Re: planning

Rolfe Windward (IBALWIN who-is-at mvs.oac.ucla.edu)
Thu, 02 Nov 95 07:41 PST

Bill, was that study w/ Jackie Backer-Sennett et al published and/or
available electronically? I'm getting some similar effects from students
who govern their own "science institute."

Rolfe Windward
UCLA GSE&IS
ibalwin who-is-at mvs.oac.ucla.edu

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> Resent-Date: Thu, 2 Nov 1995 06:00:55 -0800 (PST)
> From: BPenuel who-is-at AOL.COM
> Date: Thu, 2 Nov 1995 09:00:27 -0500
> To: xmca who-is-at WEBER.UCSD.EDU
> Subject: planning
> Resent-Message-ID: <"mwIvt2.0.lA7.NyCcm" who-is-at weber>
> Resent-From: xmca who-is-at WEBER.UCSD.EDU
> Reply-To: xmca who-is-at WEBER.UCSD.EDU
> Resent-Sender: xmca-request who-is-at WEBER.UCSD.EDU
>
> Eugene writes:
>
> "Very often in a traditional school, the adult
> monopolizes the first action, the action of planning
> (i.e., an action withhigh degree of subject
> transformation) letting students participate
> only inthe second action, the action of "implementing"
> (i.e., an action with highdegree of object
> transformation). Jackie Baker-Sennett, Cindy
> White, Barbara Rogoff, and I studied children's
> playcrafting activities under direction of child vs. adult (novice parent
> volunteers in school). We found
> that when adult directed the playcrafting, s/he
> did planning ahead before entering the classroom
> and then tried to implement his/her plan with the
> children making children marionettes of this plan
> and objects of his/her activity, allowing the children to be involved only in
> planning of minor details. When child directed the children's playcrafting,
> although the child also
> prepared some ideas, the ideas were open for
> transformation and negotiation (and were always
> transformed at high degree by the group). Under child direction, the children
> spent more time in planning
> overall and especially in thematic, detailed, and
> mindstorming types of planning."
> -
> This kind of finding can also be found in noninstructional settings of
> afterschool public health programs, with
> important consequences for prevention. The more
> young people are involved in planning their own
> programs to reduce substance abuse, violence, and
> AIDS/HIV, and to use adults as resources in this regard,
> the more "buy-in" public health programs typically have.
> This may be the real value of "peer programs"--not that
> young people are working with other young people, but
> that young people who participate in program planning
> develop a deeper, more textured understanding of
> risk-taking behavior and its meaning in their own lives.
>
> Bill Penuel
> ____________________________
> PreventionInventions
> 139 Holly Forest
> Nashville, TN 37221
> (615) 646-9682
>