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Dave Eggars Video: This was amazing! When I lived in San Francisco I would go in and bring friends to see the store; I knew they did writing workshops but had no idea of the extent of the enterprise. Fascinating! As a writing tutor myself, I can relate to Dave's comments that these kids thrive with personal attention. I love the concept of "conditioning" the students to finish their homework early in the day....how addictive that becomes...and how empowering to know they are prepared for the next day's class and free to be children and enjoy their friends and family. I appreciate his comments about raising the level of work of the students; once the kids reap the rewards of their hard work it is impossible to return to their former level. Learning doesn't have to be drudgery and if you infuse it with creativity and life, as they have at 826 Valencia-- it transforms the whole process. Gone are the fluorescent lights and stigma of getting additional schoolwork help--this place is cool. Who wouldn't want to be a part of it? Whether it is the chance to be published or the chance to interact with a caring adult, these kids need to know that their voice is valuable; we as a society care about nurturing it.

Sarah Jones Video: The inclusion of these multicultural voices spoke volumes to me about TED talks. Sarah Jones was obviously brilliant; the unassuming manner in which she introduced us to her "characters" belied the importance of their message. Here we are at a conference of the best minds in the world and she reminds us of the simple humility and struggles of those within it. It is on behalf of these Americans, these world citizens, which these scientists and great thinkers do their work. As we "blue sky" hypothesize all that is possible and all that may come, it is important to be grounded in what the world is really about--valuing one another, however different our appearances may be.Sarah Jones' incarnation of these characters reminds us not to underestimate their interest or understanding of the issues at hand. Her presentation reminds us that this great work has a world audience. We all benefit from open-minded ideas and being included in the process.

Sir Ken Robinson, Changing Paradigms: I wish everyone in America could see this video, particularly parents with children taking ADHD medication. I don't think we should just "roll over" to the "current thinking" of the need to medicate these kids. What Sir Ken Robinson proposes makes complete sense. I am not so sure why it is so threatening to the established order. I mean who **is** benefiting from this era of testing and standardization--other than the people paid to make up and grade the tests? Everyone agrees that the current system is broken--severely broken. So why do we keep going down a road that is just making matters worse? It interests me that the instances of ADHD are significantly higher on the East Coast. Could that be because the penchant to conform to the advice of "authority" is greater in this region than further out west, which is known to celebrate divergent thinking? I love the study which indicates that we all have a high capacity for divergent thinking as children (implying it is beaten out of us by the current education system). We are robbing our children of the ability to think and experience the full spectrum of what it is to be alive be continuing to medicate them. I am in full agreement that a paradigm shift is what is called for.

Clifford Stoll: My favorite quote--"The first time you do something, it's science; the second time, it's engineering; the third time, it's technolo'....it's just being a technician; uhh.. I'm a scientist, once I do something, I wanna do something else." Right on, I'm with you Clifford. 2nd runner up for Cliffordisms: "If you want to know what society is going to be like in twenty years, ask a Kindergarten teacher. They know!" It is not the technology alone that will determine the future; rather it is how we humans bound together by society adapt our culture to this changing technology that will determine what the future holds. Stoll's recollection of Robert Moag seems significant to me. Just as in the Eggar's video, the importance of mentoring is underscored. While in Stoll's case he was a freshman or sophmore at Suny, how different his life trajectory might have been without the interest and nuturing of Robert Moag! We underappreciate in these times how transformative an "apprenticeship" can be (even an informal or voluntary one). In this era of individualism, we seldom stop on our path to "accomplishment" (whatever that may look like) in order to nuture the mind or talents of another. Stoll and Eggars both adhere to the philosophy that in order to change the world, one must begin locally. Start from where you are...I agree.

Did you know? Video: I have heard that "print is dead" though I don't believe that entirely to be the case. While its popularity has declined (more than 30%), I feel the tactile pleasure gained from holding a newspaper, or a magazine, or a book will always appeal to some. Though as a primary source of daily information online sources will surely outpace the popularity of print media, rumors of "its death" have been highly exaggerated. Take for instance Dave Eggars comments about the motivating force having their work published becomes for the kids being tutored. It is not having the writing published online, but on a shelf-- in a book they can hold that spurs them to work so hard. The emergence of social networks as a powerful networking tool has changed the social landscape. We are just beginning to mine this new technology for productive uses in schools and beyond. I found it interesting that the primary way we will access the web in the future will be the cell phone. I hope they definitively rule out the health risks of heavy phone use before we become more addicted than we already are.

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