Finnish Education

Finland has gotten a lot of good press in recent years because of the success of their schools. All their schools. That is, across the board Finnish school seem to be thriving. In fact, although Finnish students start later and spend less time at school than most developed nations,...

Mark 2:23-28

One Sabbath he was going through the cornfields; and as they made their way his disciples began to pluck heads of grain. The Pharisees said to him, “Look, why are they doing what is not lawful on the Sabbath?” And he said to them, “Have you never read what David did when he and his...

Learning and Passion

I titled the category for these recent posts “Teaching,” but I could just as easily titled it “Learning,” as how we teach is greatly shaped by how we believe people learn. In recent years, significant research has demonstrated that we do our best learning when our deepest passion and sense of calling is engages. Among other things, this research argues against employing a model of education shaped by standardized testing – which has little to nothing to do with unique gifts and interests – toward a more personalized, student-centered approach to learning. Of course, attention to the question of how we...

The Mom Song May10

The Mom Song

Mother’s Day is just around the corner, and if you’re looking for a way to say thanks to your mom for all the times she pushed and cajoled you to do what you knew you were supposed to do, or if you want to send an encouraging word to a mom who is still having to do that and wonders...

Mark 2:18-22

Now John’s disciples and the Pharisees were fasting; and people came and said to him, “Why do John’s disciples and the disciples of the Pharisees fast, but your disciples do not fast?” Jesus said to them, “The wedding-guests cannot fast while the bridegroom is with them, can they? As...