Cookie.

No, not really. Though I do want one. And warm bread. And muffins, the Morning Glory muffins from Hyperion.

No, I’m talking about change again. I think about change a lot. Why it is easier for some of us than others. Why some of us resist.

I’ve always thought I loved change. I moved every year of my early life, attending 13 schools in 12 years. I’ve had quite a few jobs, lived in many homes, and changed my name four times (long story).

Though Scientific American shared research that shows older folks resist change more than younger, I seem to thrive on it.

Yet, changing habits is difficult for me. I am trying desperately to shift my diet to non-gluten, non-dairy–and it’s hard. I struggle daily with choices before me, often rationalizing why I should just go ahead and eat that darn sandwich or pastry.

So when we ask teachers to shift their teaching practice, teach in ways that seem foreign or at times somewhat chaotic, I am not surprised when we get resistance.

Professor Robert Kegan says part of the problem is that we have “hidden commitments.”

They are brilliant behaviors, just exactly what you should be doing, in order to fulfill the hidden commitments — but these behaviors will also make it impossible to fulfill the visible goals. It is this combo of commitments that creates a single, powerful system — one foot on the gas pedal (the improvement goal) and one foot on the brakes (the hidden commitment). So the car doesn’t go anywhere.

Kegan says in a way it’s like an immune system that wants to protect us–but instead it’s failing us.

Our immune systems are founded on certain core beliefs which need to be examined. We call these our “big assumptions.” They are “big” because we are currently taking them as certain truths, not just assumptions, which may or may not be true.

His approach is to get people working together, reflecting upon the assumptions.

Our approach invites people to shift to an inquiring stance toward their big assumptions. They begin to run experiments of increasing size to see whether they should continue to hold their assumption exactly as they have, or whether it needs to come in for some modification. Even small modifications in the big assumptions can lead to very big changes along the lines of one’s original goal.

Sounds a lot like what we do in Powerful Learning Practice. I wonder how I can apply this to my diet?

 

Image credit: By bigbluemeanie

I am taking a class at the gym called “Boot Camp.” We gather each morning at 6am to let Emily wear us down and build us back up.

Lately, one of the participants has been bringing his son, who looks to be about 10 or 11. This morning, though, he didn’t show up with his dad.

“Where is Chuck?” someone asked.

“Oh he has his test on the state capitals today. He’s only up to 28, so he’s studying,” dad said.

Grrrrr. I could feel my stomach start to turn.

“Why do we do that to kids?” I asked. How many of you remember all the state capitals. And why do we need to know them?”

My husband, always the one to push me, said: “It’s good for us!”

Yeah. So here this poor kid is waking up early to memorize state capitals for a test he is taking today. In his book, Confusing Harder with Better, Alfie Kohn says:

And, this isn’t new. Here’s a discussion about how “memorization in schools is fading,” from a New York Times article in 1982.

”Memorization is a luxury that isn’t used anymore,” he said. ”We have fundamental goals to accomplish with our youngsters today. We have to practice in dealing with ideas so that they can conceptualize and draw conclusions.”

I don’t get it. I suppose there is some value in memorizing short poems and some math concepts, but state capitals? Why? Does anyone have a valid reason for using time in this way?

 

image credit: By cityyear