Welcome to Owl's House of Blogs and Thought Emporium. I am glad you have dropped by and hope you will enjoy your time here. As you can see I have been using this blog site for a while now and have had some interesting moments. Mostly I use this blog as a means to supplement what I am doing in my courses. While that is in essence still true we are beginning to see the cyberwriting on the wall that on-line education is here to stay, so let's all dig in and make it all it can be. The fact is this is part of the face of the new classroom. However, human beings remain the soul of education regardless of how it is delivered.
You can comment on this if you want, but the main purpose of this blog is to say thank you for dropping by, and to offer the hope that you will find something worthwhile to read, and to say in Owl's House of Blogs and Thought Emporium. Most of all I hope that you encounter something that makes you think, or rethink.
Here are a few simple house rules:
Everything you have to say is worthwhile. If it is important to you, then I feel confident that it will be worthwhile to others, and even if a particular thought is not it may prompt thoughts in others that will enhance the conversation. This is a basic aspect of brainstorming.
We will pay more attention to your ideas and thinking than your grammar, but your grammar should reflect a level of quality worthy of your standing in the academic community.
Here in Owl's House we strictly adhere to a brainstorming format. Ironically enough this means that while using the brainstorming format there is nothing that we will strictly adhere to except: You do not slander/liable others; You do not threaten others; You do no harm to anyone intently; You remain open to new ideas; You need to demonstrate tact and sensitivity to others; and you need to participate.
You can choose to disagree with anyone, especially me, but when doing so I expect you to disagree agreeably.
Even though I said that everything you have to say is worthwhile this should not be interpreted as meaning that everything you have to say is brilliant. I don't care what anybody says, there are such things as stupid ideas and questions. If you don't believe me I can share some of the ideas I have had, statements I have made, and questions I have asked. I promise you several of them were stupid. Somehow I do not feel I am rowing this particular boat alone.
So, let me offer to be more politically correct by saying say that perhaps it is true that there are no true stupid questions. Stupid is a very negative word and should not be used to describe any human behavior. Yet it is possible to conceive that there are such things such as intellectually challenged inquiries (ICIs) and intellectually challenged activities (ICAs). These are the ideas and actions that seem to spontaneously swell up from sections of the brain that are evidently void of grey matter. And to be even more true to our business let's just call it by its letters, such as ICIs. You know, like ABCs, SOLs, GREs, SATs, MATs, SBATs, SITs,RESAs, ASUs,UNCs.
So while you are here please speak openly, honestly, and free yourself from the fear that those reading your words are sitting in judgment of you. Of course they are going to be judging you by forming ideas about you and your ideas as they read your words. Do we not all do this? Maybe a better word would be assessing, rather than judging. Judging can have several meanings. Perhaps we should try to accept that the fact that others are continuously judging us much the same way we are judging them.
So, accept the idea the possibility that over the course of your career there will be multiple times when people will think of you in various ways, and some of these ways are not pleasant to consider, such as people thinking you are stupid. You know the kicker here? Some of the unpleasant things they say, and write, will be true. This is not a judgment call, just a reminder of the two sides of the coin theory. And remember, nobody promises you it will always be fair.
Besides ICIs and ICSs often make us laugh and think of things we may not have thought about if we had not heard that particular question or statement. What can be better than that? If you post an idea that others think is stupid (ICed) you are to be congratulated. You may be making other people think, and maybe even laugh. And let's be honest and face the fact that often times these people are not laughing with you, they are clearly laughing at you. As Randy Newman said, you have to roll with the punches.
Remember that as a human being you have the capacity to learn from, and even enjoy these moments. Clowns and comedians have known forever that it is good to be laughed at, and the public has known forever that school administrators are clowns and comedians. But don't get me wrong, not everyone feels as positive about school administrators as I do.
Remember that age old adage: There is no lemon so sour as the one that refuses to laugh at its own juice. OK, I made it up, but it is my blog so I can. Develop a self-effacing sense of humor, this will serve you well as a school administrator. As Weird Al Yankovich said so eloquently: Dare to be stupid. Always seek refuge in the fact that some blogger out there trudging through the Bogs of Bloggerdom may benefit from your intellectually challenged moments (ICMs).
This brings us to one of those moments of truth that will be offered from time to time. What is even more exciting is that this moment of truth is offered free of any additional charge. Once you become a school administrator some of the people that tell you that you are great and all your ideas are golden intellectual nuggets may be guilty of not being fully honest with you. They may be telling you that you are great for their benefit, not yours. These are the hapless "suckups" that we all love so much, and oftentimes are also called Yes People, Hangers-On, Brownnosers, and Manipulators. Know any? Ever been one yourself? Heck, sometimes I am even my own yes person.
On the other hand, the people that tell us when we are acting idiotic (not to be confused with actually being an idiot) can prove to be more valuable to your career than the lovable brownnosers. However, you may need to work on obtaining the skills necessary to listen objectively when they speak. Learn to take both ends of the flattery/criticism continuum in moderation. If you can master this you will be glad you did. If you think I am wrong then don’t just think it, blog it.
Learn to be tactful, it is a skill that can be practiced here. When you think I am stupid (ICed), let's see if you can tell me that without making me want to jump off the Tallahatchie Bridge just like Billy Joe McAllister did all those years ago. You may want to Google Ms. Gentry and/or Ode to BillyJoe to find out just what happened on June 3, another sleepy, dusty delta day.
So, there are the rules. Mostly common sense, but once people obtain your level of education common sense can no longer be assumed. Once you get a doctorate it is no longer even expected.
The bottom line is this....while you are thinking and writing try to have some fun. Life is way too short to avoid thinking or having fun. You will eventually reach the age of thinking of having fun. And while it may not win me any friends or influence any people let me offer the thought that at times education can be too serious, while at other times it is not serious enough. As a school administrator will you/do you have the ability to know the difference? Maybe the academic community needs to develop a rubric to help you know the difference. Regardless, it seems from my perspective that our society, with educators as the willing partner, have done all they can to avoid letting fun enroll in most of our schools.
Don't read too much into this, I am “thinkin’ bout thinkin’” here. However, don't read to little into this either. If you don't have clear ideas regarding your profession at this point maybe you took a wrong turn at the career intersection of your life.
Let me leave you with one of the lesser known sayings from Mr. Spock: "May you blog long and ponder." Perhaps the greater question here is, for the youngsters in the crowd (as Ed Sullivan used to say before he introduced the boys from Liverpool), who in the heck is Mr. Spook. Some of you may be mistaking him for that baby doctor back in the 1960s who said if was spank our kids they turn into Klingons (I have no idea as to how to spell this, but it is pronounced "cling ons"). And while we are at it who in the heck is Ed Sullivan and the boys from Liverpool?
And always remember....the blog is your oyster.
Sincerely,
Al Proffit
You can comment on this if you want, but the main purpose of this blog is to say thank you for dropping by, and to offer the hope that you will find something worthwhile to read, and to say in Owl's House of Blogs and Thought Emporium. Most of all I hope that you encounter something that makes you think, or rethink.
Here are a few simple house rules:
Everything you have to say is worthwhile. If it is important to you, then I feel confident that it will be worthwhile to others, and even if a particular thought is not it may prompt thoughts in others that will enhance the conversation. This is a basic aspect of brainstorming.
We will pay more attention to your ideas and thinking than your grammar, but your grammar should reflect a level of quality worthy of your standing in the academic community.
Here in Owl's House we strictly adhere to a brainstorming format. Ironically enough this means that while using the brainstorming format there is nothing that we will strictly adhere to except: You do not slander/liable others; You do not threaten others; You do no harm to anyone intently; You remain open to new ideas; You need to demonstrate tact and sensitivity to others; and you need to participate.
You can choose to disagree with anyone, especially me, but when doing so I expect you to disagree agreeably.
Even though I said that everything you have to say is worthwhile this should not be interpreted as meaning that everything you have to say is brilliant. I don't care what anybody says, there are such things as stupid ideas and questions. If you don't believe me I can share some of the ideas I have had, statements I have made, and questions I have asked. I promise you several of them were stupid. Somehow I do not feel I am rowing this particular boat alone.
So, let me offer to be more politically correct by saying say that perhaps it is true that there are no true stupid questions. Stupid is a very negative word and should not be used to describe any human behavior. Yet it is possible to conceive that there are such things such as intellectually challenged inquiries (ICIs) and intellectually challenged activities (ICAs). These are the ideas and actions that seem to spontaneously swell up from sections of the brain that are evidently void of grey matter. And to be even more true to our business let's just call it by its letters, such as ICIs. You know, like ABCs, SOLs, GREs, SATs, MATs, SBATs, SITs,RESAs, ASUs,UNCs.
So while you are here please speak openly, honestly, and free yourself from the fear that those reading your words are sitting in judgment of you. Of course they are going to be judging you by forming ideas about you and your ideas as they read your words. Do we not all do this? Maybe a better word would be assessing, rather than judging. Judging can have several meanings. Perhaps we should try to accept that the fact that others are continuously judging us much the same way we are judging them.
So, accept the idea the possibility that over the course of your career there will be multiple times when people will think of you in various ways, and some of these ways are not pleasant to consider, such as people thinking you are stupid. You know the kicker here? Some of the unpleasant things they say, and write, will be true. This is not a judgment call, just a reminder of the two sides of the coin theory. And remember, nobody promises you it will always be fair.
Besides ICIs and ICSs often make us laugh and think of things we may not have thought about if we had not heard that particular question or statement. What can be better than that? If you post an idea that others think is stupid (ICed) you are to be congratulated. You may be making other people think, and maybe even laugh. And let's be honest and face the fact that often times these people are not laughing with you, they are clearly laughing at you. As Randy Newman said, you have to roll with the punches.
Remember that as a human being you have the capacity to learn from, and even enjoy these moments. Clowns and comedians have known forever that it is good to be laughed at, and the public has known forever that school administrators are clowns and comedians. But don't get me wrong, not everyone feels as positive about school administrators as I do.
Remember that age old adage: There is no lemon so sour as the one that refuses to laugh at its own juice. OK, I made it up, but it is my blog so I can. Develop a self-effacing sense of humor, this will serve you well as a school administrator. As Weird Al Yankovich said so eloquently: Dare to be stupid. Always seek refuge in the fact that some blogger out there trudging through the Bogs of Bloggerdom may benefit from your intellectually challenged moments (ICMs).
This brings us to one of those moments of truth that will be offered from time to time. What is even more exciting is that this moment of truth is offered free of any additional charge. Once you become a school administrator some of the people that tell you that you are great and all your ideas are golden intellectual nuggets may be guilty of not being fully honest with you. They may be telling you that you are great for their benefit, not yours. These are the hapless "suckups" that we all love so much, and oftentimes are also called Yes People, Hangers-On, Brownnosers, and Manipulators. Know any? Ever been one yourself? Heck, sometimes I am even my own yes person.
On the other hand, the people that tell us when we are acting idiotic (not to be confused with actually being an idiot) can prove to be more valuable to your career than the lovable brownnosers. However, you may need to work on obtaining the skills necessary to listen objectively when they speak. Learn to take both ends of the flattery/criticism continuum in moderation. If you can master this you will be glad you did. If you think I am wrong then don’t just think it, blog it.
Learn to be tactful, it is a skill that can be practiced here. When you think I am stupid (ICed), let's see if you can tell me that without making me want to jump off the Tallahatchie Bridge just like Billy Joe McAllister did all those years ago. You may want to Google Ms. Gentry and/or Ode to BillyJoe to find out just what happened on June 3, another sleepy, dusty delta day.
So, there are the rules. Mostly common sense, but once people obtain your level of education common sense can no longer be assumed. Once you get a doctorate it is no longer even expected.
The bottom line is this....while you are thinking and writing try to have some fun. Life is way too short to avoid thinking or having fun. You will eventually reach the age of thinking of having fun. And while it may not win me any friends or influence any people let me offer the thought that at times education can be too serious, while at other times it is not serious enough. As a school administrator will you/do you have the ability to know the difference? Maybe the academic community needs to develop a rubric to help you know the difference. Regardless, it seems from my perspective that our society, with educators as the willing partner, have done all they can to avoid letting fun enroll in most of our schools.
Don't read too much into this, I am “thinkin’ bout thinkin’” here. However, don't read to little into this either. If you don't have clear ideas regarding your profession at this point maybe you took a wrong turn at the career intersection of your life.
Let me leave you with one of the lesser known sayings from Mr. Spock: "May you blog long and ponder." Perhaps the greater question here is, for the youngsters in the crowd (as Ed Sullivan used to say before he introduced the boys from Liverpool), who in the heck is Mr. Spook. Some of you may be mistaking him for that baby doctor back in the 1960s who said if was spank our kids they turn into Klingons (I have no idea as to how to spell this, but it is pronounced "cling ons"). And while we are at it who in the heck is Ed Sullivan and the boys from Liverpool?
And always remember....the blog is your oyster.
Sincerely,
Al Proffit
