Former Community College principal Bert Lewis writes: There is a lot of merit in Dr. Robinson's theory, applicable to P-12, colleges, and universities. However, there are examples of brilliance in the classrooms, labs, and shops, where students are excited by the experience, in spite of the system. Let's give credit to those innovative teachers who make the learning fun and entertaining. I thought Robinson's talk was quite brilliant, but I had the same thought as Bert in response to some of his generalizations....

01 November, 2011

  Remember the kerfuffle when the Province of Nova Scotia's official sex guide for seventh graders, called Sex? A Healthy Sexuality Resource, was unveiled in 2004? Some school boards refused to distribute the guide because, of course, knowledge encourages teen sex and ignorance prevent it. That's the guide's chaste cover, at right. Want to know how a sensible country does sex education? Check out this sex ed kit for kids of comparable age in a European country. From the outside, the kit looks like this: And inside:   The sensible country is Finland. Click here for a translation of the news story describing it. The paper...

31 October, 2011

I don't normally post videos that already have five million hits, but this animated version of a talk by educator and creativity expert Sir Ken Robinson underscores a point made by Sunni Brown in her TED talk about the merits of doodling. There is something about the combination of speech and visual note-taking that enhances comprehension, especially comprehension of irony and ideas in conflict. Robinson's talk is about education, but the animated nature of the talk the talk is as arresting as the content. [Educators] are trying to meet the future by doing what they did in the past, and along the...

30 October, 2011

And what kind? David McCandless of Information is Beautiful has the graphic details. (Which turn out to be complicated, especially for pale-faced contrarians.) Supporting data here....

12 July, 2011

Paul W. Bennett, Director of Schoolhouse Consulting and former headmaster of the Halifax Grammar School and Lower Canada College, wades in on the school issue (previous posts here and here): Better schools for less money is not only possible but achievable in Nova Scotia. Judging from the "Kids not Cuts" spending spree, the NSTU, the NSSBA, and their acolytes sense that the public is awakening to their "Kill the Friendly Giant" strategy. Why else would they be pouring thousands into a media campaign attempting to remould their image?On the matter of teacher hiring, I think that you are slightly off the...

02 June, 2011

Port Hawkesbury resident Bert Lewis writes: You have only touched the tip of the iceberg in educational reform. Expand your thoughts to the entire system including colleges and universities with the P-12 system. Nova Scotia should lead the way in designing a system for 2011 to replace systems that were implemented many years ago to serve a different time. Long overdue and holding us back. Surely Mr. Lewis, a retired Community College Principal and recent NDP by-election candidate, will elaborate. Meanwhiles, HRM resident Ryan Van Horne  recalls: Your comment about the hiring process is bang on. That’s exactly why I...

01 June, 2011

For years, school enrollments in Nova Scotia have plummeted while school board budgets rose faster than inflation. Last winter, the Dexter Government asked boards to think about ways to operate with less. The boards and their colleagues in arms, the Nova Scotia Teachers' Union, reacted with a Kill the Friendly Giant strategy. In the end, the government imposed modest cuts, and the boards will continue to operate as they have for decades. It was a missed opportunity for reform. Well, before the notion of school reform goes dormant for another five years, here are two ways school boards could work better for...

30 May, 2011

The guru of Sunnyvale speaks out: Over a million students? In Canada? Man, you guys could have a lot of political weight if you put your little check mark on the day on the ballot box. You woulnd’t have to worry about lowering tuition fees. You could say, “LOWER THE DAMN TUITION FEES!” and they’d do it. ‘Cause they’d listen to you. Ah I’m wasting my time, you guys aren’t going to go and vote anyway. You guys are all heading down into Shit Valley, you shitweasels. You’re just a bunch of dickweeds. And for anyone who missed it, the ShitHarperDid video: During the...

14 April, 2011
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