In early January I began the first of 4 “Brain School” courses led by psychiatrist Dr. Daniel Siegel of the Mindsight Institute of UCLA. It’s actually a “Mindsight – Foundations” course, but it’s linked to leading-edge research by Dr. Siegel and colleagues combining neuroscience, psychology and epistemology.  So far, I’ve found the course to be […]

Hi, My book Learn Your Way! has just arrived and it looks great.

Hi, in a few weeks time, my book, “Learn Your Way! SelfDesigning the Life You Really Want, Starting Now” is coming out, being published by SelfDesign Learning Systems Inc. The primary audience for the book is youth 15-25 years, though I would suggest additional audiences include parents, fellow educators and counselors. I am dedicating LYW […]

You can’t have a conversation these days about education without encountering some buzz about 21st Century Skills. It girds any discussion about technology, graduation, career planning and teacher training and educational design. In a nutshell 21CS focus on Information and Media Literacy, Critical and Creative Thinking, Collaboration and Technology Skills (as profiled at www.p21.org ). […]

Hello! It’s been a while since I posted here though I haven’t exactly been lying in the sun. I’ve been very busy in SelfDesign – which has continued with steady growth to now include a substantial special needs program, several new SD learning centres scattered throughout the province and ‘SelfDesign High’, with which I am […]

• Below is my post to Educational Leadership journal in response to three questions posed about ‘Educating for Social Responsibility’, the theme of its May issue. – MM Educational Leadership journalEL: What role should schools play in helping students develop a sense of social responsibility? My response: Schools, and teachers in particular, need to disavow […]

I listened raptly to CBC’s ‘Cross Country Checkup’ yesterday afternoon, a 2-hour phone-in show discussing a report released last week in Ontario in which University and College faculty opine that a majority of first-year students are poorly prepared. Specifically, the students are thought to be showing (widespread) declining writing, researching and numeracy skills, and generally […]

Whew! For the 4th year in a row I have administered and ‘marked’ FSA tests* for grade 4 and 7-level learners in our SelfDesign program. Given all the kerfuffle by the public and the BCTF before this year’s February testing, our experiences in SelfDesign were generally positive but this reflects our unique approach which downplays […]

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 […]