Posted on July 8, 2009 by zoeweil
Since I’ve been writing a lot about what education is for (such as here and here), here’s another perspective, published in May in Educational Leadership.
Author Charles Haynes argues that education’s highest aim should be to “create moral and civic habits of the heart,” and his essay is compelling. Here are some excerpts:
“At a time when [...]
Filed under: education, humane education, integrity, responsibility, systemic change | Tagged: character education, citizenship, civics, educational reform, Holocaust, humane education, integrity, responsibility, systemic change, values | Leave a Comment »
Posted on July 6, 2009 by zoeweil
In an interview in this month’s issue of Ode Magazine, Lester Brown, founder of the WorldWatch Institute refers to Oystein Dahle, a former vice-president of Exxon in Norway, to whom he attributes this quote:
“Socialism collapsed because it did not allow the market to tell the economic truth and capitalism may collapse because it does not [...]
Filed under: economy, education, food and diet, humane education, systemic change | Tagged: capitalism, changemakers, citizen activism, economics, education, environmental protection, food and diet, honesty, socialism, systemic change, truth | Leave a Comment »
Posted on July 3, 2009 by zoeweil
Recently, I’ve been writing essays and speaking about this question: What is education for?. I’ve just read an essay, published almost two years ago, by British educator Susan Bassnett. It seems Britain, like the U.S., faces the same current challenges in schooling, and at least some are questioning the direction and approach of reform.
Bassnett writes:
“Education [...]
Filed under: education, humane education, systemic change | Tagged: Britain, education, educational policy, educational reform, educators, humane education, systemic change, teachers | 1 Comment »
Posted on July 1, 2009 by zoeweil
I write and speak often about how humane education can infuse all core subjects in school. Most of the time I talk about social studies, math and science. In this article about efforts at a Costa Rican university to bring humane issues into the foreign language program (in this case, English), we see a wonderful [...]
Filed under: education, humane education | Tagged: Coasta Rica, curriculum, foreign language programs, higher education, humane education, schooling | Leave a Comment »
Posted on June 26, 2009 by zoeweil
After running up our local mountain, my husband suggested we stop at our co-op to get some cereal. Since I didn’t know when we’d be back in town, I decided to stock up on other things as well, including two bottles of wine. The cashier was eighteen and legally can’t ring up wine so she [...]
Filed under: critical thinking, education, humane education | Tagged: common sense, critical thinking, education, educational policy, judgment, learning, MOGO choices, schooling, systemic change | Leave a Comment »
Posted on June 16, 2009 by zoeweil
Robert Shetterly, Americans Who Tell the Truth portrait series artist, delivered a brilliant commencement address at George Stevens Academy in Blue Hill, Maine, on June 14.
Here are some excerpts:
“We want our children well educated not for success as it is usually defined in terms of jobs and money but because the success of our communities [...]
Filed under: changemakers, citizen activism, education, integrity, responsibility | Tagged: citizen activism, citizenship, commencement, education, graduation ceremonies, integrity, responsibility, Robert Shetterly, speeches | 2 Comments »
Posted on June 12, 2009 by zoeweil
Actor Adam Baldwin recently wrote a scathing criticism of education for global citizenship and sustainability.
It’s worth analyzing Baldwin’s arguments because recently the concepts that humane education covers and its general approach have come under fire, even if the authors of the critiques are not specifically using the term humane education. Baldwin calls the preparation [...]
Filed under: critical thinking, education, humane education, systemic change | Tagged: Adam Baldwin, critical thinking, educational policy, environmental education, global citizenship, humane education, multicultural education, politics, social justice, Sustainability, systemic change | Leave a Comment »
Posted on May 27, 2009 by zoeweil
The New York Times recently had an article about the growing use of the video The Story of Stuff in schools, and the controversy that sometimes surrounds it. The short, animated film provides an introduction to the impact of our stuff on the environment, and it’s a great way to introduce the effects of consumer [...]
Filed under: Cultural Issues, consumerism, critical thinking, economy, education, humane education, systemic change, videos | Tagged: consumerism, consumption, critical thinking, curriculum, educational policy, films, humane education, name-calling, schools, Story of Stuff, systemic change, videos | Leave a Comment »
Posted on May 13, 2009 by zoeweil
Here’s another quote from Joshua Ramo’s The Age of the Unthinkable:
“There is nothing more horrible than to walk that faulty line between new and old, seeing what the future holds, screaming about it in your art or your writing, and finding only mute incomprehension or dismissal in your audience.”
When I read this line, I put [...]
Filed under: citizen activism, education, humane education, systemic change | Tagged: change, citizen activism, education, educational policy, educational reform, humane education, No Child Left Behind, social change, systemic change | Leave a Comment »
The Power and Promise of Humane Education
Above All, Be Kind: Raising a Humane Child in Challenging Times
Claude and Medea: The Hellburn Dogs
So, You Love Animals: An Action-Packed, Fun-Filled Book to Help Kids Help Animals
