tag:typepad.com,2003:weblog-1882801 2010-07-19T00:07:57-04:00 Join me at the Intersection of Art, Technology and Learning TypePad Whyarthttp://feedburner.google.com tag:typepad.com,2003:post-6a00d8347e7eba53ef0134858724ef970c 2010-07-19T00:07:57-04:00 2010-07-19T00:07:57-04:00

I was reminded of an interesting aphorism this evening: "A Fish Doesn’t Know It’s In Water". The speaker who brought up that anonymous wisdom statement was not speaking to us about a specific fish's lack of awareness about its environment; instead, she was alluding to the blind spots we humans have to our own biases and norms. Her point was that our own unconscious patterns of behavior and unexamined expectations categorize those we encounter as familiar or not, mindlessly dividing them into camps of privilege and poverty based not on their merits but on whether or not they reflect ours!...

michael gerrish tag:typepad.com,2003:post-6a00d8347e7eba53ef0120a5cc17d7970b 2009-10-07T20:37:00-04:00 2009-10-07T21:58:31-04:00

It's been awhile since I've blogged; I've been having fun... There I was, standing in the "GA line" at Giant Stadium on Saturday afternoon, waiting for my wristband. When the bands were passed out, I saw they were Orange, the color of Transformation. Orange is my favorite color, because in its brightness and clarity dwell endless possibilities of energy and newness...and what followed, both before and during the concert, was truly transformational. We met people who had traveled across oceans to spend 4 days seeing all 3 concerts. These people had been to hundreds of Springsteen shows, and told many...

michael gerrish tag:typepad.com,2003:post-6a00d8347e7eba53ef0120a4cd4050970b 2009-08-06T11:10:23-04:00 2009-08-06T11:10:23-04:00

Here we go again...another summer conference! For 2 days the 2009 Games in Education conversations have been full of information and inspiration for educators and administrators: reminders of the importance in designing appropriate interfaces for our audiences, keeping authenticity front and center, and celebrating play as a joyful state with deep connections to internalizing learning. Want to learn more? Google Brock Dubbels, Peggy Sheehy, Tech Valley High School, and, of course SesameStreet.org. This will be my last Busman's Holiday for awhile...I'm about to take off for a 2 week cross country fly and drive trip to the southwest and back....

michael gerrish tag:typepad.com,2003:post-6a00d8347e7eba53ef0115724a8768970b 2009-07-30T14:37:00-04:00 2009-07-30T16:29:38-04:00

After returning home from the Annual Constructivist Conference at St. Lawrence University I did what many teachers do each summer...got out the home repair list. Before leaving, I'd painted a few ceiling spots, oil sealed three runs of oak railing, and tiled the fireplace hearth; now it was time to move outdoors. Our deck needed a make-over. Since we live in an Historic district, projects need approval from two city agencies. After a quick meeting with the city of Troy Planning folks, I sketched out the proposed modifications and showed them to my wife Carol...who promptly asked where the changes...

michael gerrish tag:typepad.com,2003:post-6a00d8347e7eba53ef011571301ad4970c 2009-07-22T16:57:47-04:00 2009-07-30T16:36:13-04:00

Bright and early this morning I spent an hour with educators and support personnel having a conversation about Building Community and Empowering Students. I expect that each participant arrived hoping that I would be providing them with tips on how to "de-silo instruction" and integrate community centered project based learning activities across/within curricular stands...but that's not what happened. You see, the meeting took place at The Institute for Learning Centered Education's Constructivist Design Conference at St. Lawrence University in Canton, NY...and it was my intention to have the group teach each other about the topic. All it took was a...

michael gerrish tag:typepad.com,2003:post-6a00d8347e7eba53ef01157125c6c0970c 2009-07-19T22:59:14-04:00 2009-07-30T14:40:09-04:00

Hello from beautiful upstate New York! I'm spending the week at St. Lawrence University, which is the site of the Institute for Learning Centered Education's Annual Constructivist Conference. Why would a teacher spend part of the summer in school...without pay? Simple. Just as the proverbial bus driver takes a holiday by bus to experience something familiar in a new way, teachers immerse themselves in new learning experiences so that the new will inform, infuse and extend their previously internalized (and perhaps stale) skill sets. This week I'll help out with technology related issues, and have some wonderful conversations with educators...

michael gerrish tag:typepad.com,2003:post-6a00d8347e7eba53ef0115721386ea970b 2009-07-17T16:49:12-04:00 2009-07-17T16:49:12-04:00

I'm enjoying an unusually cool summer in upstate New York. Since I teach, I am able to use summer for travel, research and "recharging". In September, it's back to school. Each of us has organized our life around a school calendar; many still do. School calendars are tricky: they acknowledge and make accommodations for seasons and holidays, yet they impart their own spin and urgency to our daily lives by introducing artificial seasons. Instead of spring, summer, autumn and winter we have gathering, learning, testing and commencement...and it starts when the year is 2/3 done! Talk about planting late and...

michael gerrish