On 8 Sep 2009 at 11:04, John Carl wrote: > Platt, > Thanks for sharing your insights and suggestions, they don't all harmonize > with the specific school of possibility that I am thinking through. For DQ > University is a tribal college. An actually existing one. In trouble with > accreditation precisely because it is not in the standardized SOMish mold. > > The way I see it, installing the MoQ as the "operating system" on a tribal > college in trouble with authority is just too juicy to resist. The final > book that turns ZAMM and Lila into part of a trilogy, is written in oral > tradition for an oral people to transmit to future generations. The book > about the Indians finally gets written, and it gets written in the hearts of > the people through a blending with their own teachings. A path of > integration, the shamanistic journey comes full circle, back to Dusenberry's > Indians in the end.
Gee, and I thought I was conservative. This is really turning back the clock. > On Tue, Sep 8, 2009 at 8:17 AM, <[email protected]> wrote: > > > On 7 Sep 2009 at 22:59, John Carl wrote: > > > > > I responded thus to Platt before, but more mention is needed of DQ > > > University. > > > We start with Metaphysics 101. This is because you need to understand > > the > > > ground upon which your education is based. > > Agree. Also required course in the history of Western Civilization, i.e, > > how Europe and the U.S. got to be where they are, economically, > > politically, culturally. > See, that's a bit Euro-centric for a tribal college. Some grounding in > understanding the conquering power is good, no doubt. That's one way to look at it. I see it as grounding in the modern age. > > Also, a required course in world religions, a > > required course in the history and methods of science, and a required > > course in art appreciation. Finally, a required course in effective > > writing. > Well... isn't that pretty close to what we've got now? Or at least, what we > used to have which could be argued is what got us to where we are now. I'm > striving for new approaches for even if what worked before, worked > (arguable) what is needed now is new. I don't think your proposal represents anything new. Different, yes. But not new except for the emphasis on teaching the MOQ along with other metaphysical theories. > > Reverse the learning process. Students do the reading, teacher answers > > questions about the reading. > I'm thinking of a link Ron posted a while back about the differences in an > Oral transmission vs. a written one. I think for an Indian school, > affirmation of oral traditional methods on an academic scale would be more > attractive and useful. I'd prefer a balance between off-the-cuff verbal and more thoughtful writing. > > Set a time limit. Otherwise, classes could > > go on forever. Forget "communal consensus." (Students vote on who > > passes, fails) > All teaching should "go on forever" rather than be walled off in sections of > your life. Learning should go on forever. But I don't think one should stay in college forever. > The teacher is part of this community and when trusting in consensus, even a > minority has power to halt the process.... I imagine the way it would work > is that the students would be eager to move on, but the teacher would be the > main force holding them back until they all demonstrably "got it". What are students supposed to "get?" > Communally, this motivates the students to help each other "get it" asap, > and makes them part of the team. The magic of team effort is something that > continues to elude you, Platt. I do get that. But if you free up the class > from a time-based schedule, I'd be willing to bet the real result would be > to speed up the process on average rather than slow it down. In an > open-ended process, the group is rewarded for achieving understanding by > finishing early. What are students supposed to "understand?" Pirsig's metaphysics? If this site is any indication that will be a bit of a problem. > Test students on their understanding. Teachers judge > > quality of writing. > Amend to teachers judge students on the Quality of their expression to > include oral. OK > > > In fact, the school grounds should be themselves an ideal demonstration > > of > > > proper principles put in practice. Designed in a circle with enough food > > > for all and gardened according to the wisest minds in a holistic pattern. > > The campus setting is not high on my priorities. > A college that teaches the right way to live should demonstrate what it > teaches. When I went to boarding school, all students were required as part > of their education to work at the school at least 4 hours a day. I took a > construction class that also gave me the opportunity to build homes on the > campus, installing our learning in real life and in our teen brains at the > same time, most effectively. Agree. Hard physical work never hurt anybody and is good for the soul.. > > Thanks for your suggestions, John. Specifics are always welcome in > > otherwise mostly abstract discussions. > Well anything to distract you from Obama's speech this morning to the good > students of America. Easy to be distracted since Obozo's speech was full of cliches and banalities, most of which he doesn't believe himself. Regards, Platt Moq_Discuss mailing list Listinfo, Unsubscribing etc. http://lists.moqtalk.org/listinfo.cgi/moq_discuss-moqtalk.org Archives: http://lists.moqtalk.org/pipermail/moq_discuss-moqtalk.org/ http://moq.org.uk/pipermail/moq_discuss_archive/
