Category: Articles
WSJ: It’s Really Here: TV for 6 Month-Olds
The WSJ article “It’s Really Here: TV for 6 Month-Olds” by Joe Flint (published in the Business & Tech. section of the March 30, 2015 issue) describes television programming for infants. The article describes the programming, technology, the business prospects and viewpoints.
It saddens me. For someone to provide a cheap, low-quality substitute for personal parental attention wreaks of negligence. And to the idea that “Education Stifles Creativity,” this exacerbates the problem. It is another form of knowledge pollution brought about by technology that sets back a person’s personal story.
“BabyFirstTV…is aiming its programming at children as young as six months.” “It launched in 2006…and now reaches more than 50 million U.S. households.” Got that, parents? Better get your shields up because we all know that much of television programming is a weapon of mass (mind) destruction. Short attention spans, addictive behavior, myopia, obesity, and an overall lack of interpersonal skills.
“What is important is what we put our kids in front of and we think we are offering the cleanest, safest alternative.” After the spin slows down a bit, look through your list again just a little harder. The cleanest, safest alternative is parent attention. And “In 2014, advertisers spent $1.2 billion on kids channels.” Hmmm, who exactly is the winner here? And is there any trace of intrinsic motivation?
“I know there is a lot of criticism about babies and and young kids watching TV, but I think in moderation and with parent supervision it can be a great benefit.” You might compare the benefits list to the detriments list. And which effects are more long-lasting and influence future behavior? I would mostly recommend physical interactive activity but in those depleted energy settings when we want to rest and relax, can we not make a better choice and fill the time with mindfulness activity (which involves closing the eyes) and perhaps even enhance it with music?
All in all, I view such developments as presenting greater challenge to the YCISL mission. Let’s hope enough parents recognize it as negative innovation – that is, one that promises undesirable influence and impact.
Straits Times: Prolonged use of mobile phones bad for school test scores: Japan study
Saving this article as a potential discussion point for problem identification. May be particularly appropriate for our students from Japan, but there may be a problem-adaptation opportunity for students from another country.
http://www.straitstimes.com/news/asia/east-asia/story/mobile-use-bad-school-test-scores-japan-study-20140826
This would be an opportunity in YCISL workshops to practice:
– empathy
– turning a problem into an opportunity
– agreeing or disagreeing with an adult view
– brainstorming
– prototyping
– developing an elevator pitch (e.g., to encourage youth to use smartphone more smartly)
– using youth as an advantage (smaller age gap)
WSJ: “Teens Need Later Start to School Day, Doctors Group Says”
This entry is about the article titled “Teens Need Later Start to School Day, Doctors Group Says” by Sumathi Reddy. http://online.wsj.com/articles/teens-need-later-start-to-school-day-doctors-group-says-1408939263
The article starts with this main idea… “High schools and middle schools should begin the day no earlier than 8:30 a.m. to help teenagers get more sleep, the American Academy of Pediatrics said Monday in its first policy statement on the issue.”
The article continues by providing support for this idea. However, the correlation-causation case seems like it needs more consideration. Here are some of my thoughts on this issue:
– A fixed time such as 8:30 am seems unnecessary. We know that the circadian rhythms are biologically connected to sunrise and sunset times. Perhaps a more sound idea is that school should start at least 60 minutes after sunrise; and homework should be completable preferably by sunset (understandably impractical in general, and teachers should account for differing performance expectations after sunset – i.e., the amount of work that can be done in one hour during daylight time is less than that after dusk). So the solution – for optimization purposes – will differ based on latitude as well as daylight savings shifts, if applicable.
– A way to expand the timing benefit may be to not allow any college prep class in the first period (i.e., schedule PE, library, electives and other special courses). An alternative is to bring back a 20-30 minute home room period instead (Asian schools still have this, by the way).
– The article mentions the effect of blue light from electronics. There are also just routine home-based neurological stimulation factors – not just visual but with all other senses. A correlation-causation question arises around the influence of household evening settling time (sleep preparation) and bedtime on the lateness to which teens will go to sleep. Are parents sensitively aware that any noise during the desired sleep time could disrupt sleep? Laundry noise, television noise, working on computers, talking on the phone, etc. What about households which have pre-teens as well as teens?
– What recommendation can be made for weekends? Did the study follow the sleep patterns of the students on weekends? What about sleep patterns during holidays (both long and short)? Did sleeping in on weekends affect performance during the week?
– What is the effect of school-impacted sleep patterns on growth and body repair? Sub-optimal sleep is a chronic as well as acute health issue.
– This is not just a health problem, it is also an education problem (the article does suggest it). Educators need to be at the forefront as well. Educators control the settings and can have first-hand observations; health practitioners observe the after-effects and have little to no control over the settings. Parents should collaborate with both educators and health practitioners. Government should stay out of it.
– Are school hours set for adult convenience as opposed to educational optimization? If so, which is the priority? It’s not clear to me.
– There should be a no-caffeine rule prior to the start of school – and that includes educators as well as the students. I have observed teachers getting to school and starting the day with coffee. This is artificial stimulation and prevents teachers from being empathetic and sensing the appropriate pace to teach. Students (those not similarly caffeinated) cannot be expected to “connect” with the caffeinated teachers – and follow the teacher as they swing between caffeine hits. If caffeine is so necessary for teachers to get going, then it is quite apparent that school start times are inappropriate. [As an extension of this, perhaps teachers should not be allowed to intake any caffeine within 30 minutes of starting a class].
– I would suggest exploring the idea of inserting mindfulness or meditation times into the school schedule so that lack of focus due to disrupted sleep can be managed at school. You know the “power nap” idea, right? What are the heart rates of the students throughout the day? Is the pattern influenced by the amount of restful sleep?
So how does this relate to YCISL? It relates to some of the core ideas including:
– Use “youth” as an empathy advantage. Can our students incorporate sleep-related issues into their problem statement or solution? Can they be creative enough to develop a solution that would work for youth? Can youth see a solution that adults cannot otherwise see? Would students be able to persuade other students to adopt solutions that adults would otherwise not do so well?
– Mindset. Students need to understand the impact that sleep is having on their mindsets as well as performance. Without good sleep, can the mindset be positive? Without good sleep, can the mindset be attending to growth?
– Leadership. This is an opportunity for youth to speak up and be heard. Adults like to prescribe solutions that affect others but not necessarily themselves. Youth need to take a leadership role in ensuring a youth-centered and youth-accepted solution.
– Sustainability. What is needed is a sustainable solution that has a long-term beneficial influence and causes minimum inconvenience. Schools are forever experimenting with digressive and disruptive changes. This is unsustainable and confusing.
WSJ: “Revisiting Teenage Dreams”
In the Personal Journal section of today’s WSJ (Wednesday August 20, 2014), there is an article by Sue Shellenbarger titled “Teenage Dreams, 10 Years Later” (http://online.wsj.com/articles/advice-to-my-teenage-self-1408490144#) which describes lessons learned from people watching videos they made during their senior year in high school – about their goals. In the article, this is called a “message to to my future self” and the students view their videos 10 years later.
We use videos of “graduating” students in YCISL too. At the end of every YCISL workshop, the students are provided a video camera to record thoughts from their visit – from the time they arrived at Stanford and through the workshop. Each student is allotted 15 seconds. All instructors and mentors move out of sight and earshot. The main purpose of the video is to remind the students of the parts of the experience that excited them. It is intended to serve as a reference point for them.
Somewhat in the vein of Tina Seelig’s “What I Wish I Knew When I Was 20,” this WSJ article lists several “wisdoms” that the alums shared after watching their videos including:
– “Broaden your definition of success.” This is not as easy as it sounds. “Hindsight is 20-20” comes to mind – it is relatively easy thinking of regrets but how easy is it to think 10 years (or even days) out from now? Just as Richard St. John’s TED Talk title advises us “Success is a continuous journey” – and one should look for success (and happiness as well as opportunities for gratefulness) all along that journey.
– “It’s OK not to know what you want to do.” This should not mean that one does not have to think about their direction, strategy and goals. It basically recognizes that a change of plan is all right. A better way to put this is to “Think about what you want to do.” In YCISL, we recommend engaging in the elements of Daniel Pink’s Intrinsic Motivation – pursuing mastery, allowing for autonomy, and embracing a purpose. To address the article’s statement that “Often, young adults don’t find a clear purpose for years after graduating,” you don’t find a purpose (you find a passion), you define and embrace your purpose. And you start at the placement stage of the YCISL leadership model.
– “Don’t worry too much.” The article mentions that “a positive attitude helps.” in YCISL, we believe that positivity accelerates creative thinking and discuss how kids worry less than adults using Tim Brown’s TED Talk “Tales of Creativity & Play.” If high school students are worrying too much, they learned it from adults (see “The Importance of Childs Play” by Lenore Skenazy, WSJ 1/27/12).
– “Focus less on success and more on failing well.” There are more factors involved here than a simple thread of failures leading to success. There are support and timing factors, as well as competitive advantage and opportunity. A connecting-the-dots (successes, failures and corrective actions) agility is needed.
WSJ: “Test Shows U.S. 12th Graders Aren’t Improving in Reading or Math”
There is a WSJ article (“Test Shows U.S. 12th Graders Aren’t Improving in Reading or Math” by Carolyn Porter in the WSJ, May 8, 2014) describing how there isn’t much progress towards boosting test scores. The news is about a widespread muddle in education and illustrates the continuing confusion surrounding what to do. This article and others like it are indicative of an experimental design that no one wants to shut down and shift resources to a better experiment. Stagnation.
Let’s apply some lessons from YCISL…
– Apply innovation thinking. Education needs to re-designed from start to finish. Apply an innovation process so that all parts are optimized. Put everything in the current scheme up on the chopping block. Assemble an innovation A-team and go for quantity-not-quality brainstorming.
– “Fail early, fail fast.” Look for better models and not just band-aids. Rapid prototype to uncover showstoppers.
– Start from scratch applying “game storming.” Set new rules that are customized for your users (i.e., the students), allow opportunity for exploration and experience, and conclude with a point that motivates. No judgement allowed during the exploration phase.
– Adopt Dan Pink’s Intrinsic Motivation (Mastery, Autonomy, Purpose) into the educational process. Make the purpose clear and accessible. Tune autonomy for maximum performance. Define mastery in meaningful ways. Remove the money factor. And do this for all stakeholders.
– Adults fear failure more than kids. Adopt a fear-less culture.
– Adults need to listen to kids. As Adora Svitak says, “Learning should be reciprocal.”
– Engage in a growth mindset. In a growth mindset, we develop a love of learning. We should analyze academic growth as much as academic attainment. Together, you will get a measure of academic achievement – a more complete sense of accomplishment.
WSJ: “SAT Reboot Revives 1600, Encourages Guessing”
Recently, I commented on an article about a group of colleges not requiring SAT and/or ACT test scores as part of the application process. And today (March 6, 2014) in the Wall Street Journal, the article “SAT Reboot Revives 1600, Encourages Guessing” by Douglas Belkin, Caroline Porter and Stephanie Banchero reports on a monumental reshaping of the SAT – under the influence of several forces including (1) competition from the ACT, (2) shifting demographics of test-takers, and (3) demand for alignment with school learning.
One major change is no longer requiring the essay while also redirecting the essay focus. This reminds me to recall the paragraph from the Wikipedia entry for the SAT which tells how meaningless the essay portion of the SAT is.
Other changes are planned for focus and scope of SAT questions, and adjusting scoring so incorrect answers does not result in a deduction. In general, these are welcome changes and hopefully positive in its purpose for college admissions screening.
The College Board appears to be forecasting that its future lies in less competitive regions and school districts – an attempt to extend scope perhaps to the fast growing segment of borderline students. That is how the marketing features of this new product seems to line up.
Therefore, top universities should now feel more free to de-emphasize the SAT in favor of the personal statement and perhaps add a soft skills component evaluation (possible because of the lower stress one might expect from a less challenging SAT). Stanford already is doing this – it already expects valedictorian status, leadership experience and world view. Perhaps this is an opportunity for top universities to collaborate on a SAT replacement – one which seeks the personalities and mindsets of those who have been successful at the top end of intelligence and intellect – and will be the workforce leaders of the future.
Wouldn’t it be interesting to have students design such a test?
Perhaps for YCISL, we could have students design a test that they think would be most useful for college screening… by students, for students.
“Defining Promise: Optional Standardized Testing Policies In American College And University Admissions”
This is a quick acknowledgement of a paper by William C. Hiss and Valerie W. Franks (http://www.nacacnet.org/research/research-data/nacac-research/Documents/DefiningPromise.pdf) as well as a KQED audio interview hosted by Michael Krasny (http://www.kqed.org/a/forum/R201402210930) which suggests that applicants to colleges should have an option to not submit SAT and/or ACT scores as part of their admission application.
I highlight this work because it is a fact that SAT and ACT testing are of little educational value and, as concluded in the study by Hiss and Franks, have little relation to a college student’s graduation success. However, this conclusion is of no surprise and the study would have perhaps been more enlightening if it had used a null hypothesis instead where they look for zero correlation between SAT/ACT test scores and college academic outcomes.
I view SAT and ACT testing organizations simply as businesses that provide an increasingly obsolete service and are fighting for survival (in the same vein that Kodak went through) – although test prep is rising as a new mass production business with significant financial stakes; a symbiosis of sorts. Historically, the analytics these tests provided were useful but we now know that a portion of test takers are able to game this system and measurement of academic strength needs to also include soft skills. An agreeable facet to the discussion on the KQED radio show is that college admissions offices should feel free to treat SAT/ACT scores as they see fit. There should be no hard and fast rule that SAT/ACT scores should be a specific part of the admission decision. Perhaps these testing organizations could rise to the occasion and offer analytics of the applicant’s statement of purpose or interview.
This study also focuses on the use of SAT and ACT scores in the college admissions process. But standardized testing has also infested the rest of primary and secondary education in the US and one can simply view the SAT/ACT tests as the final episode of pre-college educational assessment. I view this as the result of testing organizations trying to appear relevant – how else can one explain that a sensible examination system has not arisen in the US when it exists in many other parts of the world? So in order for SAT/ACT to become a non-factor and allowed to fade into memory, it needs to be cleared from the entire educational chain.
Actually, I can accept SAT/ACT as a fixture in the Proof stage of youth leadership development. Not requiring these scores for admission applications can be a distinctive marketing feature for the colleges that choose to go that route. However, such a feature does not seem to me to have any competitive advantage because the upside for admitted students will balance with the downside for the peer group. The argument that High School GPA would be a more reliable filter is not convincing since this statistic is cumulative and does not account for learning styles and differences (especially where a student’s learning style does not match what the school offers).
So, perhaps the best approach would be for high school educators to insist that testing agencies supplement the tests with personality and soft skills components, so that each student can decide which post-high school path is the best one for them. Use the SAT/ACT to create opportunities, not limit them.
Stanford Report: Stanford’s Gardner Center partners with California schools on new reform plan
The January 29, 2014 Stanford Report carried an article titled “Stanford’s Gardner Center partners with California schools on new reform plan” by Brooke Donald. Mention of “social and emotional learning” in the by-line was the grab for me. I certainly agree that coaching social and emotional intelligence in school is a commendable thing to do. Whether this would lead to academic performance parity would seem uncertain but a place in an accountability system seems appropriate. Remember too that the education time-scale is finite as is the student attention span, so any shift in school-time use will cause something from the memorization end to fall out. It’s a law of conservation.
In light of my recent article on Teacher EQ, it seems a better and more productive place to start is to coach educators on developing their own EQ. The questions that I think need to be answered first is whether educators empathize with students and whether when they are introduced to a new class of students they have their EQ-expectation calibrated with the range of EQ among the students. An EQ-mismatch generally spells disconnect with the students and stress/strain.
The YCISL message is to equip educators with EQ-enhancement tools for personal development as well as classroom application. Adopt curriculum which support EQ-development (most textbooks are light on EQ; standardized tests too) and give educators a more intrinsically motivating teaching goal than test scores.
There’s no secret. If you’re in the classroom, your EQ needs to be developed just as much as the next person’s whether teacher, student or administrator. How do you do that? Try teaching or learning outside your comfort zone and daily routine – choose something that you feel you might be good at but may not have done in quite some time – ASL, Music, Drama, Woodworking, Customer Service… It’s like that experiment where company executives switch roles with front line personnel for a day (e.g., CEO<->receptionist). As a thought experiment for teachers and school administrators, insert into your schedule a quiz or test every couple of days for every one of your key functions. What does this do to your thought process and workflow? Also, memorize all the work you have to do the next day during the night before. If you have a meeting, memorize the agenda and any PowerPoint that will be shown. Do you think you will forget 90% of that total material after the meeting? Welcome to the student’s world. Feeling any EQ now?
To tie in a positive thinking note, students: be able to recognize teachers who demonstrate high EQ and show them respect for that. Know that high EQ teachers are worthy role models and that they can help you build, define and refine your EQ. This will give you the answer to why you are learning and what you will gain from it.
WSJ: “Higher Learning, Meet Lower Job Prospects”
Today’s WSJ Opinion section (dated February 5, 2013) has an article titled “Higher Learning, Meet Lower Job Prospects” by Jane S. Shaw. Early on in the article, the idea is posed that “The problem, he suggested, might be that many academic disciplines have no real practical applications” and “…state funding incentives should encourage areas of study that align with the job market.” I can see how someone could think this…but they are way off the bullseye. One does not have to think hard to understand that yes, tertiary education involving practical training is needed BUT it should be in a separate stream from the high intellectual achievement institutions. Polytechnics are examples of institutions that serve the practical application market and it fits well with students whose strengths are in practical work. This concept has been around for decades but because of competitive fervor to get into a top ranked university or college, many students are finding themselves stuck in the wrong place partly because of a lack of options to suit their talent. But leave your top universities alone (and let them figure out how they want to address the market demand from both students and the workplace) and promote intellectual curiosity.
This article could be used to help reinforce the following YCISL premises:
1. find joy in learning – adults want to force youth to get as uptight and extrinsically motivated about money as they are – even before they start earning any.
2. embrace opportunity – universities are being held as scapegoats as secondary education continues to deteriorate.
3. focus on the now – universities’ performances are improperly measured in part by their graduate’s employment as well as starting salaries.
Undergraduate education (at least in the US) encourages exploration of new fields of knowledge and finding depth in the wells of knowledge (“Integration” in the YCISL framework). One just has to compare what students get out of high school (“Proof” in the YCISL framework) then are asked to do in college to realize that this is the main benefit of the latter. Graduate school is where critical thinking kicks in where ideas are extended, defended and tested; this is where expertise kicks in (“Propulsion” in the YCISL framework). Don’t complicate the “Integration” phase by introducing the distraction of the job market and careers – which is highly unpredictable. Integration is difficult enough to handle in a new learning environment (where suddenly most students find they are average).
WSJ: How to Avoid a Bonfire of the Humanities
Michael S. Malone contributed an article titled “How to Avoid a Bonfire of the Humanities” to the Opinion section of the October 25, 2012 issue of the WSJ. The article describes how disciplines in the humanities are resurgent in necessity to innovation. A specific example is cited with a quote from Santosh Jayaram that “English majors are exactly the people I’m looking for.” The thought continues that “storytelling” is a rare talent and today goes a long way towards competitive advantage. I would actually pose this is as great prospects for the hybridization of humanities thinking with science, engineering and business. We have already seen it in various ways – the graphical user interface (GUI) is a hybridization of art and technology. Usability is a hybridization of engineering, design, architecture and psychology.
We can use the notion of “storytelling” with the 90-second elevator pitch approach as well as the executive summary framework from Garage Technology Ventures. Together, youth can learn to be compelling and noticed.
