Principles are always true, they apply in every situation, and careful thought and consideration, coupled with a deep understanding of history and classics (classics being defined as a work you can come to over and over and get something new each time) will make it clear to us what these principles are.
What is missing in the schools today is this realization that there actually are principles, and that they are self-evident, that there are things that are absolutely true and always apply. Instead students are taught that truth is relative. If something cannot be scientifically proven, it will not be allowed as truth.
What does it mean to say that something is self-evident? It does not mean that everyone will always agree on principles, or that everyone automatically knows these principles. What it does mean is that through careful observation, introspection and reflection, one can know truth. Classics help us do that.
One more thought on classics. When I say classics, most people think of some literary experts list. Though many books on such a list may be classic, that is not what I am talking about. Let me give you some examples of some classics in my life.
Books:
- The Merchant of Venice by William Shakespeare
- The Walking Drum by Louis Lamour
- Wild at Heart by John Eldredge
- The Complete Book of Composting by J. I. Rodale and staff
- Diet for a New America by John Robbins
- The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen R. Covey
- This Present Darkness and Piercing the Darkness by Frank Peretti
- Frankenstein by Mary Shelley
- Square Foot Gardening by Mel Bartholomew
- Leadership and Self-deception by the Arbinger Institute
Movies:
- John Adams
- A Man for All Seasons
- Field of Dreams
- Gandhi
- The Patriot
- Braveheart
- Moby Dick (with Gregory Peck as Ahab)
Art
- The Greatest of All by Del Parson
- The Old Man Wept by Del Parson
- The Prayer at Valley Forge by Arnold Friberg
I have these and many more. I did not find these on a list somewhere. I was led to these one at a time because I pay attention when a title calls out to me. I (and everyone born on this earth) have an individual purpose in life, and when I pay attention I am led to the learning that prepares me to accomplish this purpose. Over the years I have been formed by these great works and relationships. These "CLASSICS" literally do something for me each time I put myself in a position to learn from them through meditation, introspection, and questioning.
Remember, some of the things that are classics for me may not be classics for you. We need to remember that for each student. To the extent that students are expected to meet blanket standards of conformity, they miss out on the opportunity to individualize their own list of classics. This is a tragedy.
Friday, October 1, 2010
Keys of Great Teaching
I've been meaning to cover some of the Keys of Great Teaching for some time. I haven't had much time to add to this blog lately. The following are quotes out of the book, "A Thomas Jefferson Education" by Oliver DeMille. This 'Leadership Education' is what is needed in schools today. Although I don't know that we can apply every principle to it's fullest in a public school setting, to the extent we do apply these principles, we will see greater education.
1. Classics, not Textbooks
“As students become familiar with and eventually conversant with the great ideas of humanity, they learn how to think, how to lead, and how to become great. The classics, by introducing the young mind to the greatest achievements of mankind and the spiritual teachings of inspired individuals, prepare children to become successful human beings, parents and leaders in their own time.”
2. Mentors, not Professors
“A good mentor is someone of high moral character who is more advanced than the student and can guide his or her learning. Parents are the natural mentors of children. …Teachers, professors, coaches, music instructors, employers, neighbors and community leaders can also be good mentors. [George Wythe, a signer of the Declaration of Independence and the first law professor in America, was the mentor of Thomas Jefferson.] …None of George Wythe’s students had quite the same curriculum; each student had a personalized program designed to fit his needs and interests.”
3. Inspire, not Require
“If the purpose is to train leaders, it’s important not to force the young person through their learning experiences. Force in learning kills the spirit, dampens the passion and destroys the zest and life of learning. Force trains followers, not leaders. …Inspiring, in contrast to ignoring and forcing, means finding out what the students need and then creatively encouraging them to engage it on their own—with excitement and interest.”
4. Structure Time, not Content
“We need structure in order to give adequate time and attention to learning, but the key is to structure the time, not the content. …Different things work for different students. Remember that the purpose of the structure is simply to ensure that students have sufficient time to study. The mentor doesn’t have to be there the whole time, but should interact often, and the students should be given great freedom to read and study and experiment according to their own interests. Always remember the Phases; this type of structure is usually detrimental before the young student is truly ready for intense study.”
5. Quality, not Conformity
“When Scholars do an assignment, either say “great work” or “do it again.” You can help them, but have them do most of the work and never accept a low quality submission or performance. Wythe was very demanding this way with Jefferson. Note that we’re talking here about more mature students, usually at least 12 and older, not of toddlers or children.”
6. Simplicity, not Complexity
“To achieve truly excellent education, keep it simple: Read, Write, do Projects and Discuss. The more complex our national curriculum has become, the less educated our society. …George Wythe structured Jefferson’s curriculum around these simple items: classics, discussion, projects, writing. Nearly the whole Founding generation did the same, and the further we have moved from this simple formula, the worse our education has become. What we need to improve education is not more curriculum, but better education, and that comes from classics and mentors.”
7. YOU, not Them
“Set the example. The best mentors are continually learning and pushing themselves. Read the classics. Study hard. This allows you to take the ‘agency’ approach to teaching, to let your students have a say in what they study next.
"…George Wythe studied as hard as Jefferson, and Jefferson contacted him with questions and for help through his life until he passed away. The mentor must lead the way, by reading what the student reads, discussing it with him and requiring quality work.
"…Children tend to rise to the educational level of their parents, and maybe a little above if their parents have shown them that this is important. The most effective way to ensure the quality of their education is to consistently improve your own.”
1. Classics, not Textbooks
“As students become familiar with and eventually conversant with the great ideas of humanity, they learn how to think, how to lead, and how to become great. The classics, by introducing the young mind to the greatest achievements of mankind and the spiritual teachings of inspired individuals, prepare children to become successful human beings, parents and leaders in their own time.”
2. Mentors, not Professors
“A good mentor is someone of high moral character who is more advanced than the student and can guide his or her learning. Parents are the natural mentors of children. …Teachers, professors, coaches, music instructors, employers, neighbors and community leaders can also be good mentors. [George Wythe, a signer of the Declaration of Independence and the first law professor in America, was the mentor of Thomas Jefferson.] …None of George Wythe’s students had quite the same curriculum; each student had a personalized program designed to fit his needs and interests.”
3. Inspire, not Require
“If the purpose is to train leaders, it’s important not to force the young person through their learning experiences. Force in learning kills the spirit, dampens the passion and destroys the zest and life of learning. Force trains followers, not leaders. …Inspiring, in contrast to ignoring and forcing, means finding out what the students need and then creatively encouraging them to engage it on their own—with excitement and interest.”
4. Structure Time, not Content
“We need structure in order to give adequate time and attention to learning, but the key is to structure the time, not the content. …Different things work for different students. Remember that the purpose of the structure is simply to ensure that students have sufficient time to study. The mentor doesn’t have to be there the whole time, but should interact often, and the students should be given great freedom to read and study and experiment according to their own interests. Always remember the Phases; this type of structure is usually detrimental before the young student is truly ready for intense study.”
5. Quality, not Conformity
“When Scholars do an assignment, either say “great work” or “do it again.” You can help them, but have them do most of the work and never accept a low quality submission or performance. Wythe was very demanding this way with Jefferson. Note that we’re talking here about more mature students, usually at least 12 and older, not of toddlers or children.”
6. Simplicity, not Complexity
“To achieve truly excellent education, keep it simple: Read, Write, do Projects and Discuss. The more complex our national curriculum has become, the less educated our society. …George Wythe structured Jefferson’s curriculum around these simple items: classics, discussion, projects, writing. Nearly the whole Founding generation did the same, and the further we have moved from this simple formula, the worse our education has become. What we need to improve education is not more curriculum, but better education, and that comes from classics and mentors.”
7. YOU, not Them
“Set the example. The best mentors are continually learning and pushing themselves. Read the classics. Study hard. This allows you to take the ‘agency’ approach to teaching, to let your students have a say in what they study next.
"…George Wythe studied as hard as Jefferson, and Jefferson contacted him with questions and for help through his life until he passed away. The mentor must lead the way, by reading what the student reads, discussing it with him and requiring quality work.
"…Children tend to rise to the educational level of their parents, and maybe a little above if their parents have shown them that this is important. The most effective way to ensure the quality of their education is to consistently improve your own.”
Principles of Free-Enterprise in Public Education
When I mention that quality teachers should be compensated more than poor teachers, people are concerned about who gets to say which are the bad teachers are and which are the good teachers. I ask them, "Do you know who the poor teachers are in your child's school?" They answer "Yes." And there I make my point, we've been trained to think there is no measure you can use for good and bad, yet everyone knows when something is good or whether it is bad, even when it comes to teaching.
What happens because of collective bargaining and tenure for teachers is that poor teachers remain in the system and have no incentive to become quality teachers. Parents who are involved and know the system pull strings and leverage their children into the quality classrooms. This leaves other children, whose parents don't get as involved and have more need of quality teachers, with the poorer teachers. There are principles that apply here, they can be called principles of free-enterprise.
Free-enterprise principles teach:
- That when high-quality and low-quality options are compared side-by-side, it is self-evident which is the high-quality option.
- That whenever you allow freedom to choose, people choose the best options for them
- That these options are usually provided in the most efficient, effective way by those trying to attract others to certain options.
- That if parents were free to choose the classrooms and schools for their children, and schools and teachers were paid according to the number of students they attract, the following would happen:
- The better teachers would consequently be better compensated
- The poor teachers would have incentive to become better teachers
- The optimum number of students per classroom would naturally become evident, and it might be different for every teacher and classroom, being dependent on the teaching styles of teachers and the learning styles of students
- The optimum number of square feet per student in a school would also become evident, and it might be different for each school
- The competition would improve the entire school system as each school's administration and each teacher find more ways to attract students and more effective ways to educate
What happens because of collective bargaining and tenure for teachers is that poor teachers remain in the system and have no incentive to become quality teachers. Parents who are involved and know the system pull strings and leverage their children into the quality classrooms. This leaves other children, whose parents don't get as involved and have more need of quality teachers, with the poorer teachers. There are principles that apply here, they can be called principles of free-enterprise.
Free-enterprise principles teach:
- That when high-quality and low-quality options are compared side-by-side, it is self-evident which is the high-quality option.
- That whenever you allow freedom to choose, people choose the best options for them
- That these options are usually provided in the most efficient, effective way by those trying to attract others to certain options.
- That if parents were free to choose the classrooms and schools for their children, and schools and teachers were paid according to the number of students they attract, the following would happen:
- The better teachers would consequently be better compensated
- The poor teachers would have incentive to become better teachers
- The optimum number of students per classroom would naturally become evident, and it might be different for every teacher and classroom, being dependent on the teaching styles of teachers and the learning styles of students
- The optimum number of square feet per student in a school would also become evident, and it might be different for each school
- The competition would improve the entire school system as each school's administration and each teacher find more ways to attract students and more effective ways to educate
Friday, September 24, 2010
Disturbing Trends in Fairbanks North Star Borough School District
I've found a disturbing trend in the Fairbanks North Star Borough School District. Student enrollment has remained essentially the same each year for the last twenty years, around 15,000 students. The number of teachers has remained about the same, usually just under 1,000 (this number actually includes teachers, counselors, and librarians.) The disturbing trend is that District Administrators have more than doubled in the last 10 years. There were 8 District Administrators in 1990 to and there were still 8 in 2000. Now there are 18. And although teachers and students have remained roughly the same, support staff has roughly doubled from 402 in 1990 to 817 in 2009.
The numbers of the people that are really needed when it comes to education (students and teachers) have remained about the same for 20 years. Yet in those same twenty years every other class of employees in the school district doubled (except for principals and assistant principals which has remained about the same.) And even though student enrollment has remained about the same, four schools have been built since 1990 and now the District is complaining about overcrowding. Remember this the next time the school district comes crying for money and help.
Vote Michael Ames for School Board if you want someone on the School Board that will fight to reduce the district administration and return power to the teachers, parents, students and local communities.
The numbers of the people that are really needed when it comes to education (students and teachers) have remained about the same for 20 years. Yet in those same twenty years every other class of employees in the school district doubled (except for principals and assistant principals which has remained about the same.) And even though student enrollment has remained about the same, four schools have been built since 1990 and now the District is complaining about overcrowding. Remember this the next time the school district comes crying for money and help.
Vote Michael Ames for School Board if you want someone on the School Board that will fight to reduce the district administration and return power to the teachers, parents, students and local communities.
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
Enlightened or Unenlightened?
The following experience, written some time ago is what eventually led me to be interested in making a change in the educational system by running for School Board in the Fairbanks North Star Borough School District. I have come a long way since this was written, and I feel ready to make a difference.
“Let me show in a figure how far our nature is enlightened or unenlightened:-Behold! human beings living in an underground [cave]...” Thus begins Book VII of Plato's Republic. These prisoners are chained so their heads cannot turn, a fire is behind them casting shadows on the wall from objects carried in front of it. These prisoners see the shadows before them and hear those who are carrying the objects conversing. They assume the echoes are the voices of the shadows themselves. They have contests in which they name the different shadows and bestow honors upon those that identify the shadows the quickest or guess which shadows will come next.
One of these prisoners is released and dragged out of the cave into the sun. He is at first blinded. Gradually his eyes become accustomed to seeing shadows, then reflections, then objects themselves, and finally he is able to see the sun in the sky, the source of his sight. He returns to his former companions and excitedly announces his discoveries. He can no longer see clearly the shadows in the dim light of the cave. “He has returned blind!” they exclaim and refuse to listen to his tales. To them the shadows are real, the echoes are real. This man, in leaving his place, lost his sight, and perhaps, his mind. This does not, however, make the world outside the cave any less real.
I began a serious study of truth nearly two years ago. My learning has been different than I expected it to be. I was expecting great knowledge, the memorization of many things that would help me be, or appear to be, smarter. However, I studied and studied and studied, and nothing ever came, I never became 'smart'. I haven't been able to understand Euclid, I haven't been able to pick out every subtle theme in a book and argue with it's suppositions. Instead, the opposite happened. I felt as if all the 'smarts' I had, started to disappear. I was going backwards. In my quest for knowledge I felt as if I was actually losing knowledge.
Before this I had every fact, every bit of knowledge pigeonholed into a specific compartment and it all fit together nicely in my universe. Then I started to read, study, discuss, and above all, THINK...my universe was shattered, nothing fit perfectly into it's little compartment anymore. Everything ran together and created chaos inside of me. It was agonizing, heartbreaking, humiliating. In this condition, I turned to a series of Liberal Arts courses offered by Face to Face with Greatness Seminars, Inc. Readings were chosen from The Great Books of the Western World, a set of books designed to allow any individual the ability to become self-reliant thinkers rather than automatons of popular thought. Most of the works assigned for the first class I had read before, and reading them again didn't have immediate impact on me. I had three weeks after reading them, to think about them, to refer back to them, to read everything I could find about them and their authors, and to prepare to write about them. I still wasn't smart, and I had no idea what to write for the paper required for this class. I was feeling down and depressed and ignorant of everything. I wondered what was wrong with me. Why did other people claim such great knowledge and ideas when reading? I could read and not even be able to intelligently express what the book was actually about, even if I thoroughly enjoyed it.
One evening while preparing for my paper, my mind was opened, I experienced a large 'aha' or a paradigm shift. I don't understand everything yet, I don't see everything, but I believe that the true quest is not to fill my mind with facts and information that I might gratify my pride with great knowledge. The first real object of this quest, this education, is to see myself. To see myself as I really am, not the lying mask I put on to feel good about myself, and not the torturous inner hell that is all my evil, but to simply see me and my capacity for greatness. In greatness I mean, on one hand, my great capacity to do good, and on the other hand, my great capacity to do evil, both ever available to my choices. I don't have to hide from myself anymore, from my potential to do great evil. And in so doing, I no longer need to hide from my capacity to do great good.
The second object of this education, is to make myself. Make myself into what, I do not yet know, but I trust that when my vision becomes accustomed to the bright light of truth, I will discover it. I suppose that when I arrive at a point where I know what to make myself, I will find myself already made into it, not by me, but by God. My experiences and studies will have already brought me to be the person He wants me to be, a true leadership education will have made, me.
My journey has been painful, very different than I expected, and sometimes, agonizingly slow. I can see now that the destruction of the shadows on the wall is what led me to believe that I was going backwards, that I was losing the knowledge I already had. I can not see the shadows so well anymore after being exposed to such great light. Unfortunately, neither can I see outside the cave very well. What I needed was someone who can see in the light to lead me around a little. I found this in Dr. Shanon Brooks and his Liberal Arts class. He didn't take me by the hand and lead me around, naming all the new objects in this new world like I expected. I suppose if he did, I would again make false assumptions considering my blurry vision and I might be content in my new-found ignorance. Instead he simply let me know that there were great things out there, let me wander around, and offered an occasional word to help me avoid pitfalls. Because of this, my education has really changed me, rather than adding to my facade of knowledge.
Now I ask you, how far is your nature enlightened or unenlightened? Do you really know? There is a whole universe beyond the cave and I believe leadership education can help. I know the shadows are very distracting and the journey is hard and frightening, but it is so worth it. I will help you along the way to the best of my ability, I am just beginning to see.
Life is different outside of the cave, and I will never live there again. I agree with Socrates, “Better to be the poor servant of a poor master, and to endure anything, rather than think as they do and live after their manner.”
“Let me show in a figure how far our nature is enlightened or unenlightened:-Behold! human beings living in an underground [cave]...” Thus begins Book VII of Plato's Republic. These prisoners are chained so their heads cannot turn, a fire is behind them casting shadows on the wall from objects carried in front of it. These prisoners see the shadows before them and hear those who are carrying the objects conversing. They assume the echoes are the voices of the shadows themselves. They have contests in which they name the different shadows and bestow honors upon those that identify the shadows the quickest or guess which shadows will come next.
One of these prisoners is released and dragged out of the cave into the sun. He is at first blinded. Gradually his eyes become accustomed to seeing shadows, then reflections, then objects themselves, and finally he is able to see the sun in the sky, the source of his sight. He returns to his former companions and excitedly announces his discoveries. He can no longer see clearly the shadows in the dim light of the cave. “He has returned blind!” they exclaim and refuse to listen to his tales. To them the shadows are real, the echoes are real. This man, in leaving his place, lost his sight, and perhaps, his mind. This does not, however, make the world outside the cave any less real.
I began a serious study of truth nearly two years ago. My learning has been different than I expected it to be. I was expecting great knowledge, the memorization of many things that would help me be, or appear to be, smarter. However, I studied and studied and studied, and nothing ever came, I never became 'smart'. I haven't been able to understand Euclid, I haven't been able to pick out every subtle theme in a book and argue with it's suppositions. Instead, the opposite happened. I felt as if all the 'smarts' I had, started to disappear. I was going backwards. In my quest for knowledge I felt as if I was actually losing knowledge.
Before this I had every fact, every bit of knowledge pigeonholed into a specific compartment and it all fit together nicely in my universe. Then I started to read, study, discuss, and above all, THINK...my universe was shattered, nothing fit perfectly into it's little compartment anymore. Everything ran together and created chaos inside of me. It was agonizing, heartbreaking, humiliating. In this condition, I turned to a series of Liberal Arts courses offered by Face to Face with Greatness Seminars, Inc. Readings were chosen from The Great Books of the Western World, a set of books designed to allow any individual the ability to become self-reliant thinkers rather than automatons of popular thought. Most of the works assigned for the first class I had read before, and reading them again didn't have immediate impact on me. I had three weeks after reading them, to think about them, to refer back to them, to read everything I could find about them and their authors, and to prepare to write about them. I still wasn't smart, and I had no idea what to write for the paper required for this class. I was feeling down and depressed and ignorant of everything. I wondered what was wrong with me. Why did other people claim such great knowledge and ideas when reading? I could read and not even be able to intelligently express what the book was actually about, even if I thoroughly enjoyed it.
One evening while preparing for my paper, my mind was opened, I experienced a large 'aha' or a paradigm shift. I don't understand everything yet, I don't see everything, but I believe that the true quest is not to fill my mind with facts and information that I might gratify my pride with great knowledge. The first real object of this quest, this education, is to see myself. To see myself as I really am, not the lying mask I put on to feel good about myself, and not the torturous inner hell that is all my evil, but to simply see me and my capacity for greatness. In greatness I mean, on one hand, my great capacity to do good, and on the other hand, my great capacity to do evil, both ever available to my choices. I don't have to hide from myself anymore, from my potential to do great evil. And in so doing, I no longer need to hide from my capacity to do great good.
The second object of this education, is to make myself. Make myself into what, I do not yet know, but I trust that when my vision becomes accustomed to the bright light of truth, I will discover it. I suppose that when I arrive at a point where I know what to make myself, I will find myself already made into it, not by me, but by God. My experiences and studies will have already brought me to be the person He wants me to be, a true leadership education will have made, me.
My journey has been painful, very different than I expected, and sometimes, agonizingly slow. I can see now that the destruction of the shadows on the wall is what led me to believe that I was going backwards, that I was losing the knowledge I already had. I can not see the shadows so well anymore after being exposed to such great light. Unfortunately, neither can I see outside the cave very well. What I needed was someone who can see in the light to lead me around a little. I found this in Dr. Shanon Brooks and his Liberal Arts class. He didn't take me by the hand and lead me around, naming all the new objects in this new world like I expected. I suppose if he did, I would again make false assumptions considering my blurry vision and I might be content in my new-found ignorance. Instead he simply let me know that there were great things out there, let me wander around, and offered an occasional word to help me avoid pitfalls. Because of this, my education has really changed me, rather than adding to my facade of knowledge.
Now I ask you, how far is your nature enlightened or unenlightened? Do you really know? There is a whole universe beyond the cave and I believe leadership education can help. I know the shadows are very distracting and the journey is hard and frightening, but it is so worth it. I will help you along the way to the best of my ability, I am just beginning to see.
Life is different outside of the cave, and I will never live there again. I agree with Socrates, “Better to be the poor servant of a poor master, and to endure anything, rather than think as they do and live after their manner.”
Monday, September 20, 2010
Completed Campaign Brochure
I finally finished a brochure for my campaign for school board seat D. If you would like a copy to give to your family and friends, send an email to michaelamesak@gmail.com and I will send a copy to you. I am running this campaign with no financial donations from anyone so I need your help to get the word out. If there are other ways you can help, let me know.
Tomorrow's Leaders and Leadership Education
The problems we face in the world today seem vastly different than the problems we've faced in the past. We have no examples to show us what to expect when we make certain choices. Can we really combine the ideals of liberty found in the U.S. Constitution and Declaration of Independence with the large array of services that now seem to be required for modern society and demanded by citizens? The problems we face are new, but the process of problem solving has always been the same. The founding fathers of this nation faced a new problem, stated in the first 'Federalist' article. Hamilton wrote, “...it seems to have been reserved to the people of this country...to decide the important question, whether societies of men are really capable or not of establishing good government from reflection and choice, or whether they are forever destined to depend for their political constitutions on accident and force.”
The founding fathers were up to the challenge of founding a nation because they had an education that taught them how to think and how to solve problems, even if the problems had never been solved before. The type of education they had has been suppressed almost to extinction. I will introduce you to this type of education as well as two other types of education for comparison. These three types of education are called the Conveyor Belt model, the Professional model, and the Leadership model. I will attempt to explain all three as well as each model's goals, methodology, and curriculum.
Goals of each Educational Model
The first model of education is the Conveyor Belt. Conveyor belt education is used in most public schools and in many private and home schools. The goal of conveyor belt education is job training; it was introduced as job training for the poor. It accomplishes this goal by teaching students what to think. It prepares students to get a job by teaching them to obediently and compliantly do repetitive tasks and has, historically, been very successful at these goals.
The goal of the Professional model is to train an expert by teaching them when to think in their given field. This means that when an expert, such as a doctor is in his field, he is thinking in terms related to that field. If he needs to do something outside of his field, he simply calls on other experts.
The goal of the Leadership model of education is to train leaders by teaching them how to think. This is a leader who knows how to solve problems, who has a deep understanding of what is right and wrong, true and false, good and bad, and has the ability to apply true principles, or self-evident truths in every situation. This is an education that understands that each student has a purpose in life that she needs to prepare for. This is not a new model of education. This is the model of education that the founding fathers had. It is what every great leader in the past has had, and what every great leader in the future needs.
Methodology of each Educational Model
The methodology of a Conveyor Belt education is the soviet conveyor belt. This means if you are in that system you must conform to a certain mold. If you fall behind, the teacher spends more time with you and the administration spends more money because they want no child left behind. If you get ahead, they leave you alone long enough until you get back in line. There is usually an established class system, 1st grade, 2nd grade and so on until you're a finished product. Then they slap a diploma on your head and turn you out to be sold to the job market.
The methodology of the Professional educational model is the competitive conveyor belt. On the competitive conveyor belt if you get behind, they simply drop you. And here the conveyor belt makes sense. If you're training to be an expert, you must know some things before you should learn other things.
The methodology of the Leadership model is mentoring. A mentor who has a leadership education, or is at least one step ahead asks the student, “What are your dreams, goals, desires, etc.?” and then helps the student prepare a curriculum that is tailored to that student, in line with the life purpose, or life mission of that student.
Curriculum of each Educational Model
The curriculum of a Conveyor Belt education is usually seen as textbooks. Textbooks are actually the secondary curriculum. The primary curriculum is socialization, which is important if you're trying to produce obedient, security-minded workers.
The known curriculum of Professional education is case studies. These are usually packaged like textbooks but students study past and hypothetical cases in their field of expertise. The other half of the curriculum is socialization, but in the professional model they call it 'ethics'. This is what you must do or not do in a given field to be accepted by the others in that field.
The curriculum of the Leadership educational model is classics. A classic is a work that is worth studying again and again and you can learn something from it each time. There are classic books, classic movies, classic works of art, classic music, classic architecture, etc. Something may be a classic for you but not for someone else, only you can know what is a classic for you and what is not. The fundamental difference between leadership education and the other models is that leadership education is individualized.
Conclusion
We live in a nation where childhood education is rooted in the conveyor belt model, and adult education usually in the professional model. Tomorrow's leaders are not being trained in leadership at any time in their schooling. The tragedy of this is that we live in a nation that says, “You be the leaders, you run the government.” Yet we are producing obedient, compliant, security-minded individuals who look to experts to do their thinking. The choice is not between Professional and Leadership education, students can get both. The choice is between the Conveyor Belt and Leadership models.
Take a look into the eyes of your child, grandchild, or other special child in your life and see if you don't regard that child as someone special, someone who was born to make a difference in the world. Ask yourself if that child's current education will prepare them to make that difference. The principles of leadership education applied at every level of schooling and in the life of every person in America, an education rooted in a deep understanding of history and the classics is the education that will produce leaders, thinkers, entrepreneurs, artists, inventors and statesman that know how to think for themselves and will lead the world into and through the 21st century.
*These principles of education are found in "A Thomas Jefferson Education" by Oliver DeMille
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