Monday, August 9, 2010
Wednesday, May 12, 2010
Final Blog - Awe
Rediscovering Awe
When I first read this piece I was uncomfortable with Schneider’s repetition of “the problem is” which sounded a bit like he was preaching.
Schneider’s ideas definitely resonate with me. The over use of the cell phone computer and other electronic devices has “dumbed” down the American. This is especially true of young people who can’t seem to live without being online for enormous amounts of time.
Schneider refers to “the capacity to be moved is the least appreciated pillar of child development.” Children are not taught to pause, feel and wonder. Having worked with small children for a very long time, I find that when they are about one through six, they do have a sense of wonder. Once they are subjected to school where they are taught to push for excellence, children get lost in a mire of preconceived notions that learning comes first, thinking comes later.
At the MYC students are given the opportunity to pause and ponder. While making a video whose premise was to produce a talk show, each girl contributed ideas. They chose the “hosts, guests “and what commercials they would do. (the commercials were made up from their own ideas.) With the help of their counselor they were able to discuss the process and what the outcome would be.
Schneider goes on to state that “the amplification of children’s capacity to feel is not the same as cultivation of their capacity to be moved.” Referring back to the girls at LUNA at MYC, I can see how this is true. The girls were too busy swirling around making plans, what costumes to wear, and who would say what. In my observations I did not think that “being moved” applied to this particular situation.
Schneider gives the reader many ideas of what needs to be done, but does not tell how we should do what he suggests. I wonder, with more and more technology, will there be a place to “pause and wonder?”
When I first read this piece I was uncomfortable with Schneider’s repetition of “the problem is” which sounded a bit like he was preaching.
Schneider’s ideas definitely resonate with me. The over use of the cell phone computer and other electronic devices has “dumbed” down the American. This is especially true of young people who can’t seem to live without being online for enormous amounts of time.
Schneider refers to “the capacity to be moved is the least appreciated pillar of child development.” Children are not taught to pause, feel and wonder. Having worked with small children for a very long time, I find that when they are about one through six, they do have a sense of wonder. Once they are subjected to school where they are taught to push for excellence, children get lost in a mire of preconceived notions that learning comes first, thinking comes later.
At the MYC students are given the opportunity to pause and ponder. While making a video whose premise was to produce a talk show, each girl contributed ideas. They chose the “hosts, guests “and what commercials they would do. (the commercials were made up from their own ideas.) With the help of their counselor they were able to discuss the process and what the outcome would be.
Schneider goes on to state that “the amplification of children’s capacity to feel is not the same as cultivation of their capacity to be moved.” Referring back to the girls at LUNA at MYC, I can see how this is true. The girls were too busy swirling around making plans, what costumes to wear, and who would say what. In my observations I did not think that “being moved” applied to this particular situation.
Schneider gives the reader many ideas of what needs to be done, but does not tell how we should do what he suggests. I wonder, with more and more technology, will there be a place to “pause and wonder?”
Monday, May 10, 2010
Isolating Awe....
The beautiful thing about awe is that it is uncompromising in its jarring you into the present moment. Awe grabs your attention and shakes all the loose thoughts out of your mind. Sadly, most of us don’t have time for awe. We don’t have time for the moment of captivation, because we are so concerned with where we’re going and what it’s going to be like then. I’m really not an Aerosmith fan but in one of their few songs there is a line, “Life’s a journey, not a destination” that came into my head as I was reading this chapter on Awe. We have lost our appreciation for the journey in our expectations of how much better it will all be once we’re there. I see this with many of the students at MCCS. They are in such a hurry to grow up, be tough, be cool, be accepted, be popular. They are always in a hurry to be something or prove something that I wonder if they would even know when they achieved whatever it is that they are striving for. I want to say to them: “slow down. Put down your phone and think. Your friends aren’t going anywhere. You don’t have to be in a gang to be accepted. You don’t have to destroy your life to be loved. Slow down and think. Think about your life and what you want it to mean.” But all that comes out is: “First you have to isolate X, then you divide by 10…” And when I look up they are texting or pretending to shoot one of their classmates. Sometimes I wonder if I am only making matters worse by trying to force math upon them. Am I only reinforcing their disdain for school? In the reading, the author said something that really resonated with me. He suggests,
The point is that if we are to respond with depth, attunement, and embodiment, then we will need to engage with as many sides of a problem as possible. We will need to immerse ourselves in the ambiguity if we are to emerge with conviction, intention and integrity. (p. 171)
This experience at MCCS has made one thing very clear: The problem isn’t just their math. Shit, the problem is probably everything and anything but math. So am I really benefiting these kids by tutoring them in math? I don’t know. I know that I’m trying. I know that if I wouldn’t have been a math tutor, I wouldn’t be asking this question and I wouldn’t now understand that sometimes inability to isolate X isn’t really about X at all. Sometimes it’s about everything but X.
The point is that if we are to respond with depth, attunement, and embodiment, then we will need to engage with as many sides of a problem as possible. We will need to immerse ourselves in the ambiguity if we are to emerge with conviction, intention and integrity. (p. 171)
This experience at MCCS has made one thing very clear: The problem isn’t just their math. Shit, the problem is probably everything and anything but math. So am I really benefiting these kids by tutoring them in math? I don’t know. I know that I’m trying. I know that if I wouldn’t have been a math tutor, I wouldn’t be asking this question and I wouldn’t now understand that sometimes inability to isolate X isn’t really about X at all. Sometimes it’s about everything but X.
Sunday, May 9, 2010
Rediscovery of Awe
I think everyone to some extent needs to be in awe of something. It keeps us humble, centered and grounded, so that we have some sense of boundaries in life. The sense of awe that I referring to is a positive one, not one which would cause us harm.
Children are indeed inundated with so much technology now, until we have allowed them to become in a way in awe of objects and concepts. (pg 150) Naturally the high tech industry would be very appealing to Young people, it was designed to be that way, if i twas not no one, not even adults would be interested. I think that we as the adults (parents) need to do a better job of regulating the exposure and or use of technology. The High tech business is very useful, we just need to decide what things we will and Will not let our children use and how they use it. I think children still need the experiences of intellectual stimulation in their lives, because these are necessary components of human development in this world ; in order to be a well rounded individual. Technology can be integrated into this developmental process, but it should not take over and be in lieu of the basic skills.
I have found that people who have no faith tend to not fair well when they are faced with problems, dilemmas, issues, dilemmas, or in some cases basic decision making. If there is no sense of inner peace, the rest of your life is generally out of place for most people. They don’t have anything to hold on to when they are in need. Money and objects usually do not provide long term (life long ) solace. Most people without faith are always usually searching for something, wondering what is missing, never having a sense of long term contentment. Faith can give you what you need to keep you centered and have long term peace in your life.
Children are indeed inundated with so much technology now, until we have allowed them to become in a way in awe of objects and concepts. (pg 150) Naturally the high tech industry would be very appealing to Young people, it was designed to be that way, if i twas not no one, not even adults would be interested. I think that we as the adults (parents) need to do a better job of regulating the exposure and or use of technology. The High tech business is very useful, we just need to decide what things we will and Will not let our children use and how they use it. I think children still need the experiences of intellectual stimulation in their lives, because these are necessary components of human development in this world ; in order to be a well rounded individual. Technology can be integrated into this developmental process, but it should not take over and be in lieu of the basic skills.
I have found that people who have no faith tend to not fair well when they are faced with problems, dilemmas, issues, dilemmas, or in some cases basic decision making. If there is no sense of inner peace, the rest of your life is generally out of place for most people. They don’t have anything to hold on to when they are in need. Money and objects usually do not provide long term (life long ) solace. Most people without faith are always usually searching for something, wondering what is missing, never having a sense of long term contentment. Faith can give you what you need to keep you centered and have long term peace in your life.
Blog on Awe
This piece starts "[T]he most important thing...to know [is] that beyond the absurdity of one's own life, beyond the human viewpoint...there is the fact of the tremendous creative energies of the cosmos that are using us for some purposes we don't know"(Awe, 8). This quote is simply to say that beyond what we know as human beings we are also being pulled to a greater purpose. This makes me think of the work we have been doing with our community partners. No matter who we have been working with, we have been striving to do something good for the community around us. We started this to do our hours for service learning for ethics but hopefully most of us have gotten much more out of this. By trying to work with these community partners we have been opened to something that could possibly be our calling. Perhaps some of us would have never been turned on to helping other people had we not been asked to work with them for class. This higher calling that we are unaware of could be to help people such as these. To save animals, provide clean needles, helping students to succeed, or making the economy greener, this class could well have sent us on our way to becoming the people we are suppose to be. Whether we are meant to stay with these community partners or move on with the knowledge we gained from this, we have effected the lives of many. Whatever it is that our higher purpose may be we are now better people for what we have done. Whether we acknowledge what it is we are suppose to do or follow the mondain drag of everyday life we now know what it is like to be a part of a bigger goal that the "cosmos" have pulled us towards; a goal meant to better hummanity.
Saturday, May 8, 2010
The big picture!
Ok something just popped into my head in the reading and since this is extra credit...I'm going to rant a bit.
In the reading when talking about a world made smaller by adhering to one religion or one belief the author said "We cannot flourish in such a world, we cannot soar." (p.165)That is when it hit me. What these kids need is to understand the world outside of County, the world beyond graduating high school! I succeeded because I understood "ok get through high school, go to college, become a famous singer" All these things were seen as necessary steps. What the kids at County see is "get out of county so that these teachers and parents will stop bugging me." That is why it is so important to have them stay in touch with the outside world by visiting colleges or having guest speakers with different professions come in or by doing community service. If they don't see a world outside of this school...why even try? All their friends are here and the only future they are seeing is later that day...not the BIG PICTURE!
ok...
So I also see that some of the kids "get it". They see that they need to do their work to get the credits to graduate...but that is just the first step...they also need to actually DO the work. "The shock and the awakening are only preparatory. The next crucial question is how and whether one pursues, engages with, and emerges from one's struggle." (P144) A lot of the kids can see what they need to do, they just don't do it. All of the students are intelligent but not all of them have been awakened mentally as to what they need to DO to succeed. The students see the struggle ahead of them but are not willing to do the work to make it so that it is no longer a struggle.
In the reading when talking about a world made smaller by adhering to one religion or one belief the author said "We cannot flourish in such a world, we cannot soar." (p.165)That is when it hit me. What these kids need is to understand the world outside of County, the world beyond graduating high school! I succeeded because I understood "ok get through high school, go to college, become a famous singer" All these things were seen as necessary steps. What the kids at County see is "get out of county so that these teachers and parents will stop bugging me." That is why it is so important to have them stay in touch with the outside world by visiting colleges or having guest speakers with different professions come in or by doing community service. If they don't see a world outside of this school...why even try? All their friends are here and the only future they are seeing is later that day...not the BIG PICTURE!
ok...
So I also see that some of the kids "get it". They see that they need to do their work to get the credits to graduate...but that is just the first step...they also need to actually DO the work. "The shock and the awakening are only preparatory. The next crucial question is how and whether one pursues, engages with, and emerges from one's struggle." (P144) A lot of the kids can see what they need to do, they just don't do it. All of the students are intelligent but not all of them have been awakened mentally as to what they need to DO to succeed. The students see the struggle ahead of them but are not willing to do the work to make it so that it is no longer a struggle.
Extra Credit--prompt for Rediscovery of Awe
I'm sure there's many ways you might connect this reading with service but here are some ideas if you want to use:
Schneider writes about the concept of a fluid center that "provides an alternative to [the] debilitating extremes" of "extremist-fundamentalist religions and . . . postmodern free market anarchy" (143). He explores the idea that ambiguity is one of the essential elements of our condition and requires an ethic that "calls upon the deepest energies of democracy, the fullest engagement of dialogue, and the keenest perceptions of context" ( 146). He calls this ethic, "awe-based" and states that the "capacity to be moved" may be the catalyst for opening oursleves to the complexity of our ethical being in the world (147).
Are there ways in which your service has opened you to ambiguity, to the gray areas, and at the same time expanded your capacity to grapple with this complexity in forming your own views? Do you have an example of an exchange or moment when you understood this challenge?
Responsibility--" Linked with mystery is responsibility, the challenge to respond. It is precisely out of uncertainty that we are called to responsibility. . .But what does it mean to face uncertainty [ambiguity] head on? It means that individuals (as opposed to outside authorities) must bear the brunt of decision-making, but it also means that there is a dimension beyond which individuals are able to make decisions. . ." (161-162). I hear echos of many of our other readings, especially Arendt. What have you learned from your service about this challenge to respond in the face of uncertainty, unknown outcomes? Can you describe a situation in which you began to experience the depth of complexity that surround the meeting between our personal values and the collective social issues with which we are faced every day?
Schneider writes about the concept of a fluid center that "provides an alternative to [the] debilitating extremes" of "extremist-fundamentalist religions and . . . postmodern free market anarchy" (143). He explores the idea that ambiguity is one of the essential elements of our condition and requires an ethic that "calls upon the deepest energies of democracy, the fullest engagement of dialogue, and the keenest perceptions of context" ( 146). He calls this ethic, "awe-based" and states that the "capacity to be moved" may be the catalyst for opening oursleves to the complexity of our ethical being in the world (147).
Are there ways in which your service has opened you to ambiguity, to the gray areas, and at the same time expanded your capacity to grapple with this complexity in forming your own views? Do you have an example of an exchange or moment when you understood this challenge?
Responsibility--" Linked with mystery is responsibility, the challenge to respond. It is precisely out of uncertainty that we are called to responsibility. . .But what does it mean to face uncertainty [ambiguity] head on? It means that individuals (as opposed to outside authorities) must bear the brunt of decision-making, but it also means that there is a dimension beyond which individuals are able to make decisions. . ." (161-162). I hear echos of many of our other readings, especially Arendt. What have you learned from your service about this challenge to respond in the face of uncertainty, unknown outcomes? Can you describe a situation in which you began to experience the depth of complexity that surround the meeting between our personal values and the collective social issues with which we are faced every day?
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