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?”