mel jacobson on thu 18 mar 10
for my entire life, in the classroom, activities or coaching i had one
mantra.
`you can be exceptional`
same for building a kiln, making pots or painting as an adult.
work for being `exceptional`.
group learning is for the birds.
cooperation and coop learning is for the birds.
learn to direct yourself, yes, help others..but
learning is your responsibility.
how often do we see the exceptional ones doing all the work.
being exceptional is your responsibility.
when you achieve that goal, teaching others is a snap.
hay creek is about `adult shared learning`. it does not mean
the folks there are not personally exceptional.
to be state champion takes dedicated work...and a coach
that believes in exceptional behavior. going beyond
the group, beyond the others. when they place the gold medal around
your neck, well you have been exceptional. you earned it.
those that want everyone to get the same medal have no idea what
it takes to be exceptional....they cheat them, they fool them, then
all of a sudden they understand...`i do not deserve this medal`.
`maybe i can earn one some day.` folks are not stupid.
well, anyway....that is what i believe.
and, man does it work. when you teach it, they excel.
they get to earn their medal.
being all happy, giddy and being all the same is for the birds.
makes me puckey.
mel
from: minnetonka, mn
website: http://www.visi.com/~melpots/
clayart link: http://www.visi.com/~melpots/clayart.html
new book: http://www.21stcenturykilns.com
Beth Donovan on thu 18 mar 10
Mel,
Gosh, I just love your thoughts on this! LOVE IT!
Beth
-----Original Message-----
From: Clayart [mailto:Clayart@LSV.CERAMICS.ORG] On Behalf Of mel jacobson
Sent: Thursday, March 18, 2010 5:30 PM
To: Clayart@LSV.CERAMICS.ORG
Subject: schools a thought
for my entire life, in the classroom, activities or coaching i had one
mantra.
`you can be exceptional`
same for building a kiln, making pots or painting as an adult.
work for being `exceptional`.
group learning is for the birds.
cooperation and coop learning is for the birds.
learn to direct yourself, yes, help others..but
learning is your responsibility.
how often do we see the exceptional ones doing all the work.
being exceptional is your responsibility.
when you achieve that goal, teaching others is a snap.
hay creek is about `adult shared learning`. it does not mean
the folks there are not personally exceptional.
to be state champion takes dedicated work...and a coach
that believes in exceptional behavior. going beyond
the group, beyond the others. when they place the gold medal around
your neck, well you have been exceptional. you earned it.
those that want everyone to get the same medal have no idea what
it takes to be exceptional....they cheat them, they fool them, then
all of a sudden they understand...`i do not deserve this medal`.
`maybe i can earn one some day.` folks are not stupid.
well, anyway....that is what i believe.
and, man does it work. when you teach it, they excel.
they get to earn their medal.
being all happy, giddy and being all the same is for the birds.
makes me puckey.
mel
from: minnetonka, mn
website: http://www.visi.com/~melpots/
clayart link: http://www.visi.com/~melpots/clayart.html
new book: http://www.21stcenturykilns.com
Carol Casey on fri 19 mar 10
Ditto
Carol
Canary Court
On Thu, Mar 18, 2010 at 6:54 PM, Beth Donovan wrote:
> Mel,
>
>
> Gosh, I just love your thoughts on this! LOVE IT!
>
> Beth
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Clayart [mailto:Clayart@LSV.CERAMICS.ORG] On Behalf Of mel jacobson
> Sent: Thursday, March 18, 2010 5:30 PM
> To: Clayart@LSV.CERAMICS.ORG
> Subject: schools a thought
>
> for my entire life, in the classroom, activities or coaching i had one
> mantra.
> `you can be exceptional`
> same for building a kiln, making pots or painting as an adult.
> work for being `exceptional`.
> group learning is for the birds.
> cooperation and coop learning is for the birds.
> learn to direct yourself, yes, help others..but
> learning is your responsibility.
>
> how often do we see the exceptional ones doing all the work.
>
> being exceptional is your responsibility.
> when you achieve that goal, teaching others is a snap.
>
> hay creek is about `adult shared learning`. it does not mean
> the folks there are not personally exceptional.
>
> to be state champion takes dedicated work...and a coach
> that believes in exceptional behavior. going beyond
> the group, beyond the others. when they place the gold medal around
> your neck, well you have been exceptional. you earned it.
>
> those that want everyone to get the same medal have no idea what
> it takes to be exceptional....they cheat them, they fool them, then
> all of a sudden they understand...`i do not deserve this medal`.
> `maybe i can earn one some day.` folks are not stupid.
>
> well, anyway....that is what i believe.
> and, man does it work. when you teach it, they excel.
> they get to earn their medal.
> being all happy, giddy and being all the same is for the birds.
> makes me puckey.
> mel
>
> from: minnetonka, mn
> website: http://www.visi.com/~melpots/
> clayart link: http://www.visi.com/~melpots/clayart.html.com/%7Emelpots/clayart.html>
> new book: http://www.21stcenturykilns.com
>
Arnold Howard on fri 19 mar 10
From: "mel jacobson"
> group learning is for the birds.
> cooperation and coop learning is for the birds.
> learn to direct yourself, yes, help others..but
> learning is your responsibility.
Discipline is the key to Mel's idea above, and it comes from
within. It cannot be forced from without. Kids will not find
discipline until they find an exciting goal. Look at the
hours of devotion they spend to master a video game or
electric guitar.
I learned this idea of discipline years ago when I taught
karate in a Dallas elementary school. Test scores there were
way below the state average. So, the school accepted the
karate program thinking that it would instill discipline in
"at risk" youth.
It was an interesting experiment in education. All sixth
graders had to take karate, which requires tremendous
discipline. Most of them hated karate and resented the
practice. The main instructor, my supervisor, yelled like an
army sergeant to make them obey. Many students had powerful
leg muscles, but not from karate practice. It was from doing
hundreds of deep knee bends as punishment for disobedience
such as refusing to wear a karate uniform.
The result? Less overall discipline than before. The program
had no effect on the schoolyard bullies or the delinquents
heading for gangs. The only kids who gained from the program
were those who loved karate and trained not only in our
regular classes but also in our after-school classes and at
home. Karate had an amazing effect on them. I imagine it
changed their lives.
Sincerely,
Arnold Howard
Paragon Industries, L.P., Mesquite, Texas USA
ahoward@paragonweb.com / www.paragonweb.com
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