kitchen table math, the sequel: "I don't have the courage"

Monday, February 26, 2007

"I don't have the courage"

A couple of months ago Ed and I were in the 4-5 school where we saw an announcement of a presentation on multiple intelligence or individual learning styles or some such.

Multiple intelligences almost certainly do not exist, but our 4-5 school appears to be hiring P.D. types to tell everyone they do.

So here's a thread about Dan Willingham's on teacher.net teacher who's just read Dan Willingham's Do Visual, Auditory, and Kinesthetic Learners Need Visual, Auditory, and Kinesthetic Instruction?

    Harbinger
    Here is a link to a very interesting article from The
    American Educator regarding modalities and what cognitive
    science really tells us.

    It "addresses why the idea of tailoring instruction to a
    student's best modality is so enduring‚ despite substantial
    evidence that it is wrong."

    LL
    Fantastic article. I agree and support it fully. Thanks
    for sharing research-based findings that TRULY are based in
    scientific research.

    thanks for it!
    What a great article - I don't have the courage to give it out in my
    school but the sense that it makes is beautiful....


Is this the world teachers work in?

Would it actually take courage to hand out an article appearing in American Educator?


it's always worse than you think

I hadn't read the next post in the thread when I asked those questions.

Here it is:

LL
I think you're missing an important point! NO ONE is saying
that kids don't need to move during the day. That's common
sense and should be done. The problem comes in when people make
grandeose claims and state fraudulent (or non-existant) research
extrapolating benefits of movement to creating expensive
programs requiring specific movements, hiring trainers to teach
them, and implying that these can fix learning disorders.

That is the problem. Movement is great! Marketing the "sale"
of movement to get rich off of those who don't understand
research and only believe hype and testimonials is unconcionable.

5 comments:

Barry Garelick said...

Ed school is the place where discredited and discarded psychological theories thrive.

Catherine Johnson said...

You're going to have to keep us posted on your textbooks, etc.

We need a COMPLETE LIST.

Instructivist said...

MI and learning styles practiced and inculcated through PD in schools is more evidence of the influence of ed schools in schools that JM doesn't see.

A classic on the absurdity of MI is a New Republic article by James Traub. It's now almost ten years old but still great fun to read. I have it hidden in the Memory Hole section of my site. http://instructivist-archives.blogspot.com/2005/03/multiple-intelligences.html

Regarding courage needed to hand out American Educator articles, I must have been courageous in ed school when I gave a presentation in a language arts methods class on Hirsch's AE article on the fourth grade slump.

It was actually well received by everybody, maybe even gratefully so. It took no courage.

Catherine Johnson said...

Why do you suppose this teacher said that?

It's possible she's talking about parents of disabled children pinning their hopes on treatments.

That would make sense.

Teachers (& therapists etc.) have to be incredibly delicate when it comes to dashing hopes, etc.

"Courage" isn't really the right word, but if that's what she's talking about she's right to hesitate.

Catherine Johnson said...

Can't wait to read Traub!