Tuesday, May 25, 2010
Human flourishing in education
Sir Ken Robinson has done it again. A while back I linked to a talk he did for TED: here is another. At one point he talks about 'human flourishing' and I couldn't help but think about Eudaimonia, and why we chose that word for our event name. I encourage you all to click here and listen to what he has to say. (He is a great speaker - entertaining as well as thought-provoking!) Enjoy!
Monday, May 17, 2010
The Human Development Index
For when you have a few moments to reflect… What is HDI and why should we be pondering it?
I just read a New York Times article that questioned whether GDP, Gross Domestic Product, is an accurate way to capture the health and progress of a country. We hear GDP a lot; it’s simply a sum of all economic activity. But it ignores some of the important factors which contribute to quality of life, such as education and health. How could a more encompassing quality of life, health of a nation, be measured?
Well, check out HDI – the Human Development Index, a model being used by the United Nations. Reading the article caused me to reflect on what’s important and how it can be measured. Of course, I thought about schools too. What would a Human Development Index for a school look like? What should be measured and how should it be measured?
What do you think?
I just read a New York Times article that questioned whether GDP, Gross Domestic Product, is an accurate way to capture the health and progress of a country. We hear GDP a lot; it’s simply a sum of all economic activity. But it ignores some of the important factors which contribute to quality of life, such as education and health. How could a more encompassing quality of life, health of a nation, be measured?
Well, check out HDI – the Human Development Index, a model being used by the United Nations. Reading the article caused me to reflect on what’s important and how it can be measured. Of course, I thought about schools too. What would a Human Development Index for a school look like? What should be measured and how should it be measured?
What do you think?
Monday, May 10, 2010
New web site!
Our new web site is live! This is hugely exciting to me, for a number of reasons.
We now have a web site that reflects the spirit of our school. The old one was functional and informative; this one takes it to a new level in the way it communicates the philosophy, community spirit and pedagogical approach we embrace.
The process of creating the site has been inspiring. I am enormously grateful to Linette Lao (Clementine's mother) and Anjanette Bunce for their tireless work designing and building the site. Their understanding of the things that make our little school important and special radiates from their work. Leisa Thompson, the photographer, also made a special connection with our school, and you can see the results of it in the luminous images she has captured.
I think both Fran and I have benefited also from the reflective process of writing the copy. I know I have. It is re-invigorating to spend so much time sitting with the ideas and ideals that underlie our work, and weighing the language that communicates them.
Maybe the most exciting thing to me was the input of our community - the parents who talk to us constantly, especially those of you who shared your thoughts at the community meeting, the faculty who are the living flame of our pedagogy, the board members who are so supportive and passionate about our mission, alumni who have offered help and who remember us so warmly, the friends who have become linked to the school through all kinds of different projects and have lit up in appreciation of the work they have seen - all of you have had a significant impact on the way this site has evolved. I am grateful to all of you.
Go take a look! And while you're at it, follow us on Twitter and join our Facebook page. Let's celebrate SK!
We now have a web site that reflects the spirit of our school. The old one was functional and informative; this one takes it to a new level in the way it communicates the philosophy, community spirit and pedagogical approach we embrace.
The process of creating the site has been inspiring. I am enormously grateful to Linette Lao (Clementine's mother) and Anjanette Bunce for their tireless work designing and building the site. Their understanding of the things that make our little school important and special radiates from their work. Leisa Thompson, the photographer, also made a special connection with our school, and you can see the results of it in the luminous images she has captured.
I think both Fran and I have benefited also from the reflective process of writing the copy. I know I have. It is re-invigorating to spend so much time sitting with the ideas and ideals that underlie our work, and weighing the language that communicates them.
Maybe the most exciting thing to me was the input of our community - the parents who talk to us constantly, especially those of you who shared your thoughts at the community meeting, the faculty who are the living flame of our pedagogy, the board members who are so supportive and passionate about our mission, alumni who have offered help and who remember us so warmly, the friends who have become linked to the school through all kinds of different projects and have lit up in appreciation of the work they have seen - all of you have had a significant impact on the way this site has evolved. I am grateful to all of you.
Go take a look! And while you're at it, follow us on Twitter and join our Facebook page. Let's celebrate SK!
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