Chapter 1:
Quote: This quote highlights some differences between our education system and China’s. China has refocused their educational goals away from standardized testing. Entrepreneurship and creativity are recognized as vital skills. “China now requires that every college in the country teach the skills of entrepreneurship, and their current K–12 education reforms are aimed at de-emphasizing standardized tests and doing more to teach creativity. So if we are to remain globally competitive in today’s world, we need to produce more than just a few entrepreneurs and innovators. We need to develop the creative and enterprising capacities of all our students.” (Kindle Location 286)
Question: Are schools today really preparing students for college and career? If so, how do we know? If not, what skills do we need to include in our teaching?
Connection: I’m not very creative. Growing up, I never got the message that creativity was a valuable skill. I wonder if I would be more creative now if I had received a different message as a child?
Epiphany: I hope someday we can get rid of standardized testing in America. Then we’d have more time to prioritize teaching life skills.
Chapter 2:
Quote: This quote comes from Ed Carryer, Smart Design professor- “To me, empowerment means students can go out and apply what they’ve learned to the problems that they’ve never seen before with parts that they’ve never used before.” (Kindle location 1033)
Question: Ed Carryer’s class is described as application-oriented and hands-on. This course is highly specialized and unlike the majority of college and high school courses. Many of his students have gone for a PhD and/or to work for significant companies (Tesla Motors, Apple, etc.) in Silicon Valley. Carryer described the goal of his course is empowerment. I too hope to empower my students but it is different for me as a public high school teacher who has little freedom to alter curriculum. My question- how much freedom do I have to make my class more empowering? How can I create a classroom environment that empowers my students?
Connection: I hope to empower my students. One way I can do that in the math classroom is by incorporating real-world examples that students can apply to their lives.
Epiphany: While it might be a dream to work at Apple, it seems like you really have to sacrifice a lot. Kirk Phelps mentioned he accrued something like 300k frequent flier miles and lost 10 pounds in his first year. It takes more than an innovator; it really a certain type of person to devote that much of their lifestyle to their job.
Source:
Wagner, Tony, and Robert A. Compton. Creating Innovators: The Making of Young People Who
Will Change the World. New York: Scribner, 2012.
Quote: This quote highlights some differences between our education system and China’s. China has refocused their educational goals away from standardized testing. Entrepreneurship and creativity are recognized as vital skills. “China now requires that every college in the country teach the skills of entrepreneurship, and their current K–12 education reforms are aimed at de-emphasizing standardized tests and doing more to teach creativity. So if we are to remain globally competitive in today’s world, we need to produce more than just a few entrepreneurs and innovators. We need to develop the creative and enterprising capacities of all our students.” (Kindle Location 286)
Question: Are schools today really preparing students for college and career? If so, how do we know? If not, what skills do we need to include in our teaching?
Connection: I’m not very creative. Growing up, I never got the message that creativity was a valuable skill. I wonder if I would be more creative now if I had received a different message as a child?
Epiphany: I hope someday we can get rid of standardized testing in America. Then we’d have more time to prioritize teaching life skills.
Chapter 2:
Quote: This quote comes from Ed Carryer, Smart Design professor- “To me, empowerment means students can go out and apply what they’ve learned to the problems that they’ve never seen before with parts that they’ve never used before.” (Kindle location 1033)
Question: Ed Carryer’s class is described as application-oriented and hands-on. This course is highly specialized and unlike the majority of college and high school courses. Many of his students have gone for a PhD and/or to work for significant companies (Tesla Motors, Apple, etc.) in Silicon Valley. Carryer described the goal of his course is empowerment. I too hope to empower my students but it is different for me as a public high school teacher who has little freedom to alter curriculum. My question- how much freedom do I have to make my class more empowering? How can I create a classroom environment that empowers my students?
Connection: I hope to empower my students. One way I can do that in the math classroom is by incorporating real-world examples that students can apply to their lives.
Epiphany: While it might be a dream to work at Apple, it seems like you really have to sacrifice a lot. Kirk Phelps mentioned he accrued something like 300k frequent flier miles and lost 10 pounds in his first year. It takes more than an innovator; it really a certain type of person to devote that much of their lifestyle to their job.
Source:
Wagner, Tony, and Robert A. Compton. Creating Innovators: The Making of Young People Who
Will Change the World. New York: Scribner, 2012.