Previously published by The Daily Riff 1/26/10
"School Is A Complete Failure"
"The Application Process Of Getting Into College Is A Joke"
"Trade Schools Are At Least Telling The Truth"
Four Minute Video Below
In tandem with the media flurry surrounding his recent book, Linchpin, bestselling author Seth Godin offers a scathing review of the public school system in this explosive interview with Lee Stranhahan, multi-media artist and teacher.
Seth Godin is author of ten international bestsellers,
including Tribes and Purple Cow, which have been translated
into over 30 languages.
Click on book cover to go to Amazon.
#1 Video. See Godin 4 minute video below
#2 Video. The Daily Riff response - High Tech
High: the new model
Our Riff: The Daily Riff has featured High Tech High as a great model combining academic and tech skills in two stories, The Best High School in America, (with video below Godin video) with link here, and "The Education Person Of The Year", Larry Rosenstock, co-founder, with link here.
High Tech High does not separate students by college or career/tech tracks but combines both for a "hands and mind" approach, similar to that promoted by MIT. HTH boasts a 100% college acceptance rate, many from top-tier colleges; does not have an AP (Advanced Placement) program; has no tolerance for test-prep mentality, yet they excel on tests. They judge students on the quality and sophistication of work produced and created. This is an enormous paradigm shift from the structure Godin speaks of in the first video.
It is vital to our country's growth that we create an environment where students actually build, innovate, create, experiment, refine and re-iterate utilizing tools, whether it be a drill, a camera, or a computer. Many, if not most, high schools have indeed become test-prep factories.
See Godin and High Tech High videos below. Click here for Stranhahan site.
--C.J. Westerberg
Seth Godin is author of ten international bestsellers,
including Tribes and Purple Cow, which have been translated
into over 30 languages.
Click on book cover to go to Amazon.
#1 Video. See Godin 4 minute video below
#2 Video. The Daily Riff response - High Tech
High: the new model
Our Riff: The Daily Riff has featured High Tech High as a great model combining academic and tech skills in two stories, The Best High School in America, (with video below Godin video) with link here, and "The Education Person Of The Year", Larry Rosenstock, co-founder, with link here.
High Tech High does not separate students by college or career/tech tracks but combines both for a "hands and mind" approach, similar to that promoted by MIT. HTH boasts a 100% college acceptance rate, many from top-tier colleges; does not have an AP (Advanced Placement) program; has no tolerance for test-prep mentality, yet they excel on tests. They judge students on the quality and sophistication of work produced and created. This is an enormous paradigm shift from the structure Godin speaks of in the first video.
It is vital to our country's growth that we create an environment where students actually build, innovate, create, experiment, refine and re-iterate utilizing tools, whether it be a drill, a camera, or a computer. Many, if not most, high schools have indeed become test-prep factories.
See Godin and High Tech High videos below. Click here for Stranhahan site.
--C.J. Westerberg
So dear readers, as someone who has been thinking and writing about this for a long time, is the system of public education so "sticky?" Maybe we could come up with a list of 10 for this site?
I would be Ok with the High Tech High model if it worked for everyone or everyone had access. It doesn't and they don't. There is a certain type of kid that this works for, but not for everyone.
While I generally agree that charter schools are the future of the education, I think that by saying this model is great and this model isn't, you are just trading one box for another. The truth is that the same things that make one school great, are the same things that make any school great - Public, Private, Charter, etc...
Right on...As a former educator in the public school system I could not agree more. I will be teaching my three children at home!