Playground Superheroes

playground superheroes

fear and lack of comprehension inside a child’s mind
not knowing what’s happening or what’s happening next
searing physical pain
friends’ blood let loose

not the images we plan for our children
not how our loves end
small frames

pure energy, full of life, snatched away

not abstract
not imagined
not pretend
hopes lost

we think of our own children
hold them close
closer
it’s not enough

our playground superheroes
are defeated

writhing and wrestling
we consume ourselves every day

James P. W. Moudry

A poem following the Sandy Hook school massacre on 12/14/12
twenty children and six teachers killed

Religious leaders, human bureaucracy, and the right to rule

This is a follow up on a Facebook posting with Ashley, who went to the same grade school that I did, though many years later. One of Ashley's friends commented that as clergy, "I signed up to be a religious leader, not a tool of human bureaucracy. I don't believe any human has a right to rule over another." I started a lengthy response in fb, but figured it would be better to pull it out and put it here. (I'm not sure of the manners about starting heavy, deep, and real conversations with strangers on fb. I can understand how others can be turned off by that at times. It can be a little creepy.)

Religious leaders and bureaucracy

I don't know a lot about how clergy works historically or contemporarily. I do have some first hand experiences with clergy and former clergy though, so let's see how this goes.

1. Religious leaders are often part of a bureaucracy called 'The Church' or something similar. Does the religion have rules? Most do. Is any system with rules a 'bureaucracy'? (Do you consider any system with rules to be a bureaucracy or is a bureaucracy something else?) Maybe some religious leaders think of themselves as 'spiritual' leaders and consider themselves to be outside of any bureaucracy. Maybe it's just fair to note that if you're in a system, the system, by definition, has parameters.


2. Religious leaders do not act in a vacuum. Historically, they have helped societies and cultures progress and grapple with challenging issues. Religious leaders may not be paid agents of the government, but they historically and regularly do a great deal of the communitarian work that serves well the citizenry of states. So how do they relate to the will and acts of the state? In this specific case, marriage equality, clergy are signing off on legal documents like marriage certificates that register marriages with the state and certify that all legal requirements of the state have been met.

Do clergy have a duty to society or the state that goes beyond just their spiritual duties? I'll say yes. The communities they serve are not islands with no other rulers. Even if that clergy member feels that they personally don't want to be ruled, or even that no one should be ruled, their flock may not agree. Their parishioners may love the state, work for the state or whatever. In service to who those people are, the clergy cannot just pretend like the state doesn't exist. The best clergy who I have ever known are acutely aware of the role of the state and the role of the individual members of the electorate. They work with all parties in concert. They minister to needy. They get arrested at protests. They speak out from within the systems.

As a tool for the state, clergy do great, postive work for individuals and for the collective.

Right to rule

For my part, I'm happy to live in the USA and have politicians govern. I'm happy to have senators, representatives, judges, a mayor, a governor, and a president. Do they have the right to rule over me?

Yes.

Why? It's not because I voted for them (some of them I didn't vote for).

They have that right to rule over me because I grant it as a citizen. If want to act to revoke that right I have choices.

1. I can vote against them and for someone else.
   
2. I can move to some place where they will not rule over me.

If I choose option number one, I'm saying I don't want to be ruled by this person specifically. But I still accept being ruled. If I choose option number two, it may be for many reasons, one of which may be that I'm rejecting being ruled at all. In that case, then I either choose to ignore the rules of the system of people who rule over me, or I try to find a place where I can live and not be ruled.

What about the issue of where the right comes from? The commenter, KF, said she didn't think any person had a right to rule over another. Clearly, people do rule over other people, so let's imagine that she doesn't think people should have such a right. In this case, perhaps, she'd argue that people therefore also shouldn't give people that right. And therefore she'd be bothered that I was giving all these people rights to rule over me.

I grant the right, gladly, because I'm willing to live in a system that is pluralistic. In which some of the rules match what I think are right and some don't. I'm willing to work on it collectively. I'm willing to argue. I'm willing to do those things because I believe that though our positions on any number of issues may differ, I can still work collaboratively with others to achieve certain goals for change. This system in the USA is pretty damn excellent. It was carefully built on the beliefs of pluralism, a strong government, and a carefully defined set of rights for individuals. It's not screwed up. The system allows for people to join up to get things done, to speak up when things are unjust and need changing, and to sit in a cabin in the woods. There is little compulsion, but the idea is that if you choose to be here, you agree with the idea, that we can do more together than we can do individually. That the whole is greater than the sum of the parts. And that the country's motto, "E Pluribus Unum," is not a dusty old idea.

I'll sacrifice for that. I'll compromise for that. And I'll keep working for better. For me, that's the American Way. We're not looking for the easy way. We're down in the grimy machinery wrestling around with big ideas, pushing and pulling on the levers (somtimes even replacing them) to make the equipment work better for everyone. It's dirty.

Just a bit more

I'm an idealist and an optimist. I'll always be.

I know parts of the system are really messed up. But in my mind, they need good, loving, intelligent hands on them to make them right. The problems aren't helped by looking for the eject button. (Not yet at any rate! ;-))

Is marriage equality coming? I'm almost certain it is. Is slavery threatening to start up again legally in the USA? No. Anyone who would suggest it would not make much headway. Let's count that box as checked and move on. Marriage equality is an unchecked box (nationally). But just think of how much has happened for gay rights just in the past twenty or thirty years. The national level of acceptance is growing. Is the goal, 100%? I'd suggest caution. Not everyone thinks people of different ethnic backgrounds should marry, but that issue is a checked box. You don't need everyone to agree. Keep the goals clear and achievable. The people's will shall be done. Noam Chomsky has been asked about speaking truth to power. His response is that power can't always hear (or listen), so one should be sure to speak truth to people. Yes. Let's.

Topical tangent: Does providing a national healthcare system, like a social security system, fall under "promoting the general welfare?" I'm no expert, but like having state-run (and funded) fire and police departments on which we depend for safety and security, maybe we can get our heads around a wellness system that works in an efficient, preventative fashion to increase that general welfare of the people. People wiser than I struggle with this, so I'm not sure I've much to offer here.

So that's it. Good luck. See you on the other side.

 

Self-Immolation in Tibet

Since my visit to Tibet in 1995, I've paid attention to the Tibetans' struggle for cultural, religious, and intellectual freedom.

If you could go back in time and stop the erasure of the way of life of the Cherokee, Souix, Apache, or Powatan, would you?

Two pieces below on the self-immolations of 2012.

From ICT (International Campaign for Tibet)

Chinese security has tightened following the first self-immolations in Lhasa. An unknown number of Tibetans, some sources saying hundreds, have been detained in a massive police operation and are being held in detention centers in and around Lhasa. Many Tibetans from areas outside the Tibet Autonomous Region have been expelled from the city. (read on) 

and from the NYT 

Published online June 2, 2012 by The New York Times. Please read the full article here. 

By Edward WongDHARAMSALA, India — One young Tibetan monk walked down a street kicking Chinese military vehicles, then left a suicide note condemning an official ban on a religious ceremony. Another smiled often, and preferred to talk about Buddhism rather than politics. A third man, a former monk, liked herding animals with nomads. 

All had worn the crimson robes of Kirti Monastery, a venerable institution of learning ringed by mountains on the eastern edge of the Tibetan plateau. All set themselves on fire to protest Chinese rule. Two died. 

At least 38 Tibetans have set fire to themselves since 2009, and 29 have died, according to the International Campaign for Tibet, an advocacy group in Washington. The 2,000 or so monks of Kirti Monastery in Sichuan Province have been at the center of the movement, one of the biggest waves of self-immolations in modern history. The acts evoke the self-immolations in the early 1960s by Buddhist monks in South Vietnam to protest the corrupt government in Saigon. 

Read more >>

So you want to be a Montessori high school teacher...

Should I pursue traditional secondary teacher certification through my local college or university? 

It's not necessary for Montessori.  If you really want a solid grounding in Montessori pedagogy, a Montessori training course is the way to go.  Post Oak is accredited by AMI (Association Montessori Internationale), the Montessori organization that was founded by Maria Montessori.  Many teachers go through AMI or AMS trainings.  AMI offers training for working with ages 0-3, 3-6, and 6-12.  AMI oversees the Montessori Orientation to Adolescent Studies, which is a five week course that takes place each summer in Cleveland, Ohio.  This would be the right program for anyone interested in middle or high school work in a Montessori environment.  It's best when combined with any full AMI training, though my leaning is for the Primary (0-3) training.

Are there student teaching opportunities at Montessori high schools? 

I'm sure we could figure something out.  We'll be small and new though, so it might take us a little time to get our heads around it!  Whenever you think something like that might be interesting, just let me know.  A great start, of course, is coming to observe.

To prepare for teaching, is it more desirable to pursue my personal interests to a greater depth or to try to focus on familiarization with a broader range of peoples, geographies, time periods, etc.? 

Great question!  Answer: YES!  Your interests will always guide your energy and students will always know when you're teaching from your heart.  Neither of these can be ignored.  Literature is great because it opens up opportunities for adolescents to see themselves in the characters of fiction and then to write their own stories, poems, dramas, etc.  Our starting point is that students must feel that they have something worthwhile to say.  Then, later, they can write (same as with younger children; spoken activities lay the foundation for writing).  The teachers breadth is vital as well.  Teachers must be able to throw all kinds of seeds into the fertile soil.  Students don't need mentors/coaches/guides who are experts at everything.  But they absolutely need to be around adult models who are interested in anything.  As a teacher of writing (in all its forms), there will be much ground to cover from supporting a passionate poet to crafting the perfect horror story to reviewing a newly released book on quantum mechanics to writing an exposé on city water conservation.  There's so much!

Being a Professional

Information is everywhere and everyone is an expert.  Our job is to be ongoing filters of it all and talk together as a team.  We don't sign up for every snake oil kit that someone has to sell.  


We do need to be aware of all of it though because, well, we're professionals. 


As professionals our responsibility is to be aware of the latest trends and ideas in our field, whether we use them or not.  Then to be able to say why or why not use them.


This is why we subscribe to journals and magazines.  It's why we read constantly articles online and from peers.  It's why we distill it all and come to decisions about what we do everyday...as Professionals.

Some Q&A on Montessori high school...

Some Q&A on Montessori high school...

1) Though I have an idea of how the course should go and anticipate some requests from students to adjust the curriculum, is there a case when the course is altered too often by the students? I just do not want students to request changes because they find certain modules /concepts difficult.

Yes.  The goal is not to 'follow' every student whim or make every student follow every other student's whims, but rather to offer a variety of experiences that challenge a range of students.  Student work must be challenges matched to their skills (if not, the result is either boredom or anxiety; read Flow).  Your curriculum is a series of experiences within which students may have any number of choices.  Avoiding work is not an option.  
"All work is noble.  The only ignoble thing is to not work." -Maria Montessori 

3) How does the institution handle behavioral issues if they arise? 

First, because of the nature of the school, there is a very low incidence of misbehavior.  The sense of ownership and voice that students have at the school short-circuits a lot of behavior that might lead them to being excluded from such a community (that welcomes and values them).  Beyond that, our work is to help students enjoy adolescence and prepare for adulthood.  A part of each of those tasks is managing social relationships with other people.  Another part is meeting expectations, both those that others have for us and those that we each have for ourselves.

4) Is it be possible to work with other Montessori high school faculty in order to know what has worked for them?

Yes. Some other Montessori high schools: 

Great River School (St. Paul, MN)

Montessori High School at University Circle (Cleveland, OH)  

Compass Montessori School (Golden, CO)  

The Grove School (Redlands, CA)   

School of the Woods–Woods High School (Houston, TX) 

St. Stephen's Episcopal School (Houston, TX)

If you want to serve me...

Today while talking with a teacher candidate who hasn't spent much time working directly with children or teens, I blended an old friend of an aphorism with a truism.

Original Aphorism (from the wall of the camp Edenwood of ARC fame): 

"If you want to serve me, get to know who I am."

Original Truism (from everyone I've ever known, it seems):

"The first step is to take your own inventory."

New Aphorism:

If you want to serve me, get to know who I am.

If you want to serve me, get to know who you are.

Alternate phrasing:

If you want to serve me, first get to know who you are.  Then get to know who I am.

Contemplating Montessori

Where have I been...

Here's an interesting blog I stumbled across today.  Little pearls, I think.  Feel free to share!

A couple entries:

Theory of Loose Parts in Action: Free play at school has been becoming more and more creative and inventive of late. What’s more, we have noticed increased co-operation and fewer fights between the children. (Many captioned photos included.)

Materialized Abstractions: He came to me saying, “I think I’m doing this without material … just with my mind”, so I suggested that he put the material away and check....  He did two precise subtraction problems. The strips of paper he had used, inspired him to make a flag out of them.  He went outside and found a stick and stuck his subtraction problems, front and back to make a ‘subtraction’ flag. (!!)

Looking at the paper on which he did the subtraction problems, I was struck by the neatness. There were no strokes and loops showing the borrowing and changing of quantities,...And I remembered my school days.  If I had shown up with subtraction problems completed like the one above, the teacher would have assumed only one thing – that I had copied it from a friend. If it had been on a test, I would have been knee deep in trouble! 

Five years ago today...iPhone unveiled.

From the Writer's Almanac...


It was five years ago today that Steve Jobs introduced the iPhone to an audience at Apple's annual Macworld expo. Taking the stage in his trademark jeans and black turtleneck, Apple chairman Jobs said that it was a day he'd been looking forward to for two and a half years, because he had three revolutionary products to introduce. A widescreen iPod with touch control and a "breakthrough Internet communications device" and a "revolutionary mobile phone," all in one device.

The iPhone was the first "smartphone" to use touch-screen technology, and was the first to access the Internet with full Web-browsing capabilities. Jobs demonstrated the device's capabilities by calling up Google Maps to find a nearby Starbucks, then prank called it to order 4,000 lattes to go.

The iPhone wasn't for sale until June, when it was available in two versions of differing memory for $499 and $599. But on this day of its unveiling, Apple's shares skyrocketed from $7 to over $92.

What teachers have learned from what our country has learned from 9/11

Find some weaker people.  Tell them they're not doing what you want.  Hurt them.  Second choice: Humiliate them.

The Elements

Everyone loves Tom Leher, right?!

Defensive Omnivore Bingo

This I like.  Thanks, Not Wendy.

I'm certain the world is coming to an end this week

The end times are upon us.  There's no question.

Sign #1:

A 10-year-old student "threatened other students" with a slice of pizza that had bites out of it in a way that made it look like a gun.

RESULT: Six days eating alone at the 'silent table' and WAIT FOR IT... he has to meet with a school resource officer to learn about gun safety.  I hope they cover both cover both sausage pizza guns as well as pepperoni pizza guns.  Better safe than sorry, I always say.

Sign #2:

A 9-year-old student was suspended for sexual harassment for calling a teacher "cute" last month.

RESULT: Suspended for two days.  Let's double check...yep, he's 9.


Sign #3: 

7th grade student Je'Terra Bowie was suspended for allegedly touching her teacher with a pencil by accident as she reached back to stretch.

"I didn't know she stopped behind me," Bowie told WDIV. "She stopped, and I stretched back. I turned back and said, 'Sorry. I didn't mean to.'"

RESULT: In case you missed it: SUSPENDED.

All of these are in one article here.