workforce

Lately, I have been thinking a lot about words that start with work...

  • workshop
  • workspace
  • workflow
  • workload
  • workforce 
  • workshitssheets 

What is work, and what does it have to do with schools and learning? 

Some would argue that the education system is not doing enough to support the workforce. It is not a Millennial issue, or a standards issue. It is about emotions, and it is about relationships. It is about responsibility. 

Developing A Sense Of Responsibility: Why Emotional Insight Is Critical For The Future Of Work

And, it is now a presidential debate issue, with 18 of 23 presidential candidates supporting some type of tuition relief or assistance. 

"However, a 2013 McKinsey & Company study of youth, education providers, and employers in nine countries showed that while 72 percent of higher education institutions believe they prepare their students well for the workforce, half of students are not sure if their credentials improve their opportunities at finding a job. This disconnect can also be seen in the private sector where only 11 percent of business leaders ‘strongly agree’ that students have the vital skills for the labour market, compared to 96 percent of chief academic officers who believed their institutions were either somewhat or very effective at providing the necessary skills to students. While a post-secondary degree is still proven to be a career asset, the current level of disconnect between what employers want versus what is being taught must be addressed."

—McKinsey & Company, "The Voice of the Graduate"

✱ hat tip to David Culberhouse for sharing these ideas  

workshop

I miss this place, this bedroom in my house that I walk past every day on my way to the other bedroom in my house that is now an office, a workspace.    

It's not that my printshop is gone...it’s just that I have been spending a lot more time in the office. Like a lot a lot. It’s been over two months since I last printed. 

As a doctoral candidate, I am reading, writing, and researching in almost the free moments available. And, I miss this free moments of arranging type, setting forms, and pressing ink onto paper. Dearly. 

I read this article today, about the benefits of working with your hands, and missed printing even more. 

Some day, I will have my weekends free to print again...

Dreams are forever, but the rent is due each month. 


email

Setting up a new MacBook, I hesitated to enable email. Why? Because the MacBook already has Messages/SMS built into the operating system, and that can be silenced by clicking "Do not disturb." That's a tricky proposition with email. Sure, I could just quit the email app, but I would know that it is there and I would feel the urge to click it. Somehow, silencing Messages is easier. Like swiping into Airplane Mode. 

The other complication: like most people in the modern world, I have two email addresses. One for work, and one personal. It's almost like an obligation. And, that obligation is what troubles me. Here’s the thing...  

Email is a to-do list other people make for you.   

Besides, if I am going to make a list I will likely use my trusty pocket notebook. Analog lists worked well for others, and it survived for years with pencil and paper. Maybe a pen and paper. Whatever your preference. To prove my point, note that there are several websites and books about the art of making lists. One of my favorites is Lists of Note

One more thought on email:  

Email is a wonderful way to miscommunicate what you mean and misinterpret what others are trying to tell you. 


new laptop

Finally decided to level up my laptop game. The old Acer R13 still runs great, but I decided that I needed something a little more powerful. I justified it by reminding myself that I'm in a doctoral program.

Don't get me wrong, I love Chromebooks. And, that old Acer is battle tested. I'm pretty fond of it. I’ll continue to use the ol' Acer in the coming the school year. But, for now, I'm probably I'm the happiest I'll be all year...because I'm geeking out over the new Macbook Air Space Grey with Magic Mouse.

*also had to get the USB-C to Digital AV MultiPort adapter because it's a huge dongle

TLT

Transformative Learning Theory [TLT]

Mezirow's 10 Phases Transformative Learning. 

Just getting started on this book. I've got some notes (pictured above), and I've been reviewing connections to the past class on the ethics of a scholar-researcher. Tying to make connections to previous texts, and to my own life. Looking for that "disorienting idea" that is necessary to start this 10 phase process.  

One of the texts suggested writing as an impetus of change. Perhaps I should continue to write more autobiographically. 

This intersubjectivity, or the internal conversation with our different self-positions, which is made possible by writing creates a fluid space in which thoughts change and hence a fertile ground for transformation. 

K.G. Willink and J.M. Jacobs

key words/phrases from other texts:

  • personal transformation 
  • transformative pedagogy
  • experiential learning 
  • self as relational
  • care and intersubjectivity
  • relational, dialogic pedagogy