Remember the Unremembered

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History isn't written by the victors, its rewritten by marketers. Skimmed over, textbook vocabulary, and Cliff Notes versions of Historical comparisons ruin progress and civil discourse! Like pouring vinegar into our cereal bowls, we lose sight of tasteful and meaningful dialogue when leaders misunderstand the details of history. Pushing historical narratives that serve short-sided political points move society in reverse and septically poisons the minds of progress.

Listen to some political leaders describe the Stay-At-Home orders, they'd have audiences believe this Covid19 lockdown has been the greatest injustice in American History. They Ignore the thousands of enslaved bodies our history piled upon our shores. They turn away when looking at shameful and ignorantly written legislation. Anyone with smartphone can quickly search: Sedition Act of 1918; Black Codes; Jim Crow Laws; Page Laws 1875; The Dawes Act; Chinese Exclusion Act. In this country, there lies an unspoken history of creating anti-immigrant and intolerant moods of division. Today's Stay-At-Home orders fall cosmically short of "injustice" or "infringement". Those who rant about a 3-6 month shutdown of social gatherings are crying "Wolf" in name of Divisiveness not Liberty.

Look a little closer at more recent history and it can be easily discovered that as this nation ages, we don't seem to ripen with age. At the height of World War II, Franklin Roosevelt's internment camps Housed Japanese-Americans because...they were Japanese? In the Aftermath of September 11, George W. Bush administration's Patriot Act of 2001, essentially destroyed the idea of privacy - especially for Arab-Americans! These examples of history aren't simple lists of American blunders, these illustrate the "choices" our leaders make in times of crisis. In the past, Presidents and leaders made decisions centered around how "American" somebody was (or looked). It also highlights the weird twisted truth that the nucleus of these decisions originate from some weird book on Anglo-Saxon Capitalism.  With each crisis, instead of meeting panic with seasonable, determined, and measured ideals, Americanism tends to lay down unforgettable labels of discrimination.

This ignored history leads to today, where individuals are suggesting stay-at-home orders - for the sake of a medical pandemic  - is on par with the oppressed peoples of yesterday. This claim is not only fallacy, but undeniably narrow-minded. There is absolutely zero, none, zilch, less than zero comparison. Comparing Work Camps and forced relocation camps to help thy neighbor cause is like comparing the sun to the moon. Yes, Both are Celestial Bodies, but they are both fantastically different and serve 2 completely different purposes. At the core of Stay-At-Home orders is preserving life and protecting the livelihoods of medical professionals, in other words the genesis of stay-at-home decision is compassion. Unlike previous political controversies and Constitutional challenges, stay-at-home decisions harbor the sanctity of life and not the narrow-mindedness of ethnocentrism. 

A global pandemic threatens all of us! Not just one race or social class and every Political leader needs to awaken their conscience and re-read the testimonies of those who survived Slavery, Relocation Camps, and Internment Camps. I doubt these first person accounts worried about which restaurant they could visit or if their split ends were too frizzy. No doubt, the life of a pandemic interrupts livelihoods but recklessly comparing this pandemic pause to historical atrocities underlies the problem which is current leadership draws inspiration from the single-mindedness Anglo-Saxon Dogma and its Economic principles. It is within these biases where the unfortunate demise of this country rests.

The wise have eyes in the head, but the fool walks in darkness. Let us use our eyes and learn from history. Let us build collective laws, standards, and policies, that generate the shared principles we all share or least agree to value. The common good comes from the values our families and neighbors provide us. These values don't stem from the the television, internet, or talking heads of today's bureaucratic chambers. Look at our history, read it, listen to it within ourselves so that we can construct greater senses of self, community, and country.

Dorothyism

Leadership comes in different shapes, sizes, colors, tones and moments. Today, Opinions are EVERYWHERE and every opinion stands as the RIGHT one. Facebook Streams, Comment Pages, and Twitter posts in ALL CAPS emphasize absolute CORRECTNESS.
In this era of EVERY OPINION MATTERS, How do leaders come to their conclusions and Where do leaders seek their guidance?

In the Wizard of Oz, Dorothy Gale gets hurled into the mythical world of Oz - much like our world today but with social distancing. As Dorothy comes to the realization that she's fallen into some strange foreign land  she begins to inquire and observe. Now, if Dorothy was equipped with GPS, Google Maps, Twitter, InstaGram, or Waze, she would click a few apps and she could avoid the advice of Glinda or the warm welcoming from the Lollipop Guild. That's right, a Dorothy armed with the latest I-phone or Android would allow her to ignore the awkward greetings of such a strange land and put her head down, follow the advice of whatever screen told her.

Unfortunately, this isn't how story works. Facing trauma, confusion, self-deprecating imaginations and sometimes supernatural events, we must rely on old fashion leadership and principle.
In Dorothy's case, her only assurance was a devotion to home and Toto. Arming ourselves with regurgitated blips of information does nothing. IN FACT, it makes matters worse.  Seeking advice (of munchkins, lions, and scarecrows) - and adhering to the basic principles of humanity, such as listening to reason and kindness is what guided Dorothy through OZ.

Although Dorothy became the anointed leader of this quest, she remained principled, kind, and considerate. Her goal was to simple....go back to home! While encountering the heartless and brainless, she leans in and learns. The instincts to harm or insult are placed aside and she marches toward the unknown.

Without question, we are facing with an UNKNOWN and it might be months (maybe years) away from familiarity. Today's leaders place faith in patience, resident professionals, and most of all embrace the idea of collectivism. Recall personal vulnerability and begin designing policies and guidelines from a place of humility. Set aside committees, mobs, and POSTS aimed at wrecking offices, parties, and personalities. A Land of Absolute Remoteness demands us and its leaders to Ask questions of Logic and Reason, utter SOLUTIONS of PRINCIPLE but this foreign moment of history requires a development of COMRADERY. As the thumbs and broadbands set ablaze this WONDERFUL WORLD of OZ, let us not turn our backs on each other!
Follow DOROTHYISM and avoid the temptation of populism because

Right now, the Members of Oz, big and small, meek and mighty are twisting in something indescribable and guidance is needed...not politics real.

Common Threads

Synthesizing Common Threads

To Know or To Think?

Palm Readers, pundits, and provocateurs add panic not productivity.

This spring when students decided to tackle  novels, projects, essays, and mathematics equations there was no way to predict the impact of a global pandemic. Talking heads, Facebook Feeds, and Instagram posts make feeble efforts to predict and guide our thoughts, but these (often times) efforts only attempt to capitalize on our natural instinct "to Know".
The human mind's obsession to "know" (what will happen next) leaves us vulnerable to scammers, pharmaceuticals, and internet mindlessness.

This current pandemic disruption in our daily lives is more than an inconvenience, its a bookmark.
Historical events such as a World Wars, Political Revolutions, Black Plagues, Nuclear Threats, and Global Pandemics are crisp reminders of how "interconnected" we are. The decisions and educational levels of our neighbors matter!  Whether it's a neighbor across the street or a neighbor from Far East Asia, humanity and nature finds a way to remind us of our vulnerability.

As we navigate this societal interruption, let us revisit ourselves and tap into the voices of the past.
Let's Remind ourselves that our Great Grandparents survived World Wars, Dust Bowls, and Great Depressions. Open up a book, a story, or poem of the past and wrap the mind around the strength of our history. This strength doesn't reside in the noise of the Snapchat Streaks or Tik-Tok Twerks.
Our greatest attributes lies in the ability to read, reflect, and apply.

Read and rely on the experts (past & present) of science, medicine, culture, economics, and psychology the past supersedes the online chatter.

Staying healthy, in mind and in body, doesn't require a zodiac sign or fortune cookie, it requires tempered logic and literary reflection.

The Mystery of Intelligence

Intelligence, a word not easily defined, is measured through an array of methods. To a kindergartner, intelligence is recognizing basic geometric shapes, to a middle school kid, intelligence is reading a novel, and to high school student, intelligence is measured in the form of grade point average. Each tier of educational development has academic hurdles, each year comes with its own standard of achievement. While climbing the academic ladder, students collect a series of red pen marks, gold stars, or smiley face emojis. Throughout the climb, there is one undeniable truth, all students - no matter rich or poor - face unrelenting social pressures and these pressures can’t be met with flashcards, textbooks, or elaborate rubrics..

Under the pixelated sea of academic accolades and detentions, lies another form of learning, another form of intelligence, a Lochness monster of development - Social Intelligence. Today, social intelligence both excites and puzzles stewards of education. How is social intelligence measured? What does social intelligence look like for every student? For some, these abstract ideals are real. For others, this idea of social intellect is just another fad. According to Adam Gant, journalist for the Atlantic, new evidence suggests that when people have self-serving motives, emotional intelligence becomes a weapon for manipulating others (Source A). This all the more reason for students to rehearse their own emotional temptations and avoid the allure of corrupt bureaucrats, dead-end financial loans, or harassing workplaces.  Wherever this argument ends, there is one irrefutable archetype and that is every student is a core a social creature and this creature is filled with the very same hormones their grandparents had. Technology, culture, politics, and educational demands come and go, but every generation manages a common denominator and that is the rubix cube of social development and without its development students are more susceptible to the art of bamboozlement.  

 

In a perfect world, both social and academic intellect would be fused together in perfect harmony for every student. As this debate percolates, students are left to unwind the learning goals of their education. Besides being an abstract skill, social intelligence is the ability to decipher social context at any specific time, at any specific place, at any specific age. Converse with a 25 year old college student from Yale, no problem. Break bread with a Rabbi from Israel, no problem. Defuse the temper of an angry customer at Dairy Queen, no problem. Let’s pretend that social intelligence is whooey, let’s pretend it's the “pet rock” of the educational fads. Lisa Feldman Barrett’s writes, Likewise, a scowling person might be angry or just thinking hard, or even have a case of indigestion. In fact, there isn’t a single emotion that has one specific, consistent expression (Source B). True, emotional intelligence won’t turn high school graduates into a modern day Zoltar machine reading the future, but this style of thinking promotes self-awareness and self-awareness leads to better decision making, which generates healthier styles of living. As this debate lingers, most would agree that students lives are imperfect measurements of success and failure. Throughout a student’s life, lies a series of social environments, conflicts, and pitfalls. If the modern classroom - legislative chambers too -  ignore the realities of a students’ social needs, we run the risk of producing graduates that lack the ability to endure imperfection.

Its true, social intelligence might not win academic competitions or games of trivial pursuit, but it does provide students with a set of emotional stilts and these stilts provide a level of emotional stability. Enduring imperfection is the main ingredient to a successful life. Steve Jobs, Nikola Tesla, and Gary Dahl (pet rock guy) were all contributors to entrepreneurship and innovation, but all three of these innovators had flaws, both personal and professional flaws, but their contributions to culture and society are unmistakably obvious. Anya Kamentz’s article, Everybody Loves them but Can’t Define Them quotes educational leader Leyla Bravo-Willey of KIPP"We're not religious, we're not talking about ethics, we're not going to give any kind of doctrine about what is right from wrong, But there are some fundamental things that make people really great citizens, which usually include being kind." (Source C) Modern disappointment has transformed. There are so many avenues of discourse, that when a poor grade arrives or standard is not met, there is an immediate tendency to deflect, discredit, or dissolve the disappointment. With little effort toward compromise, students have a tendency to shift accountability to the educational setting or find ways to adjust their own trajectory, so that there is little energy toward expunged toward understanding. In other words, students don’t have to rehearse kindness, they don’t have to rehearse concept of swallowing pride. Student doesn’t agree with a final grade, they simply change schedules, student-athlete doesn’t agree with their role on a team, they transfer schools, or if a student simply doesn’t “like” an educator they take a course online. All of these choices are currently available and within a student’s right, but these choices have a long-term impact on how citizens manage their disappointments. Managing disappointment can’t simply be fixed, it can’t simply be ignored with exercise, booze, narcotics, shooting ranges, Snapchats, Tweets or World of War Craft. Educated citizens are not elitists, they aren’t simply a bunch of “Phonies” as Holden Caufield would say, educated citizens are constantly trying to problem solve to make themselves and their environments better.

In the end, the ability to endure imperfection is what graduates should be built on. Society and communities thrive on how its citizens endure, and its how a democracy survives. If modern designers and legislators only seek out the perfect academic setting, the perfect academic measurement, or the perfect set of standards, they are missing the fundamentals of educational knowledge. The knowledge of measuring ourselves in times of trauma, the knowledge of patiently finding new employment if our current work is unfulfilling, the knowledge of restraint in times of hatred, and the knowledge of humility in times of public embarrassment. Plato wrote, “A good decision is based on knowledge and not on numbers” encouraging students to solely look at numbers, likes, and averages isn’t healthy policy for anyone - left or right - but we all know how addictive numbers can be and social intelligence is the 1-step program that helps manage that addiction.

31 Aug. AP Lang & AP World

Revised Schedule - Fall Sports Assembly 1:45  - 2:20 pm


AP Language

• 1st Week Review
• Writing Sample - Extended Metaphor 
• Writing Sample #2 - Anecdotal Writing 
• Collaboration - Annotation Log

AP WORLD HISTORY 

• 1st Week Review
• WH Jargon - Thinking Habits
• Contextualization - Collaboration 
• Process Interview - Recording Historical Data 

30 Aug. AP Lang & AP World

AP LANG

The Rest of the Week...

• Wrap UP - Annotation / Collaboration 
• Writing & P.O.V - "Owning a Story" 
• Omniscient Observer 
• Literary Devices 
• Allusions
• Personification 

AP WORLD HISTORY 

• Wrap UP - Contextualization Discussion 
• Interview Questions 
• Writing Effective Questions.