>My first reaction to Stone's article was that it was about what happens in
>classrooms without any concern for evidence about what actually happens in
>classrooms. My impression is that writing about something in such a
>second-hand way is the kind of writing most likely use dichotomous
>rhetoric. The writer needs to make assertions about the world without
>recourse to messy data.
and that, ultimately, is my reply to Arne about U.S. schools. They're full
of messy data. I think German ones are, too. I think the relationship
between policy and practice is another messy area. That is, yeah, the
attacks that lurk in the article concern me, but then again, what makes
teachers and kids and schools ornery and un-malleable and oh so resistent
to change may also make them a bit more resistant and resilient than I am
sometimes willing to think about.
And while we're on the "Guess-what's-in-my-head" philosphy of instruction &
communication so masterfully invoked by Phil, has anyone else on this net
noticed that current in our academic venues? Various forms of "feedback"
come to mind...
Just rambling a bit...
good night, good morning,
genevieve