Enlightened Conflict

the right to an education

October 15th, 2012

“I have the right of education,” Malala said in a 2011 interview

I was tempted to call this ‘someone has to be the first’ <and will explain later>.

Probably because I can’t watch news 24/7 I missed the original interview but since its being replayed I can finally give it its due.

Here is the true shame.

I didn’t become aware of it until something <really> bad happened. This is about the 14 year old Pakistani girl, Malala Yousufzai, who was shot when a Taliban gunman walked up to a school bus, yes, a bus full of children going home from school, and shot her in the head and neck. Another girl and a teacher were also injured in this attack.

Why was she shot?

Because Malala Yousufzai threatened the Taliban existence.

How could a 14 year old girl threaten the Taliban?

By advocating overcoming ignorance through education to empower more enlightened individual choices (now everyone knows why I am writing about this).

Yes. This implies the existence of the Taliban depends on ignorance.

Okay.

Before I get to the point of what I want to say you should see the interview if you have not.

Malala Yousufzai is a young girl. A daughter I believe we all would be quite proud to call our own <wherever you live>. She is wise beyond her years as she tells us about hope and dreams. In a way, and in words, any of us can grasp.

Malala has made a stand in Pakistan <and that area of the world> for education, progress and the advancement of all children of all ages. Her interview is worth watching even if you don’t care about what I want to say.

CNN interview: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9hHgPFBDeh0

Now.

Women’s human rights advocates will come out of the woodwork saying she is a martyr for women’s/girl’s rights (by the way … just to be clear … I am a supporter of women’s rights). But I wish they would take a step back and prioritize. This young lady is first and foremost a martyr in the fight against ignorance.

She is not anti taliban (per se) she is pro informed choice.

That said … it is sad we need a martyr at all with regard to this issue. Yet, sometimes we do, not only to fully embrace the seriousness of an issue … but it is proof that someone has to go first.

I am not implying in any way that the majority of people who know what is right are sheep but rather it is a fact that not everyone has the DNA to go first. I like leaders. I advocate leadership. But I tell young kids in school that just because they don’t lead, or go first, doesn’t mean they are weak or a failure or even a coward.

I tell them they can only be judged by their ultimate actions. The when and the where of the actions are less important than the fact you may actually have taken action.

But, in the end, on the really big issues, the tough ones, someone has to go first.

Many influential people will now step out into the spotlight and try to nudge the cause forward. I am glad they are doing so (albeit I would love all of them be aligned behind education as a human right). But Malala will be truly measured by the actions of her peers … the true measure of action is the actions of the youth.

A generation hungry for knowledge.

A generation focused on enlightened decision making.

We adults should never lose sight of the fact that under any indifference we may perceive within today’s youth, there is a fire.

If we attempt to extinguish that fire I can guarantee you they will act. In fact I believe we will see this as this story and message spreads.

This young lady is certainly become a focal point on the right to get an education in that part of the globe. But, we in the west should not be putting the boundaries of this issue just geographically there. This young lady is a reminder to all of us that EVERY child everywhere deserves an education. And while in her case the point of education would be so someone could make an informed choice with regard to the Taliban. It is also a point that we want all of our children to make informed choices on all important issues – religious choices, political choices, economic choices and life choices and … well … joining any organization called the Taliban or not.

A well educated population may become more centrist (a balance of choices) but you would have to assume it moderates divisiveness in some aspects. Extremism, of any kind and situation, is typically a reflection of some choice full ignorance. I abhor all extremism because of this self-imposed ignorance aspect.

And I cannot think of anything more effective in combating that then education at a young age.

A side note <albeit an important one>.

I would like to point out <just in case anyone may be misguided on this issue> Islam is not the one in disgrace in this situation. It is the Taliban. And they are not the same.

Islam is a traditional religion of peace and an extreme minority, the Taliban, has committed this act by twisting and, ultimately tainting, the essence of Islam.

I would hope that the true Islamic people will step forward and deal with this issue.

Anyway.

Malala. The fact that she is articulate, has a wonderful courage of her convictions, and outlines a concise vision of equal rights, education and opportunity clearly drives the point home for all of us to think about.

And … because someone has to go first … and she did.

It reminded me of something that the great Russian writer Lermentov wrote in one of his novels:

“We can no longer make great sacrifices for the good of mankind or even for our own happiness, because we know it is unattainable; and as our ancestors plunged on from illusion to illusion, so we drift indifferently from doubt to doubt. Only unlike them we have no hope, nor even that indefinable but real sense of pleasure that is felt in any struggle, be it with man or with destiny.”

Lermontov wrote this because he rejected this idea … and in the novel he had his hero, Pechorin, reject this passivity and, in fact, Malala rejected this idea.

As do I.

And I do not believe I am in the minority in this belief.

My point?

We should not seek to drift indifferently from doubt to doubt.

global citizens

October 2nd, 2012

“… mobilise thousands of ambassadors for change. We’ll unite around a simple yet powerful idea: that by giving every child a chance to thrive, our generation can end extreme poverty.” - the Global Citizen website

Global citizenship is a big concept but I am going to focus on the UN Millennium Goals and the recent Global Citizens Festival in Central Park.

I probably should have made this into 3 separate posts but I just watched the festival and wrote out all my thoughts into 3 sections:

- Global festival music

- Global festival presentations

- Global Citizen poverty & education Initiative

Global citizenship is pretty self-explanatory … it is a basic premise is that people all over the world should come together as one and practice justice, equality, diversity and a mutual respect for the earth & its population. In the UN’s words:

- Development and poverty eradication – We will spare no effort to free our fellow men, women and children from the abject and dehumanizing conditions of extreme poverty, to which more than a billion of them are currently subjected. We are committed to making the right to development a reality for everyone and to freeing the entire human race from want. We resolve therefore to create an environment – at the national and global levels alike – which is conducive to development and to the elimination of poverty.

The eight Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), agreed on by world leaders at a UN summit in 2000, set specific targets on poverty alleviation, education, gender equality, child and maternal health, environmental stability, HIV/AIDS reduction, and a ‘Global Partnership for Development.’

If you are not aware of the Millennium Development Goals take a minute and visit the following sites. The first outlines the specific Goals as well as does a very nice job outlining the pragmatic steps to address them and a report of performance to date <some businesses could learn a lesson with regard to how they do this> and the second link is the formal declaration itself.

UN Development Programme: http://www.undp.org/content/undp/en/home/mdgoverview.html

United Nations Millennium Declaration: http://www.un.org/millennium/declaration/ares552e.pdf

Before I get to thoughts inspired by the festival let me say one thing.

I imagine the everyday person probably has no clue what the United Nations actually does <in a practical sense> as well as wonders about its value … and both are a shame in different ways.

If nothing else the Millennium Development Goals should explain the value of the United Nations. Please. Please take a minute and look.

I am not asking you to actually take action other than read. Because awareness of issues is half the battle. And, who knows, you may find one of their goal initiatives is something you have a passion.

Okay.

The Global Citizen festival in Central Park. Beyond the fact I want one of their incredibly cool tshirts there were some things to note. Some fun things, some practical things and some inspirational/aspirational things. Here you go.

global citizen music

The concert was scheduled around the meeting of the United Nations General Assembly in New York City. I was really impressed by how the organizers used an innovative approach to ticket distribution so that many of the concert-goers had no choice but to learn about the global citizen issues/initiatives such as polio, child mortality, education and clean drinking water. The neat idea was that anyone wanting free tickets had to register at globalcitizen.org, which then required users to watch videos or read information about poverty-related issues. Each time material was clicked-on, users could earn points toward a drawing for tickets. Points were also accumulated by sharing information via Twitter or Facebook. Well done. Very well done.

It all added up to five hours this past Saturday in New York City’s Central Park with 60,000 people – and more using a web and television simulcast — in an effort to draw attention and action to the cause of eradicating extreme poverty around the world.

There were not a lot of bands at the Festival but the ones who played killed it. Just killed it. I know that bands have off nights and other nights when they are on … and all were on this night.

The acts were silent about the cause but in their short, maybe one hour, sets <or less> they just ran off a strong of really well performed songs.

Four songs from Band of Horses provided some surprisingly grunge/crunchy guitar rootsy music. Very well done. Then the Black Keys. I am not a huge Black Keys fan but when they burned their way through fourteen songs in fifty minutes they made me rethink how I felt about their music. They were tight … really tight. They were so tight I wondered whether the Foo Fighters could maintain the quality level.

Well. Now that I have seen The Foos live I know they are good. But they absolutely killed it, killed it, in their set. They had their full line up <supposedly because there are claims this was their last performance> and they kept their heads down in a no-frills straight forward alt-rock in your face guitar onslaught and just frickin’ rocked the place.

This was a nice rendition of Times like These: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=abt8Z8dcPdM

The festival closed with Neil Young & Crazy Horse who gave a characteristically ornery performance basically just coming out and playing as if there were no audience. But, as he and Crazy Horse blistered their way through Powderfinger, I was reminded how much I loved Neil with Crazy Horse. While most people believe their first album together, “everybody knows this is nowhere” was their best album my favorite remains Zuma <with Cortex the Killer on it>.

And when they performed “The Needle and the Damage Done” the set became an instant classic.

Great music for a great cause.

And, most likely, because of the format with long presentations as the sets were traded out, is the reason why the artists did their thing without a lot of preaching.

Their job was to entertain and they did.

If you didn’t watch you missed some excellent live music performances.

global citizen speakers

So.

If I were a betting man I would bet I was the only one who watched all the speakers during the simulcast <excepting the guys who managed the speaker’s microphones>.

In between the roughly hour-long sets by the headliners, there were dozens of speakers from foundations, charities, and corporations. The speakers also included celebrities like Olivia Wilde, Selena Gomez, Sophia Bush and Katharine McPhee. They also used videos, highlighting the wide range of poverty-related causes from malaria and polio to education and maternal health, to introduce the speaker topics.

Really well done.

Okay. The videos were really well done <I will post when they become available>.

The speeches? Well. It was a mixed bag. And, of course it reminded me of a variety of things with regard to presenting.

But let me begin with the best presenter.

And she is only 20 years old.

Selena Gomez speaking on behalf of UNICEF was outstanding. Better than the 40something+’s speaking at other times and pretty much everyone else.

She communicated passion without ever raising her voice, was clear & succinct and delightfully mature.

Selena Gomez: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GnDI0COPfC4

Well.

I seriously doubt any older speaker will ever watch this video <despite the fact they should> because a young person could never teach them anything … and that is a shame. But, having said that, please make sure if you have a tween or teen you show it to them. I know I will use her, and this speech, as an example to young people in the future.

60000 people <not really there to listen to speeches>, in an outside environment with a global web & television simulcast and with no ‘uhms’ or colloquialisms she was herself <probably the number one defense someone uses for presentation colloquial mistakes> and delivered what she had to say in a quite understandable way.

I cannot name one song she has ever sung or any movie she has ever been in but I now know she can present.

Regardless.

All the presenters reminded me of how difficult it is to present to a group of people.

All presentations really can get boiled down into 2 important aspects:

- Figure out what you want to say

- Figure out how you want to say it

All the other mumbo jumbo on ‘tricks to effective presenting’ is irrelevant if you don’t figure out these two things. In fact, I would argue you could throw away all the presentation books if you figure these two things out.

What you want to say sounds simple but it is not. Because inevitably you get caught up in ALL the things you want to say, prioritizing what you want to say and getting what you want to say down on paper <or whatever format you elect to organize the presentation>.

All I can say for sure is that you need to put it in a document or a script. Without it you cannot edit. And without editing <unless you are Bill Clinton> you are screwed on the second aspect.

Next.

Figuring out how you want to say it.

Okay. Let me tell you a truth, a fact, a ‘something no one really wants to hear.’ 99% of the time what you just figured out to say will sound like crap if you just read it as a presentation. Maybe 99.9% of the time. Writing & speaking are two different skills. They may be derivatives of each other but one typically does not translate directly to the other.

There were presenters at this festival who were obviously reading their presentation script off a teleprompter <which is a skill in itself by the way> and it sounded obviously stilted and in some cases like it was the first time they had heard these words out loud. Thankfully for them most of the 60,000 were either looking for a Port-a-Pottie, seeking a beer stand or cheering for the next band to take the stage. However … I watched. It was disappointing.

And the issue wasn’t because they were reading a script <another complaint young people throw around when arguing they want to be ‘natural’ when presenting>. It was the script they were reading. They wrote something that sounded good in their head when they read it … but sounded stupid when actually saying it. By the way … that is why rehearsing is important <what happens between aspect 1 and aspect 2>.

Why does this shit happen? Well. Let me give you 4 thoughts <beyond the obvious lack of rehearsing>:

- Forced rules of behavior

All the things I am going to type drive me crazy but maybe this one the most. These are the ‘rules’ like … you cannot stand still, or you have to move, or you can’t have your hands in your pockets, or … well … just go ahead and pick up a ‘how to’ presentation book … they will list all the ‘don’t rules’.

Nuts.

I just say ‘nuts’ to that.

Selena Gomez has her hands in her cardigan pockets just stepping up to the microphone and delivered. No one cared she wasn’t using her hands. Why? Because they were listening to what she had to say. As a generalization all the ‘how to present’ rules are stupid. If you have something good to say, and you say it in a compelling, believable, likeable way, the rest of the stuff just gets in the way. It’s all about the message. If you know, and like, your message just deliver it in as comfortable a ‘behavior’ style you want.

Nuts to all the book rules.

- Forced passion

This one drives me nuts too. It’s kind of like speaking with exclamation points hoping the exclamation points travel through the ether between you and your audience and pricks them in the ass to make them stand up and yell “hell yeah!”

Some people shout. Some people create sentences which they purposefully amplify the end. Some people shake a fist, or pound a table or make some ‘exclamatory’ gesture just so everyone knows they are passionate about whatever they are talking about. Sometimes they don’t really want to but someone suggests “show them you are passionate” and … well … the wheels start to fall of the good presentation wagon.

Well. It’s all forced.

And it’s a shame because most presenters are actually passionate about something related to their topic. And they don’t need to be overt to communicate it. They just need to share their passion in whatever way they exude it.

Selena Gomez? I had no doubt in my mind she was passionate. And all she did was talk. She said how she felt and what she believed. And you know what? I believed her. And I may have actually gone to my computer and done something if I wasn’t stupefied/mortified by the guy who took the microphone from her and tried to ‘infuse energy’ into the discussion <most likely because he didn’t feel like she was ‘energetic’ enough>.

Here is the bottom line. If you care, it will show. You need not tell someone you are passionate. In fact … here you go, a rule. Never say in a presentation, meeting or discussion … “I am passionate about ‘x’.” Prove it without ever saying it.

- Forced relevance <or forced theme>

I almost split this into two but they are just two sides of the same coin. In an attempt to make their topic relevant to either the audience or the environment <you can choose either> a presenter can go to some fairly absurd lengths.

They can use a joke which isn’t really relevant until you explain why.

Or you can do what an Australian presenter did by featuring a Men at Work <because she & they were Australian and she was speaking at a concert> lyric and stealing a word to thematically build energy to encourage people to act <”just like Men at Work said … they should hear our thunder!”>.

Well, let me say this, 99% of the time if you are using a joke or come up with some forced relevance it means you are working too hard. Go back to the simple first aspect and think about what it is you want to say. If it isn’t compelling or understandable, a joke or forced metaphor or forced semi-topical linkage isn’t going to help. In fact it can hurt. How? Because it is extraneous. And extraneous things and activity tugs the audience away from what you really want them to remember and say. I don’t usually get aggravated over this one instead I just get frustrated that the speaker doesn’t trust the topic is interesting enough, and it can be presented interestingly enough, to simply present it.

At the end of the concert I guess I was just surprised how bad <overall> the speakers were. Having never spoken at an outdoor festival <but I have been on the stage itself> I cannot imagine the level of nervousness standing in front of that microphone. My guess is your first inclination is to shout to be heard <thank god musicians learn that they do not have to very early on> and get thrown a little bit by the fact 90% of the audience is obviously, noisily, doing anything but listening to you. But that is no excuse for the level of performance.

Excepting Selena. She stood out. Very well done.

global citizen education

I left this to last because of all the Millennium Goals they discussed at the festival this is the one nearest and dearest to my heart – global children’s education.

<and I will update this post with the UN video on poverty & education when it becomes available because it is very well done>.

First.

Some numbers:

Total number of people that live on less than $2.50 a day 3 Billion

Total percent of World Populations that live where income differentials are widening 80%

Number of Children that live in Poverty 1 billion

Total Number of children that die each day due to Poverty 22,000

Total Number of School Days lost to Water Related Illness 443 million school days

Children around the world who are presently being denied an education 67 million

Total number of Americans that live on less than $23,050 annually <family of four> 46 million

Poverty & education is not just your country’s issue but also a global issue.

If you would like to read more about Children Out of School visit my post:

http://brucemctague.com/global-generation-10-115-million-children-out-of-school

Second.

I am always pleased when people recognize that education can play a crucial role in alleviating poverty. Because I believe most of the people in the West associate a ‘broken education system’ as the key issue and not poverty. When a community, in any part of the world, is living in poverty or even simply struggling economically, it is often the first thing to be overlooked.

In unstable living environments and communities education can often take a back seat as the health and safety of families takes priority, and rightly so, but this doesn’t mean that education should be ignored.

Today’s world doesn’t really have the time nor space for workers who cannot ‘read, write, and do arithmetic’ as well as find and use resources, frame and solve problems with other people and continually learn new technologies. Realistically the education challenge facing the United States is not that its schools are not as good as they once were but rather that schools must help the vast majority of young people reach levels of skill and competence once thought within the reach of only a few <and hopefully also opening minds to the ideals of a just and civil society>. When looked at his way the issue is similar everywhere globally.

But before you can even talk about teaching, or lessons, you need to discuss access and ability to attend.

Richer developed countries, where people are most able to afford to send their kids to school, provide an education at least through secondary school for free (some through university) yet poor countries that are full of people living at closer to poverty levels charge a fee for at least secondary school if not primary school as well.

For those of us in places like the US or UK going to school is a normal part of life, yet, for kids growing up in many developing countries, going to school is a luxury reserved primarily for those living above the poverty line. For instance in Pakistan, almost half of children from poor households are not in school, compared to only 5% of children from the richest households (UNESCO).

For those families living in poverty whose kids are in school, further barriers continue to stand in their way. Many rural villages lack access to schools. This leaves communities to either create makeshift schools in their homes, old buildings or in open spaces with unqualified community members stepping in as teachers, or to send their children to walk long distances to and from the nearest school each day, or to simply not send them anywhere at all.

These are just two factors that contribute to the 67 million children around the world who are presently being denied their basic human right of receiving an education, 95% of whom live in developing countries.

For those lucky children who manage to make it into a classroom, many of them are still leaving without a good education. The 2011 Education For All (EFA) Global Monitoring Report reveals that millions of children in low-income countries are leaving primary school with reading, writing, and numeracy levels far below what is expected for their age group. Overcrowded classrooms, lack of teachers, high teacher absences, and lack of teaching materials are a few of the circumstances that contribute to problems we see in places like Pakistan where nearly two in three rural school children (aged 6-16) cannot read a basic story (March for Education).

Without providing a good education for these kids in developing countries to equip them with the skills and qualifications they need to be able to get a decent paying job, we risk the chance of trapping them in a never-ending cycle of poverty.

In addition it deprives the global community of a rich intellectual entrepreneurial/innovation opportunity.

While I don’t necessarily agree with HOW they are going about addressing this issue I absolutely 100% agree it is a key issue that needs to be addressed. Therefore in this case I believe any action is better than none.

Speaking of ‘good actions’, I am not sure this is part of the UN initiative, but I really like his program Credit Suisse is doing. It is extremely pragmatic but in its pragmatism it ‘drags’ the basics <reading, comprehension, critical thinking, and arithmetic … even ‘working well with others’ values> through the process. I may steal it <use it> as an example of what I envisioned as the ‘on-the-ground’ aspect of Project Global Generation.

Regardless. Here is a short video of the Credit Suisse Global Citizenship Education program: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r_potMotM9M

Anyway.

There is a great paper written by some professor <I am not good at sourcing> who pointed out some things about the education system relevant to any education system but particularly relevant as we think about poverty-stricken areas:

In the united states <and most western countries I would assume> our public schools have evolved historically as organizations serving two potentially conflicting purposes: to educate citizens and to process them into roles for economic production. To accomplish the first, schools have the role of supplying students with information and with learning skills. The results can be unpredictable because children’s intellects and skills develop in ways that we cannot predetermine. For the second goal, schools process students through stratified steps leading to predictable, marketable credentials for the workplace. The steps, and some of the outcomes, can be managed, controlled. Thus the school is organized to be in conflict with itself.

In the context of global social responsibility, the issues of livelihood and work need to be examined. We in the industrial world associate survival with employment. This association is being forced on other cultures as the global economy establishes dominance. But we must not forget that employment for survival is a relatively recent concept. It has not always been this way, and there are still parts of the world where survival is not based on working for someone seeking a profit from the labor of others. The conflicting educational purposes of jobs vs. citizenship can be alleviated if we encourage students to consider the social and environmental impact of the work they do. Jobs need not be about extraction, devastation, pollution, over-consumption or exploitation. It is important to remember that for thousands of years humans lived with sustainable relationships to nature and only spent a few hours of every day for their own subsistence. One of the purposes of technology was to save labor. By doing so, technology has been used to eliminate people’s livelihood, i.e. their jobs. Instead, it could be used to simply reduce the amount of time people have to work to support themselves and their families.

I admit I partially included this because I do believe the use of technology in education inherently can reduce to the amount of time to educate <thereby increasing the amount of time needed to survive> and ultimately reduce the amount of time people have to work to support themselves <and increases the amount of time to family>.

Last thoughts.

Poverty is a tough issue for people to practically grasp <easy in concept>. Mainly because, to many, it is so far beyond the simple “have” versus ‘have not.” Unless you actually understand what life in poverty truly is it becomes very easy to misconstrue the true issues with regard to education.

What I do not believe is difficult to grasp is that education is a strong weapon to kill the poverty cycle many families get stuck in. and, once out of poverty, these young minds become productive global citizens.

Selfishly … I hope we solve this poverty problem so these young minds can save us older people from what we have currently wrought.

Sorry for the long post … I probably should have broken it up but hopefully you found something in here worthwhile.

katy perry’s message to teens

May 30th, 2012

“Do you know that there’s still a chance for you, cause there’s a spark in you”

“you’re original, cannot be replaced”

“It’s always been inside of you, and now it’s time to let it through, cause baby you’re a firework, come on show ‘em what your worth” – Katy Perry “Firework.”

Before I get to Katy Perry and her song Firework <and why I am writing about Katy> let me begin with the fact I try and define musicians based on three factors.

- How bad is their really bad work.

- The songs that are just songs.

- What they do with the few opportunities to make a difference with those special songs.

Some artists never get in the third category. And we shouldn’t underrate category 2. Sometimes a musician creates a great hook. A great lyrical chorus. Just a great fun song. And we should give them credit for not only generating it but not trying to make it anything other than what it is (for example – Sheryl Crow’s all I wanna be is just a great fun song … but she didn’t waste the opportunity to do something good and say something meaningful with “strong enough“…another well written song).

Regardless.

This is about Katy Perry.

And you may just think she is a wacky eccentric sickly sweet pop queen but, while I do not know her personally, I think she is more than that.

Being a musician is tough. Sometimes you have a schtick <persona> you build for marketing yourself and it begins to overshadow the music … and the message.

In situations like that … category 3 of my criteria becomes really really important … not just to lil ole me but to the artist.

Because someone like Katy Perry has an incredible platform to do … well … something good. Make an impact on a shitload of young people who are hanging on every note and word she sings and says.

So we should measure someone like Katy Perry on those moments.

And I have to tell you … she measures up really well if you do that.

Her song “Firework” is an amazing message to every teen out there.

Yeah. I am serious.

The lyrics are empowering. The video is relatable.

This version of Firework is from a charity event <despite the fact it says Grammy’s>. First of all I give her HUGE credit for how she changed her typically wacky schtick to make it appropriate for her audience and the event and, secondly, just take a second, even if you don’t like her or the song, and watch the audience. If you don’t believe a musician can make a real impact after seeing this I will never be able to convince you.

Firework live at event: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l-ilyCH7C7A

Ok.

The actual video.

Relatable.

Each kid shown suffers some self esteem … insecurity driven real life situation <yeah … she could have done without the cancer victim but I will overlook it as creative cinematic license>. Each kid not only has captured the loneliness but also the lack of hope associated with being different (or thinking you are different).

The lyrics are pretty simple … just reminding kids that they all have something special inside of no matter how badly they may feel about themselves.

It’s a little thing but she avoids the obvious ‘spark inside’ but rather goes for it … goes for the big message … that we all have fireworks inside to share if we let it out.

Here is the official video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QGJuMBdaqIw&ob=av2e

The video gets joked about because there is a scene where it looks like her rather spectacular chest is shooting fireworks <of which I would personally have fired the video director for screwing up what should have been an empowering scene and it turns out to be a joke that makes people overlook the bigger issue> but the entire video supports the idea that we all have fireworks within. Fireworks burst from the kids as the light inside them becomes free for all to see.

A doubly good message.

Each kid is overcoming insecurities.

Each kid is letting themselves ‘shine.’

Symbolically I love the end.

With fireworks bursting from all the children it implies an entire generation, all kids, can light the sky and make a difference. Empowering for not only individuals but also the entire generation <well done Katy>.

Am I giving her too much credit? Hmmmmmmmmmmmm … I don’t think so.

At her acceptance speech at some award show (I cannot keep track of them all) for Firework she simply says “thank you, I am really proud of this.” <plus … I will always give kudos to Katie for bringing her grandmother – her own Grammy – to the Grammys … good sense of humor and kind of a once in a lifetime treat for her ‘grammy’ who got to wear versace>.

She knew exactly what she was doing. She knew exactly what her opportunity was. She knew exactly what she accomplished.

She took the opportunity to give kids some perspective. And they were very thoughtful in the way they did it in the video … no kid in the video ever changes physically … cured of anything or becoming thinner or changing … it is simply accepting who they are. That the obstacle isn’t external but internal.

Gotta tell ya.

That’s a pretty good message to be sharing with kids.

It’s actually a pretty good message not just to teens but Katy knows exactly who listens to her music, who watches her videos … and who she can communicate with.

Is she Robert Frost or even Hemingwayesque? Certainly not.

Is it a fun song with a great message? Certainly yes.

“let your colors burst” … thank you Katy.

accepting for Firework

Probably doesn’t matter to you but you have my respect. Well done.

Most of Firework lyrics:

Do you ever feel, feel so paper thin

Like a house of cards

One blow from caving in

Do you ever feel already buried deep

Six feet under scream

But no one seems to hear a thing

Do you know that there’s still a chance for you

Cause there’s a spark in you

You just gotta unite the light

And let it shine

Just own the night

Like the Fourth of July

Cause baby you’re a firework

Come on show ‘em what your worth

Baby you’re a firework

Come on let your colors burst

Make ‘em go “Oh, oh, oh!”

You’re gonna leave ‘em fallin’ down-own-own

You don’t have to feel like a waste of space

You’re original, cannot be replaced

If you only knew what the future holds

After a hurricane comes a rainbow

Maybe you’re reason why all the doors are closed

So you can open one that leads you to the perfect road

Like a lightning bolt, your heart will blow

And when it’s time, you’ll know

You just gotta unite the light

And let it shine

Just own the night

Like the Fourth of July

Cause baby you’re a firework

Come on show ‘em what your worth

Make ‘em go “Oh, oh, oh!”

As you shoot across the sky-y-y

Baby you’re a firework

Come on let your colors burst

Make ‘em go “Oh, oh, oh!”

You’re gonna leave ‘em fallin’ down-own-own

Boom, boom, boom

Even brighter than the moon, moon, moon

It’s always been inside of you, you, you

And now it’s time to let it through

Cause baby you’re a firework

Come on show ‘em what your worth

Make ‘em go “Oh, oh, oh!”

As you shoot across the sky-y-y

Baby you’re a firework

Come on let your colors burst

project global generation enlightened update

March 6th, 2012

So.

Here is what I hope to do that will “echo in eternity.”

Project Global Generation.

I have updated project global generation, about 75+ pages of it, with sources including TED, The Economist, Time Magazine, multiple foreign education programs (including Singapore & Korea), PewResearch, UNESCO and additional research studies … all as best I can.

www.projectglobalgeneration.com

I would have had to rewrite complete posts if I wanted to eliminate all redundancy (and … sigh … I was not up to the task) so most articles were updated to insure they had the most up-to-date thoughts.

Why update now? Time magazine had two recent articles on web based education.

“… hopes that the internet can improve teaching may at last be bearing fruit” – Time Magazine (Flipping the Classroom) 9/17

“… many people now believe that the internet can make a real difference educating children.” – Time Magazine (The Great Schools Revolution) 9/17

Maybe I am not as nuts as I thought I was (at least with regard to this idea).

Since 2008 or 9 I have been writing about Project Global Generation – a web based global children’s education initiative (and I am probably done because re-reading everything I am not sure I can write anything new or prove why it is a good idea and it is the time to do it).

Most people thought the idea was nuts … okay … they just thought (a) teaching via web was not going to be effective <in school hands on teaching was best> and (2) it wasn’t practical to implement <they couldn’t envision how it could actually happen>.

Maybe some people don’t think it’s that nuts anymore.

Regardless. I still believe it is a good idea.

If you want everything from strategy underpinnings, rationale, specific tactics, implementation plan of action and real costs, the project global generation website has it all.

Read it if you are interested.

Forward it to anyone you believe would be interested in it.

And.

If this isn’t your thing … please … at minimum … be interested in kid’s education.

Someday we will be dependent on them.

So. Care now.

And.

If you elect to visit the site here is what you will find. Here is the table of contents:

- About Project Global Generation

The welcome to the site and why I created this idea/initiative.

- Table of contents and summary

If you read only one thing this would be it. Right here (this post is the contents/summary). A cliff notes version of everything you can find on the site.

- 1. global generation: dawn of enlightened individuality (the global generation)

using a variety of sources I outline what I believe the generation after the Millennials, called The Global Generation, will look like attitudinally and how they ‘fit’ in the cycle of generations.

- 1a. The global generation student: about their abilities & attitude

using a Fischler study and the Singapore Ministry of Education I try and overcome some misperceptions about the abilities and attitudes of a younger generation of students

- 2. global generation: a look at millennials (and why they are not the global generation)

in this post I take a deeper dive into why I believe the Millennials will end up facilitating the Global Generation opportunity and not be the generation that will impact education & enlightened conflict directly.

- 3. global generation: sociology & the internet platform

there are some inherent sociological benefits to a we based education initiative and in this post I outline them.

- 4. global generation: developing critical thinking skills

in this post I outline how the Global generation, facilitated by a web based program, will be the greatest critical thinking generation we have seen.

- 5. global generation: education messaging underpinnings

in this article I outline the specifics of what makes up the educational aspects (and what does not).

- 6. global generation: learning by lurking

in addition to the sociological benefits as outlined in GG 3 we have seen some possible improvements a web based model can offer to learning/education.

- 7. global generation: tactics & implementation

after outlining the thinking behind the initiative in this post I outline the specific tactics & costs.

- 8. global generation: the role of the web (versus existing education systems)

in this post I outline the benefits of using a web based model for education trying to explain why flipping the existing education model is better and more practical for the future generations

- global generation 9: measuring the initiative impact (attitudinally and global attendance)

now that I have outlined the thinking behind the program, the specific tactics & costs to implement I suggest measurement objectives and will also using the most recent UNESCO global education report I outline how the initiative will assist in reaching the UN Millennium goals.

- 10. global generation: more on impact – conflict & enlightenment

Using an article from The Economist I outline how the initiative impacts value systems

- 11. global generation: implementing a conflict prevention program

I compare the initiative against other existing global initiatives to outline how this initiative will be more effective than most other programs because it affects ongoing behavior as a ‘preventative’ initiative rather than a ‘intervention’ type program

- 12. global generation: not too close a link to human rights

I outline my thoughts that this initiative is an education program and not a Human rights program and part of its challenge is to not judge different cultural/governmental/religious systems but rather through education there is a high potential for a stronger tolerance of different views as the generation moves into adulthood.

Some additional conclusion thoughts:

- global generation finds a voice

A number of well known celebrities have stepped forward to discuss the importance of improving education globally. In this article I highlight the “free your mind” award and spectacularly articulated award speech from an unlikely source – Jared Leto of 30 Seconds to Mars

- Thomas Jefferson on Ignorance and Enlightened Conflict

using some Thomas Jefferson thoughts I leave you with some more philosophical ‘bigger picture’ things to ponder.

- me and my thoughts on conflict & people

just some last thoughts … because this is all about enlightened conflict anyway …

That’s it.

Oh. Why do I care?

“What we do in life echoes in eternity.”

Heapsongs

February 24th, 2012

So.

Imogene Heap continues to convince me she must be an incredibly interesting person in person … as well as a talented musician. And she just released another new song … from China.

Think of this:

Featured on TED (magical gloves <that capture sound through motion>).

Finds musical inspiration in almost absurd ways (newspaper printers).

Innovative thinker (YouGov).

Certainly not mainstream (I envision most people have no clue who she is). But certainly way ahead of what I would consider a global collaborative thinker (not just a musician).

First. The song.

Heap is working on her fourth cd. But she is going about it in a really interesting way … it is almost like sh is releasing each song as a “cd” as she rolls out the entre cd one-by-one. While the cd will be a collection of songs written and released individually two months apart each “Heapsong” is a story in itself. As I just said … each song is almost its own cd. People should be paying attention to is concept … REALLY paying attention. Because this may be the way of the future. Full length cds simply being a means to an end (a compilation of individual songs).

The newest song, the 5^th, she made in China and is called Xizi She Knows: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jgvAx2Bdt-o&ob=av2e

Ok. About the song (and another reason why I think she is one of the most innovative musicians out there today):

We went into a primary school class, where the children were doing their eye exercises, and the teacher giving them their instructions gave us our tempo. The sound of the newspaper printing presses – that became the beat. And we caught this woman who heads up this huge hill to a temple every day at sunrise and screams at the top of her lungs, so the sound of that is now in the middle section of the song.- Imogene Heap

Next.

She worked with YouGov to conduct a unique piece of research.

Imogen wanted to find out more about her fans by working with YouGov to write a tailored survey. Through it, she hoped to discover how her fans first came into contact with her work, when, how and why they enjoy her music, and what it is about Heap fans as individuals that mean they connect with her sound. It is a fascinating way to stay in touch with not only fan base but a larger base of what I would consider ‘global influencers’ or, at minimum, people who care about issues globally.

YouGov mapping of HeapFans

YouGov Heap: http://labs.yougov.co.uk/news/2012/02/14/imogen-heap-results/

Oh.

By the way.

Every one of my readers (because I assume they read because they like to explore new ideas and be involved in a worldview) should register with YouGov.

While it is certainly UK based it explores global issues as well as UK issues and is really well done. A very easy way to keep in touch with a variety of global issues (and some are serious and some are not).

Here is the registration site: https://labs.yougov.co.uk/account/register/

Next.

I love the fact she has made new technologies and social media integral to who she is and what she does … WITHOUT losing her individualism.

Heck. in 2010 she accepted her Grammy for the best engineered non-classical album (there are so many frickin’ grammy categories its nuts) wearing an interactive Twitter dress <yeah … interactive> specially-made to enable her to ‘bring’ her fans on stage with her.

And.

She has been featured on TED as assisting in the development of “magical gloves” which capture sounds in motion.

I love the fact she is recognizing the importance and functionality of social media as a vehicle for, and measure, of not only engagement but also the possibilities created through collaboration by constantly involving people with various projects.

I have written about her before an this 4^th cd but it us using an entirely new innovative approach to writing & recording by releasing one song every three months … because each song is basically being created through collaboration in a two-week song-composing flurry.

‘Lifeline’ and ‘Propeller Seeds’ were the first and second tracks created this way.

For ‘Propeller Seeds’, Imogen invited fans to share their moments of ‘clarity’ with her – namely, the times in their lives when “everything seemed to click” – to inspire her interpretation of this moment in her music.

Anyway.

Fascinating young lady.

And, from a bigger picture perspective, I believe her efforts and working style actually does more to encourage arts & music in people’s lives than any “music & arts is good” advertising initiative. She is involving people … and young people to see how music can be part of their lives.

Here is the Guardian article: http://www.guardian.co.uk/culture/2012/feb/23/30-minutes-with-imogen-heap#1

And if you ever wanted to be part of a song writing process … well … here is your chance. Her cd ain’t done yet.

Enjoy.

fearless & young people & hook in your head

February 23rd, 2012

“Guess I need to unhook these thoughts.”

- Throwing Muses lyric from ‘hook in your head’

Ok.

I began writing this to remind us that young people are smarter and more innovative than we give them credit for as well as we typically have to look to the youth for trends and what the horizon has in store for us (whether we like it or not).

Oh. And this is is also just a reminder to us old folk how short our memories are.

So I began this with lyrics from a Throwing Muses song because it was written by Kristen Hersh (maybe 20 at the time) and Tonya Donnelly (maybe 20 at the time). And I used music as an example because … well … that’s what I do.

Two young 20somethings from Rhode Island creating things that would influence musicians for decades.

That said. I will say that aging, getting older, is consistent.

We begin to doubt that which we believed in when we were younger.

So this is a reminder.

Since I read Rat Girl it has re-instilled my belief that the youth is our future.

And the early 90s provides some good proof. And the Throwing Muses are proof. And Kristen Hersh (and Tanya Donnelly who has made every band she has played in sound awesome … not only did she co-found Throwing Muses with stepsister Kristin Hersh but then went on to work in The Breeders and Belly).

Anyway.

Hook in your Head is proof.

The song isn’t for everyone.

But it is a spectacular piece of song writing. In its 6:30+ length it is kind of 3 different songs.

In my words … it is a “clean messy” song.

(definition: the constant incredibly hooky rolling bass and drum riff is clean allowing Tonya and Kristen to be spectacularly messy).

Hook in Her Head remains one of my favorite Throwing Muses songs of all time (and no it isn’t a real hook it is something that is just stuck, or hooked, in your head).

Certain things I love, Spend my time

I guess I’ll have to unhook those hooks

This woman literally

Felt she had a hook in her head

When I first heard the song I listened to it … and listened to it over and over. Typical of the Muses it was odd … a fusion of alternative sections in one song(within 6:32). It has a brilliant drum steadying it with an awesome rolling bass riff holding it together.

And all the rest is messy.

But it sounds messy great.

The song is “ridiculously intense” as one commenter suggests (this is a live version but an almost perfect rendition of what you would hear on The Real Ramona): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WcnDsTpO-CY&feature=related

And, most importantly, it is timeless (you could play this on any current alternative radio station I will guarantee multiple calls will come in asking who the heck the band was).

And they were teen-young 20’s defining a future sound.

Unpopular then? Sure.

Fearless ? Sure.

Young? You bet.

Old people hated it? Absolutely.

Acceptable today? It is what all alternative does and sounds like.

Truth? <as in “what can we learn” truth>

The youth are fearless and therefore, inevitably, they are influencers. Oh. Influencers of not only their own generation but of everyone.

At least everyone who pays attention.

At least to everyone who would quit bitching for “the good old days.”

And we shouldn’t forget it.

And any time us old folk do forget this I encourage you to go back to your youth and take a good hard look, and listen, and remind yourself.

And, frankly, we should remind ourselves more often.

Because too many of us are pretty frickin’ stubborn about today’s youth (and how irresponsible and immature we are so sure they are).

I have one suggestion for the old folk (say 40+).

Get your head out of your ass.

Young people are smart.

And they are innovative.

And, yeah, some of the innovations are aggravating … but we are supposed to be mature enough to delineate between “aggravating because it is simply aggravating” and “aggravating because now I am going to have to change.”

And, frankly, young people think of things we older people not only don’t – but can’t.

And if you ignore it or dismiss it (teen thinking) you are going to miss out on a lot.

Maybe worse?

You will have failed that generation. The young’s innovative thinking should be nurtured and fertilized like young plants that you want to blossom. For like flowers or trees they are the foliage that will line our horizons in the future.

If we kill their ideas our horizons will lie barren. Or worse. Our horizons will be lined in our ideas. And while we may be comforted in the sight of things we have created we are leaving nothing for future generations to look to on the horizon as their own.

(sorry … I felt kind of poetic as I banged away on the keys … ignore that bad imagery but accept the point … please)

Anyway.

Here is a thought for you as you think about today’s young people.

The Throwing Muses weren’t ahead of their time.

They were at their time.

But originality is often unpopular.

Play their music today and they would be a top 10 alternative band.

Does that mean they missed out? Nope.

Because they created. They were influential. They were a voice of the youth innovators of that generation.

Ignore the Throwing Muses music if you want.

But don’t ignore the youth.

Nurture the voices of this generation. Don’t mute them in your non understanding of what they say.

Just because originality is unpopular doesn’t mean we should discourage originality.

No matter what age the originality occurs.

Bottom line?

Unhook those thoughts from your head about young people.

voices of a generation

February 21st, 2012

Well.

This is about teens and what they are thinking and how the respond to reading <or claims they are not reading> and, frankly, a view from their perspective. And I am going to use their words. I am gonna use a lot of their words.

I am going to do this one in parts. First. A website dedicated to giving voice to teens globally. Second. Some response comments pulled from an article written … well … I cannot remember. Suffice it to say the article was from a reputable publication and the article was a bunch of moronic drivel written by an old guy waxing on about how this generation of young people are missing out on what his generation did (mostly reading) and are turning out to be a generation of illiterate mindless dweebs (sorry … it probably wasn’t that bad but you get the point).

I get tired of this (bashing today’s youth).

So … the first. The voice of the global teen. A blog created and written by teens. As a good friend of mine said “it is humbling.” Beyond that it is smart, insightful and extremely well articulated. And if anyone tries to tell me that this is a minority from a generation made up of a majority of morons I respond with a simple “bullshit.”

All generations think thoughts. But all generations have individuals who give voice to those thoughts. In fact all generations need an articulate few to create the voice of a generation.

Here is the site: http://voicesofyouth.org/users/11472

If you have any doubts that this generation doesn’t “get it” you can read the words of the younger generation globally right here … in one spot.

Do not doubt for one minute they are not extremely qualified to step into our shoes if not throw away our shoes and do us even better.

Second.

Reading.

Whew. This is one never ending gripe from old folk.

So I will begin with reading and literacy and … well … books, e-books and whatever else you want to consider reading.

Here is how one teen responds:

A major source of confusion is the fact that information from reputable sources is increasingly available on the Internet, which is far more convenient to use than hauling your ass to a library, browsing through the book collection, finding a giant tome, browsing through it to find what you need, and then rinse and repeat.

We’re keeping up with the modern world. And we’re definitely reading. We’re just not reading on physical paper, which is apparently a crime against humanity or something.

Hell, we’re reading plenty of things on physical paper too. Just not what we “should” be reading according to these “Damned-Whippersnappers”-crying adults. We’re reading not only fiction and fantasy (Harry Potter, Hunger Games, etc.), but also memoirs (The Glass Castle and Night) and many other genres.

We’re reading, just not what and how you think we should – GuywiththeContacts commenter

(amen)

Look.

I have read Hunger Games (a youth book … and I am looking forward to the movies) … the Immortal Nicholas Flamel book series (an excellent smart series) as well as I rarely read a newspaper anymore … oops … rather I read newspaper online. And, in fact, I probably read a wider variety of opinions and articles because I gather information online versus one paper newspaper than ever before.

So maybe I am also ‘just not reading what and how you think I should.’ Uh oh. I guess that means I owe an apology to the 50000 some people who visit my site each month.

Aw.

Bullshit.

Guywithcontacts is right. We adults need to stop crying. Reading (and writing maybe even more so) is alive and well. And prospering.

And the world is not losing its moral foundation nor is it crumbling …

Is Western Civilization coming to an end again? So soon after the last time? Actually, this article made me nostalgic for all of the other times Western Civilization was on its last legs. The symptoms are always the same – teenagers are distracted, can’t pay attention, and don’t have patience or empathy. The cure is always the same – read more, especially books from the canon. But the cause is different each time.
Remember when it was Facebook and Twitter that was going to bring us to an end? And before that, it was the internet? And before that, it was MTV? Before then, I think the culprit was supposed to be blockbuster movies (for killing our imaginations and preventing us from reading). Before that, it was television. And before that it was comic books. Then radio, movies, jazz, and vaudeville. And dime novels. And let’s not forget the assembly line and the automobile. All of them were, at one time or another, the cause of the demise of our culture.
I also recall, when I was a teenager, being told that I was the reason Western Civilization was doomed. Because all teenagers would lack the wisdom and common sense necessary to function. I heard the story about the high school student who hadn’t been aware that the U.S. and Japan had once been at war. “Who won?” she asked. I heard the story about the teenagers who saw a movie poster for “Amadeus” and wondered to each other who wrote the soundtrack. They sounded like jokes to me, but were presented as Actual Facts by adults. All it taught me at the time was that: (a) adults could be awfully credulous at times; and (b) backhanded put-downs weren’t much of an inducement to read more. But articles like this one are never aimed at the teenagers who are putting Western Civilization in peril. They are aimed at people who want to rail at the annoying, careless behavior of those who are just beginning to acquire the means to act independently, when carelessness or obnoxiousness could actually do someone harm. I propose that Newsweek retitle this article, “Kids today!” and leave it at that.

That being said, I have found texting to be both useful and terribly, terribly annoying. It depends on the context. – Maura commenter

(amen)

Get on the train or get run over by the train.

This generation is going to be managing our future one day.

Quit bitching.

If our generation didn’t kill civilization no generation will be able to. We have certainly done our best to do so … therefore … maybe this generation will pull our proverbial asses out of the fire and make all good as it should be.

But, as Maura so rightfully points out, ‘backhanded put downs are not an inducement’ for anyone to want to do anything.

This generation is not going to destroy civilization they are going to rebuild, recreate and renovate civilization. That said … we adults better quit bitching about reading and make sure we let them learn the good stuff any way they want.

Yeah.

Any way they want …..

“I’m so incredibly tired of everyone railing my generation for using the technology available to us. Yeah, cell phones allow us to communicate with each other easier. Awesome. That’s why they were invented. And the reason we use them a lot isn’t because the act of typing a message on a tiny keyboard gives us some immeasurable thrill. It’s because there’s someone on the other end whom we care about and want to be in contact with. Text-speak just makes things go faster. Is there anyone who honestly thinks that there are teenagers out there who don’t know how to spell ‘you’?
It’s like Maura said– you don’t think your parents said the same things about you? And their parents about them and on and on until you get back to neanderthals and the invention of the wheel. It’s just scapegoating and fear of change. It’s old news, buddy.
Also, I don’t hear people complaining about how Facebook and Twitter led an entire region to overthrow tyranny and oust dictators. Someone who did a great job of finding the real heart of the problem– and not maligning technology and advancement–was Ray Bradbury in Fahrenheit 451.
So please, stop accusing teenagers of destroying the world before we’re even allowed to vote, and quit blaming my generation for things we haven’t even gotten the chance to do yet (such as, you know, spike the US deficit to over a trillion). – chrissy a commenter on a site

(amen)

In the end … maybe let’s try some of these words on for size and today’s youth …

Resilience.

Adaptability.

Innovative.

Optimistic.

Yeah. Optimistic. Instead of cynicism … which seems to appear in older generations … this youth remains optimistic.

Think about this … a Pew survey found most young adults today believe they have a harder time than their parents did:

- 82% say it’s harder to find a job.

- 75% say it’s harder to save for the future.

- 71% say it’s harder to pay for college.

- 69% say it’s harder to buy a home.

<note: I tend to believe ALL younger generations believe they will have a more difficult time then their parents.> Yet. Despite all of that … the same Pew study found high levels of optimism among young adults. Although the survey found young people are less likely now than before the recession to say they have enough income, their level of optimism hasn’t shrunk from where it was in 2004, the report notes.

“Their optimism is just as high as it was in a booming economy or a stronger economy” before the recession.

There you go. I bring up optimism to close this post because, dammit, it’s not up to older generations to kill this optimism … or bitch about how “they don’t do it the way we do/did” … rather … it is up to us to fuel this optimism and let this generation find its true voice … and foster the generation to create whatever innovations it is destined to create .. and reach whatever new horizons they are destined to reach … all of which “civilization” will benefit from.

Oh.

We will benefit to (just wanted to remind everyone about that).

global generation 12: not too close a link to Human Rights activity

February 14th, 2012

So.

With this post I am going to try and wrap up what I believe will be my last thought article on this initiative and then I plan on updating projectglobalgeneration.com with updating all the posts … and then let the chips fall as they may on that idea. I spent a couple days over my holiday vacation basking in the sun and writing. You have seen most of what I wrote, on this initiative, and this is it.

Anyway. I have written two back-to-back project global generation articles, one on the power of global collaboration and one on impact of conflict, referencing human rights and human rights initiatives as reference points.

Therefore, before anyone got too far in putting Project Global Generation initiative into a Human Rights bucket I wanted to take a moment and discuss kids’ education and Human Rights.

How close a link should there be? Not too close I suggest.

I am more interested in the “stimulus” within this particular ‘stimulus-response’ model.

The intent of this Global Generation education plan is the betterment of children’s minds. Sure. Somewhere down the road (let’s say when they are adults) this plan of action will probably benefit Human Rights initiatives.

Anyway.

I said two things specifically at the end of Global Generation 6 (actually 11 on enlightened conflict site and 6 on www.projectglobalgeneration.com) that I wanted to use as I discuss the impact Project Global Generation can have on human rights (and yet not be a human rights initiative):

In the end, society benefits from groups performing productively with another. Of course, teaching the basics of all of this at the preschool age means a greater likelihood of kids continuing positive collaboration abilities as they progress in life.

This is an idea of molding a people from diverse origins, cultural practices, languages, into one collaborative group of thinkers, within a framework which has to be democratic in nature (because it crosses any and all geographic boundaries, yet it can be absorbed within any cultural construct).

And by doing so it mitigates conflicts and adversarial interests without oppression and injustice but rather through expanding brain power.

I try and always am careful when discussing this global education initiative and the use of the word “values” or human rights … as well as ‘democratic’.

First.

Democratic in this sense has nothing to do with government not each city-state’s constitutional beliefs. Democratic in this sense has to do with the belief of a collective friendly collaborative framework.

Second. About values & rights.

I am less willing to get into some debate of whether one country’s values are better or more important than another’s (The Economist gave a nice snapshot of this discussion in a recent EU versus China article pointing out what is right in one country does not always make it right for another country .. nor healthy in terms of constructive relationships).

That said.

Simplistically I am proposing an education initiative for the betterment of minds and not a betterment of values. There is a sharing of ideas, and I assume values (or let’s call this … some belief system) will follow, because all of that is inherent in the “global collaboration” aspect simply because it is a web based initiative.

But (please). This is not a Human Rights initiative.

Sure. I do believe some rights are basic to all … but some are not universal (because of cultural differences). And I do believe that ignoring cultural differences (i.e., what is right in the minds of Americans, or even someone in the EU community, versus what is right in the minds of, say, a Muslim based country or a Monarchy directed country) is imperative for the success of a children’s global education initiative.

And, yes, I did use the word ‘ignore.’ Global education has to be religion/governmentally “blind” (or agnostic if you would like).

All that said. Interestingly there is something called “the 2048 initiative” which is more focused on a global legal platform – the overall intent of this adult legal program is similar to the Project Global Generation children’s initiative.

And I actually believe the 2048 initiative has the right perspective on human rights, i.e., side step sterile arguments about whose values may be better and focus on building a global legal platform and help individual countries obey their own laws (and the global foundational laws). And, interestingly, there is a good current debate on how effective this is (if you care about this kind of stuff pick up “The Justice Cascade: How Human Rights Prosecutions are Changing World Politics by K. Sikkink).

note: the first part of this sentence is not my idea but rather The Economist.

So.

I avoid human rights and debating values when discussing a global education program and focus on respect for choices (within some basic values construct such as ‘killing is bad’ and high level non debatable values type things). It should probably be noted that I actually placed these human rights initiatives on the left hand side of my tactical plan on action chart (highlighting the fact I believe they are important but separate).

A global education movement like I am suggesting is going to have to redefine traditional education itself. It will be expansive and non directional (meaning open-ended) in terms of values definition, governmental beliefs & religion.

All that said.

It would be foolish to ignore the fact that education at a very young age does affect morality (or, maybe better said, some values-based critical thinking). It is just inherent within learning.

In children, morality is typically reflected in judging, or in other words, the capacity to make good/bad distinctions. And that is all I care about within this initiative (although it has been brought up in discussion that this initial young child foundation evolves in teen years into a more principled behavior/decision making and, ultimately, in adults as a sense of obligation to contribute to the well-being of others).

Each step begets the next. If we elect to implement the first step in childhood then, bigger picture, as adults it is embodied as empathy (or tolerance as Helen Keller has suggested) for other humans.

This initiative, through the collaboration aspect, teaches children to treat each other with dignity, to act with concern for others, to take personal responsibility (all of which inherently benefit humanity … but, once again, is not Human Rights as such).
I believe Project Global Generation should be free and ‘choice neutral’ and accessible to all children (or via parent).

Through education we should all be aiming to empower children as they grow into a more educated adult to understand and critically reflect the conflicts of interests surrounding them, as well as to reflect one’s own individual role within a larger global community (and how they can impact as an individual within their own smaller community).

The inherent collaboration, or learning by lurking, aspect of Project Global Generation has the added benefit of encouraging an entire generation to actively shape the global future (in big and/or small ways).

Ultimately the intent is to provide a foundation of learning for children so that it actually leads to “understanding of choice” (even if you do not actually have freedom of choice).

Why do I feel this way?

Rights are often in the eye of the beholder, with some of them clearly demonstrating a perplexing and perhaps even contradictory side.

So this initiative really has nothing to do with ‘rights’ but rather values.

And when I came to that conclusion I searched value systems definitions and discovered this:

- Indications for understanding of value systems

It would seem useful to distinguish sets of value functions. It is also useful to attempt to distinguish for each case between: a positive interpretation (p); a negative interpretation (n); a paradoxical negative interpretation of the positive (pn); and a paradoxical positive interpretation of the negative (np):

Class I: Efforts at recognizing ‘the’ one fundamental underlying value governing human society, readily labeled by different constituencies as ‘love’, ‘profit’, ‘peace’, ‘justice’, etc according to orientation (p). This then tends to be used in an overly simplistic or fanatical manner resulting in a form of behavioural blackhole (pn). These value terms are however readily deconstructed into a referential void that is characteristic of this class and the (entropic) pull that it exerts on the constructions of other classes (n). Such seemingly ‘negative’ aspects of this function are also recognized in references to existential despair, alienation and emptiness (n) — which is valued in spiritual disciplines for the perspective (np) that it gives (‘dark night of the soul’, ‘ego death’, etc) and its mysterious relationship as a catalyst or matrix for the creativity of Class IV (Nishitani, 1982).

Class II: Value sets as assiduously elaborated by international constituencies in an effort to achieve universal consensus on a framework for action and governance (p). Such sets are also characteristic of religious dogma (eg sets of virtues). They may be viewed as essential to society for the reasons well argued by their advocates. They can also be viewed with suspicion as straitjackets on that very development of value sensitivity and diversity which ensures their relevance to living systems (pn). From a Class III perspective, such value sets are quite claustrophobic and inappropriate to a learning environment, to the point of being associated with outmoded patterns of dominance (n). Such sets may thus be seen as continuously decaying into Class I in the mindsets of the disabused and alienated. But it is precisely their ‘outdated’, predictable, dependable, disciplined quality which constitutes a vital complement (np) to the chaotic and evanescent value experiments of Class III, providing the stability through which Class IV can emerge.

Class III: Value systems created by individuals and groups to frame and enhance their particular, and often private, experience (p). The freedom and experimental quality of such value creation reflects the views of social constructionists and an appreciation of diversity. Not necessarily viewed as (to be) widely held, permanent, coherent, or systematic. They are essentially unstable and unaccountable (pn) and may be quickly abandoned (through a decay process into Class I) although they may undergo a form of reification (into dogma) into Class II, possibly accompanied by some form of institutionalization. Some, notably those advocating Class II frameworks, severely question and condemn the social incoherence and irresponsibility of such value relativism where ‘anything goes’ (n). It is however precisely in their role as an evanescent, exploratory complement (np) to Class II that Class III creates a dynamic environment through which Class IV can emerge.

Class IV: Emerging, surprising, new value patterns reflecting new degrees of sensitivity, coherence and fundamental groundedness as a source of inspiration (p) that contrast with those of Class II. In contrast to the chaos of Class III, these carry a recognizable quality of stability and integrity (failing which they decay into Class III, or directly into Class I). They tend however to attract a pathological enthusiasm, in a manner somewhat analogous to Class I, as offering ‘the secret elixir’ by comparison with the perceived irrelevance of other classes (pn). Through a form of value narcissism, they distract from the vital functions of other classes (n). They can be confused with more familiar values in other classes through a failure to recognize their originality and as such run the danger of being coopted under the frameworks of those other classes. It perhaps precisely in this manner that the new strengths renew the values in the other classes (np).

< Note: I apologize in that I lost the source for this but please note I cannot take credit for this extensive insightful analysis of value systems >

Although that may have sounded quite clinical, in an academic fashion, I believe it is helpful in uncovering how Project Global Generation can positively impact children through education – and its inevitable impact on a global value system.

In summary.

If you believe in the words you have just read, i.e., a more educated individual educated within a collaborative global community creates a strengthened global value system, then it is difficult for you to not be a proponent of this initiative.

I strongly believe that if we want individuals to benefit a more global community perspective then we have to work for it … and the best place to start is by giving our children an education.

And education that includes problem solving skills, critical thinking skills and collaboration skills.

I believe if we do so then we endow in them a consciousness and respect (for others ideas & ideals) all in “a spirit of brotherhood.”

Yes.

I believe very strongly that all human beings are born equal and free and are guaranteed certain inalienable rights that can never be taken from them and, in this case, I am speaking of education.

Project Global Generation is simply seeking to secure a higher standard of life for future generations – through education.

And through education at the youngest ages and, with that, I will go back to the beginning of this post:

So.

While Project Global Generation is not a human rights initiative, with its successful implementation, it should benefit what is right globally. Is that a play on words? You bet. But it gets me out of the Human Rights morass that could bog down this idea and be able to focus on the bigger education opportunity.

Using a quote from Eleanor Roosevelt, then chairman of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights, here is where I believe the Global generation education plan and Human Rights meet.

“Where, after all, do universal human rights begin? In small places, close to home – so close and so small that they cannot be seen on any maps of the world … Such are the places where every man, woman and child seeks equal justice, equal opportunity, equal dignity without discrimination. Unless these rights have meaning there, they have little meaning anywhere.”

Therefore … education can be viewed as a right. And it is so right to think of it that way because it isn’t about a country or a culture … but rather ‘so close, so small’ that it is unseen on a map. So. As with most relatively good ideas this idea circles back to the beginning as you read this quote – community individualism.

It will be the main characteristic of the global generation.

A generation retaining a strong sense of “small places, close to home” and the culture they hold each & every day … yet balanced by what they have learned in a larger global society collaboration of learning and shared ideas through education.

Regardless.

I don’t want an education initiative to get bogged down on a human rights discussion. What I do know is that it is our responsibility, as adults, to uphold educating our children as a promise for bettering future generations.

abandon hope all ye who enter

February 13th, 2012

“abandon hope all ye who enter here” – Dante

Ok.

Above the entrance to hell (Inferno) in Dante’s Divine Comedy lies the words “abandon hope all ye who enter here.”

Just to keep you updated on the story … Dante passes through the gate of Hell with this inscription which is the ninth (and final) line <”Lasciate ogne speranza, voi ch’intrate”> … “Abandon all hope, ye who enter here.”

Before me things create were none, save things

Eternal, and eternal I endure.

All hope abandon ye who enter here.

Ah.

And as another reminder of the tale … before entering hell, Dante and his guide (Virgil) see the Uncommitted. The uncommitted represent the souls of people who did nothing in Life. Yup. Nothing … neither for good nor evil. Just nothing.

(I will get back to that)

No.

I am not going to suggest everyone read Dante’s Divine Comedy (a tough read no matter who anyone is).

But I am going to talk about hope (or the lack thereof). And uncommitted.

I imagine lack of hope is kind of like entering a personal hell.

Which isn’t good for anyone. So the corollary to that is that I imagine those of us with hope to give should share it whenever we can.

But.

Take a minute and think about the youth of the world (currently growing up in a nifty time of unrest) and our <adult> responsibility to the young people today.

Set aside whether you do actually have any hope within you (or maybe better said you worry about having too much hope).

Because this isn’t about you and your hope (but it is about you and being committed).

Think about young people … who are watching us … and listening to us.

Our responsibility?

If we fail to provide hope to our young people … are we not simply encouraging them to enter the gate of hell?

And if we do nothing for our youth do we not run the risk of becoming one of the Uncommitted?

Dante was a smart guy. Gave us a lot to think about.

That’s it.

I just wanted everyone to think about our responsibility <commitment> to the young people of today’s world.

Give them hope.

For if they have no hope it is quite possible our future is destined to walk thru the gate of hell.

my thoughts on education inspired by The Wire

February 1st, 2012

So.

Every time I walk into a high school I have a feeling that education … well … that it could be better. For everyone. Teachers & all kids (no matter their socioeconomic status or whether they live in an urban or rural environment).

Shit. Not could … that it should be better. And I imagine the crazy thing about educating our youth is that everyone wants it to be better. I cannot envision anyone in the education system seriously not having the best intentions or wanting every kid who walks through the door on day one to learn more and get an education.

I don’t know what happens in other countries but in America’s case we are more class/caste driven which has an impact on kids’ education from the earliest age.

Simplistically … the more affluent send their kids to well financed school systems (public or private) while lower income families traditionally get a worse education (for a variety of reasons) in lower financed systems. By the way … this is not an indictment of teachers because i believe great teachers exist in all school systems.

And even if a lower income kid fights their way through the system to get to college … well … the system is still against them. A Dept. of Education study states low income family students with high test scores are less likely to complete their studies (cross the finish line as it were) then high income family students with lower test scores. In other words, poor children are much less likely to make good then we often like to think. Oh. And the information shows that this fact is truer in America then in Canada and Europe.

The Australian Education system also conducted a similar study.

Let me be clear (and the rest of the post will focus on this point).

Kids are no more, or less, smart based on their associated socioeconomic background. A brain is a brain.

But.

Their socioeconomic background affects their ability to dedicate themselves to learning.

All that said … if you are interested in this topic you should watch season 4 of The Wire. It is the season which uses the high school education system as the main thread for the story line.

This season was so well done a number of universities actually use it to discuss the challenges within our existing education system.

Ok.

Let me begin by saying … if you truly believe in your heart that each and every kid deserves a “chance” then be prepared … the season is simultaneously hopeful, yet hopeless and, ultimately, disturbing … all at the same time.

You can see the challenges and opportunities all at the same time.

And it is an additional maddening aspect in that everyone who tries to fix the system loses.

I admit. It’s disturbing & demoralizing to see good intentioned people (and kids) repeatedly getting crushed (even though it is just a TV show).

And you wonder why you see good intentions squandered until you hear one of the characters on the show say something that is so sadly true … “This game is rigged.”

Look.We all know the system is “broken.”

And good income people can beat the system.

And, frankly, it is those people who suggest “there are no excuses for not getting an education or having an opportunity.”

And, frankly, that’s a bunch of bullshit.

Go teach at an inner city school for a day.

Shit. Go teach at any public school for a day.

“No excuses” is a phrase of blatant ignorance when you see what stresses face many of the lives of the children you see which actually are not ‘excuses’ but in fact … realities. Realities they must face day-to-day.

As you will see, for example, on The Wire is the drug addiction, the crime connected to the drug trade, the business of the drug trade, the barely functioning families, and the poverty which are realities impacting a young student’s ability to be engaged or even be consistently involved (and that doesn’t even touch upon the emotional “hope” aspect).

In that Wire season there are four boys who try to engage with learning and with school, and are occasionally successful (which each student recognizes and are extremely engaged in those situations) but their life situations just do not permit ongoing consistent progress.

The Wire clearly shows us that many kids, many good smart kids, will fail in school through no fault of the schools or of their own.

Ok.

On the other hand, on the ‘hopeful side’, the show showcases the amazing potential our youth exhibits – even in the face of the direst situations. I actually believe it showcases, almost better than I have ever seen, how young people grasp the ‘light’, even if it only appears for seconds, even within the darkest environments.

It is within those moments of viewing the season that you just want to pick up a phone and call someone and say “fix the education system” because it tears your heart into pieces to see what ’could be.’

I also loved how the show so definitively states that only an incredibly small number of students are so emotionally damaged by their circumstances that they are totally unable to respond to what school has to offer (and I happen to agree with them).

The show does this extremely well by taking a group of ‘project kids’ who are the most disruptive and troubled but showing how they are potentially capable of functioning in a learning environment.

The project is where they pull a small number of disruptive students out of regular classes and puts them in a special, smaller, class with a larger number of adults. The students in the project group are involved in the drug trade or are heading down that path. The project succeeds in two ways. It reduces disruption in the regular classes and it allows focused and appropriate attention, with a greater adult-to-student ratio, to the students in the project class.

Oops. Here is where a flaw in our existing system rears its ugly head … the program is terminated when the city’s educational administration decides that a program that is not raising test scores and that smacks of “tracking” is too politically risky. Oh. ‘Tracking’ or ‘profiling’ … swear words in today’s environment (although … I admit it is a slippery slope).

In other words … a promising initiative is eliminated because of rigid bureaucratic goals.

A promising initiative eliminated … that worked. And worked despite the issues that undermine learning in urban schools (although I would argue that it isn’t just urban schools but everywhere) like fragmented families, no families, teachers required to teach to the test, declining neighborhoods with few legitimate jobs, overwhelmed or indifferent leaders.

Oh.

And good initiatives get eliminated due to the fact that the education system is beholden to stats (or “jukin’ the stats” as the show reminds us).

Ah. The ‘stats’ (scores).

This season of The Wire discusses the statistics in that the school system needs to produce raised scores on standardized tests. As a result actual learning and teaching are deeply compromised. The Wire is particularly critical of the testing regime associated with the 2002 No Child Left Behind law in that just as the teachers (and the project class) are beginning to discover some viable strategies for teaching to the students they have to shift to prepping them to take the standardized tests. It is a vivid demonstration (albeit a theatrical one) of an empty gesture within the education system in which the students learn nothing of value and which derails their interest, and growing, if shaky academic engagement.

The system was set up with good intentions but the show displays the flaws.

The show also showcases another thing I encounter (nd this is my opinion) … that many of our schools seem to sanitize the troubling, often offensive, and challenging aspects of real life while the Life reality is that students are surrounded by a popular culture which deals bluntly, graphically, and harshly with real life reality. Ok. I admit I am not sure we want our schools to include all the inappropriateness that is commonplace in the popular culture because one would hope (or, let’s say I believe) our schools should show students what ‘could be’ (from a ‘taste of what is finer’ perspective). It is probably unrealistic on my part but ultimately my hope is that schools would teach the best of the best and give kids something to aim for (without ignoring what is real).

The balance is that the education system needs to exercise discretion but I believe we tend to underestimate what students can appreciate and understand.

I don’t know how schools and education can ignore perspective when teaching. The Wire reminds us that all education, whether you want to define school rules versus street rules or not, have to deal with any aspect of the following (I pulled this list from a formal sociology & education article):

- intersections between representations of race, economy, and criminality

- issues of masculinity

- gender and sexuality in police and criminal cultures

- the family, childhood, parenting, and criminality

- re-imagining of the heroic beyond traditional narratives of America

- roles for women in urban America (and roles for women in general)

- the technology of crime

- street speech and class-based communication

- cultures of addiction and treatment

- constructions of violence

- stress and trauma narratives

- education and class

- interest groups and issues of governance

Some of these are big emotional issues and some may appear to be “not my kid’s type of issue” to some more affluent family readers …. but these are real issues … to all our kids (so don’t be fooled by what you think you see in your own life).

Anyway.

Four features of The Wire’s depiction are particularly worthy of note.

First, the “inner city” kids, like kids anywhere, are shown as bright and curious, and capable of learning. Second, the ability of the schools to educate these children is shown to be strongly compromised by the kids’ world outside of school—their absent or dysfunctional families, their distressed communities, and the lack of any visible accessibility of the world of legitimate work.

Third, despite these negative forces in the students’ lives, teachers and school personnel are capable of making small but significant contributions to children’s educational and personal growth.

Fourth, public schools are portrayed as natural and appropriate places for young people to be in the context of their developing lives (although the particular distressed school the boys attend is deficient in many ways).

In addition.

The Wire did a great job showing us how, in a broad perspective, we are failing our youth with regard to education.

Oh. And it reminds us that good things don’t always happen to good kids. And life can get in the way of even the best education.

But. The main thought?

The show wants to say that most of the kids in school, even in public schools, would be capable of making significant educational progress were their lives and communities not so chaotic and troubled. The Wire portrays the students as naturally curious and constantly learning.

In conclusion, one character on The Wire states the issue better than I could ever.

He predicts … if we don’t solve it … “there will be an endless stream of kids who are not prepared for productive lives.”