culture

Change of Address

Complete. Progress. Calibrate.

Like any rite de passage, a graduation ceremony is a cultural construct that briefly freezes time –acknowledging an individual’s completion of the requirements for being a student and transitioning the student to a new status. The movement from one status to another is conferred in a diploma, but the process is addressed in the ritual commencement speech. The commencement address, whose banality is kept in check by the celebrity addressing the graduating class, is usually an appeal to the truths that we tend to discard until the next graduation. Still, they are usually the truths that are most necessary,and most necessary to bear in mind during the more mundane moments of life, not merely at  ritual celebrations.

Graduation/commencement…endings/beginnings….all in the same moment. Most students are thrilled to complete their grueling academic work and to be rightfully acknowledged for it. Commencing the often overwhelming march into adulthood without the supportive peer world of the college or university (or high school) can sometimes feel like a step backward. After mastering one environment and work, students must start over. (Hence, the commencement addresses that remind students of the excitement of beginnings and possibilities.)

While the noun (the) graduate has long been associated with Dustin Hoffman in 1967,

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-3lKbMBab18

the verb (to) graduate really can inspire us as much as the possibilities implied by commencing. To graduate means to complete something. Completion is accomplishment, realization, fulfillment. We need not graduate from college to experience completion. When we complete we are whole. We may be constantly completing, but that is movement toward wholeness, which may be an ever expanding experience. Regularly completing in small and great ways, adds to our sense of fulfillment. We continue to graduate/complete throughout our lives.

To graduate means to progress. As we complete something we progress to the next something. It is optimistic and expansive, broadening and possibly deepening our opportunities and our lives. Sometimes the lousy jobs and difficult living experiences may also allow us to graduate to create a circumstance we may never have previously considered. All experiences may not be positive, but graduating is progressing. It is a forward motion and growth.

To graduate also means to calibrate. As we move toward completion, we measure, correct, adjust, and reset. We are always moving toward the next completion and always recalibrating. When we stop graduating and feel like we have already graduated, we get stuck in status-thinking. It is more like static thinking.  So, during this graduation season, whether you are finishing school or not, consider the verb to graduate–to complete, to progress, and to calibrate. Congrats, grads! Keep graduating!

 

Mother Culture/Mother Nature

Are you a mother-to-be? A new mom? An older mom? A working mom? A SAHM (Stay-at-home-mom)? A single mom? A teen mom? A soccer mom? A dance mom? A stage mother? A yoga mom? A mommy blogger? An activist mom? Do you wear Mom jeans? Are you the Mom In Chief? (Unless you are Michelle Obama, the answer is no.)

At home, are you Nurse Mom? Dr. Mom? Chauffeur Mom? Coach Mom? Cheerleader Mom? Teacher Mom? Event planner Mom? Administrative Assistant Mom? Human Resources Mom? Chef Mom? Housekeeper Mom? Librarian Mom? Accountant Mom? Shopper Mom? Nutritionist Mom? Stylist Mom? Police Mom? Detective Mom? Artist Mom? Singing Mom? President Mom? Dictator Mom? Queen Mom?

Are you joyful? Adoring? Content? Anxious? Cautious? Zealous? Spirited? Exhausted? Loving? Open? Comforting? Proud? Curious? Concerned? Careful? Bold? Kind? Protective? Discerning? Demonstrative? Caring? Nurturing? Guiding? Pedantic? Receptive? Clumsy? Consumed? Graceful? Grateful? Tender? Connected? Learning? Strong? Weak? Adapting? Evolving? Lifting? Creative? Delighted?

This Mothers’ Day, as we embrace our mothers and their nature, let’s use this cultural ritual to transform the culture of mothers (and others). Mothers, especially in the last generation, have been defined as a something-mom. The mom part is a bit self-deprecating. Is it because mothers feel like mothers first and then something else? Or do mothers still feel like they are not quite something else? Traditionally, mothers have not only played the role of domestic goddess and liaison to schools, but have been involved in civic and community projects (usually without recognition of being the ones who do the volunteer work, beyond donating and sitting on boards). Good schools and workplaces, as well as healthcare and nutritional, clean food must be more available and accessible for all.  Schools and workplaces must transform (not merely evolve to accommodate those with the most choices) to support the entirety of our lives. We must move beyond the 19th century industrialization model to a more fluid model of work and school, so that our mother culture supports and enhances mothers’ nature (and mother nature).

So Happy Mothers’ Day! Give your mother the love she needs! And check out Moms Rising.org. I’m going to make a gift right now! Join me in making a happy mothers’ day today and tomorrow.

http://www.momsrising.org/

Appreciation

It’s almost 7:00 pm; almost the end of the day. Soon Teacher Appreciation Day will be over. It’s not that the shout outs and appreciations are not appreciated. Teachers welcome appreciation. Who wouldn’t? Unfortunately, the appreciation seems limited. If we truly appreciated teachers, we wouldn’t set aside a day to appreciate us.

Perhaps teacher appreciation starts with appreciating learning; appreciating knowledge; appreciating studying; appreciating organizing; appreciating nurturing; appreciating culture; appreciating performance; appreciating patience; appreciating guidance; appreciating caring; appreciating growth; appreciating limits; appreciating work; appreciating differences; appreciating individuality; appreciating creativity; appreciating roles; appreciating responsibility….

Acknowledging qualities that we all need to appreciate will certainly be appreciated. Every day.

 

 

Super Duper

Yesterday was a Super Duper Wednesday.  It was not a good day; certainly not in the news world. It was a day full of news and un-news and more bad news, and then punctuated news. By now we are all too familiar with the news media too eager to report, despite serious mistakes (and possibly serious ramifications from those mistakes). It does seem, however, that there is forensic evidence of a pressure cooker used for the bomb(s) that killed and maimed brothers and sisters, sons and daughters, husbands and wives, mothers and fathers, at the Boston Marathon on Monday. A pressure cooker. It’s almost too obvious. The literal and figurative remains of a pressure cooker were what we were left with yesterday. By the time I went to bed, though, I felt duped.

On a day when media outlets rushed to report that a suspect in the Boston Marathon bombing was arrested, and then that report was retracted, the “pressure cooker” that is the news media revealed its limits. Then there was the discovery of a  potentially poisonous letter sent to President Obama, just after one was discovered sent to a senator (maybe more than one senator). At least those letters were initialed by the sender, so as to avoid any confusion. By the end of the day, when most of the news revolved around the aftermath of the horror in Boston, and attempts to get attention for poisoning senators and the President, a bi-partisan bill that would expand background checks to purchase a gun was defeated. President Obama responded,” The American people are trying to figure out, how can something have 90 percent support and yet not happen?”  I think many of us felt Super Duped.

We live in Super times. Supermodels and Supermajorities; Super Bowls and Super Bugs; Super Moms and Superheroes; (Superman); Superhighways and Superconductors; Super Glue and Super Funds; Supersonic and Supernova; Superstars and Superpowers; Superego and Superficial and Supernatural…….

So much seems to be heightened–super heightened– and we often find ourselves in our own pressure cookers. Then we have Super Duper days.

Horrorism

As of 6:00 pm on this Tax Day (and Patriot’s Day in Massachusetts), Monday,April 15, 2013, two explosions occurred near the finish line at The Boston Marathon, killing two and injuring scores. These are the early reports. Certainly there are more questions than answers at this moment, but already we are hunkering down, and fearful of more danger in the coming hours, days, and weeks.  News commentators have proclaimed that the terrorists have scored a win, as authorities have already admonished citizens to stay home. Pennsylvania Avenue in front of The White House has been closed to pedestrians this evening.

The Boston Marathon, one of the great annual events, is usually a joyful experience for spectators and runners alike. While the individuals compete against each other, there is also a sense of community–of spectators cheering on the runners and offering water to all. It’s about personal best and fellowship. It’s one of the least divisive sporting events. Until a bomb goes off.

The Boston Marathon is both a local event and a global one. It is viewed around the world as those competing hail from all over. Today’s blast is not only an act of terror, instilling fear through violence, but it is horrifying. Bostonians and those visiting this great city have been terrorized. The rest of us watching from afar may also feel fear (terror) that there are more imminent attacks, and that they may not be limited to Boston. But what we all should feel is horror.

Violence may be endemic to the human condition, but we have transformed many of humanity’s ills and diminished the prevalence of violence from time to time. As we consider laws to reduce gun violence, there are simultaneous calls to arm teachers in schools to protect students. Many see the answer to violence as being better armed. This was the proposition behind the Cold War. More nuclear arms would prevent war. So how do we reconcile the need for safety with the need to go about our lives, and to prevent horrifying accidents?

Of course, this was no accident. This was terror–whether it was homegrown or international. Chaos and fear ensued, and disrupted a magnificent day. And there were many horrific injuries as well as a couple of deaths. We need to not only be safe from harm, but teach our children that violence is not a solution. We now have a generation who have grown up since 9/11 who are more exposed to violence from our two wars, multimedia, popular culture, and more demands for guns as an expression of freedom, rather than freedom from guns and violence.

We won’t be able to control or eliminate all acts of violence, random or planned, but we can teach our children that violence is horror, not freedom.

Future Tense

It used to be that the future was exciting.  Of course, that was in the past. Now, in the present, yesterday’s future, we fear the future. Whether it’s: terrorism, nuclear obliteration, the next super-bug, or super-storm; climate change, crushing debt, or no more jobs; politicians who don’t stand for us, corporations who speak over us, horse meat and hormones, or unriching education, we are growing increasingly more tense about the future.

We have ample evidence today that we have many issues to tackle.  Even more disconcerting, is the rationale against tackling issues. We see how seemingly intractable so many problems have become. People across the political spectrum have dug in their heels, and have been most concerned with ideological purity and political power. Instead of climbing mountains, or even seeing that shining city on a hill, we’re staring down fiscal cliffs. Cynics have divided us into makers and takers (although I’m not sure everyone would agree who’s who). Hope and change became nope and same. Everyone is disgusted and fearful.

Despite the reality upon which our fears are based, we are becoming blinded by the fear. When teaching History to high school students, I remind them of other periods when the world seemed like it was about to end, or at least had turned very dark. When they can imagine their grandparents’ world, and that life continued, and the future included their lives, they can begin to shift their perspectives.

History is a great teacher. So too are the arts. The combination is most effective in conveying ways in which humans have confronted issues and experienced difficulties and forged new ways to shape lives and communities. I encourage teachers to include paintings and music, as well as dance and theatre in their History classes. I also encourage a fusion of History with Math and Science, and of course integrating the arts in those classes as well. Perspective is important in each subject (and in life), and is easily exemplified in the arts. Students in Language Arts classes learn perspective (person) in grammar and literature (through character and voice). Education is not merely the accumulation of facts. It is in fact to enrich (not unrich) our lives; to broaden our perspectives.

As a nation, we have been struggling with accountability in education. Students are assessed; teachers are assessed; and schools are assessed. I’m not sure that our assessments are  actually geared toward improving education, despite the good intentions. Moreover, the focus on those assessments as the determiners of future status for students, teachers, and schools, has created greater tension and a more limited education.

Given the many challenges that we must meet in our schools, our communities, our politics, and in all aspects of our lives, it is easy to be cynical and fearful. When we are fearful, we shut down possibilities. When we nurture our creative instincts, we begin to think in the future tense, creating possibilities and improving  what was started.

Same Opportunities Means Differences, Creativity, and Change

Our society talks a lot about diversity, but we talk about diversity as multi-colored or multi-gendered sameness. On the one hand, we want the same opportunities for everyone regardless of race, gender, creed, sexual orientation, economic status…..etc….On the other hand, we get stuck on what we mean by the same opportunities. Too often we focus on the sameness rather than on the opportunities.

The last couple of generations has seen a revolution in civil rights, and access to education and jobs. Millennials have been more color blind than their predecessors, partially because they grew up exposed to more racial and cultural diversity than their parents and grandparents did. They also grew up in a culture of gender equality (or as some would attest, post -Feminism).  This is not to suggest that racism and sexism and other bigotry does not exist; it does, but the culture at large has wandered through the desert for 40 years, and has transitioned to a new normal that is much more fully integrated by race and gender than at any previous time in history. There are still some firsts yet to come, and more diversity is necessary, but the idea that schools and workplaces, much less any place, should look the way they did a couple of generations ago, is anachronistic and stunting our progress. Millennials  have also shown their distinction as civil birth-rights with their ease and support of marriage equality. They schooled their elders on both sides of the political divide, that marriage equality is a civil right. We’ll see when the elders on the Supreme Court ultimately get it. Millennials seem to be most entrenched in same opportunities.

One of the (fairly recent, historically speaking) civil rights laws that many Millennials may not have been aware of was the Americans with Disabilities Act ( ADA 1990). Like the Civil Rights Act of 1964 which made discrimination based on race, religion or sex illegal, the ADA of 1990 protects against discrimination, in this case, based on disability. The power of these civil rights laws is the inclusion of so many who were previously excluded (and worse). The cultural impact is even greater: We have access to so many more gifts and gifted individuals who are different from us! It is equal opportunity for variety–not sameness. The more difference the better!

One of the cultural remnants of the ADA however, has been the seeming pathologization of so many previously “normal”, if unpleasant, phases of life and dispositions. It became beneficial for many parents to have their struggling kids tested and identified as having some sort of disability in order to get an IEP (Individualized Education Plan).   The IEPs are a reasonable first step, but are often not adhered to, and are difficult for teachers (and parents) to manage. The upsurge in disabilities is partially due to a new recognition of disability. At the same time, school systems have been decreasing arts and recess, and adding testing and uniforms, and earlier school times–all counter to enhancing individual academic, intellectual,social and emotional growth. Being more aware of disabilities and ways to manage them has been a great leap forward; but we must be careful not to create a culture of disability/pathology where everything is a problem that needs medicating in an environment that doesn’t allow for different rates of development, and uses inappropriate measures of assessment and  notions of success.   I spent years parenting and teaching in a culture that on the one hand suggested pathology was everywhere, but where there was also little interest in creativity or in diverse kinds of education. Perhaps there would be less pathology if more diversity of human nature were encouraged and nurtured. Diversity is more than skin deep. It is more than racial and gender orientation. To assume that everyone can be educated the same is small minded, at best. Sometimes, the real opportunities lie in diverse learning institutions and workplaces.

For Millennials who have grown up to expect opportunities for all, they are discovering a cruel economic situation that demands creativity. Creative thinking (and work) is not merely for artists.    Any strides that we have made in Civil Rights and educating, and having people become more included and productive, has come from a break from the status quo; from sameness to opportunity. Learning institutions and workplaces must continue to evolve to include more diversity of individuals (inside and out). Perhaps that will mean a shift in scheduling and organization from one that no longer supports what is truly a more diverse population and a creative culture.

Meme What You Say and Say What You Meme

Meme: an element of a culture or system of behavior that may be considered to be passed from one individual to another by nongenetic means, especially imitation.

Merriam-Webster Dictionary 2013

 

This week = signs were virtually everywhere. Yes, virtually. In my last piece, Right of Spring, I considered religious rites of Spring, Passover and Easter; cultural works of art, namely Stravinsky’s (and Nijinsky’s) “Rite of Spring”; political rights in the Middle East that began with the so-called Arab Spring; and here and now, legal rights, as the Supreme Court grapples with Prop 8 and DOMA and marriage equality for same sex couples. It is the legal right to which I referred as the right of this Spring. While I was considering Rites and Rights of Spring, = signs and other posters (i.e. pictures) were being shared on social media, and in all media. Their impact was immediate and vast. The signs and symbols reflected thoughts and emotions with an intensity (and often humor) that inspired a cultural ripple. These signs may not have changed minds, but seemed to allow people to share in the cultural discourse in ways that they might not have otherwise. The visceral effect of a graphic combined with the immediacy and vastness of the internet allows for memes to not only become “viral”, but to allow people to connect culturally.

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When you want to make an impact, consider the effect that graphic arts and other cultural arts have. Arts affect emotion, and engage the senses while connecting to our intellects (ideas and ideals).

Marketers,advertisers, and political consultants know this, but educators and anyone who wants to connect and make a difference could do well to meme what you say and say what you meme.

Right of Spring

As an arts and education activist– a culturalist– I am always delving into how traditions and cultural symbols and expressions reflect our ideas and ideals, as well as inspire. This week many celebrate Passover and Easter, and recount the ancient stories of slavery to liberation, sacrifice and resurrection. Families and friends feast on foods and participate in rituals that evoke these tales, and seek relevance to our own struggles. We have  the opportunity to celebrate the newness and beauty of the nature and culture of Spring.

 

Aside from religious rituals of Spring, I was thinking about other cultural expressions, and of course Stravinsky’s “Rite of Spring” sprung to mind. For those not familiar with the music, it hardly evokes images of Spring. The music is harsh and, although interesting, is almost the opposite of the way we like to think of Spring as crocuses, chirping birds and fluttering butterflies. Similarly, the ballet, originally choreographed by Nijinsky, was initially poorly received as the dances and dancers were contrary to audience notions of beauty and grace or the loveliness of Spring. The music and ballet (and also Matisse’s “Dance” that was painted around the same time as Stravinsky’s “Rite of Spring”composition) recalled elements of paganism in an avant-garde approach. Their modernist works upended cultural notions and referenced paganism as a means to pushing cultural boundaries. If Spring was about transformation and (re)birth, the birth of modernism transformed cultural sensibilities (in frightening geo political ways as well). This modernism is over a century old.

 

We often think of Modern as new, but what is the new Rite of Spring? We still have much to transform.  A couple of years ago, the world watched as uprisings across the Arab world gave rise to what was coined the Arab Spring. There was hope and possibility in the air that dictatorships and harsh rule and economic inequalities would be transformed , and that Democracy would ensue.

 

As of this writing, the Supreme Court is examining the legal implications of gay marriage. At this moment in our history, it seems as though public opinion is far ahead of the Court on gay marriage. In previous eras, the Court created the legal paths for civil rights, and cultural attitudes had to adjust to the legal reality. Now, we have a different situation: The Supreme Court is wrestling with the right to marry after the cultural shift toward marriage equality for gay couples. This is the Right of this Spring. Now we need new cultural arts compositions to reflect our new ideals and inspire the next generations.

The After Life of Pi

Happy Pi Day!

Pi Day is celebrated on March 14th (3/14) around the world. Pi (Greek letter “π”) is the symbol used in mathematics to represent a constant — the ratio of the circumference of a circle to its diameter — which is approximately 3.14159.

Pi has been calculated to over one trillion digits beyond its decimal point. As an irrational and transcendental number, it will continue infinitely without repetition or pattern. While only a handful of digits are needed for typical calculations, Pi’s infinite nature makes it a fun challenge to memorize, and to computationally calculate more and more digits.http://www.piday.org/learn-about-pi/

The idea of and for Pi Day is to celebrate Pi (which also happens to be Albert Einstein’s birthday). In elementary schools and university Mathematics departments, students and teachers celebrate with anything associated with the number 3.14….. and eating pies, and probably watching the movie The Life of Pi (which has nothing to do with figuring out how many digits follow 3.14159 or the ratio of the circumference of a circle to its diameter). For the young students, Pi Day can be an introduction to geometry, ratios, and noticing numbers and the significance of patterns. For the university level (and beyond), Pi Day is celebrated with contests and the joy of playing with numbers and seeking to go beyond our current level of calculations. For the rest, those beyond the early education years and not serious math enthusiasts, Pi Day is cute, and reminds us of the very basic math concepts and rules that our younger students are celebrating today. For too many, our abilities and interests  in Math do not extend beyond the elementary Pi Day.

If Pi Day (or Black History Month, or Women’s History Month), or any other demarcated subject celebration, is to truly have an impact, we must go beyond the superficial celebrities of the celebrations. Pi Day (and Black History Month and Women’s History month etc…) may have initially raised awareness and interest in subjects and important personalities associated with the subjects, but when we keep these celebrations as peripheral to our everyday learning, we limit our abilities to expand .

Too often, after the early years, Math is taught as a series of rules, and those who are not particularly interested in using these rules, often miss opportunities to connect the rules to other applications, or developing mathematical awareness. So many people who are not driven toward studying or working in STEM fields, somehow get through their math courses without acquiring much mathematical knowledge. Few develop the appreciation to see mathematically.

As one who has more of an artistic temperament and appreciation than a mathematical habit of mind, I encourage others to learn more about seeing mathematically. One of my favorite writers on the subject of math is Steven Strogatz. He wrote a series in the New York Times entitled “The Elements of Math”, where he made mathematical concepts available to anyone by real life examples that were expressed in delightful prose. It was like being a tourist with a personable, interesting, caring, and joyful tour guide through some mathematical terrain.  I also recommend Strogatz’s book The Joy of x: A Guided Tour of Math, From One to Infinity.

http://www.stevenstrogatz.com/the_joy_of_x.html

Whether it’s Pi Day or any other subject celebration, we need to use these reminders that rather than superficial celebrity celebrations or simple associations, these are starting points. We can integrate these important lessons into other subjects and contexts and develop greater understanding and appreciation, as well as cultivate new habits of mind that we may have missed along the way.

So, Happy Pi Day!  And may you explore infinite possibilities!