A Musical Offering of Appeasement

Tags

master of education, Nicholas Stirling, too busy to write, windermere manor

The last two weeks have been about the busiest I can remember.

In addition to the work that goes into planning and executing a Grade 7 program with an indeterminate end date, I have been swamped with readings and assignments for the two courses I am taking for my Masters.  Somewhere in there I went to a truly lovely wedding at the Windermere Manor, a place that has its own apiary.  (Of course I bought some honey while I was there.)  Add to that the brilliant idea of preparing things for no fewer than twenty categories at the Ancaster Fall Fair and you have yourself a ridonculous fourteen days.

These two weeks should have produced about a dozen blog posts, but writing always seemed to be the lowest priority.  There were always other things that needed my attention, not the least of which was my little 16-month-old daughter and her need to open, empty, and tear up everything in her reach.

Tonight, I am slogging my way through seven chapters of my Gifted Education textbook.  This section is about gifted programs in different countries; I have read about France and Germany, and I will soon be delving into Russia, China, Sweden, and Australia.  As such, nothing of value will be written by me tonight.

But I can offer an old gem, at least, a song that is still one of my all-time favourites, one of a very few that I will willingly play on my acoustic in front of people.  It came up on my iPod just now and it was the kick in the butt I needed to at least try to write something that wasn’t filled with teaching jargon and APA-style references.

Gifted

Tags

giftedness, master of education, Nicholas Stirling

Again, I am pleasantly surprised by how much I am enjoying the readings I have been assigned for my courses.  My latest is a series of articles on the gifted education, a topic near and dear to my heart as I was involved in such programs from the seventh grade onward.

Back then, as I’m sure it is now, the term was as much a stigma as it was a compliment.  Teachers applied it to those of us that did our work and showed initiative, but the other kids looked at it as a deliberate posture of elitism, whether we actively sought the designation or not.  And I won’t even attempt to lie to myself by saying that they were jealous; popularity and athletic ability went much further in grade school than they do in my current profession.

Reading these articles, I am fascinated by how much the research into the brain has changed what it means to be “gifted.”  It used to be something that meant you were hardwired better than the next kid.  You had a greater capacity for learning.  You thought faster and in more varied ways.  You were smarter than the average.  You were different.  You were the mental equivalent of homo sapiens superior, for you Marvel Comic nerds out there (and all us gifted kids were, I can assure you).

Now, everything seems to be pointing to the idea that gifted kids are made, not born.  Environment, it seems, does more to make a kid fit the mold of “gifted” than any inborn capacity.  It makes sense, really, since parents that encourage reading and learning and attentiveness are likely going to send their kid off to school well-prepared for academics.  That kid will, in turn, probably make a lot of the work look easy and will quickly step into his or her role as a student.  Not surprisingly, the kids most likely to be like this come from stable homes with good incomes.

I have no conclusions to draw yet.  But I do know that if the last course was any kind of predictor for this one, I’m going to enjoy it immensely.

So Much Writing…

Tags

master of education, Nicholas Stirling, no time to write

Despite the fact that I have probably written a solid twenty pages of material in the last week, not a word of it is any good for maintaining a blog.

I am currently working on my first Master of Education course.  It is online, which usually results in more work and time spent than an actual class, but there aren’t many in-class options available in the summer (what with teachers jealously guarding their summers off, and whatnot).  Any time that I do spend in front of the computer is now devoted to monitoring message boards, digging up journal articles, and writing stuff about curriculum theories that, up until now, I had never even heard of.

I thought that I would be able to work on it more through the day, but Abby keeps me much busier than I had anticipated, and by the time that she goes down for a nap, I’m ready to pass out myself.  That leaves me a quiet period after 7:00 where I really try to finish up my work.

It would, anyway, were it not for the fact that there seem to be a million other things going on this week in that block (U2 concert in TO, meeting with daycare providers, house viewings, and a visitation).

I so wish that I could sit down and write about some of this fun stuff, but I can’t do it right now.  Not a chance.  I’m pushing it with this as we speak.  Hopefully the latter half of this course will settle down a bit so I can actually blog again.  Hopefully.

Sick Day

Tags

cage match, master of education, Nicholas Stirling, portfolios

This is my first sick day this school year.  My very first.  For me, with an immune system that seemingly invites in colds, that is pretty darn good.  But now something has settled into my chest and I’m taking the day to try to fight it off with a steady intake of grapefruit pop and Kraft Dinner.

It’s also giving me a chance to review my portfolio for my Masters application.  I’ve been through the checklist a hundred times today, and I’ve spell checked, grammar checked, typo checked, and swear checked the bloody thing more times than I can count.  I’ve printed it all off on nice, 24 lb, high brightness paper.  I put it into a new, crisp, two pocket portfolio.  I misted it gently with a light, neutral perfume.  (Kidding.  I actually daubed it with vanilla extract to make the reviewers think of cookies while they judged me.)

I just hate that feeling of sending it off and hoping for the best.  I would actually prefer an interview.  Or maybe a cage match.

Yes, that would be preferable.  Instead of a 500 word essay, toss me a pair of 4 oz gloves and a mouth piece and I’ll fight my way into academia.  I’m pretty sure that’s how my dad got into law school.