Guest Blog: Tina Hislop Using Art Conversations to Converse about a School's Mission

It is always a pleasure to have a guest blog.  Tina Hislop is an assistant principal in Connecticut who is in a doctoral program at Western State University. I was a guest in her course this past February and taught a lesson about transmediation by introducing Tina and her fellow students to art conversations.  It was a lovely surprise to receive this guest blog from Tina a few week later.   Tina took the lesson I taught and applied it to her work as an administrator.  Specifically Tina used art conversations with faculty.  An art conversation is a nonverbal discussion that a pair or trio have using finger paint as the mode of expression. You can read more about the technique below and here, here, and here.

Guest Blog: Tina Hislop

We’ve all experienced a meaningful lesson that we are compelled to share with others in hopes to inspire others.   The transmediation experience with Mary Ann in February 2012 was one of those meaningful lessons that I wanted to share with my school.  As assistant principal on my campus, I introduced transmediation to my school leadership team comprised of grade level, special area and pupil service staff.   In efforts to give back, this blog entry is an account of this first introduction. 

 

Background

Our school reconfigured two years ago, and has a new leadership team to represent our new campus.  This new leadership team’s charge is to examine the direction of the school, ideally with an open mind along the way.  To this end, I introduced the value of transmediation using art to the school leadership team.  To illustrate transmediation, I used our recently created mission statement.  I set the scene by asking the team to consider their students—do they all learn the same way? Have the same strengths? Of course, the answer was “no.”  With multiple ways to communicate —through gesture, picture, dance, we need to consider how to engage and reach all of our students.  The more connections we can offer students, the stronger understanding will be built.  Following the protocol of Mary Ann had shown us, I provided the following experience and at the conclusion the teachers participated and reflected.

Art Transmediation

I asked members of the school leadership team to build an art conversation in pairs using an active voice around our school mission statement.   The pairs and one triad were given finger paint: red, blue, green, yellow and black and one large sheet of art paper.  First I projected our school mission statement for all to read at their own rate as they made their own meaning and began their art conversation.  Next I created an iMovie with scrolling text with a man’s voice slowly reading the mission statement;  the teachers continued to communicate through their fingers.  The iMovie continued with student pictures and a voice over of an adult and child who slightly struggles reading the school mission statement and finally again, the mission statement read by a student with more pictures of recent school activities and students. 

Reflection

An art conversation

The teachers could have continued much longer or I could have used smaller paper for the busy team that I yearned to inspire.  I hoped that they would consider this work as they plan their lessons to reach others and we would soon debrief.  The bright lights of the office turned on and as the teachers wiped their fingers the conversations ranged from one saying that this was a difficult assignment and that it reminds her how her students everyday have tough first grade work to start and how not knowing what the right answer is feels.  Another teacher talked how she is so bad at drawing, but the finger paint gave her some permissions.   We displayed the art conversations around the table and all stood to admire each.  First, we quietly made our own noticings and next each group shared out a description of their art conversation.  The groups shared reflections of the process and product of our work.  

Transmediation—art gleamings:

1. Text meaning changes and grows as we internalize reading and hear the words. 
2. The experience nurtures creativity.
3. Sharing the communication process helps us value each others’ resources and talents.
4. The Gallery walk experience allowed us to discover and value common themes and differences while building respect and respecting others’ thoughts.
5. Art allows us to express thoughts in a healthy way.
6. Art conversations are a fun type of learning.
7. Art conversation are represent meaningful, hands-on work.  
8. Everything has a place.

The seeds have been planted.  We’re building our bag of tricks or repertoire of practices to meet the needs of our students in our classrooms. 

Guest Blog - On Fear and Schooling: A NYC Teacher Wonders

This is a guest blog from a pubic school teacher in New York City.  Given the culture of fear that permeates this teacher's work and I imagine the work of other teachers in the system, the teacher will remain anonymous. The post is part of an ongoing dialogue this teacher is involved in on a weekly basis as part of a graduate course s/he is taking. The teacher refers to Thomas Newkirk and the book being read in the course: Holding Onto Good Ideas in a Time of Bad Ones (2009) .

In reading the post I wondered a lot about the culture of fear that seems present in schools, especially large city systems.  One only has to read of the culture of fear that was reported in Atlanta under Beverly Hall's reign to understand how such fear can lead good people to do things they might not have conceived themselves of doing.  Last spring I published another teacher's words, Miss C Recounts: Teaching at a South Bronx Charter School. This teacher as well wrote about the absurdity of rules and regulations and the underlying culture of fear that permeated the work of teaching and learning. 

I hope both of these posts give you pause.  I hope they move you to inquire as to what may be happening at your local school and how you might be able to help change the culture from one of fear to one of mutual respect and creativity. Teachers cannot teach well when they are being required to be compliant and not to be thinkers.  They cannot teach our children well when they are operating in a culture of fear. Fear makes all of us less than we are: less kind, less thoughtful, less hopeful and far more myopic in our view of reality.

from here.

I have so much to say about this topic that I do not know where to begin! I will say this though--I can't even get a nibble from private or independent schools because I have xx years with the NYC DOE (the recruiter told me that might happen). Ugh!

B. (name of a student in the graduate class) mentioned during our online chat that students  are being socialized and I agree. I saw that at a middle school and see it again at a high school. I would like to add that the teachers who work in this system are being socialized too.

Our most current and absurd directive is to post "evidence of teaching" on chart paper. We are then to "cover our walls" with said evidence. This is learning we can refer back to when students need to review a concept. Work that proves the teacher has been teaching. Naturally, I began to question the purpose of this: is this a new form of note-taking? What exactly do you want on these charts? Is this to evaluate the teacher? I use PowerPoint. If a slide is very important, could I instead have it made into a poster for $2? What about their notebooks--what are those now for? And so on.

My AP and the "Master Teacher" assigned to me told me to calm down -- stop asking so many questions, stop stressing, just put something on it and cover your walls. The teacher I share a room with has already used up her entire $30 pad. I just stare at mine...not because I can't figure out how to use it but because I was supposed to use it by Friday (we had three days). Unfortunately, my students were finishing a project that began before the chart paper; moreover, my chart paper was locked up for two of three days. Should I have scraped my lesson on day 3 and created a new one that used up the chart paper (and appeased the powers to be)? I did not. Teachers who have never taught outside this system think this (and so much more) is normal. 

While reading Newkirk  this morning, I reread a few times his "habits of the mind" (142)*. This very foundation has been yanked from under so many teachers, whether new to the profession or veterans who have been playing the bizarre games that make up our daily lives. To have a "mind that is never still, always observant, and never locked in a fixed position" is the antithesis to what "they" want standing in front of America's most vulnerable.   

And so when I get no nibbles from schools outside this system, I can't help but think, "Have my xxx years with the DOE given me a scarlet T?"  

 * from Newkirk's book. He outlines four habits of mind:

Habits of Mind (pg. 142-143)

1. The habit of observation.  What do you notice?  This is the capacity to slow down, pay attention, notice the unusual detail, fact or statistic--one that is not evident at first glance.
2. The habit of generalization.  A key question is "What do you make of this?"  What inferences, judgements, evaluations, conclusions, theses do you arrive at?  It is to think in patterns, to make connections.
3. The habit of evidence.  What is the basis of your generalizations?  And what make you think this evidence is solid, when there is so much suspicious information available?
4. The habit of considering alternatives.  How could it be otherwise?  What credible positions might differ from yours?  What are the 'rivals' to your own position?

Guest Blog: Scott Klepesch - The Use of Moodle at a High School

After 29 years of working as an educator I have come to work with and know scores of teachers. Without question, one of the most talented educators I have had the pleasure to work with and learn from is this week's guest blogger, Scott Klepesch. Scott  is the supervisor of instruction at Morristown High School where he has served as an administrator for the past two years.  Prior to joining the Morristown staff, Scott was a social studies teacher at Chatham High School and also at West Essex High School. Scott is a product of the New York City public school system where he taught at Manhattan Village Academy in Chelsea.  These diverse experiences have shaped Scott’s views as an educator and his belief that school is a place where all learners can succeed. Scott’s full time job is as the proud parent of three daughters; two second graders and preschooler.  Boys beware!!!

Scott Klepesch can be reached at the following:

Blog- A Teaching Life
Twitter- @shklepesch
Email- scott.klepesch@morristownhighschool.org

How would you answer the following question:

• What is the role of creativity in education?

I’m confident that a collection of responses to the above question would reveal a wide range of insights into the meaning of creativity and its role in education.  An open-ended question such as the one shared above is powerful in that it has the potential to stimulate critical reflection.  Before offering a response, one has to give considerable pause to confront their own beliefs, consider competing perspectives and prepare to be engaged in a complex debate.

The role of creativity in education came from an online forum discussion.  A teacher at Morristown High School developed the question and posted it in an online forum discussion for students to access.  Considering the demands of the 21st Century and the need for students to think critically and creatively and for teachers to be instructional innovators, dissecting what creativity means is a worthy intellectual pursuit.  However, how can this inquiry, with the potential to generate a heated debate, be contained within a single or even multiple instructional periods?  In short, it cannot. More time is needed and a space privileged to extend meaningful exchanges.  The forum in which the question about creativity was posted generated 80 individual responses from students enrolled in the class. One post by a student elicited 37 replies.  Weeks after the question was posted it still garnered attention from students.  

Students accessed the question through a teacher’s Moodle page.   Teachers at the high school where I am a supervisor of instruction have realized the importance of establishing online learning communities for students.   Numerous instructors have turned to Moodle as a platform to virtually extend teaching and learning.  The notion that learning is confined to a scheduled block of time is outdated.  Virtual learning communities such as Moodle ensures that learning can occur at any time and anywhere.

As one of the two educators who oversee our use of Moodle, I am afforded the chance to see how Moodle is being deployed across all academic disciplines.  At first, teachers used Moodle as a place to post assignments and links to resources on the internet.  This current school year, teachers are moving beyond a basic use of Moodle to explore collaborative activities integrated into the open source program.  Teachers have been developing chat sessions, surveys, choice lessons and forum discussions for students to support the delivery of curriculum.  

Collaboratively inspired spaces on Moodle have subtly transformed interactions between classroom stakeholders. By initiating an activity on Moodle, the teacher is no longer the sole purveyor of content. Learners are empowered to assume responsibility for leading class discussions and developing meaningful content.   Activities on Moodle rarely draw a distinction between classroom roles. Participants are viewed as equals and provided with an outlet to voice beliefs and share in the exchange of information.  Through spirited exchanges about creativity, a hero's journey through a work of literature, or the meaning one might make of abstract art—students are active in the development of scholarship.  When teachers engage students in these spaces, a team approach to learning transpires.

It is important to move beyond the hope that students are engaged and instead strive towards creating learning environments where students are empowered.  What students think matters. Providing a platform for students to publicly articulate personal insights is critical and necessary considering the demands of the 21st Century.  The work centered on virtual learning communities and in particular Moodle, has instigated changes to our learning environment. Traditional paradigms governing time, space and scholarship have been questioned and new models for the ways in which class is conducted are forming.

Guest Blog: John Linton - Confessions of a Failed Boy Scout: Or Wedding Photo Faux Pas, Partie Deux (I think that’s “Party Dudes!” in French)

Self-portrait. Image by John Linton

People come into our lives through all sorts of means.  I've lost track of how long ago I first started to see John's images and comment or when it was I first started to look forward to reading John's comments about images I had posted to jpgmag or RedBubble, but know this: John's comments are legendary, nearly as much as his images.  Anyone who has had a "prop" or "comment" made by John remembers them for two reasons: his wit and his insight. It is with much pleasure then that this week's guest blog post should be authored by John. The story, self portrait, and collages just knocked me out.

Bio: John Linton spent his childhood developing his skills as a military brat while the family moved from one place to another. He attended Gorham State College to avoid the draft and somehow graduated with a teaching degree. He was hired by the Westerly School Department in 1970 and has lived in Westerly, RI ever since. He retired in 2002, much to the relief of the administration. When people ask him what he does he loves to tell them “Nothing.” He does dabble in photography every now and then.

Contact Information: John's sites on JPGMAG,
RedBubble 

Confessions of a Failed Boy Scout: Or Wedding Photo Faux Pas, Partie Deux (I think that’s “Party Dudes!” in French)

Once upon a time I had a brief stint as a Boy Scout, just long enough to learn that I was always supposed to be prepared, but apparently not long enough to actually have that idea sink in. So, it shouldn’t have surprised anyone that I showed up to the wedding with my Canon DSLR in such sad shape that the flash refused to work. Nor should it surprise anyone that the Sony point and click that I brought along just in case my Canon might be having “issues” didn’t work either. It’s kind of hard to get a camera to work when you leave the battery still in the charger back at the hotel. It looked like I was going to once again have a love affair with blur and grain.

I was just taking photos for fun so it wasn’t like I was actually worried about any of this. You see, I took up photography because: a) I finally figured out that if I carried the camera I wouldn’t have to worry about having my picture taken, b) when I went to weddings and such I wouldn’t have to actually sit through services and receptions because having a DSLR with a larger than normal lens gave people the idea that it was OK for me to circulate around clicking left and right, and c) when I was traveling it gave me something to do besides listen to tour guides.

This particular occasion was a Full Mass wedding. I’m not Catholic, but Full Mass sounded far longer than my normal two-minute attention span usually permits me to stay seated. Imagine the smile I had on my face when someone at the church said there would be no problem taking a few photos during the service. I wandered all over the place as the wedding morphed into communion, spending just enough time in the balcony to miss out on all the standing, sitting, and the whole body of Christ thing.

I was still having my problems with blur and grain at the reception and they became more pronounced with every beer I consumed. I’m not sure it’s a good thing to try and take photographs at a function that has an open bar.

Anyway, I’ve put together two four-photo collages of my latest Wedding Photo Faux Pas for your perusal. I hope you enjoy them.

The Wedding. Image Collage by John Linton.

The Reception. Image Collage by John Linton.

New Contours: Guest Blog by Nelson Campbell

Friend and fellow artist and writer, Nelson Campbell, is the author of today's blog post.  Nelson is an exquisite thinker and artist. Although we have never actually met (in person), I number her on a short list, as friend. It gives me pause to consider how the Internet connects us, displaces us, re-imagines what it means to be friend, artist and in doing so perhaps, resituates one's sense of geography.  Similarly in this post, contemplating one's geography is in part the subject Nelson considers.  Her post is a bold, thoughtful and thought provoking work.  I am so pleased to be able to feature Nelson's words and images. 

If you are traveling to Vermont (or perhaps live there) this fall, you have the opportunity to see work by Nelson at the Shelburne Farms 23rd Art at the Coach Barn. The show runs from 9.23.10 - 10.24.10.  On Wednesday, Sept. 22 from 5 to 7 p.m. there will be a reception.

Shelburne Farms, 1611 Harbor Road, Shelburne, Vermont  

If you cannot see her work in person, please make time to visit her work on the Internet. 

Links to Nelson Campbell's Art: 

RedBubble
JPGMAG 

Big, Big Shadows. Image created by Nelson Campbell.

 

I have been displaced a number of times in my life - voluntarily and involuntarily. Sometimes I was excited - sometimes afraid, sometimes indifferent - sometimes shattered.

During these periods of transition, I notice that I start looking for touchstones - anchors - old friends -trees I recognize, flowers, mushrooms - birds.

In the process of searching for the "old," I unavoidably come into contact with the new. New flowers, new trees, new sounds...new contours, curves, peaks, and paths.

I have discovered tiny expatriates that have traveled with me from my old life...an old t-shirt revealed a clump of small burrs clustered near the hem. How is it that tiny burrs stuck to an old shirt can reduce me to tears just because they traveled with me from fields of a life now gone? 

Horses have always represented both grounding and transition. My love of horses is as old as I am. My first purchase for my new space was a sculpture of a horse made of driftwood from Lake Champlain.

Parabol. Image by Nelson Campbell.

This beautiful work of art represents a beginning synthesis between the past and present, the old and new.

We all seek to fill a space and make it our own. We seek to live beyond merely existing. To affirm beyond merely tolerating. An excerpt from Langston Hughes expresses the struggle and determination required to uproot and then replant:

...So since I'm still here livin',
I guess I will live on.
I could've died for love —
But for livin' I was born


Though you may hear me holler,
And you may see me cry —
I'll be dogged, sweet baby,
If you gonna see me die.


from Life is Fine, by Langston Hughes

Summer Porches. Image created by Nelson Campbell.

Guest Blog Post: Deborah Downes

An Internet friend and fellow artist and writer, Deborah Downes is the author of today's blog post. Additionally, Deborah has allowed me to feature a photograph she made in Italy, Perfect Ending—one of my favorite images of hers. It simply steals my breath. What follows is a portion of a correspondence Deb sent me in response to some writing I had sent her. I was so moved by what she expressed that I asked her if I could feature her response on my blog.

If you  would like to see more of Deb's work, please check out her work posted at JPGMAG.

Deborah Downes

About Deborah Downes: I am a global nomad, working on ways to weave together tales and pictures of my life as an American expat (20 years and counting). Currently I live in Italy and I’m writing a book about the two times I lived in China. During the year I spent in Shanghai, I went through a sea change of sorts, resulting in a major shift in my writing and a great new love, photography. When not overseas with my husband, I'm usually at our home in Garland, Texas, near our daughter, son-in-law, and granddaughters.

...Now I long to go to the Badlands. Can sure see why it was like a religious experience for you. I’m certain it would have the same effect on me. I felt something similar my first time at the Grand Canyon. Flurries fell off and on during our drive there. Low lying clouds moved slowly across the sky as we approached on foot the lookout where I’d either get my first glimpse of the canyon or more of the kind of dark snow laden looking clouds above us. A bitter gust of wind slapped my face and threatened to penetrate the winter coat my aunt lent me. I ducked my head and moved towards the vantage point like some character in a book fighting the elements for a lost love. 

At the lookout I stood a few feet from a middle-aged blond woman saying something in German. She was the only one there besides my uncle, aunt, and me. I followed her gaze, and shivered over the view before us. Moving low lying clouds caressed upper faces of the canyon. Lower ones cupped snow against sheer drops of contrasting shades of reds and browns. Then suddenly an opening appeared in the clouds letting in a shaft of brilliant light that made everything it touched look as if it glowed from within. The German woman and I looked at each other at the same time. We both had tears our eyes; we both held our hands over our hearts.

I read on facebook you’re going through a kind of photographer’s block, following your trip to the Badlands. Perfectly understandable considering you going from the drama of that amazing place and all that you felt there to home and all that’s familiar. If it weren’t for my granddaughters, Sasha (9) and Ashlyn (5), I’m certain I’d be caught up in it, too, following the sensory and emotional stimulation of Italy. Sasha and Ashlyn not only inspire me to photograph them, but see things in the Dallas area through their eyes. Being with them helped me through a bad case of writer’s block.

Perhaps interacting with a child or children, or just attempting to see familiar things, places, and people through the eyes of a toddler (a writing exercise I experimented with, resulting in some fascinating and fun prose) would help you through this dry spell.

Other things that helped me get through my bad case of writer’s block included trying new forms of creativity and interacting with creative and upbeat friends.

Hang in there. I’m certain you’ll get through this. 

Warm regards,
Deb 

Perfect Ending. Image by Deborah Downes.

While living in an old farm house in Italy, I’ve come to realize I’m a country girl at heart. I’ve experienced connection, continuity, sensual pleasure, spirituality and peace through photographing the same countryside subject from different angles, at different times of the day, and during different seasons, such as this gravel road that leads to my current home away from home. I captured this image of that road as mist glided across it and the sun performed an unforgettable light show the morning of the day my daughter, son-in-law, and granddaughters left Italy and returned to their home in Dallas.