A writer is nevr out of words but concerning the death of the Democratic stalwart, Sen. Edward Kennedy, I must say adieu and move on. Check out what I've said in The Seattle Times here and here.
One of my favorite columnists from the City of Brotherly Love dissects Kennedy's legacy from the prism of being black in America. Check it out here.
Another column that offers a close up lens on Kennedy's life and a second one that offers more distance but greater historical perspective.
On a different but related note, I was watching newsman Bryant Gumbel's HBO show, "Real Sports" last night and one of the segments centered on a homeless man who has succeeded in rallying kids in Compton around Little League baseball. In his own youth, this man played with athletes who went on to become legends in baseball. (If I were a sports afficianado I'd rattle off their names.) As Compton fell to drugs and crime in the 1970s and 80s, this man fell with it. Now older, wiser and singed by life's fires, he is building a legacy to live beyond him. Pro players have donated money and the national Little League organization is supportive. This man's work will survive him.
Kennedy. A homeless man in Compton. Both will be judged by their respective legacies. I'll ask you the question I posed to myself last night, what will you be judged by?
Thursday, August 27, 2009
Wednesday, August 26, 2009
Los Angeles Schools going private?
The news that L.A. will carve out at least 250 of its schools for operation by charters and private companies is interesting on many fronts. In the long saga of trying to improve perennially struggling schools, Los Angeles Unified is clearly crying "uncle." So can smaller, less bureaucratic and non-union entities do it better? Unfortunately children will be the canaries. They'll either show improvement and educators can say the change worked or it will be another failed lab experiment.
This piece argues that charter schools are no better than the public ones. A must-see on the subject of education reform and charter schools is the PBS Newshour's multi-part look at the Washington, D.C. school system.
Ultimately, our children learn in myriad ways and its our job to find a way that works best. Could be private school, a strict religious one or a charter school with longer days and Saturday school. There should be room in the debate for all of these options. Instead, how you see it often depends on your political affiliation. If you're a Democrat you likely hate charters as a siphon on public dollars best spent on public schools. Labor unions, not just teachers unions, wield considerable clout and keep Democrats lock-step in opposition to charters. They don't like the fact that many of these charters are non-unions. So are private schools but when did we let facts get in the way.
If you're a Republican, you like charters as a step toward vouchers.
We would be appalled if our kids addressed issues in such black-and-white terms.
This piece argues that charter schools are no better than the public ones. A must-see on the subject of education reform and charter schools is the PBS Newshour's multi-part look at the Washington, D.C. school system.
Ultimately, our children learn in myriad ways and its our job to find a way that works best. Could be private school, a strict religious one or a charter school with longer days and Saturday school. There should be room in the debate for all of these options. Instead, how you see it often depends on your political affiliation. If you're a Democrat you likely hate charters as a siphon on public dollars best spent on public schools. Labor unions, not just teachers unions, wield considerable clout and keep Democrats lock-step in opposition to charters. They don't like the fact that many of these charters are non-unions. So are private schools but when did we let facts get in the way.
If you're a Republican, you like charters as a step toward vouchers.
We would be appalled if our kids addressed issues in such black-and-white terms.
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
Does your child stutter?
Mine does but after several years of speech therapy his disfluency is under control.
Speech disorders are among the most frightening because they effect a person's ability to communicate but also how we respond to that person. Stuttering can have an impact on a child's ability to demand and receive a good education. Unfortunately, most budget-conscious school districts only offer speech therapy for severe stuttering. My son falls in the moderate range although I've been able to advocate for a 30-minute session once a week from our school.
I shudder to think of my son in a busy classroom pushed by a harried teacher to collect and articulate his thoughts quickly. I suspect he is judged, i.e. graded, in part on his communication skills, both good and bad.
Among the things I've discovered by having a child who stutters is that there is a strong genetic corrolation. I've found that there are outlets, including camps for kids with disfluency.
Everyone has a burden to bear, to help my son shoulder his I've taught him to refuse to let anyone hurry him when he is talking. I tell him to raise his voice or in other ways reject any attempt to talk over him.
I also remind him that some of the most captivating people in the world stutter, including actor James Earl Jones. Here's a list of some of them.
Speech disorders are among the most frightening because they effect a person's ability to communicate but also how we respond to that person. Stuttering can have an impact on a child's ability to demand and receive a good education. Unfortunately, most budget-conscious school districts only offer speech therapy for severe stuttering. My son falls in the moderate range although I've been able to advocate for a 30-minute session once a week from our school.
I shudder to think of my son in a busy classroom pushed by a harried teacher to collect and articulate his thoughts quickly. I suspect he is judged, i.e. graded, in part on his communication skills, both good and bad.
Among the things I've discovered by having a child who stutters is that there is a strong genetic corrolation. I've found that there are outlets, including camps for kids with disfluency.
Everyone has a burden to bear, to help my son shoulder his I've taught him to refuse to let anyone hurry him when he is talking. I tell him to raise his voice or in other ways reject any attempt to talk over him.
I also remind him that some of the most captivating people in the world stutter, including actor James Earl Jones. Here's a list of some of them.
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
Good Hair: The Insanity Continues
If you haven't seen it already, watch this YouTube video and tell me if you think it is an example of self-hatred or a normal day in a black household.
Here's the take from several women on "Tell Me More" an NPR show hosted by Michel Martin. Responses to the exploration of black hair was painfully telling. In black America, hair is political and personal currency. We are obsessed by hair and what it says about us.
For some of us, our self-esteem is built on the shaky foundation of hair. Others have chosen friends and lovers based on physical characteristics that include, sometime partially, sometimes chiefly, hair. Whom among us will admit that when we envisioned having children with our loved one, among the many things we fantasized about was how our child's hair would look?
We've been bullied for things we can't change like the texture of our hair; we've done the bullying because we couldn't change the texture of our hair. One of my most salient memories growing up was spending summers with a cousin who pressed her short hair every DAY in an effort to always have it laid neatly against her scalp Twiggy-style. I eschewed the pressing comb in favor of brutal whacks of a brush and lots of hair product. We both paid a price: On even the steamiest Maryland days, neither of us went near a swimming pool.
How did we know back then what I know to be true now. Whole personalities have been assigned based on a black woman's hair. We read hairstyles like fortune tellers read tea leaves. We anticipate, predict and stereotype based on the trajectory of the strands atop the head in front of us.
Check this out from a columnist friend who penned this piece upon her return from a screening of Chris Rock's docu-flick, "Good Hair.
And here's evidence that it isn't just our hair that battles the standard of beauty. My friend, Mary Sanchez, a columnist at the Kansas City Star, received this from a public relations exec. Dear Mary: I'd love to offer you leading NY facial plastic surgeon, Dr. Sam Rizk, who has masterminded the technique behind Ethnic Cosmetic Surgery, to give a pure NATURAL looking result for African American faces."
I won't bore you with the whole thing. Dr. Rizk's flak mentions that not every nose is created or treated equal ... she includes a bit of anatomy and eugenics in explaining differences in skin and cartilage from race to race... and ends with a cheerful offer to set up an interview with Dr. Rizk and/or one of his patients.
If I attributed all of this to self hatred it would render a judgement not always deserved. Some people want a different nose, or wider eyelids or hair unnaturally straight or curly. I go through periods where I wear my hair natural and other times where I wear it chemically straightened. One of my best discoveries has been cute wigs for when I want to change my hair color or temporarily take on a funky new look. But in some cases, like the YouTube video, it is clear self-hatred is alive and well.
Here's the take from several women on "Tell Me More" an NPR show hosted by Michel Martin. Responses to the exploration of black hair was painfully telling. In black America, hair is political and personal currency. We are obsessed by hair and what it says about us.
For some of us, our self-esteem is built on the shaky foundation of hair. Others have chosen friends and lovers based on physical characteristics that include, sometime partially, sometimes chiefly, hair. Whom among us will admit that when we envisioned having children with our loved one, among the many things we fantasized about was how our child's hair would look?
We've been bullied for things we can't change like the texture of our hair; we've done the bullying because we couldn't change the texture of our hair. One of my most salient memories growing up was spending summers with a cousin who pressed her short hair every DAY in an effort to always have it laid neatly against her scalp Twiggy-style. I eschewed the pressing comb in favor of brutal whacks of a brush and lots of hair product. We both paid a price: On even the steamiest Maryland days, neither of us went near a swimming pool.
How did we know back then what I know to be true now. Whole personalities have been assigned based on a black woman's hair. We read hairstyles like fortune tellers read tea leaves. We anticipate, predict and stereotype based on the trajectory of the strands atop the head in front of us.
Check this out from a columnist friend who penned this piece upon her return from a screening of Chris Rock's docu-flick, "Good Hair.
And here's evidence that it isn't just our hair that battles the standard of beauty. My friend, Mary Sanchez, a columnist at the Kansas City Star, received this from a public relations exec. Dear Mary: I'd love to offer you leading NY facial plastic surgeon, Dr. Sam Rizk, who has masterminded the technique behind Ethnic Cosmetic Surgery, to give a pure NATURAL looking result for African American faces."
I won't bore you with the whole thing. Dr. Rizk's flak mentions that not every nose is created or treated equal ... she includes a bit of anatomy and eugenics in explaining differences in skin and cartilage from race to race... and ends with a cheerful offer to set up an interview with Dr. Rizk and/or one of his patients.
If I attributed all of this to self hatred it would render a judgement not always deserved. Some people want a different nose, or wider eyelids or hair unnaturally straight or curly. I go through periods where I wear my hair natural and other times where I wear it chemically straightened. One of my best discoveries has been cute wigs for when I want to change my hair color or temporarily take on a funky new look. But in some cases, like the YouTube video, it is clear self-hatred is alive and well.
Saturday, August 8, 2009
What makes you happy
If you blinked you missed the summer heat and now we're back to the cool, yes cold, days that mark August in the Northwest. No matter, I'm chilling in front of the fireplace watching Nigella show me the essence of Express Cooking through a Lamb with carmelized onion tangine. Doesn't take more than that for me. I just discovered this interesting read on the pursuit of happiness. I'll settle for a lifetime of contentment much like this lazy Saturday.
For proof that around the world people are engaged in the same peaceful pursuit of happiness, check out this wonderful video. Thanks Peggy!
Thursday, February 26, 2009
Why Johnny still can't read.
From my colleague at the Seattle Times comes this column on what makes for a successful school. His take is based on the The Money Myth: School Resources, Outcomes, and Equity. I'll have to actually crack the cover of this book to determine whether it rises above the annual cache of books promising to transform education.
Yesterday, I spent the morning at an elementary school in an affluent Seattle neighborhood watching a teacher teach reading to third-graders. This teacher is touted as being one of the best at unlocking the doors in the brain that lead to reading fluency. The bulk of academic problems begin with trouble reading, which compounds academic problems down the road.
This class was so hard for me to watch in part because I read well and I learned to read early. I never had to go through the building blocks of reading and trying to do that now is like an architect trying to tell you how they built a building. Unless you went through every step, you don't know. One thing I learned is that the biggest predictor of reading success is having good sight memory (you see a word once and remember it from then) and having high phonemic awareness, knowing the sounds letters make.
Later in the morning I met a former architect who quit her job to volunteer full time as a reading tutor at the school. Watching her pull apart the building blocks of reading to get to the origins, the way kids learn the sound of ph or what it means when they see ck at the end of a word, gives me hope for improving America's literacy rates.
Yesterday, I spent the morning at an elementary school in an affluent Seattle neighborhood watching a teacher teach reading to third-graders. This teacher is touted as being one of the best at unlocking the doors in the brain that lead to reading fluency. The bulk of academic problems begin with trouble reading, which compounds academic problems down the road.
This class was so hard for me to watch in part because I read well and I learned to read early. I never had to go through the building blocks of reading and trying to do that now is like an architect trying to tell you how they built a building. Unless you went through every step, you don't know. One thing I learned is that the biggest predictor of reading success is having good sight memory (you see a word once and remember it from then) and having high phonemic awareness, knowing the sounds letters make.
Later in the morning I met a former architect who quit her job to volunteer full time as a reading tutor at the school. Watching her pull apart the building blocks of reading to get to the origins, the way kids learn the sound of ph or what it means when they see ck at the end of a word, gives me hope for improving America's literacy rates.
Thursday, February 19, 2009
First tooth, first mugging, say what???
A paen to raising children in the city begins this way: First shave, first concert, first kiss, first smoke — they’re all teenage rites of passage, right up there with bar mitzvahs, quinceanaras and Sweet 16 parties.
But when you raise your kids in the city, there’s another to add to the list: First mugging.
Makes you want to run, not drive trailed by a moving van, to the nearest suburban enclave. But the New York Times piece has more to say.
Including these four words that made me lol, if only because last night I had the ultimate suburban experience as my son and I walked one of his friends home, shouting out the names of constellations brilliant in the midnight blue sky and taking turns watching out for coyotes: “Check yourself for ticks.”
But when you raise your kids in the city, there’s another to add to the list: First mugging.
Makes you want to run, not drive trailed by a moving van, to the nearest suburban enclave. But the New York Times piece has more to say.
Including these four words that made me lol, if only because last night I had the ultimate suburban experience as my son and I walked one of his friends home, shouting out the names of constellations brilliant in the midnight blue sky and taking turns watching out for coyotes: “Check yourself for ticks.”
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