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Ben Franklin, Education and the 21st Century, Conclusion

Ben Franklin, Education and the 21st Century, Conclusion

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Continuing from part 3. Okay time to sum up my notes on Franklin’s thoughts on education, and move on in my research.   The following are a few excerpts from Franklin’s proposal for the education of youth that discuss some of the lessons that can be taught from the study of history. Please take the time to read the entire document. History will show the wonderful Effects of ORATORY, in governing, turning and leading great Bodies of Mankind, Armies, Cities, Nations….

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Ben Franklin, Education and the 21st Century, Part 1

Ben Franklin, Education and the 21st Century, Part 1

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I must admit that I do not like the term “21st Century” anything; learning, skills, literacy.  Learning and thinking have not really changed, the tools may have, but not the process. I have been reading Benjamin Franklin’s Proposals Relating to the Education of Youth in Pensilvania, Philadelphia, 1749.  This document laid the ground work for the Academy of Philadelphia later to become the University of Pennsylvania.  As I was reading I was looking at Franklin’s proposal for study and thinking…

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Brain Rules: Chapter 12 Exploration

Brain Rules: Chapter 12 Exploration

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Rule # 12: We are powerful and natural explorers. I set out to post my notes on Brain Rules and I finally made it to chapter 12. This chapter deals with our curiosity and wonder. As a parent I have observed my children wonder, explore and learn, we are designed for this. We need to capitalize on this as educators. “For little ones, discovery brings joy, Like an addictive drug, exploration creates the need for more discovery so that more…

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Brain Rules: Chapter 11 Gender

Brain Rules: Chapter 11 Gender

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Rule #11 Male and female brains are different. This must have been delicate chapter for John Medina to right. Some time political correctness can run amok. Men and women are physically different, would it not make sense that are brains and therefore brain function might also be different. Add to this the idea of nature verses nurture and the subject of gender and learning can get pretty complex. What is known is the men and women’s brains have different structures,…

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Brain Rules: Chapter 10 Vision

Brain Rules: Chapter 10 Vision

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Rule #10: Vision trumps all other senses. On of the principles I base my work on is Universal Design in Learning. We pay greater attention to things that move. We pay attention to and remember images. Animation combines these and there for is a powerful tool for a teacher. This is one of the foundations of universal design in learning. The more ways to access information the more likely there will be success in learning. Text, sound, images, animation should…

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Brain Rules: Chapter 9 Sensory Integration

Brain Rules: Chapter 9 Sensory Integration

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Rule #9: Stimulate more of the senses. We are sensory driven creatures. We gather all information through a variety of senses. The more senses we involve the mores information we gather, the better our integration and understanding of this information. When information is presented multisensory (seeing and hearing) it is retained better then when presented using a single sense. In some experiments the improvement to recall was 50-75 %. IF you involve more then 2 senses learning improves even more….

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Brain Rules: Chapter 8 Stress.

Brain Rules: Chapter 8 Stress.

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Rule #8: Stressed brains don’t learn the same way. I read this chapter twice it is an important topic to me. I also read it with two minds the biologist in me and as a person continually struggling with stress. Our body was designed to handle stress in short bursts. The fight or flight response, evolutionary speaking, is necessary for our survival. But now we experience long term stress lasting days, if not months. We produce stress hormones they increase…

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