Room to grow

One summer I worked with a 10 year-old who’d been attending a small private school where her mother worked and was headed for public middle school in the fall.  Her parents were concerned that she wasn’t prepared. This 10 year-old has an older sister, so she had an idea of what would be expected of [...]

Attendance optional

I had cause to dig out an old post about how I’m often a wet blanket when it comes to cool new ideas for schools.  I decided upon reading through it that I think it bears repeating, so I’m posting an amended version. I don’t get as excited as I used to about great ideas [...]

Norms, strengths, disorders…

I recently heard about Dale Archer’s new book Better than Normal: How What Makes You Different Can Make You Exceptional, in which he cautions against the over-diagnosing of psychiatric disorders.  If we’re not careful, Archer says, we’ll stomp out some of our best potential.  I’m finding that the book is a little slow going at [...]

The malcontents

In general when I hear people use the word malcontent it’s to refer to someone who’s not only displeased with the way things are but seems to look for reasons to be displeased.  The word is often accompanied by some degree of sneer or disapproval.  The dictionary is a little more charitable with its definition; [...]

Will it get in the way?

I have an acquaintance who’s a published author but never quite got the hang of spelling.  And a friend who’s a research scientist with a PhD who has never been able to add or subtract very well. Spelling and quick mental computation can be helpful, without a doubt.  But even for their highest-order relatives (like [...]

Chess and recess

Last week I saw Norwegian chess champion Magnus Carlsen on a 60 Minutes segment.  It’s a fun piece to watch; Carlsen is unusual among prominent chess players in that his manner is light and good-humored. That’s perhaps why he’s emerging as a bit of a superstar, and inspiring young people to try chess.  It’s by [...]

Navigating that pre-mathless world…

My last post prompted this question from a reader: …I am half way through the Mathematician’s Lament and am totally, utterly passionately sold. But…now what? I’m not a mathematician and fall into the “duh” populace of math paralysis. Who has a curriculum, a study guide, activities prepared to those of us who want to give [...]

Me? Non-judgmental?

I got a great and at least partly unfounded compliment the other day.  It came in a coaching session with a young woman who’s considering her career and work options.  We were talking about things she’s been successful at and enjoyed in her life.  ”You’re so non-judgmental,” she said.  I laughed, thinking of all the [...]

Behind resistance…

I just spoke with a friend who’s considering taking a new job that would be a huge step up in responsibility and opportunity.  There’s a great deal of leadership involved in this new position. She’s concerned that some of her traits, a need for ongoing creative outlet and for periods of solitude, a distaste for [...]

Khan and beyond

Innovations like Sal Khan’s videos work wonders for delivering academic content efficiently and equitably.  But what happens once we’ve won our game of academic content delivery?  As a civilization, we can’t survive on algebra and five-paragraph essays alone… The other night I was awake for a long time trying to figure out why I don’t love [...]