Top Ten Reasons Having a Teacher is Better Than Taking a Class Online

Full disclosure, I’m a bit of a nerd! (Well, maybe more than a bit.) I love learning new things, I enjoy putzing around on computers, I like getting stuck and I like solving problems. And online learning is great... convenient, relatively cheap, and available on almost any topic. Whether YouTube, Lynda, Kelby, EdX, Coursera, Udemy, a MOOC, or another source, there’s a great deal of information in cyberspace to which we now have access. I’ve taken my share of online courses, even finished a few, and I’ve posted online lessons for my students, but as both a student and a teacher (of adolescents and adults) I’ve found that there are some real limitations.  Here, then, are my top ten reasons that being in a classroom with a live teacher beats online learning:

10.       You have an obligation to show up

It’s easy to put off the next lesson in an online class... “I’ll get to it when my life is a bit less busy” we tell ourselves. But does that day, or evening, ever come? In a classroom we have to be there, on time, and attentive, to learn what it is we hope to learn. Showering, getting dressed, driving to class, all gives us “skin in the game” when it comes to learning. For those few among us who don’t procrastinate this may not be an issue, but for most of us having that “appointment with learning” enforces the external discipline that most of us need.

9.         You have colleagues from whom you can learn.

Having a community of colleagues with whom you can share ideas, projects, frustrations, and successes helps cross-pollinate our own learning. Often the student in the seat next to us knows something about the topic at hand that extends or enriches what the teacher is presenting. A good teacher will take that idea, question, or thought and run with it, making the learning that occurs deeper and richer.

8.         You have colleagues with whom you can become friends.

That same classroom community from whom we learn can become our network, our acquaintances, and often our friends. Having those connections is enormously important in the professional world, where the person you know is often the person asked to do the job. Having connections that extend beyond the classroom is one of the true joys of education.

7.         You can have your questions answered. Immediately.

The questions my students ask require me to revise my syllabus on a daily basis to cross off the tangents we have gone off on and rearrange the order of learning. Having a question answered or a problem solved when it arises is something that no online course can offer. Even with forums and message boards one usually has to wait some period of time for a response. With a teacher in the same room you can get immediate help and guidance.

6.         You can fail and still be encouraged.

Failure is the most important lesson... learning what doesn’t work involves having a greater understanding of what does work. There’s a tendency to give up when a task seems too difficult, and without a guide by the side (rather than a sage on the stage) we can too easily go back to email or Facebook or something else that’s a lot easier. A good teacher will encourage, ask questions, and steer the task into more fruitful avenues.

5.         There’s someone who knows what motivates you.

A good teacher won’t let you slide, or just go through the motions, in completing projects, writing papers, or any other aspect of doing your best possible work. They know your interests and passions, and can structure assignments accordingly. Online you’re on your own, or with 10,000 other students, and no one is really paying that much attention. Do it, don’t do it, it’s all the same to the computer. Just so long as your credit card clears.

4.         You have an obligation to produce.

In a class you owe it to yourself, your classmates, and your teacher to produce interesting work. Online... not so much.

3.         You find your areas of ignorance.

We know what we do know, we know some of what we don’t know and want to learn, but what about the things that we don’t know that we don’t know? You may want to learn something specific that you don’t know about, but what about the things you haven’t considered? In a classroom you’ll find all sorts of things from your fellow students as well as the teacher that you’d never have otherwise considered.

2.         You can discover possibilities.

Your classmates and teachers will open your eyes and mind to ideas that you may have never considered, leading you into new directions and unanticipated insights.

1.         You can be inspired.

The work of your teacher and classmates can help you to raise your game to new heights and to create better work than you ever thought possible.

Listening to a piece of music on your iPod is not the same as listening to that piece of music in a concert hall. Viewing art alone online is not the same as engaging with the work in the company of others. Emoticons are not facial expressions and CAPS aren’t vehemence.  No one can touch you or shake your hand or pat you on the back online. You don’t hear other’s laughter, joy, or frustrations. You can’t see the twinkle in their eyes or hear the enthusiasm in their voices.

Online instruction is like an encyclopedia, it’s there to give you information, and it sometimes does that very well. It will increase the breadth of your knowledge.

A good class, on the other hand, is like art - you have to engage with it, bring something of yourself to it, and what it means to you will change over time and vary from person to person. It will increase the breadth, and the depth, of your knowledge, leave you a  bit wiser, and foster within you a richer human being.

Congratulations Class of 2014!

Welcome to the 50th Commencement exercises of the Nora School, formerly Washington Ethical High School, Washington Ethical Society School, and the Eberhard School. Contrary to popular belief, I did not speak at the first commencement in 1964, as I was only in 2nd grade. But turning 50, or as I like to call it, approaching middle age, is a real milestone, particularly for a small scrappy school like Nora.

Graduates, like The Nora School you have reached a milestone. Like the Nora School, your journey here has included a few near death experiences. Like the Nora School, you’re in great shape to face the future with optimism and with the necessary skills and tools.  Like the Nora School, you can look back with the pride of accomplishment and forward with the excitement of what is to come. And like the Nora School, you need to keep exploring and learning and challenging yourself so that life remains an exhilarating  journey.

Today marks one of the few times in your lives that everyone will get together just for you.  Birth, graduation, marriage, death are the biggies, and you probably won’t be there to enjoy the last one, so you’d better enjoy this!

You are here because of the work of many people, most notably your parents and teachers.  The members of our Board of Directors support and guide the school behind the scenes, giving generously of their time, treasure, and talent. I would like to recognize them now.

And finally, you need to thank your parents, as they have supported you far longer than we have, and, despite what they’re hoping, will continue to do so.  I would like to recognize those whose dedication to you included changing your diapers, reading your bedtime stories, and paying your Nora School tuition.

Soon to be alumni, I am hopeful that you will take away from today, your last day at Nora, the same precepts I discussed with you on your first day at Nora.  It may seem long ago, but on your first day, and on each first day thereafter, you went around to get lockers, photo ID’s, and to write down your goals.  You also spent time with me discussing the school rules, which can be boiled down to four simple sentences that will stand you in good stead throughout your lives.

Show up on time.  Do your work.  Take care of your health. Treat others with respect.

Look back on your time at Nora and honestly assess to what extent I was telling you the truth.

Did you show up on time?  Did that make your life easier or harder?  What are the consequences in the next part of your life for showing up late? What does it say about being a person worthy of trust?

I can tell you that there are tremendous benefits to showing up on time, being a person of your word, having others see you as reliable.  The Noble Truth of Buddhism is echoed in the first sentence of Scott Peck’s The Road Less Travelled:  “Life is Difficult.”  I don’t think you’ll find many people here today who would disagree with that statement, but I’d like to follow it up with a question, “Now What?”  OK, life is difficult, now what?  You still need to show up. If you have to show up, you’d might as well show up on time.  It makes life slightly less difficult.

Do your work.  Same questions.  How was life when you did your work?  How was your life affected when you didn’t take care of business?  What happens in the world when you drop the ball?  What happens when you follow through?  And what kind of work will you do?  As you do whatever work is before you as you go through your life, whether schoolwork or office work or mechanical work or the work of raising a family, is the work, and are you, making the world a better place?

What are you consciously doing to ease someone else’s burden?  Might I suggest that next week you cook dinner for your family,  or perhaps do the laundry? Making the world a better place can happen in small as well as large ways. In fact, if everyone were to work on the small ways our world would be a much better place.

Take care of your health.  Stay sober, because it’s hard to have any lasting success if your brain is messed up. Exercise and eat healthy food, because you’ll feel better, have more energy, and be a happier person. Monster Energy drinks, ho-hos, and giant Slurpees as an occasional treat are one thing, as part of your daily diet they’re not so great. Take care of your health.

Treat others with respect.  Yes, I know it’s the Golden Rule, but there’s a reason it’s called Golden.  Treating others with respect doesn’t only mean your friends, or people you get along with, it also means those who rub you the wrong way and get on your nerves.  This doesn’t change outside Nora, there will always be people you find annoying. One of them might be your roommate next year!  This is where your room for growth lies. Paula Weymiller says that the person who annoys you the most is like a little angel sitting on your shoulder, telling you to grow up, and that you have the most to learn from that little angel and that annoying person.  In the words of Plato, “be kind, for everyone is fighting a hard battle.” Treat everyone with respect.

I think you’re ready to move on.

Our goal has been to help you to pursue possibilities. The broad liberal arts education that you received at Nora has opened doors to a variety of possibilities, but note that the harder you worked the more possibilities you had. Now it’s up to you to find those passions worthy of your pursuit. Here is where the fun, and the fear, come in.  You don’t have to know your passion right now, most of you will change careers at least once before you’re my age. But right now you’ll get to study and work at things that are interesting to you, and that’s the fun part of moving past high school.

But try to take courses and have experiences outside your areas of interest as you pursue your further education, as you never know what new endeavor might spark a new passion. Be open to serendipity, when a door opens, go through it and see what happens. Don’t be afraid to say “I don’t Know,” and remember that “smart people ask for help.”  You’re smart, ask!

Thomas, behind that peaceful, non-violent facade lurks a peaceful, non-violent man with a quick with and keen insights. When you were in class I would often hear Robin’s laughs all the way from my office.

Carmen, you’ve had to balance more than most in terms of family and school, getting here on time, managing the sports teams, and taking care of your academics. You’ve been a great friend to many of your classmates and an all around nice presence in our community.
                               
Fiona, remember the rules in the book I lent you and stand up for what you need.  You’re a champ on and off the playing fields, and I expect that you’re going to have a great and interesting life in Ghana, Florida, and beyond.

Ronnice, as Norman said, you’ve always been cool enough to be everyone's friend. A quiet but forceful presence in our classes. I hope that you continue to get stronger and healthier as the next few years go by.

Maddie, I’m glad you decided to come to classes at Nora rather than head down to OccupyDC every day. And you’re the first person to actually pull off the tie-dye business for graduation... congratulations!

Adam, the life of the party at every prom for the last four years, you really came into your own with Trey and the band.  It’s been a wild ride at times, but you’ve made it, and now on to new and bigger adventures at Hood.

Tristan, you’ve been one of the all-time stars at Nora, both on the athletic fields and in the classrooms. Philosopher, artist, sportsman, you’ve been a Renaissance man, and we’re pleased to have had you with us for four years.

Thomas, we look forward to the 2016 Olympics as we follow your running career. You’ve been a good friend and a good source of advice to many students over your four years,  just remember my advice that there’s an appropriate time and place for everything. Life, even in the athletic dorms, will be much more pleasant if you remember that.

Sarah, the world needs more people like you, willing to serve others and take on adventures around the world. You’re journeys in Israel over the past two years have brought you an incredible level of maturity and insight, and we wish you safe travels as you return to further your education.

David, behind the bluster there's a wonderful, compassionate heart, and you’ve gained a great deal of self-awareness during the past two years. Remember that it’s not enough to know yourself well, you must take action on that knowledge for it to be worth anything. When you get to Vermont try to expand your horizons and get involved in lots of activities outside your dorm room, I think you’ll enjoy it! Class of 2014, you have worked hard to get here.  You are survivors.  Not only did you survive middle and high schools that were big, impersonal, and bureaucratic, you survived Nora, which is no easy task.  Not everyone can handle it, but you did.

Seth Godin posits that “small is the new big,” and as graduates of one of the smallest schools in the country, you should understand that it’s a big accomplishment to graduate from a small school. It’s a small accomplishment to find a clique of people you get along with in a big school, but it’s a big accomplishment to get along, intimately, with everyone, even with people who annoy you and get on your nerves in a small school.

There is often a misperception that being in a small school like Nora is easy, because the teachers know you and work with you and give you lots of chances, and all of that is true.  But equally true is that going to a small school is hard,  because the teachers know you and work with you and give you lots of chances.   There’s nowhere to hide if you haven’t done the reading, and your math homework always gets checked, and when it’s your turn to present there’s no one to hand it off to.

It’s a small accomplishment to hide in the back of a big classroom and avoid the teacher’s radar and do the minimum necessary to get by, but it’s a big accomplishment to push through your resistance and actually do the work, because you know that in Ave’s Spanish class your missing homework will be noticed.

Your parents hear if you skipped the trip to the Smithsonian, and they know when you’re not turning in drafts of your papers.  Robin notices when you show up late to Physics, and Patrick notices when you didn’t do your Chemistry lab. It’s tough to stand up to that amount of scrutiny, but you have.

You’ve survived not only the classrooms,  but also the whitewater rafting of your sophomore year, the high ropes and goal setting of the junior retreat, and writing your own recommendations and sharing your life stories on the senior retreat.

You set up your own senior community service, late though it may have been for some of you, and you presented your best academic work to the faculty in your Senior Portfolio presentations. You learned to balance two of the most precious gifts of adulthood: freedom and responsibility.

The freedom part is easy, every teenager gets that.  The responsibility part is a lot harder.  Not all that many adults get that, as witnessed by the various crises on Wall Street and on Capitol Hill.  Learning when to have fun and when to work, when to sleep in and when to get up, finding where the boundaries are, and which ones it was safe to cross, these are things that your parents and teachers have to juggle every day.  

You managed, if imperfectly, those four lessons with which we start every school year, it’s almost time to master new lessons, one’s that you’ll create yourselves.

A few days ago we lost a giant of American literature, Maya Angelou. As the retrospectives flowed, one of her quotes stood out to me particularly, because it reflects that to which we aspire at Nora. She said "If you are always trying to be normal, you will never know how amazing you can be."

This resonated deeply with me, because I know that as teenagers we all  desperately want to “fit in” and not stand out,  to be “normal” and cool, because that’s the message our culture is constantly sending.

But “normal” is boring, and “amazing” isn’t. One of the things that’s kept me at Nora for so many years is that you and your fellow students learn to become a lot more comfortable in your own skins, to be who you are rather than what the culture, or other kids, tell you that you should be. My colleagues on the faculty and Board are authentic human beings, not afraid to say “I don’t know” or “I need help.” And they’re anything but normal and boring, they’re amazing, just like you!  Becoming authentic, and being comfortable with that, can be the work of a lifetime for some, and you’ve got a head start on that. This is perhaps more important than all the Calculus and Art History and Academic Writing that you’ve learned over the past four years, because with that self-confidence you can tackle all the rest. You are amazing, and I hope you leave with some confidence in that. Here are a few more pieces of advice

Continue to learn and grow. The world is an amazing place, so get out and explore it. If you have a chance to travel, take it. Growth doesn’t just happen, you have to be intentional about it.

Be self-aware, because you must first know yourself in order to grow yourself. I hope that our mindfulness practice this year will help in that regard. Along those lines, take time to reflect. Think about where you’ve been and where you’re headed, allow the growth you’ve experienced over these past years to catch up with you.

Be disciplined... motivation will get you started, in college and in life, but discipline is what will keep you growing.

Seek out positive people, because growth thrives with like-minded folks. It’s easy to be cynical and toss of put-downs, but those are the people likely to hold you back and ultimately their company will wear pretty thin.

Stretch yourself, go beyond your comfort zone. You’ll have lots of chances to do that in the next few years, take them. Leave college with no regrets for what you didn’t do.

Find good mentors. You’ve had them here, you’ll need them in life.

Help others realize their potential.  For 30 years of our 50 year history our school lived in the basement of the Washington Ethical Society, who’s motto is “By bringing out the best in others we bring out the best in ourselves.” Reflect on that, and be mindful of helping others on their journeys.

So I say good-bye, my friends, hopefully only until our next reunion. You’ve learned a lot at Nora, take take lessons and keep on learning and growing.

Congratulations.

Why we meditate at Nora

Several students have come to me to ask why we’re spending time each week in mindfulness meditation during morning announcements and going through the .b mindfulness program. Their concern was a helpful prompt to more fully think through and articulate why I think this is an important program and a valuable use of time, and I’d like to share those thoughts here.

Learning to practice mindfulness will not train you for a specific job, but neither does a lot of what we do in school. While not everyone who studies Algebra will become a mathematician or engineer, and not everyone who studies biology and chemistry will become a nurse or doctor, it’s important that you have a broad base of knowledge about the world in which you live. Your own mind is a big part of that world, and in fact constructs reality from the information it receives from the world. Having some insight into how your mind works, how it affects your body and your emotions, learning to be aware of that effect in times of stress, and having some tools to manage that stress is eminently practical on whatever path life takes you.

Meditating in a group setting is an important exercise in creating community. While you may not choose to meditate, I ask that you not be looking at or making faces toward other people, as that is disrespectful of their space. You can focus your mind on other things: conjugating verbs, remembering last night’s readings, solving the quadratic formula, but you owe it to your friends and other members of your community to offer others the opportunity to practice without distraction. Being part of a community means sometimes taking the lead, sometimes following, and always being respectful. While I hope that you will practice meditation beyond the little bit we do in school, and increasingly be mindful in all your actions, at the very least by the end of this course you will be aware of this tool and hopefully return to it when you need it.

While the .b classes take some time away from class, you’ll only miss one or two classes this quarter. We also miss class time for snow days, community service, assemblies, and field trips. We can make up snow days if this is a real concern, and we can look at whether or not we should be doing a host of activities that are “non-academic” rather than purely academic. Would we really prefer practice SATs on Wednesday afternoons instead of assemblies? Or regular academic classes? Or a study hall? Should we drop Intersession, which is non-academic? There are lots of things that take class time away, but we don’t make these choices lightly.

We choose these “non-academic” activities because we believe that education is about more than just taking tests and learning math. In fact, if getting a job is your only definition of what your education is about, you’re pretty much finished. You’re capable right now of  pushing the “hamburger” button at McDonald’s, but do you really feel that your education is complete? Teachers are available at lunch and after school to give you any help you need. There is no lack of opportunity to succeed academically at Nora, but education and life is about more than just reading, ‘riting, and ‘rithmetic.

We want you to leave Nora with the intellectual bandwith to be able to think critically, to evaluate the thinking of others, to work creatively, to be able to synthesize the creativity of others, and to have the capacity to connect and grow your thoughts with those of others.

Beyond Algebra and US History, education is about fostering curiosity and taking on challenges... hopefully not just while you’re a teenager but for the rest of your life. If you’re lucky your education never concludes, because the world is far too interesting a place to reach a dead end. The thing is, you never really know what you’ll be curious about until you’ve tried it, even if just a bit. If we hadn’t built a darkroom in this school I might never have gotten interested in photography. In any learning community, everyone will be struck by different things that spark curiosity. For some it will be English literature, others science, perhaps learning to play soccer, or even meditation. We want to challenge you, and we want you to be unafraid to challenge yourself. You may have arrived at Nora loving to read but scared of math, but allowing Hedy to challenge you makes you a more fully human being. You may not be able to draw a straight line, but working with Nic you’re able to express some ideas artistically.

We want you to have a life of the mind, which includes having a healthy body to support that mind, to have fun to stimulate your mind, and to have the ability to be thoughtful about your mind, the last of which is the point of mindfulness.

Far too many people engage life in a mindless way... I do not want you to be among them. Living on autopilot is no way to engage the world. Being aware and appreciative of the gifts you possess in the present moment, being able to regulate your emotional life, managing healthy relationships with others, and with yourself, are pretty important goals that overlay everything else you do in life. Whether you’re ready now or need more time, I want you to have this tool at your disposal for whenever life requires more of you than you think you’re capable.

Thanks for the memories!

Thanks to Mara for 14 great years as Assistant Head of The Nora School, 23 years as a fantastic teacher and mentor at WEHS and Nora, and 25 years of friendship going all the way back to Bishop McNamara High School. Good luck in your new role as Head of School at Friends Meeting School!

Intersession version 1.0

Wow! Our first Intersession, the period between Winter Break and the beginning of the second semester, went off without a hitch thanks to fine planning and hard work by our magnificent staff.

Torgeir cuts lumber for a picnic table.

The idea arose last spring as we did our annual planning to see if students would do better academically by having first semester exams prior to the Winter Break.

Michael and Marcellus work on choking rescue skills.

This would align us with what colleges do, useful for us as a college preparatory school, but would shorten one marking period while extending another. The solution (for at least the extending problem) came from Norman Maynard and Thornton Friends School, which had run Intersessions for a number of years.

Chandler painting with oils.

After months of planning we ran five intensive classes: Basic Construction, First Aid and CPR, Chinese Brush Painting and Oil Painting, Music Production, and Classroom DC. Students used power tools to build picnic tables and bookcases, became certified in CPR and first aid, produced several songs and dozens of painting, and traveled around DC for two weeks.

Zachary and Daelyn discuss the music project.

Our post-Intersession survey was unanimous to keep exams before break and continue Intersession, with perhaps a few tweaks. If you have a chance please stop by to have lunch at one of our picnic tables or play ping-pong on another.

Lunch and Ping-Pong at the newly constructed tables.

Nick and Collin talk about ClassroomDC

New Year's Resolutions

Well, it's clear that the Blogspot auto-upload didn't work, but here's a belated video for those who might need some motivation to improve their health. 

Happy Holidays from all of us at Nora

Nelson Mandela

"Holding a grudge is like swallowing poison and waiting for the other person to die."  -Buddhist teaching.

Those of a certain age (i.e., Nora parents and teachers, not students) are fortunate to have lived in a time when one of the seemingly intractable scourges of humanity was overcome through moral authority. Most of us were born after Gandhi’s death, and were too young to be cognizant of the work of Dr. King, but as adults we were privileged to witness through the life of Nelson Mandela how a great moral force could overcome the most vicious hatred and racism. While there are a great many military and political heroes in human history, there have been very few moral heroes who receive that same level of acknowledgment. Certainly Mandela was not alone: Steven Biko, Desmond Tutu, Walter Sisulu, and thousands of lesser known activists stood, and suffered for that stand, against apartheid. What made Mandela stand apart, however, was not imprisonment for his beliefs in a multi-racial South Africa, but the forgiveness of his oppressors upon his release. His refusal while imprisoned to make his own life easier while others still suffered is likewise impressive, but the enormity of spirit it took to forgive those who stole the prime years of his adult life is truly astonishing.  Another sad fact stands out to me: Mandela was imprisoned at about the same age as Dr. King was killed. We can only wonder how much better America might be had Dr. King enjoyed the fullness of years that Nelson Mandela lived.

In our own small corners of the world we can, and should, try as much as possible to emulate that spirit of forgiveness against those who transgress us, as swallowing the poison of vengeance hurts us far more than those who have hurt us.

One of my great heroes has died, and I’m surprised at how much my own world feels a emptier with his passing. I can only hope that in the next 50 years another moral exemplar is noted by the world, so that my students, children, and the world have an aspirational moral figure to whom they can look for inspiration.

"Here lies a man who did his duty to the world." -Nelson Mandela on how he'd like to be remembered.

Would that we all have such an epitaph.

Monday Morning Meditation Musings

Well, it's not quite Monday morning, but I don't think I can really stay up another twenty minutes! It's late Sunday night and I'm halfway through a four-day training with 50 teachers from all over the US and the world (Austria, New Zealand, Mexico). Quite inspiring work on teaching Mindfulness in schools, amazing the amount of interest and research on this. I'm pretty excited to bring this curriculum back to Nora, though it will take a bit of tweaking to translate from the UK to the USA. Here's a TED talk by Richard Burnett, one of the creators of the .b (stop, breathe) curriculum.

Mindfulness at Nora

This year we've begun an new initiative to help our students deal with stress, anxiety, and social and academic pressures through mindfulness meditation. We began last fall with a visit from Dr. William Stixrud who spoke at a school assembly about the benefits of meditation, particularly for students with ADHD and other learning challenges. Shortly thereafter we began a pre-school meditation session available to all students and teachers.  Attendance was spotty, since the time before school begins is prime-time for socializing, so this year we've been taking time out of morning announcements on Mondays and Fridays for  all-school mindfulness meditation. Our goal is to help students (and teachers) become more aware of what they are experiencing in any given moment, whether frustration, joy, anger, or boredom, and step back to take a 20,000 foot view of the experience. As Victor Frankl put it in Man's Search for Meaning, between stimulus and response there is a space, and in that space lies our freedom. By enlarging the space between stimulus and response, we aim to enlarge our freedom to choose. Many of us, even well past adolescence, too often react on autopilot to everyday aggravations... rude drivers, supermarket lines, our kid's messy rooms. Teens are no different, if anything they are on an even tighter hair trigger of reaction. Our culture certainly reinforces this "quickness response" (count the number of seconds any single shot lasts on your favorite television show), and the expansion of multi-tasking only makes things worse.  Spending time in silent meditation, concentrating on the breath while being aware of the present moment without thought or judgement, has been an amazing adventure for me over the past year. I've not only noted an increased patience and less anxiety within myself, but I'm now seeing students giving themselves a time-out to practice their breathing when they are feeling stress.

You can see the presentation I used at the beginning of the school year here, which includes links to the scientific literature supporting mindfulness as a cognitive tool.  (Yes, I'm afraid I'm responsible for the drawings.) As we continue through the year I hope that having this tool available at any time will prove invaluable to all members of the Nora community. If you'd like to join us in mindfulness meditation we meet daily between 8:00 and 8:30am, and on Mondays and Fridays during morning announcements at 10:15am.

Monday Musings, The Common Core

I came across a fascinating and provocative set of responses to the Common Core Standards that are now replacing state standards in many (most?) state public education systems.  While replacing one set of measurable standards with another may make testing easier, and facilitate mobility between public school districts, one professor rightly points out that by embracing any set of standards we are by definition not asking more pertinent and important questions. Here's a sample from Dr. Daniel Coupland of Hillsdale College: “Yes, man is made for work, but he’s also made for so much more… Education should be about the highest things. We should study these things of the stars, plant cells, Mozart’s Requiem… not simply because they’ll get us into the right college or into the right line of work. Rather, we should study these noble things because they can tell us who we are, why we’re here… If education has become –as Common Core openly declares– preparation for work in a global economy, then this situation is far worse than Common Core critics ever anticipated. And the concerns about cost, and quality, and yes, even the constitutionality of Common Core, pale in comparison to the concerns for the hearts, minds, and souls of American children.” You can read the article here. What do you think the purpose of education ought to be?

Monday Musings, An Early Labor Day

We sent our students and teachers out for an early day of labor last Friday, giving them a common experience with which to begin the year. While the annual Billy Goat Trail hike is a breeze for some (not including this "approaching middle-age" correspondent), for most it's a real challenge. Up and down the rocks, often using hands as well as feet to hoist ourselves up the cliffs, many of us woke up Saturday morning feeling a bit stiff and sore.

Nonetheless it's a great way to start the year, with everyone getting a good workout whether they took the trail or the towpath, or a combination of both. When we return to school in the morning almost everyone will have had the experience of a challenging walk on a beautiful day where they had the chance to talk with new and old friends alike.

Finding the right level of challenge is, always, the challenge for us as classroom teachers as well as for us as human beings. Trying to tackle an activity that is just a bit beyond our current capability is how we grow not only intellectually, but in confidence and courage. The Billy Goat Trail has been a wonderful challenge for Nora students going back many years, a bit of Montana ten miles from downtown DC, and will hopefully provide a good start toward tackling the challenges of the school year ahead.

Monday Musings, New Beginnings

Yes, I know it's Thursday, but the beginning of the year is always a bit hectic for the head of school. As we tell the kids, better late than never!

"We all have straight A’s today, and we all have perfect attendance." Thus begins another school year, with high hopes and great expectations in schools across the country. For too many students in our country, however, the bloom will soon be off the rose, as rote memorization and test preparation overtake the joy of exploration and the satisfaction of solving real-world problems. At Nora we’re off to a great start, with a full roster of uniquely talented and curious students and teachers, all of whom embrace our motto of "Think Differently." Certainly our opening day has its share of unusual evens, from the ball-toss-name-game with new students to the musical papers game with sophomores and juniors. Our students are seeking something more, and something different, from their education, a relaxed engagement that they haven’t found in larger settings. They will once again create a vibrant, welcoming, and unique community as we move through our classes, practices, games, hikes, performances, dances, and other activities that make life at Nora one that is at once engaging, rigorous, nurturing, challenging, and fun.

Change

News last night about the Washington Post sale brings up some familiar emotions, a too familiar feeling that once again a pillar of our existence is not as solid as we believed it to be. There was a time, which doesn't seem that long ago, when a bi-polar world split between the Soviet Union and the US was an immutable fact of our existence. Likewise, the Democrats would always control the House of Representatives. Closer to home, our good colleagues at Thornton Friends School prodded us to do better work and provided The Nora School with sports teams that were competetive. We miss them greatly! Now the Graham family, after 80 years of ownership, is stepping away from the Post. They survived Nixon's enemies list, but not the Internet. Even as we in education feel the tug and pull of online education and the disruption that it causes, we need to be mindful that it is all the more important that our students learn to think rather than to regurgitate facts. While No Child Left Behind may have done a good job at forcing public school districts to look at how all their students are doing, one sad side effect is that too much teaching is aimed at making Adequate Yearly Progress and too little at grappling with interesting and meaningful questions. We have no idea what challenges and changes the classes of 2014 or 2017 will face, but they'd better be able to think and react flexibily and thoughfully if they are to thrive.

Twenty-five years ago I could not imagine a world without the Soviet Union or a Democratic controlled congress; fifteen years ago I could not imagine a world without Thornton Friends. As much as I enjoy my Kindle and iPad, I hope that there's never a world without print newspapers and books, with all the unexpected avenues of curiousity into which they lead us.

Congratulations Class of 2013, Dave's remarks

Well, here we are at that most highly anticipated moment of the graduation ceremony, the head of schools’ remarks.  I promised the seniors that I would keep my talk to less than the 80 pages of their yearbook, and I just barely met the requirement.

The last days of the week, or in this case the school year, are known for the tradition, particularly dear to the seniors, of a Friday story that they’ve hopefully brought home each week to the dinner table. As we’ve gone through the year I’ve offered at least 40 puns to you on Friday mornings. Pun after pun, some you got, some you didn’t. I was really hoping that at least a tenth of them would make you laugh, but, sadly, no pun in ten did.

Yet another reason they’re glad to be graduating.

Soon to be graduates, today marks one of the few times in your lives that everyone will get together just for you. Birth, graduation, marriage, death are the biggies, and you probably won’t be there to enjoy the last one, so you’d better enjoy this!

You are here because of the work of many people, most notably your parents and teachers. I would like to recognize them now. From the Nora faculty, Mara Nicastro, Scott Madden, Chris Conlon, Nic Galloro, Hedy Szanzer, Patrick Vongchan, Trey Harris, Norman Maynard, Courtney Davis, Ave Luke Simpson, and Marcia Miller.

I’d like to particularly thank the senior advisors, Trey Harris, Norman Maynard, Patrick Vongchan, and Scott Madden for their conversations with the seniors throughout the year, and particularly Scott for all his efforts to help each of you consider and plan the next stage of your lives.

The members of our Board of Directors support and guide the school behind the scenes, giving generously of their time, treasure, and talent. Joining us today from our Board of Directors, Robert Herman, Beau Kaplan, Elaine Mack, and Matt Harre.

And finally, you need to thank your parents, as they have supported you far longer than we have, and, despite what they’re hoping, will continue to do so. I would like to recognize those whose dedication to you included changing your diapers, reading your bedtime stories, and paying your Nora School tuition. Please stand and accept our congratulations as I call your name.

Nicholas Burbank and Nan Ass-tone
Miller and Andrea Cunningham, and Alicia Marvet Lindsay
Jan and Douglas Farmer
Denise Galbo and Peggy Bradberry
Walter and Jeanette Gray
Kathy Wagner, Mike Hill, Joy Bernstein, and Reuben Guttman
Susan BEN-esch and Thomas LeBron
Ina Boston
Neil and Lori Lefkowitz
Tacie Dejonikus and Angela Marney
Catina Washington
Rikki Washington
Catherine Hunter
Kelly Zimmerman

Soon to be alumni, I am hopeful that you will take away from today, your last day at Nora, the same precepts I discussed with you on your first day at Nora. It may seem long ago, but on your first day, and on each first day thereafter, you went around to get lockers, photo ID’s, and to write down your goals. You also spent time with me discussing the school rules, which can be boiled down to four simple sentences that will stand you in good stead throughout your lives.

Show up on time. Do your work. Take care of your health. Treat others with respect.

Look back on your time at Nora and honestly assess to what extent I was telling you the truth.

Did you show up on time? Did that make your life easier or harder? What are the consequences in the next part of your life for showing up late? What does it say about being trustworthy?
I can tell you that there are tremendous benefits to showing up on time, being a person of your word, having others see you as reliable. The Noble Truth of Buddhism is echoed in the first sentence of Scott Peck’s The Road Less Travelled: “Life is Difficult.” I don’t think you’ll find many people here today who would disagree with that statement, but I’d like to follow it up with a question, “Now What?” OK, life is difficulty, now what? You still need to show up. If you have to show up, show up on time. It will make life slightly less difficult.

Do your work. Same questions. How was life when you did your work? How was your life affected when you didn’t take care of business? What happens in the world when you drop the ball? What happens when you follow through? And what kind of work will you do? As you do whatever work is before you as you go through your life, whether schoolwork or office work or mechanical work or the work of raising a family, is the work, and are you, making the world a better place? What are you consciously doing to ease someone else’s burden? Might I suggest that next week you cook dinner for your family, or perhaps do the laundry? Making the world a better place can happen in small as well as large ways. In fact, if everyone were to work on the small ways our world would be a much better place.

Take care of your health. Stay sober, because it’s hard to have any lasting success if your brain is messed up. Exercise and eat healthy food, because you’ll feel better, have more energy, and be a happier person. Monster Energy drinks, ho-hos, and giant Slurpees as an occasional treat are one thing, as part of your daily diet they’re not so great. Take care of your health.

Treat others with respect. Yes, I know it’s the Golden Rule, but there’s a reason it’s called Golden. Treating others with respect doesn’t only mean your friends, or people you get along with, it also means those who rub you the wrong way and get on your nerves. This doesn’t change outside Nora, there will always be people you find annoying. One of them might be your roommate next year! This is where your room for growth lies. Paula Weymiller says that the person who annoys you the most is like a little angel sitting on your shoulder, telling you to grow up, and that you have the most to learn from that little angel and that annoying person. In the words of Plato, “be kind, for everyone is fighting a hard battle.” Treat everyone with respect.

I think you’re ready to move on.

Our goal has been to help you to pursue possibilities. The broad liberal arts education that you received at Nora has opened doors to a variety of possibilities, but note that the harder you worked the more possibilities you had. Now it’s up to you to find those passions worthy of your pursuit. Here is where the fun, and the fear, come in. You don’t have to know your passion right now, most of you will change careers at least once before you’re my age. But right now you’ll get to study and work at things that are interesting to you, and that’s the fun part of moving past high school.

But try to take courses and have experiences outside your areas of interest as you pursue your further education, as you never know what new endeavor might spark a new passion. Be open to serendipity, when a door opens, go through it and see what happens. Don’t be afraid to say “I don’t Know,” and remember that “smart people ask for help.” You’re smart, ask!

And ask other questions as well:

Anna, ask the question “Why wouldn’t I?” Take the chance and go for it. I hope that this summer you go out every day and take one photograph, and each week work the best photograph into an amazing print. I’ve enjoyed seeing you grow as a digital artist, and hope that you find continue to feed your artistic passions.

Ashley, ask the question “How can I make YOUR day better?” You figured out sometime during your junior year that it was better to work with your teachers rather than against them. One that lightbulb went on there was no stopping you! Your intellectual growth and willingness to work through challenges rather than avoid them has been great fun to watch. And remember, the magic word isn’t good-bye!

Carina, ask the question “Is it kind?” When it comes to being the social butterfly in any group of people you have an amazing talent for grasping the situation in all 360 degrees. Your challenge will be to take that same intelligence and motivation and apply it to your academic life in college, when there’s no Dave or Homework Club or Mom to keep things in balance.

Dan, ask the question “Do I really need to worry about this now?” I’ve found that 90% of the things I worry about fall by the wayside by the time I have to deal with them. I’m really glad we’ve gotten through the ceremony so far without any fines! You have been a loud voice of caring and concern for your friends and classmates, and a great promoter of Nora, while managing a stellar academic and athletic career. Going all the way back to Sparks your freshmen year to your current crew here today, you’ve been a good friend to many at Nora. A daaaarn good friend. Good luck in Mississippi.

Gwen, ask the question “How can I do this on my own?” We’ve gradually been able to wean you from the vampires and little ponies that you sometimes used to escape reality. Reading is a great pleasure for many of your teachers, but be sure to engage the physical world as well as the fantasy world. Your maturation over your four years with us got you over some tough challenges, and the ones ahead of you will be no less daunting. You have the tools, and we hope the confidence, to tackle life on your own going forward.

Jesse, ask the question “Is there evidence to support this belief?” We found it amazing to see the photos of you during your sophomore year, and the change in your emotional and intellectual maturity through today. I have no doubt that you have a great future ahead as either Secretary of State or a famous naturalist. Just remember when you take the Appalachian Trail to avoid the Mark Sanford side routes.

Jordan, ask the question “How can I do this?” You’ve been unafraid to take chances, keep doing so. Both Janette and I remember school fair that your aunt ran, when you came over and spoke with us and talked your way into Nora. A real rock-star without the prima-donna pretense, you’re steady presence in our musical performances and on our sports teams have been a great gift to Nora. And I’ve appreciated having someone greet me at the front door every morning at 7:30. You’re living testimony that by walking softly you can have a big impact. Good luck in Florida.

L’Darius, ask the question “Can I get help with this?” It’s been nice to get to know you this year, you’ve been a special guy, a friendly welcoming presence to all our new students this year. I hope you leave us knowing that just by being yourself you impress people, so there’s no need to put on a different persona.

Nadia, ask the question “Is this what I should be doing right now?” I can’t ever remember you having a bad day. There’s a phrase that describes some people’s impact on those around them, they’re known as “the straw that stirs the drink.” That has certainly been you, as you’ve welcomed new students into your circle of friends, which includes just about everyone at Nora. Just remember to balance pleasure with business

Patrick, ask the question “What do I have to lose by trying this?” From basketball to photography, your quiet steady presence belied a strong determination to do well at Nora. You were open to trying new things and getting out of your comfort zone, which really helped us on the basketball court. We eagerly anticipate your first feature film.

Sophie, ask the question “What are that person’s challenges in life?” You were also a quiet, steady presence showing your classmates what true resilience is, and your work ethic set an example for all. As you head out for new challenges you’ll no doubt meet more obstacles. We think that you have the strength to meet them.

Trey, ask the question “What’s the big picture here?” Your challenge going forward will be keeping the forest in view and not getting too lost in the trees. Your painstaking attention to detail has been interesting to watch, the trick now is to find a passion into which you can delve deeply. And remember to look at the big picture.

Vivian, our Sunshine Girl, ask the question “How can I make that person’s day better?” When I think of where you were 10 years ago, and then again 4 years ago, not only your career at Nora but your entire life has been a remarkable story of hard work, tenacity, and resiliency. Remember that everyone is having a tough time, and to forgive others as you wish to be forgiven.

Walter, ask the question “Why not?” It’s been great to see you come out of your shell and stretch your comfort zone, not only with your blistering guitar riffs but finally, in your senior year, in athletics and academics. I know that Trey in particular will miss the riffs and patience you brought to your classmates at Nora.

Class of 2013, you have worked hard to get here. You are survivors. Not only did you survive middle and high schools that were big, impersonal, and bureaucratic, you survived Nora, which is no easy task. Not everyone can handle it, but you did.

Seth Godin posits that “small is the new big,” and as graduates of one of the smallest schools in the country, you should understand that it’s a big accomplishment to graduate from a small school. It’s a small accomplishment to find a clique of people you get along with in a big school, but it’s a big accomplishment to get along, intimately, with everyone, even with people who annoy you and get on your nerves in a small school.

There is often a misperception that being in a small school like Nora is easy, because the teachers know you and work with you and give you lots of chances, and all of that is true. But equally true is that going to a small school is hard, because the teachers know you and work with you and give you lots of chances. There’s nowhere to hide if you haven’t done the reading, and your math homework always gets checked, and when it’s your turn to present there’s no one to hand it off to.
It’s a small accomplishment to hide in the back of a big classroom and avoid the teacher’s radar and do the minimum necessary to get by, but it’s a big accomplishment to push through your resistance and actually do the work, because you know that in Ave’s Spanish class your missing homework will be noticed.

Your parents hear if you skipped the trip to the Smithsonian, and they know when you’re not turning in drafts of your papers. Courtney notices when you show up late to Physics, and Patrick notices when you didn’t do your Chemistry lab. It’s tough to stand up to that amount of scrutiny, but you have.

You’ve survived not only the classrooms, but also the whitewater rafting of your sophomore year, the high ropes and goal setting of the junior retreat, and writing your own recommendations and sharing your life stories on the senior retreat. You set up your own senior community service, late though it may have been for some of you, and you presented your best academic work to the faculty in your Senior Portfolio presentations. You learned to balance two of the most precious gifts of adulthood: freedom and responsibility.

The freedom part is easy, every teenager gets that. The responsibility part is a lot harder. Not all that many adults get that, as witnessed by the various crises on Wall Street and on Capitol Hill. Learning when to have fun and when to work, when to sleep in and when to get up, finding where the boundaries are, and which ones it was safe to cross, these are things that your parents and teachers have to juggle every day.

You managed, if imperfectly, those four lessons with which we start every school year, it’s almost time to master new lessons, one’s that you’ll create yourselves.

During morning announcements each day we note historical events of great and small importance, as it gives us a sense of our place in the march of history as well as in the world. Today is the birth anniversary of two notable people, born thirty years apart, who made a difference in the world in very different ways. Jacques Cousteau was born on this date in 1910 in France. Like you, he studied hard in school, and went on to become an undersea explorer, as well as a writer, film maker, and environmental activist. He invented the Aqualung, which allowed divers to stay underwater for much longer periods of time than had previously been possible, thereby allowing all of us to know more about the oceans and the human impact upon them.

Jeannette Rankin was born in 1880, in Missoula Montana, forty years before women were allowed to vote nationwide. A suffragette, feminist, and pacifist, she became the first woman elected to Congress, and was the only representative to vote against US entry into both World War 1 and World War 2.

Why do I bring up these two disparate people? Because there’s one more question I want you all to ask yourselves, like these two people: “What can I do?” This is not just one excellent question to ask yourself, but it’s really four.

WHAT can I do? What am I good at? What do I enjoy? How am I spending my time? Am I choosing how to spend my time, attention and energy in interesting and worthwhile pursuits?

What CAN I do? What talents do I have? How am I developing those talents? How can I get better at what I do well? How can I compensate for things with which I struggle?

What can III do? Am I leaving those with whom I have contact better off? Am I making my small part of the universe a better place? I may not be able to bring peace to the Middle East, but am I bringing peace and comfort to my parents, my siblings, my classmates?

What can I DO? Am I taking action, or just dreaming my life away? Am I waiting for success to fall upon me, or am I doing the things I need to do to create the life I want?

Class of 2013, each of you has had challenges and obstacles in your life and in our education. Yet despite this you are among the luckiest people who’ve ever walked the face of the Earth. While American society and culture have plenty of problems, compared to the way most of the world lives we’re all in the top 10%. But to whom much is given, much is expected. Jacques Cousteau and Jeannette Rankin didn’t sit around feeling sorry for themselves, or sit around dreaming about how wonderful life could be, or wish that someone would invent the Aqualung or give women the right to vote to make their lives easier. They didn’t ask “What Do I HAVE to do?, They answered the challenge with which I leave you today. What. Can. I. Do?

On behalf of the entire Nora faculty and board of directors I wish you many joyful episodes in the years ahead, and hope that by bringing happiness to others each of you constructs a fulfilling life for yourself.

Good Luck and Godspeed. Congratulations.

Why Math and Science are Beautiful

Yes, because there are right answers, but also because they allow us to fulfill our human destiny. Enjoy this awe-inspiring video!

December

At the beginning of each month at morning announcements I like to rattle off all the various proclamations that have been passed denoting the importance of the upcoming month. Alas, December is a bit barren. In the US, December is Safe Toys and Gifts Month, Bingo’s Birthday Month, and not much else. I guess the holidays crowded out the usual official proclamations this month.  December 1, however, is a pretty important anniversary day: in 1955 Rosa Parks was arrested in Montgomery Alabama for refusing to give up her seat and move to the back of a bus. This triggered a yearlong boycott of the city bus system that led to changes that ended racial segregation on city buses throughout the south. Far from being an isolated act of courage, though it certainly was that, Rosa Parks had the backing of the civil rights movement, members of which planned the non-violent action that resulted in changed laws. Would that others in conflict around the world follow the examples of Gandhi, King, and Parks... change might have come decades ago.

Teamwork

 It’s been a busy few weeks here at Nora, as I’ve been off chairing a Middle States accreditation team and the school has been preparing for Thanksgiving. For the first time ever The Nora School had a float in the Silver Spring Thanksgiving Parade, with mascot costumes bought by the SGA (thanks Patrick), a banner developed in the Graphic Design classes (thanks Trey), and the bus decorated by all the art classes (thanks Nic).   As I sat on the sidewalk Saturday I didn’t recognize the Nora bus until it was almost upon me!  Great teamwork by the Nora faculty and students last week!

Christina's Excellent Adventure Update, Nov. 4, 2012

Short-term Nora substitute teacher (and my personal daughter) Christina Mullen is in Burkina Faso, West Africa, undergoing her Peace Corps training. She's been sending updates via Facebook that I'm reposting here for students, family, and friends.

I feel like my previous posts have been, well sad. Here’s the thing—I’m genuinely extremely happy here. Obviously bad things happen, but they happen everywhere. And the good things massively outweigh any bad thing that happens, so this post is devoted to all the good things in my life right now:

1) Watching the sunset and moon rise as I take my evening bucket bath: words can’t really do the pure ecstasy of bucket bath after a long hot day justice, but it is absolutely phenomenal. And as the sun sets on one side of my shower area, the moon rises on the other. I want to say yesterday was the full moon and it was absolutely gorgeous. I love the full moon here because it completely illuminates everything and you really don’t need to use lights at night.

2) Giving Todd a haircut with 15 children watching and laughing—this was not only awesome because Todd REALLY needed a haircut, but because the kids thought it was so ridiculous. I think this was the first chance I had to talk with Todd one-on-one without too many distractions (our chats on the bike ride to and from Leo are often interrupted by other stagaires or large trucks and taxi brousses going by). I’m thinking of starting a haircutting business while I’m out here too, Todd isn’t the only guy who is starting to get shaggy.

3) Coming up with a great idea for our first sensibilisation and executing it. Today we had a “practice” sensibilisation—the word essentially describing a small workshop designed to educate community members about various health topics. Sensibilisations range from informal conversations with a few people to large formal trainings or community wide events with many people in attendance. Brittany, Donna and I had to do home hygiene sensibilisation to a group of women in Sanga. We decided to focus on handwashing, particularly emphasizing the need to use soap. To illustrate this, we had a volunteer from the group of 6 women in attendance, as well as myself, coat their hands in oil. We then greeted all the other women in the group in the local language (Nuni), and shook their hands. After, we asked the women to raise their hands if they had gotten oil on their hands as well. Every woman raised their hand. Then the volunteer and I washed our hands with just water. We shook everyone’s hand again, and everyone got more oil on their hands. Finally, everyone washed their hands with soap and water and greeted each other for the last time, with no one getting oil on their hands. Then, in French, we explained that the oil worked the same way as bacteria that is everywhere and that if you fail to wash your hands before eating, preparing food for your family, etc. you’ll be passing germs onto them and they in turn will get sick. We had a translator with us, which was extremely helpful. The entire workshop lasted about 20 minutes and probably wasn’t terribly successful in helping woman understand the connection between the oil and bacteria, but it was nice to come up with an original idea, plan, and execute it. The unsuccessful aspects will all become successful with more practice.

4) My friends here are pretty awesome: I can give countless examples, and I will. Abdul was insanely protective during a highly uncomfortable situation (which I won’t discuss because this is a positive post) and gives some of the best hugs in the world; Todd never fails to cheer me up, cracks my back all the time, and is literally always positive; Darius seems to find the moments where I need affection the most and appear out of nowhere to give it; Amber is always making me laugh and helps me to laugh at myself and pretty much every situation that might make a weaker person cry; David says the things I’m afraid to say, but am thinking and is one of the best listeners in the world (which is shocking for someone who talks so much); Gigi is one of the most caring people I’ve ever met and is the best listener in the world. There are many more examples, but those are the big ones.

5) Starting group bonding traditions: The village of Sanga gives goodnight and good morning hugs every day because I basically required everyone to do it. We were all craving affection, so now we all get it on a daily basis from our family away from home. I got the PCVFs (Peace Corps Volunteer Facilitators—basically the RAs of training, except that they change every week) to help me make mailboxes for every one (a la LeaderShape and NOLA 2011) so that we can leave nice notes and support everyone during the crazy time that is stage (pronounced staaaa-juh).

6) Surprising myself by being bold—case in point, last weekend, I went to the marche with Abdul, Chris, and Jonathan because we all needed things. I got a local vendeur to lead us around the marche to help us find a floor mat for Abdul, power convertors for Jonathan and myself, and a funnel for me to pee with. Let me say this again. I walked up to a perfect stranger and asked him, in a foreign language that I am, on a good day, barely comfortable functioning in, to help us find items and then bargained—like hardcore, no backing down, even walking away from bad offers—not only for myself, but for Abdul and Jonathan, in FRENCH.

7) The bike ride home: the sun is always setting behind us and is so beautiful, the ride is mostly downhill, and the conversations are always so wonderful. They are among the highlights of my day.

8) My Language and Cultural Facilitator (LCF) Armel, who is a 28 year old Burkinabe man who is one of my closest friends here. Our language lessons have quickly deteriorated into us talking smack in French, but his presence is so incredibly comforting. He comes to our homes a few times a week just to check in on how things are, converse with us in French, and solve any problems we may be having. He is the perfect combination of sassy and kind and has made adjusting to Burkina infinitely less scary.

9) The taxi brousse-again words cannot describe, so I’m posting some pictures with some more descriptive captions. But it was an adventure to say the least and while for some it was scary and uncomfortable, I could not stop smiling the entire ride.

10) The little things: omelettes at maison de femmes, peanut butter, doing yoga in the morning, watching the League at night, doing things slowly, language classes outside, getting packages/mail from my friends, switching off mefloquine and taking the less psychologically damaging doxy instead, singing to myself and everyone else around me, sleeping in my underwear at night, having time to read books, catching myself daydreaming in French, biking home with my youngest host brother, finally getting the Nuni greetings down correctly, finally figuring out how to pee, discovering anti-nausea medicine, working on my quote book, and many many more things. Life is good.

Christina Update, Oct. 14, 2012

Here's the first Christina Update after a week in Burkina Faso. She's based in Sanga (my spelling is a guestimate), a village 8 miles outside Leo (pronounced Lay-O). Half her training is in the village, half in Leo, which unlike Sanga you can actually find on a map. It's a 45 minute bike ride from Sanga to Leo.   About a third of her cohort is training for agricultural work, with the rest (about 20 volunteers) training for health care. The training for the two groups is separate, so they don't see a lot of each other.  The PCVs (Peace Corps Volunteers) are based in two other villages in addition to her village, which is hosting 9 other people.  This is the first time the Peace Corps has had training based in Leo, so everyone on both the American and Burkinabe side is still working out the kinks as they deal with a steep learning curve.  Almost all training is conducted by the Burkinabe, not by Americans, which she appreciates.  In fact, there are very few professional American PC staff in Burkina (just two if I understood correctly).

Christina got in last Friday and spent Saturday training.  Her regular schedule will include a half-day training on Saturdays in Leo, after which the PCVs will likely hang out in Leo, shop, and go to the internet cafe. Sundays are her day off, though today she had an assignment to map out the village in which she's staying.  So far the two LCS (PC staff) have checked in with each volunteer each day to see how they're doing. Most of the other PCVs are having some trouble dealing with village life, but Christina's camping experiences are paying off as she reports sleeping well (though waking up in a pool of sweat each morning).  It has been in the high 90's every day, and she's drinking lots of (filtered) water. One PCV has already headed home, though the other PCVs thought this girl might have trouble when she showed up for her Burkina family "adoption" ceremony in stiletto heels!  Chris is awakened each morning by the roosters and the first call to prayer, and her day ends when the sun sets, though she remains up reading past dark (around 6:30pm).  Her time is four hours ahead of our time.

She has a nice bike, with gears and everything, but she had to get a men's bike because the womens' bikes were all too small.  This makes riding a bike in a dress something of a challenge, which she is still working out. No women in her adoptive family wear pants, so she believes they are pretty conservative, though probably not Muslim, as they don't observe the calls to prayer from the Mosque, which is next to her family's compound.

Her family lives in a compound with several mud and concrete houses with metal roofs, none of which have running water or electricity.  She has her own small hut.  There is a central courtyard in the center of the houses, and a smaller courtyard behind the main house.  Surrounding the other courtyard are the houses of the other wives and their children (some of whom may be the father's grandchildren... she's only been there three days and doesn't fully understand the family dynamics).

The father speaks French, but no one else does, which makes communication a challenge. The rest of the family speaks Millie (sp) which may or may not be the tribal language spoken in her eventual placement. The family is very reserved, and she has found it disconcerting to be treated as an "important guest" and thus not allowed to do chores or otherwise help with family business. The family eats after serving her, and so far (in three days) she's had spaghetti with anchovies, millet porridge, tok (fufu) with okra sauce, and tok with fish sauce and big chunks of fish (fried, bone in, skin on).  The food has been a challenge, and her care package requests include things to help the food taste better. She said the best part of her day is the bucket bath, which is pretty much self-descriptive. 

With the difficulty in communication, Christina feels somewhat isolated within the family compound The children don't speak French, and are either curious about or scared of her, as they've never seen a white person.  Going to the bathroom (a latrine) after sunset can be a challenge, as she has to shoe the goats out first. The compound has chickens, roosters, and donkeys in addition to the goats.

All in all, Christina reports that she is very happy and managing to adjust as well as can be expected, and better than most other PCVs.  She sends her love to all her family and friends!