Another myth that we aim to bust at our Myth Busters Seminar on April 19th and 20th in St. Louis is this one: Teachers deliver curriculum and students receive it.  If this sounds like handing off information, filling empty vessels, and the industrial model of school as a factory, it is. I’ve been reading Howard Gardner’s essay in The Wonder of Learning catalogue from Reggio Emilia.  He writes, the idea that knowledge is transmitted from older, bigger, smarter people is a default assumption all over the world; it’s a naïve, folk theory of the world.  He adds that this theory makes ... read more...

  Last week’s blog explored the educational myth that students don’t do real work in school.  I recounted the story of Annalise and The College School’s wind turbine, a powerful example of authentic youth engagement. The myth, of course, is that students are not capable of making meaningful contributions to society.  The sad truth is that many schools are organized in ways that are purposefully meant to limit students’ innate capacity for action and involvement in real issues.  Schools that unleash the true potential of students to be active citizens equip and experience students as leaders. In a speech to ... read more...

                                        A common myth about education is that students can’t or shouldn’t do real work in school.  Let me tell you a short story and then quote a real student as she reflects on her experience. In 2008, Matt Diller, a third grade teacher at The College School, became interested in renewable energy.  He shared some of his research with a group of sixth graders.  The students became more than interested.  They were determined to act.  Over the next several months, they ... read more...

I’m sitting at a conference table with eight colleagues.  We’re planning a second annual professional development seminar for this April 19 & 20, 2012.  We’re talking about projects that are going on at each school that have to do with WATER. Bob Dillon, MRH Middle School Principal, pipes up, Well, we should have our aquaponics project going by spring. Your WHAT? asked Tim Wood, TCS Sustainability Coordinator. At the end of Bob’s explanation, Tim turned to Sheila Gurley, Head of TCS, Well, Sheila, looks like we need a fish production center, too. She nods in hearty agreement. Oh, BTW…MRH is Maplewood ... read more...

Which comes first: 21st C. Curricula or 21st C. School Design? This question comes up when working with educators and my answer has been, It sounds like a chicken and egg proposition, doesn’t it; however, my sense is that it really doesn’t matter which comes first.  21st C. curricula and 21st C. school design are interdependent.  They clearly influence each other.  Also, one can cause the other. The tragedy is when neither exists and there is no catalytic reaction to cause either to develop.  (BTW, I specialize in these particular catalytic reactions.) On the curricular side of this conundrum there ... read more...

I am reading, The Constructivist Leader, recommended to me by Linda Henke, superintendent of Maplewood Richmond Heights School District.  Linda Lambert writes the introduction and she begins with a list of themes that will recur in the book.  The first: The lives of children and adults are inextricably intertwined. Democracy must be experienced by both children and adults as must trust and positive regard.  Authentic work must be experienced by adults as well as children, as must authentic relationships and possibilities.   I love this powerful statement.  It seems obvious though it is not a common occurrence in schools or ... read more...

We are in Vermont this week between Christmas and New Years at the farm where Ashley grew up.  This morning there is a dusting of sugar snow on the ground, a clearing sky and flat light and the dogs are running joyful circles in the yard.  The oven is on and bread is baking.  What could be better really? In less than a week 2011 will be gone and we will be launched into another year.  Cadwell Collaborative has been up and running for three and a half years now. Ashley and I are enjoying our work and our collaborations ... read more...

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Last week Ashley and I attended holiday concerts at three of the schools where we work in St. Louis.  Last Wednesday, we went to the Maplewood Richmond Heights Winter Market where students sold bee products from wax and honey that they had harvested from their own bees.  They researched how to and then created  tea lights, lip balm, tree ornaments, and soap.  And, of course, there was golden, local MRH honey for sale. These students are working on a triple bottom line business plan for their small non profit business.  The holiday concert which followed the Winter Market featured the MRH ... read more...

I just listened to an impassioned TEDx Talk given in Reggio Emilia, Italy a few months ago by Vea Vecchi.  I found the TEDx because I was reading Jennifer Azzariti’s blog, In Dialogue.  Jennifer is a friend and colleague who I greatly admire and with whom I have been lucky enough to work.  We were together in Reggio Emilia and Ligonchio last July.  There, we both had the privilege of spending a week with Italian educators and other educators from all over the world in the stunning natural environment of the Apennine mountains.  Among those we spent the week with was ... read more...