Dear Harriet (and Bill):
I purposely did not immediately answer your question/observation about my
original comment...
>"I could not see at that time how I could
>implement what I believed to be sound instructional practices within the
>then-current administrations of American high schools." I wonder if your
>experiences would be different now? Somehow, I doubt it, and I find that
>so damning of our system. Shouldn't an educational system be the
>quintessential learning organization?
I wanted to think about it because I have mixed feelings about the topic.
On the one hand, looking back, I believe today that my decision at the
time was one of my better ones. I've definitely enjoyed my career in
for-profit organizations, as rocky as it has sometimes been. And, as a
taxpayer and a believer in a democracy, I also believe that public schools
need to be supported...by everyone, by parents, by the adminstration, by
business, by the community.
Having said that, as a parent of two teenagers, I must admit being
dismayed at seeing the curiosity I so carefully nurtured in my children
being so effectively snuffed out by the time they hit the 7th grade. And
the "gifted" program was the worst offender. So, yes, I think an
educational system should be the quintessential learning organization but,
no, for whatever reason (and I'm sure there are many), I don't see enough
real learning taking place within that system. They've both had some
wonderfully gifted teachers, but these have been exceptions more than not.
But then isn't that true in any system? How many "wonderfully gifted"
people do we work with? And I also believe that most of the
administrators of the schools they've attended have been caring and
committed professionals.
So where is the problem? Well, it would take me more time and brain cells
to figure that one out than I have right now. Instead I do what I can for
them at home and trust that their native intelligence will carry them
through until they hit a spot where they can recover their natural
enthusiasm for learning and are able to use it.
Best regards,
--Rebecca Bell email: rgbell@earthlink.net Seattle, WA
Learning-org -- Hosted by Rick Karash <rkarash@karash.com> Public Dialog on Learning Organizations -- <http://www.learning-org.com>