New Horizons for Learning Journal: July, August, September 2000

New Horizons for Learning's Online Journal
Vol. VI No. 1* July, August, September 2000

links were valid through December 2000

In This Issue

It's summer in Seattle. After a mild winter the geraniums we planted last summer are now in full bloom again—even larger and more abundant! There's something wonderful about not having to start all over, but instead being able to nurture what is already growing well.

That has been our perspective over the last twenty years as our international network has been identifying and communicating information about successful educational programs and learning strategies. Many are blossoming, having weathered even the most challenging of winters.

On New Horizons for Learning's Board of Directors are representatives of three consortiums of school districts working to bring about positive change in education. In this issue of the Journal, we give you a peek at "how their gardens are growing," as well as offering reports from additional Board members and others who are doing significant work in the field. We always wish to bring you new tools you can use. Such information is of little value unless it is applied, and we appreciate receiving your reports.

In response to requests from our network, we have just installed a new search engine that will facilitate use of our Building. We are grateful to the Discuren Foundation for making this possible and to the folks at BigMind Media, who have built and will maintain it. BigMindMedia is a group of social entrepreneurs who are pioneering new cultural forms for a network world. They use a holistic framework for initiating, evolving, and managing large numbers of relationships in a strategic way. As an internet production company, BigMindMedia offers a variety of services. For further information email rick@bigmindmedia.com

Congratulations to our Schools in 2020 Essay Contest winners! First place went to Lindsay Knowles, a fourth grader at Grayling Elementary in Michigan. Kristi Calkins, also a fourth grader from Grayling, took second place honors. Third place was awarded to Heidi Workman, a seventh grader from Meadowdale Middle School in Edmonds, Washington. We were pleased with the number of quality essay entries in our contest. Thank you to all who participated.

This fall we will be offering a series of small-group, short-term, intensive, online discussions of specific educational issues and challenges. We seek your suggestions for topics and formats. More on this opportunity in September.

Meanwhile, back to the garden. It's time to weed—and in the Building too as we update in preparation for a new school year!

View from the Observation Deck: Dee Dickinson; Dee celebrates New Horizons for Learning and describes our building as a "lighthouse of knowledge," dispensing free information to our users.

The World's Best Managed City?: Neal Peirce
Look across the continents and you'll not likely find a better managed city than Curitiba, Brazil. This is not due to some tight, buttoned-down management scheme, but because Curitiba, since urban visionary Jaime Lerner became its mayor in 1971, has pioneered one remarkable social or physical innovation after another. Reprint of a previously published article.

Washington Alliance for Better Schools: Annual Report: The Washington Alliance for Better Schools is a non-profit corporation with the educational purpose to improve student achievement in schools in the State of Washington. The partnership consists of 11 school districts serving over 286,000 students. They share their results of the 1999-2000 academic school year.

The Northwest Initiative for Teaching and Learning: Learning from Our Schools

Seattle Public Schools: Beacon Hill ATLAS Pathway: Year End Report: This past year marks the second full year of implementation of the ATLAS Communities design in the Seattle Public School's Beacon Hill Pathway. Their work continued to develop and to build upon the infrastructure created last year (Whole Faculty Study Groups -- WFSGs, the Pathway Leadership Team -- PLT, and the Principals' Team) for comprehensive school reform. The focus grew this year to include new areas of focus: "Teaching for Understanding", family and community involvement in the schools, and exhibitions/senior projects. ATLAS communities share their success in this report.

Rethinking Education in Light of Great Change: S. J. Goerner, Integral Science Institute; The problems in education are not only complex and multidimensional, most of them get their start outside the walls of schools. Ironically, realizing that the problems in education are not solely problems of education, clarifies the situation. Today's educational difficulties are actually part of a larger cultural change affecting western and perhaps global civilization. Before parents and educators can settle on what needs to be done in schools, they must first understand what needs to be done in the larger whole.

Like It or Not, We Are a Test-Driven Society in School, Work, and Government: Nakonia (Niki) Hayes; Legislators in 25 states have passed laws requiring that standardized tests be used for accountability purposes in public schools. Educators, parents, and students are openly opposing these tests in increasing (and organized) numbers, and are demanding to know why this "test mania" is taking place in the United States. Niki Hayes shares a brief history of testing, the effects of testing on a population and shares a method she incorporated in her counseling to help parents and students understand testing.

Section 504: It is Not Unfunded Special Education: Nakonia (Niki) Hayes; Mention the term Section 504 and you get a wide range of reactions from educators, few of which are positive in nature or understanding. Not surprising, the resistance to and ignorance of Section 504 and how this federal act can be used to offer assistance to students, is now creating litigious nightmares for school districts and teachers across the nation. Niki Hayes shares a list of potential accommodations, an argument on why teachers need training in 504, a brief history of Section 504, and a working definition of the law.

Stories That Lead: A Call to the Commons: Dan Leahy and Catherine Johnson
So often these days we hear about the need for leaders in education. What techniques or theories does a school leader really need? Where do we begin? This article suggests we begin with stories, with listening.

Technology and MI: Thomas Hoerr; How will technology affect the implementation of Multiple Intelligences (MI)? How might technology affect the implementation of MI? Whether or not we like thinking about these possibilities, whether or not we rely on a Palm Pilot (tm) or have trouble programming our VCR, the continual advances in technology are a day-to-day reality. At least in most sectors of society.
SOI Adds Perceptual Development, Now Marketed as 'Bridges Program': Richard Tracey, Ph.D., Intellectual Development Systems; For 35 years, individual teachers have adapted the Structure of Intellect (SOI) instruments and methods of Dr. Mary Meeker and Dr. Robert Meeker (Meeker, 1969) to develop students' cognitive abilities on a pupil-by-pupil basis. Meeker & Meeker created the Bridges program, to unite SOI with IPP (Individualized Practice Protocol), and to develop age-suitable cognition and perception in all students, centrally managed within each school.

TechStart: Bridging the Technology Gap with Computers, Content, and Community
Zithri Washington: Technology access is especially lacking for children of color and children from low-income families. However, providing the resources alone is not enough. Zithri Washington points out ways to bridge the gap and shares the vision of TechStart, designed to do just that.

A Matter of Quality: A Study of People's Perceptions and Expectations from Schooling in Rural and Urban Areas of Uttarakhand: Pawan Gupta; This study hopes to gain an insight into the relevance of the present education system in India by examining people's perceptions regarding education. The author not only examines the contradictions and conflicts but also reveals how aspirations and attitudes are molded by modern education.

The Learning Basket: Keith Packard; The Learning Basket is a practical program for stimulating the growth of intelligence for young children. It was developed to provide parents and caregivers of children from birth through three years old with a simple, practical way to stimulate learning through play.

Book Reviews in This Issue:


Review: Jump Time: Shaping Your Future in a Time of Radical Change Jean Houston

Review: Open Space Technology: A User's Guide Harrison Owen
Review: Teaching with Power: Shared Decision-Making and Classroom Practice Carol Reed