New Blog, New Thoughts

I started teaching "technology in 2000 when I designed and taught the elective curriculums for two classes at Burr and Burton Academy in Manchester, Vermont. I was hired to teach a graphic design course (I am a self employed graphic designer of over 20 years) and to turn the previously extracurricular yearbook club into a class and teach that as well. No one had any idea how to do these things, including me. But, given my adventuring spirit, I figured, "Why not?" After all, that was what design was, as far as I had experienced it, taking an unknown thing with an objective and create a known thing that accomplishes that objective. "Why, not, indeed."

Without the benefit of any formal education in education, I put together curriculums to teach my students industry standard softwares that would allow them to do the work needed. I provided them with concise backgrounds in composition, marketing principles and journalistic design. Then, I set them loose and let them run with the tools of Adobe Illustrator, Photoshop and QuarkXpress. And you know what, they surprised not only me but themselves as well with the level of thinking, skill and imagination. I guided them by making them come up with their own parameters and critical thinking. The exercises I designed for them pushed them to think before using any technology and then use that technology to achieve an objective. Then, we judged the finished work with critieria that they, the students, self-determined.

What I discovered was that instinctively, I understood the what , why and how of the education part. Perhaps because as a designer I was trained to speak specifically to the message. that is, I think in terms of what are we trying to accomplish here, and how do we know we've done it? This is pretty much what designers ask. And, frankly, this is what teachers ask. What needs to get done, what is the objective I'm trying to reach, what tools do I need to do it, and how will I know if I've achieved my goal?

So. I have to say, I am somewhat perplexed by the continual pounding to express and re-express, the concepts of assess, evaluate, reevaluate, make objectives, make goals and then do it again from the point of view of yet another theory. OK. I get it. I got it. It's not new and it's not exciting or even intriguing anymore.

I am one of those teachers who does it while standing on one foot. The joy comes from figuring it out as I go based on the students I have and what they individually need from me. Sometimes, all the theory in the world doesn't match up to plain old compassion and caring. I care about my students, each and every one of them, the bad ones and the good ones. the ones I teach on the ski slope and the ones I teach ion the classroom.

What I'm wondering right now is how do you express caring and compassion on the internet?