As we hoped when starting Purpos/ed, it’s sparked much interest and debate. Over-and-above the fact that twice the number of people signed up to the #500words challenge, we’ve had additional blog posts promoting Purpos/ed and taking up the challenge.
Here’s a selection…
Bryony Taylor was quick off-the-mark when the #500words challenge began, commenting that although she wasn’t definite what the purpose of education is, “I keep thinking of the TS Eliot quote: “where is the wisdom that we have lost in knowledge?”.”
Wolfgang Reinhardt, on the other hand, was reminded of a Stanford Commencement Address given by Apple CEO Steve Jobs:
In my courses and with all the theses I supervise I am led by Steve Jobs’ words: You gotta find something that you love, that inspires and challenges you. So tell me what you are interested in, what problems you want to solve, what technologies you find hip. After having a picture of my students’ goals, I adapt my research goals and do you know what? Most of the times they produce awesome results. I am convinced they would never produce the same high quality if they would need to do something that they didn’t like. Never ever.
James Michie’s been really fired up by Purpos/ed and, despite being scheduled to share his #500words later, has already added another two posts! In the first of these he talks about the importance of mobilising educators:
We need to mobilise the educators who are not like us; who are, perhaps, more afraid than we are. Those educators who share similar beliefs and values but perhaps do not have the skills or the guts to go against the grain. Maybe they are an NQT [Newly Qualified Teacher] and don’t want to be seen as an upstart still considered ‘wet behind the ears’; or maybe they are a veteran who doesn’t blog, tweet or Facebook and so feel that their voice will not be heard. How do we give these people the courage and means to be heard? To do something different? To challenge the status quo?
Marianne Riis cleverly linked her post about #purposed to the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights whilst Tim Brook explained why he didn’t feel he could write #500words at all!
And finally, on this Valentine’s Day, Ant Heald adds:
We may not get ‘love’ into many policy documents, but surely the highest, most deeply personal, and most profoundly relational of ideals should inform all our thinking about what we actually do to shape the purpose of education.
