Monthly Archives: January 2020

Adjusting the Climate of the Classroom

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The Thermostat Episode  

Poem: Section 106 from Tennyson’s In Memoriam 

Statement of the Whole: 

Every classroom has its own unique temperature or climate.  What determines how that classroom feels?  Given that each student is unique, is it even possible to form a specific climate in the room, or will everyone perceive it differently?  What kinds of things go into classroom climate formation?  Jason and Steve discuss their own classrooms and their assessment of these and many other questions.  This discussion should apply to any classroom (home or school) at any age level. 

Resources: 

  • Gibbs, Joshua.  Something They Will Not Forget: A Handbook for Classical Teachers. Circe Instititue, 1 July 2019. 
  • Hicks, David V. Norms and Nobility: A Treatise on Education. University Press of America, 30 Sept. 1999. 
  • Palmer, Parker.  The Courage to Teach.  Jossey-Bass, 1998.  
  • Taylor, James.  Poetic Knowledge: the Recovery of Education. SUNY, 1998. 

Is School a Prison?

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Poem: “We Real Cool,” by Gwendolyn Brooks 

Statement of the Whole:  Comparison is a valuable and powerful form of education.  In this episode Jason and Steve take on a common student comparison: school is too much like a prison.  Is this true?  To what extent?  Should we do anything to change the comparison?  Why are questions a bad thing to ask in prison?  Join them in the exercise yard to a lap or two around this topic. 

Resources:  We could not help noticing that this topic is being considered by others in various places.  The following might further your thinking on this topic. 

Foundation for Economic Education article 

New York School Talk post 

Business Insider article