benjamin zander

(he’s back)

profile on TED site:

Since 1979, Benjamin Zander has been the conductor of the Boston Philharmonic. He is known around the world as both a guest conductor and a speaker on leadership — and he’s been known to do both in a single performance. He uses music to help people open their minds and create joyful harmonies that bring out the best in themselves and their colleagues.

His provocative ideas about leadership are rooted in a partnership with Rosamund Stone Zander, with whom he co-wrote The Art of Possibility.

his site:

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saturday, april 18, 2009

the art of possibility

i fell in love with this book about 2 years ago.
2 years is a long time to not have picked it up again
– except to hand it to others to read.

thanks to my friend who suggested i watch zander’s ted talk of 08,

my shining eyes – inspired by the words of benjamin and his amazing wife rosamund – are back.

view the talk here – it’s well worth the 20 minutes.

if you’re too busy – let me offer this shortened version:
1) power depends on making other people powerful

2) a good life’s missions – awaken possibility

3) true success – how many shining eyes are around you.

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saturday, may 8, 2010

ben zander – everybody is an a student

i love ben zander… one of my fav books… the art of possibility.here’s a recent – everybody gets an a – via – @tonnet

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monday, january 25, 2010

who owns the learning…

ongoing conversations that relate to our innovation lab idea:

Zander’s book – a reminder of the places we could be … going..

response to Deron Durflinger’s post, We Have a Teacher for That.

I’ve got a group of 30 kids piloting ideas to make the 7 hour days more meaningful.

What we have come up with… is an innovation lab, where we connect students with an expert individual tutor (career person) and a pln – like you say.. not bound by geography but connected per passion.

We think the career tutor and student design of curriculum brings in that intrinsic value. Which not only allows for great creativity on the student part, but also motivation to get what we call the *boxed content done in a most efficient way.

*content found on act/sat/csap, not bad, just fixed.

We see the face to face teacher as more a facilitator of these connections rather than a content provider.

Here’s the plan we have.. (original) http://docs.google.com/View?id=dd49zvr8_49cqgtfzff

#1 speaks specifically to it.. #2-4 help make it happen.

Would love critique, insight,… hoping to make it happen next year.

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response to a great question posed by Stephen Downes on his site Half an Hour:

Excellent question.. I think kids owning the learning, (designing/creating the curriculum even)… is the only way this 7hr-a-day thing we call school could/should work. So asking – under what conditions is huge to making it happen.

My thoughts on those conditions… (and the only reason I’m writing here in your spot – is because I’m craving yours):

1) absence of standardized testing

2) until standardized testing is removed.. allowance of a more efficient, student owned way to learn the standardized content

3) once time is freed, by removal or by efficiency, access (via a facilitator of connections) to individual expert tutors and plns per passion, will become the conditions needed.

Here’s the plan we’re hoping will allow for kids to own the learning…

#1 speaks specifically to it.. #2-4 help make it happen.