Category: Culture
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What inspiration looks like
We took our yearly pilgrimage to the Maker Faire on Sunday. Ever since we discovered this event’s magical properties, it’s been a regular on our calendar. Yes, there were disappointments. We searched in vain for our favorite place — the room full of overstocks, rejects, and just plain junk where you could put together whatever…
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Watch your step! A visit to Quail Hollow
This weekend we did something rare and marvelous and free: We visited the Santa Cruz Sandhills. I had heard about this tour of a sensitive eco-system at Quail Hollow Ranch that was off-limits to visitors except once a year. I didn’t know much more than that, but just the fact that so few people see…
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Standards for everyone!
I didn’t need any more convincing that Alfie Kohn is one of the clearest thinkers about education out there. When my son was in first grade, his teacher handed out a copy of his article on why homework is unnecessary. I’ve been a fan ever since. A friend pointed me to this article that he…
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For me, it was an easy choice, but hard work
My mother (Mary N. Wessling, who’s a medical researcher) pointed me to this article in MedPage Today: Are Physicians Too Quick to Medicate ADHD? The article posits whether family physicians are prescribing ADHD drugs at a too high rate to kids they see, without referring them to a qualified mental health professional. Clearly, this is…
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How to fix our schools? First, ask the right question.
A friend forwarded two articles about the state of education in California and all the political wrangling: How do we best improve our schools? How do we get more federal money? What is the effect of teacher’s unions on reforms? What is the effect of charter schools on kids and on neighborhood schools? I realized…