable for me. Not given the chance to get over burnout from my last stretch of k-12 schooling, I am beginning to feel that this isn't worth it if I am always confused, stressed, and tired. Yet at the same time I LOVE learning and a college (or a library) has ready-made learning opportunities that aren't...
Posted on Nov 16, 2010 - 11:56 AM by Zuleka Irvin
Hey guys (need your help)
It's been a LONG time since I've posted anything. I am still trying to figure out this whole study/socialize/free time deal in college.Anyway, my drawing instructor brought up an important dilemma about her son today. My school is in a small town, so she had to move to a larger (but still small) town in order to commute without hassle. She had a hard time finding a school with enough resources, and currently her son is in a K-12 school because it at least has two art teachers, and a high-school type of gym and okay facilities. Even still she finds that student creativity is stifled at the school and potentially for her young son. I believe he is in kindergarten. She is attending a...
Posted on Oct 15, 2010 - 05:33 PM by Zuleka Irvin
The Teacher as Soldier
"Put plain and simple, this country needs an army of great new teachers," Arne Duncan at the University of Virginia, 2009."We will recruit an army of new teachers and develop innovative ways to reward teachers who are doing a great job, and we will reform No Child Left Behind so that we are supporting schools that need improvement, rather than punishing them," barackobama.com - education solutions.
I guess this metaphor is supposed to be patriotic or nice. It's not. As a person who thinks war is immature, ineffective, and negative, statements like this make me question the goals of such authority.
If the teachers are the army, then what war are they fighting? To recruit an army of...
Posted on Aug 26, 2010 - 12:27 AM by Zuleka Irvin
What Ms. K Had to Say
***One woman's message to me about "Why People Don't Understand Schooling."
Entry Date: 2010-08-16 12:48 PM
"There are some assumptions here which are naive at best. Not everyone does have access to the internet, or even to the rest of society. Sure, there are many things wrong with schools, but there are also many things right with them. Rather than advocate eliminating schools, which would hurt the least advantaged in our society, we might take some of the suggestions here and work to implement them in our public schools, so that all young people have access to varied experiences and methodologies. We can differentiate instruction, learning, and assessment. We can provide...
Posted on Aug 21, 2010 - 03:05 PM by Zuleka Irvin
The Apple & the Arrow: Freedom & Schooling Pt. 4
A Note About Peter the SoldierWhile William is telling this story to his family, it is said that Peter was “a kind man.” Hedwig, William's wife agrees and said she used to play with him as a young girl, but she is not so pleased that he became a soldier. "He was such a sweet lad." But William replied that, “‘Men do many things, Hedwig, that they do not like, just to live.”
My principal and especially my English teacher have said something similar to this. My English teacher more than once has said, “Sometimes in life you will have to do things that you don't want to do." The Principal told us this before we took the grueling AP test against our wills. It brings me to wonder, how much is...
Posted on Aug 19, 2010 - 12:35 AM by Zuleka Irvin
The Apple & the Arrow: Freedom & Schooling Pt. 3
Ridicule and Ridiculous TasksIn the middle of the story, William and Walter leave the inn and are walking through the village when they see a man bow before a hat on a pole. It is a “ducal hat” representing King Albrecht's Austrian heritage. William feels that the man is acting lowly for bowing. He proudly walks by the pole and the soldiers stop him. They feel that he is being disrespectful for not bowing. William explains to the men that he is a "man of peace” and also finds it unnecessary to bow before mere cloth. The men try to make William bow. They put force against him and Walter and call them “braggarts and fools.” People of the town gather and eventually Governor Gessler comes.
...
Posted on Aug 19, 2010 - 12:32 AM by Zuleka Irvin
Why People Don’t Understand Schooling
In relatively recent news, a high school valedictorian really criticized the nature of compulsory schools, and advocated a changed system of choice and autonomy. In response, I have seen many people say that she was wrong for this, and that although schools aren't perfect, they do serve a great goal of educating all citizens. When people are critical of compulsory schooling, the response is generally this, "So what, you're against education? You're defending ignorance, and blind rebellion."No. People like myself, those proposing alternative free schools/democratic schools/holistic schools, or the "Valedictorian [who] speaks out against schooling," are not against education or learning. We...
Posted on Aug 13, 2010 - 02:50 PM by Zuleka Irvin
The Government is Asking for Your Opinion!
Head on over to ed.gov/blog, and see the post, "What is the biggest challenge today in education?". It's odd that there aren't like a million comments on this blog site, but either way, you should head over and speak your peace. I have commented about student choice."As a recently graduated k-12 student, I feel the biggest challenge in education is having public schools seriously consider student choice in education. For the most part, youth have very little say in what subjects they can learn or spend time on. When it comes to education, everyone is racing to do things for others, asking for freedom for teachers, administrations, and everyone but the students, the people and citizens that...
Posted on Aug 07, 2010 - 01:35 PM by Zuleka Irvin
Attention IDEA Bloggers!
Hello, Zuleika here.I don't know how to post member bulletins, so I will just make announcement here. I am proposing a new "game" of sorts. It is called Pass the Plate, and is meant to bring us together outside of our own blog sections and posts. The first one is a post that I really want some feedback and ideas on. In light of the common core standards that explains what an individual should know at a certain age, I am looking more into what we can adopt for students at any stage of development. Essentially, I made my own standards that actually provide room for individuality and intellectual diversity, called "Standards of Diversification."
For Pass the Plate posts what you do is make a...
Posted on Aug 06, 2010 - 04:40 PM by Zuleka Irvin
“Standards” of Diversification: Pass the Plate [Zuleika]
You want standards? You got 'em. It's simple enough. It's not in legal terms. Give me feedback and let's get things going for the sake of students, not businesses. I propose that we all submit our own snippets of our ideal standards based on democracy, and learner choice. To get us bloggers working in lockstep aside from our other posts, let's have "Pass the Plate" posts. Eh? Eh?
Take this post and improve it. You type the title of the post +Pass the Plate and in brackets you type your name. Then another person can snatch it and make changes. Or make a change to one or more issues and leave it in the comments!!! If we doctor it up well enough, we might have some potential legislation in...
Posted on Aug 06, 2010 - 04:32 PM by Zuleka Irvin
A Rainforest Brain in a Sea of Standardization
I read two articles today that lifted and sank my heart. The first was an article in ODE Magazine ("for intelligent optimists") written by Thomas Armstrong. It was an excerpt from his book, "Neurodiversity: Exploring the Extraordinary Gifts of Autism, ADHD, Dyslexia, and Other Brain Differences." The second was an education article by Our Weekly, a newspaper about current events in the African American community that circulates in my town. The title of that article is, "California's Education Transformation: New standards, programs, and funds introduced."
The article in ODE was a source of optimism for me. Thomas argues that rather than focusing on the stigmas of psychological or...
Posted on Aug 05, 2010 - 09:56 PM by Zuleka Irvin
Response to Shawn’s “Children Will Learn…”
In "Children Will Learn, With or Without a Structured Education," you bring up many things I try to process in my mind every day.If only the "best" choices meant the "happiest" choices for youth. Competition and money are incredible factors in traditional education, and you can catch these themes in things like the President's speeches about the matter, or the way youth talk about why they want to go to college. I have taken time to think about how I would raise a youth when the time comes. I mostly consider democratic schools or unschooling, but I doubt I would have the opportunity to engage my kids. I am beginning to notice that parents don't "roam" as youth do. They don't have the time,...
Posted on Aug 01, 2010 - 09:14 PM by Zuleka Irvin
The Apple & the Arrow: Freedom & Schooling Pt. 2
Different People Enjoy Different ThingsIn the second chapter, Walter points out something to his father William. “Walter pointed to a cave in the hillside where lived a monk well-loved by the people of the land of Uri. He said, ‘Father, it must be lonely for Brother Klaus to live all by himself in that dark place of a cave and just pray all the time.'
'Perhaps it would be for you, Son,' replied his father, 'but Klaus seems happy. When any one of the mountain folk is ill or without bread, Klaus comes to comfort him. When a woman loses her husband or a mother her child, Klaus is there to pray for her. All men, Walter, do not like the same thing. Some like to hunt, others to fight, and still...
Posted on Jul 31, 2010 - 09:46 PM by Zuleka Irvin
The Culture of Fear and Oppression in Schools
**Imagine you live in a world in which you are not trusted, just for existing and making decisions. You always have to be on guard or you risk being screamed at for your actions, or glared at with a contempt so disheartening it makes your stomach drop. People will get in your face and talk you down so that you can “get in line.” You will be interrogated over small things, like where you go or what you say.
It happens everywhere.
Say you're at a buffet restaurant and you drop a dish. Out comes the manager at a slow pace, grimacing, and then he or she just yells, “What is WRONG with you, huh!” A fellow customer then walks up to you and slaps your hand, “Get your food and GET back to your...
Posted on Jul 28, 2010 - 03:15 PM by Zuleka Irvin
Living in Archaic Times
Having old (mom and dad being 50 and 74 respectively) parents has got me thinking about behavior, and how it evolves. It makes me wonder, will there ever be a point where I am content with "living" in the past? When I think of an old person I get a sensation of being trapped or stuck in one dimension or another. They seem to sag and drag, as if their past is personified, physically and cognitively weighing them down. If it comes down to living in an archaic state of mind, unmoved by change, then elderhood is not something I look forward to. Although it's not fun or even bearable, I can get all the wrinkles and degeneration, but if my mind is not keen on change and progress, then that is my...Posted on Jul 27, 2010 - 10:25 AM by Zuleka Irvin
The Apple and The Arrow: Freedom and Schooling Pt. 1
I recently went through a book I picked up in the Children’s room at the Central Library. This story, “The Apple and the Arrow,” by Mary and Conrad Buff, has a plot with many parallels to the state and nature of schooling. It even represents the struggle against traditional schooling. As I read the book I noted my analysis. This book is not a novel “of comparable merit” to books on the “Advanced Placement” book list, but it managed to highlight many things that I am currently contemplating.
“PROLOGUE
Many many years past,
Over six hundred years ago
In the year twelve hundred and ninety,
Thirty-three men gathered on a mountain meadow
Gathered together at midnight.
Peaceful men,
Herders of...
Posted on Jul 24, 2010 - 07:35 PM by Zuleka Irvin
School Lockdowns: Are They Democratic?
This video is a snippet of a lunch lock-down. I thought my former school was the only one that practiced it with this specific term. Similar to a loss or restriction of lunch recess due to teacher displeasure with behavior, a lunch lock-down is a disciplinary spin on regular lock-downs. The typical lock-down is a procedure of restricting everyone's movement on the campus to protect against threats, assaults and violence. If there's word of a gun on campus, the campus immediately goes to lock-down mode while bags/lockers/desks are searched. If a burglar or criminal gets near or on to school grounds, the school is locked down - no one can go anywhere until the issue is resolved. Same applies...Posted on Jul 22, 2010 - 08:51 PM by Zuleka Irvin
IDEA Bloggers
- admin
- Dana Bennis
- Shawn Strader
- Darren Schwindaman
- Melia Dicker
- Scott Nine
- Jonah Canner
- Tanya Reza
- Ammerah Saidi
- Alison Bagg Brink
- Khalif Williams
- Tim Curley
- Claire Russell
- Kristan Morrison
- Adam Fletcher
- Sara Schmidt
- Laura Stine
- Luis Moreno
- Zuleka Irvin
- Cian Sawyer
- Jason Lacoste
- Esther Ohito
- Laura Chytka
- Manauvaskar Kublall
- Adam Burk
- IDEC 2012
- Kelly Dillon