John Mahoney

I read in the AJC that the State Superintendent thinks it might be best to allow local districts to choose which math program to follow.

Please.

How, I wonder, does this fit with the Standards Based Data Driven Best Practices mantra? I fear that this may be the latest and greatest example of Educational Leadership: avoid at all costs making any decision for which you may be held accountable.

When will the new MCGPS (Multiple Choice Georgia Performance Standards) be promulgated, and may the several districts choose to instruct the third and fourth graders in arithmetic (rather than solid geometry) before that Blessed Event takes place?

How can such a decision be passed off on the local boards without somehow giving them the idea that they have any sort of control over how the schools are to be run? I cannot imagine that the Department of Education would allow simply teaching the children without convening an Exploratory Committee on Research Based Curriculum Standards who would explore ways to blame the classroom teacher if and when the kids don’t magically become more industrious and interested in their academics.

I found an interesting piece on Creativity at the Students2oh site.  It seems that we may have more square pegs than we realized.  The article is at http://students2oh.org/2008/08/07/think-different/ and argues in favor of encouraging that which is different rather than demanding that which conforms. 

I agree in most respects, but I remain of the opinion that true talent and creativity not only rises above the structure of the normal, but uses the static nature of our institutions as a catalyst for innovation.  The piece also fails to  mention the inherent potential for frustration contained in a program of imposed creativity.

Link to Writeboard http://123.writeboard.com/c3fd1f18a16da8158

Lifelong learning is, to me, almost redundant.  The day we stop learning is the day we may as well just sit down and die.  An active pursuit of learning is a different matter altogether.  As sensate creatures we are constantly learning simply by virtue of our interaction with and within our environment.  Seeking out new knowledge, looking for connections and progressions among things we already know, and creating new knowledge is the greatest part of the human condition.

Effective learning is not something I am very good at.  For instance, I know all about German electoral systems in the Federal Republic before the reunification but I have no idea why and how the voting process in Georgia is (or got to be) the way it is.  The Bundestag is one thing; five hour lines to vote using a supposedly automated system with no one else thinking there’s a problem is beyond my comprehension.

My greatest challenge will be figuring out what to use.  I have spent hours wandering about in the Tractor Supply store looking, touching, lifting, and mostly wondering what all these things could possibly be used for.  “How mad will she get if I bring this home?” is a question I constantly ask myself.  I really don’t need an anvil, or a salt lick, or any of the other cool things, and I’m sure that I’ll be the same way with technology.

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