Monday Musings
from The Kravis Center
May 28, 2019
Dear Colleagues,
After a tremendous graduation weekend, I hope that you have been able to put your feet up for a bit and reflect on the myriad ways in which you had an influence on those who crossed the graduation stage, diplomas in hand. Although we have a way to go before we bid farewell to the rest of our scholars, I hope everyone has taken at least a couple of minutes to reflect on the outstanding education that these graduates have received. Even more than the equations they learned, the literature they read, and the historical connections they made, their experience on the Island provided them with skills that we may not deliberately teach them, meaning that the taught curriculum may not always be the learned curriculum. The end of the year is a great time to think about what the learned curriculum may be in your classroom, in the studio, on the field, in the theater, or in the dorm. What is our contribution to the skills we want to instill in our pelicans before they fly the coop?
Congratulations to all, and have a great week.
Sara, on behalf of the Kravis Center
What else are we teaching them?
The May 13 edition of the Hidden Brain, What's not on the test? provides a glimpse into skills that we want all of our students to acquire by graduation.
What Students Gain From Learning Ethics in School?, KQED
The Importance of Academic Courage, edutopia
How relationships play an integral role in student development: What Everyone Needs to Know About High Performance Teacher-Student Relationships, scribd
Thinking pedagogically about 2019-20
How to Hold a Better Class Discussion, The Chronicle of Higher Ed
Three Simple Habits to Improve Your Critical Thinking Harvard Business Review
Recent Reads
I recently came across the article How Schools Can Spend Time More Wisely by Daniel Pink (EdWeek) which is a summary of sorts of his book When. I read When last fall and learned a great deal about the science behind the fluctuations in one's ability to focus throughout the day, when we are best able to get certain tasks accomplished, and importantly, the science behind the nap. I am making my way through Drive, also by Pink, which serves to debunk most of what we know about motivation, the importance of competence, autonomy, and relatedness, and "to live a life of purpose."
My current reading list includes: Powerful Teaching, the latest by Pooja Agarwal and Patrice Bain; In Search of Deeper Learning, by Jal Mehta and Sarah Fine; White Fragility, by Robin Diangelo; There There by Tommy Orange; Washington Black, by Esi Edugyan; Celestial Bodies, (winner of the Man Booker prize) by Jokha Alharthi; and, Miles and I have decided to tackle together Proust and the Squid, by Maryanne Wolf. The Enchanted Hour: The Miraculous Power of Reading Aloud in the Age of Distraction offers a glimpse into the importance of reading aloud. What are you reading?
Professional Growth Opportunities
If you are looking for more ideas, please remember that the Loomis Chaffee PD doc has many exciting opportunities to offer. If interested, talk with your Assistant Department Head or anyone in the Kravis Center.
Harvard Graduate School of Education is always stock full of amazing professional growth opportunities. Well worth a look.
July 29-31 (College Park, MD): An entire conference dedicated to formative assessments. Formative Assessment Conference with Dylan Wiliam, Tom Guskey, Susan Brookhart and Jay McTighe (Understanding by Design). What an array of experts! Become the LC expert!
Only 1 more space available!! Take a deep dive into the neuroscience of learning with the authors of Neuroteach, Glenn Whitman and Ian Kelleher. Read more about the Science of Teaching and Leadership Academy at The Center for Transformative Teaching and Learning (CTTL) from July 21 - 25. Sara Deveaux attended last summer and would be happy to chat with anyone interested. Rachel Nisselson and Lena Sadowitz are signed up for July, 2019.
Interested in learning more about project and problem-based learning? Read about an online opportunity from Amy Baeder. Read more about the Buck institute, which is considered the gold standard in PBL training.
July 29-31 (College Park, MD): An entire conference dedicated to formative assessments. Formative Assessment Conference with Dylan Wiliam, Tom Guskey, Susan Brookhart and Jay McTighe (Understanding by Design). What an array of experts! Become the LC expert!
An invitation: Athena is looking for excellent, passionate, and diverse high school humanities teachers for a limited number of Summer Fellowships. Ideal candidates are English, History, Humanities, or Religion/Philosophy teachers hungry to find and join communities of educators with shared interests, teachers eager to share their best and favorite assignments, classroom activities and discussion questions, teachers excited to offer feedback to help others.
CAIS Conferences: The Connecticut Association of Independent Schools is offering a number of conferences over the summer.
Please fill out this form for suggestions for Thursday morning PD opps.
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