The most compelling documentary I have viewed this year by a long shot is ‘Garbage Warrior’, profiling the remarkable career of maverick architect Michael Reynolds. Reynolds has long staked out a niche creating architectural designs incorporating various things the rest of the western world considers disposable, like tires, aluminum cans and discarded glassware. Living atop […]
(Vancouver Sun; published May 20th) I agree with many of the criticisms of FSA testing made by BCTF president Irene Lanzinger. I am an experienced (Independent school) administrator of the tests and I concur that the style and substance of these tests is highly flawed. Accordingly, drawing conclusions about a child’s intelligence let alone a […]
Prior to this year my daughter Robin, 14, attended conventional school for one year when she 10 (grade 5). Subsequent and prior to that year, which she didn’t consider very valuable, she fit the bill as a ‘free-range’ homelearner. Her learning world during this time reflected back to her her keenest interests and she excelled […]
If educators read but one book this year, I’ve got a recommendation: ‘Multiple Intelligences: New Horizons’ by Dr. Howard Gardner (Basic Books, 2007). Believe it or not, it has been 25 years since Dr. Gardner penned ‘Frames of Mind’, and (tentatively) circumscribed a theory of Multiple Intelligences. It was a seminal moment that galvanized educators, […]
The increasing use of wireless technologies for accessing the internet seems to have happened in the blink of an eye, and it has become near-pervasive. Last fall, I wished to become better informed about any health concerns related to the use of wireless routers and computing transmitters WR-CT) in homes for two reasons: I use […]
It’s exactly one week to go to the start of this year’s Foundational Skills Assessment (FSA) testing in British Columbia, in which upwards of seventy thousand Grade 4 and 7-level students will spend a total of 4.5 hours completing standardized tests in the areas of Reading Comprehension, Writing and Numeracy over the course of two […]
It’s exactly one week to go to the start of this year’s Foundational Skills Assessment (FSA) testing in British Columbia, in which upwards of seventy thousand Grade 4 and 7-level students will spend a total of 4.5 hours completing standardized tests in the areas of Reading Comprehension, Writing and Numeracy over the course of two […]
This week the world has been jarred by the news that chimpanzees are able to outperform college students on some pattern recognition/memory tasks, according to renowned primate researcher, Tetsuro Matsuzawa. While this news inevitably leads to all kinds of giggles about college students and fears of a run on bananas at exam time, it strikes […]
Informal Learning, Rediscovering the Natural Pathways That Inspire Innovation and Performance by Jay Cross, Pfeiffer, 2007 Honouring the Child: Changing Ways of Teaching by Pamela Proctor Informal Learning, Rediscovering the Natural Pathways That Inspire Innovation and Performance “It is no longer useful to define learning as what someone is able to do all on his […]
(this essay published on self design in September 2007) This month, close to half a million kids returned to BC schools, ushered along with news from the Ministry of Education that all students are to participate in a ‘rap-attack’ plan against their bulging waistlines. Described by Minister of Education Shirley Bond as bold and aggressive, […]
Michael’s book, Learn Your Way! SelfDesigning the Life You Really Want, Starting Now is an ERAC-approved middle and high school textbook for career planning and health education courses (British Columbia), and it has received many endorsements. Contact Michael directly to obtain a pdf copy of the book.
