I received this from someone yesterday and thought I would share it. Public education is in need of a make over. What does that mean? That is a hard question to answer without a new conversation and a pause to fully understand what our children need. Here is a starter. Chris Hedges is a Pulitzer Prize winning author and a source of this quote is George Takei the actor who played Sulu in Star Trek. I am not a Trekkie, but I like this quote. The points that stand out are the purpose of education, the interplay between power and morality, and the need for wisdom. I follow several on-line forums about leadership. Even there, the leadership experts frequently confuse knowledge, information, and wisdom often using those words loosely and interchangeably. Wisdom emerges from values named and held within community–sensus communis or common sense. What passes from generation to generation is its common sense, what it holds and names as values in a society. This takes a compassionate conversation which is rare.
Take care and enjoy those you come in contact with today.
I am wondering how you deal with mother tongue education in Germany. I realize that you write good English. That is a challenge we are faced with in South Africa especially in the countryside. You want to share this info with people only to find that you cannot understand each other because of language. South Africa has 11 official languages if you do not know. Any suggestion?
Ivan, I haven’t commented in a while, though I read your posts daily. Thanks for the passion and thoughtfulness you bring! I really appreciate this quote– and will take it with me this weekend to the last weekend of a Courage to Teach retreat series for a very dedicated group of educators.
Barb, welcome back. I appreciate the comment and enjoy the weekend.