>
>I agree with Activity
>theory as an ideal but am having a very difficult time with just putting it
>in schools without doing anything to change the hierchy of the administration
>and political posturing that occurs.
Eric,
I don't think we put theory in schools. We need to develop concrete
activity that promotes the learning interactions specified by a theory. A
change in schooling must be bi-directional. Teacher preparation
institutions and schools, both, must change. One problem is that higher
education would like to see schools change while continuing to conserve
existing teacher preparation activity.
Our 5D consortium has been successful in demonstrating that on-campus
afterschool 5Ds , 5Ds installed in afterschool programs, and (3) in-school
5D programs can be sustained. In each case, the sustainability was
determined by how the contradictions were solved. Even when
sustainability is obtained, contradictions continue to emerge and others
that remain to be solved. For example, to use the 5D as an early
practicum for undergraduates creates a contradiction between the
traditional (behavioral/cognitive) model of teacher preparation and a new
social constructionist model. We have been able to sustain the 5D as a
clinical practicum and a the new teacher preparation model in the
Educational Core for a number of years. However, at the next level teacher
preparation, major disruption continues to emerge between the successful
transformation of teacher preparation at the core level and the other
levels of teacher preparation in the college.
The scenario is much the same in the schools where we installed 5Ds. For
example, design principles on which the 5D is constructed promote a
learning environment that is unlike a school classroom. Having fun during
learning activity that a kid has selected and recruiting the noisy help of
others is not like the sequestered activity of most classrooms. 'The
success we have demonstrated by increases in achievement also generates a
number of interesting contradictions. One created is kid learning produced
with a very small budget vs. learning produced at a high cost. Another
contradiction created by our success emerges between the kind of learning
supported in the 5D vs. remediation that parents and schools would like
promote the 5D to promote. Rather than have kids volunteer for the 5D,
some parents and schools would like for the 5D to "fix" the problems some
kids have in school. Contradictions created by the presence of the 5D
will be resolved, we hope, by the school making some transformations based
on the 5D model.
One thing is clear, creating change is universities and schools is not like
a taking a dose Exlax and experiencing immediate results. Change requires
that concrete model systems of the proposed change be available. This is
long-term work over a number of years. It is messey had work.
Bill Blanton
>Just trying to help,
>Eric
This archive was generated by hypermail 2b29 : Tue May 01 2001 - 01:02:06 PDT