Everyone has the right to education

‘Everyone has the right to education. Education shall be free, at least in the elementary and fundamental stages. Elementary education shall be compulsory.’
(Article 26, Universal Declaration of Human Rights, 1948)
- visit The Global Campaign for Education (GCE)

Education For All - 2015 goals

Six internationally agreed education goals aim to meet the learning needs of all children, youth and adults by 2015.
Goal 1 -- Expanding and improving comprehensive early childhood care and education, especially for the most vulnerable and disadvantaged children.

Goal 2 -- Ensuring that by 2015 all children, particularly girls, children in difficult circumstances and those belonging to ethnic minorities, have access to, and complete, free and compulsory primary education of good quality. 

Goal 3 -- Ensuring that the learning needs of all young people and adults are met through equitable access to appropriate learning and life-skills programmes.
Goal 4 -- Achieving a 50 per cent improvement in levels of adult literacy by 2015, especially for women, and equitable access to basic and continuing education for all adults.
Goal 5 -- Eliminating gender disparities in primary and secondary education by 2005, and achieving gender equality in education by 2015, with a focus on ensuring girls’ full and equal access to and achievement in basic education of good quality.
Goal 6 -- Improving all aspects of the quality of education and ensuring excellence of all so that recognized and measurable learning outcomes are achieved by all, especially in literacy, numeracy and essential life skills.

- Enrolment in primary education in developing regions reached 90 per cent in 2010, up from 82 per cent in 1999, which means more kids than ever are attending primary school.
- In 2012, 58 million children of primary school age were out of school.
- Even as countries with the toughest challenges have made large strides, progress on primary school enrolment has slowed. One in ten children of primary school age was still out of school in 2012.
- Gender gaps in youth literacy rates are also narrowing. Globally, 781 million adults and 126 million youth (aged 15 to 24) worldwide lack basic reading and writing skills, and more than 60 per cent of them are women (read here)

Special Holiday Greetings

Harnessing the Power of the Arts to Motivate Children

Gretchen K. Williams is the Albuquerque Director of Development for the National Dance Institute of New Mexico. Before coming to New Mexico in 2005, Gretchen worked with Richmond Ballet in Virginia. During her tenure, she secured more than $9 million in contributions. Williams' devotion to the arts and dance began early in life. NDI New Mexico was founded with the knowledge that the arts have a unique power to engage and motivate children. The purpose of their distinctive programs is to help children develop discipline, a standard of excellence, and a belief in themselves that will carry over into all aspects of their lives.

Closing the Gap

What can be done to help students achieve success? NYU professor Pedro Noguera discusses education's most pressing problems. Dr. Noguera appears as a regular commentator on educational issues on CNN, National Public Radio, and other national news outlets. From 2009 - 2012 he served as a Trustee for the State University of New York (SUNY) as an appointee of the Governor.
This relates specifically to the United States, but Noguera's reflections can be globally relevant.
Very interesting. 

Education for everyone

Salman Khan is a Bangladeshi-American educator, entrepreneur, and former hedge fund analyst. He is the founder of the Khan Academy, a free online education platform and nonprofit organization. From a small office in his home, Khan has produced more than 4,800 video lessons teaching a wide spectrum of academic subjects, mainly focusing on mathematics and sciences. As of September 24, 2014, the Khan Academy channel on YouTube attracted 2,201,162 subscribers and the Khan Academy videos had been viewed nearly 492 million times.
-- READ "Khan Academy founder has two big ideas for overhauling higher education in the sciences" on VB News
-- WATCH Education for everyone: An interview with Sal Khan
-- READ "How Khan Academy Is Changing the Rules of Education"
-- READ "V.F. Portrait: Salman Khan"
-- WATCH Let's use video to reinvent education (2011 TED talk)

Netflix’s Reed Hastings and Khan Academy's Salman Khan on the Future of Education

Why Do We Remember Old Pop Songs But Forget Where Our Keys Are?

Daniel Levitin of McGill University looks at why music has a special power over our minds. Part 2 of Unlocking the Secrets and Powers of the Brain, sponsored by the NSF, The Franklin Institute, and DISCOVER magazine.

The Music Instinct

The Music Instinct: Science and Song explores ground-breaking science revealing the power of music and its connection with the body, the brain and the world of nature. The film deals with research, showing music can heal as well as its potential for education.

Creativity Matters

“If we connect to the world around us, it won’t just be a life of passion but a world of compassion, a world where we look out for each other, where we create conditions where we can all flourish, a world indeed where we all want to live. There is no guarantee of all of these things but if we believe more in ourselves and in the power of the people around us there is every chance we will create the future and a world we’d like to be part of."
World Merit is a global platform for talented and collaborative youth, which strives to connect talent with opportunity. With a mix of humor and sincerity Sir Ken Robinson puts into perspective the worlds current population and possible problems. He also highlights the importance of finding our own talent because only then we can be truly good at something.

Creative thinking - how to get out of the box

"If the environment punishes mistakes, you will never be tempted to go out of the box."
Giovanna Corazza is a full-time professor at the Alma Mater Studiorum at the University of Bologna, a member of the Executive Council, and the founder of the Marconi Institute of Creativity. He teaches science and the applications of creative thinking. Why/Which/How/Where/What/When/Experiment­. A quick jump out of the box is more insightful than a lifetime of standard thinking.
Interesting talk.

Such a great school choir

The PS22 Chorus is an elementary school chorus from Public School 22 in Graniteville, Staten Island (New York). It is composed of 60-70 fifth-graders, and is directed by Gregg Breinberg.
-- watch intro video

Teaching art or teaching to think like an artist?

What is the purpose and value of Art education in the 21st Century? Cindy Foley makes the case the Art’s critical value is to develop learners that think like Artists which means learners who are creative, curious, that seek questions, develop ideas, and play. For that to happen society will need to stop the pervasive, problematic and cliché messaging that implies that creativity is somehow defined as artistic skill. This shift in perception will give educators the courage to teach for creativity, by focusing on three critical habits that artist employ, 1. Comfort with Ambiguity, 2. Idea Generation, and 3. Transdisciplinary Research. This change can make way for Center’s for Creativity in our schools and museums where ideas are king and curiosity reigns.
Cindy Meyers Foley is the Executive Assistant Director and Director of Learning and Experience at the Columbus Museum of Art. Foley worked to reimagine the CMA as a 21st century institution that is transformative, active, and participatory. An institution that impacts the health and growth of the community by cultivating, celebrating and championing creativity.
Interesting presentation.

What difference does it make?

In celebration of its 15th anniversary, Red Bull Music Academy has teamed up with award-winning director Ralf Schmerberg to create a full-length feature film. What Difference Does It Make? A Film About Making Music includes Brian Eno, Lee ‘Scratch’ Perry, Giorgio Moroder, Nile Rodgers, Richie Hawtin, James Murphy and many more talking about the ups and downs of a life devoted to music. Shot at the 2013 Red Bull Music Academy in New York and produced by Schmerberg’s Berlin-based artist collective Mindpirates, the film focuses in on the creative process – but ends up asking questions about life itself. Following the young artists attending the Academy as well as featuring talking head interviews with musicians who have seen the twists and turns of the music industry, What Difference Does It Make? A Film About Making Music is full of (direct and indirect) insights. The overlying message of the film seems to be that it's the process of creation that really matters, more so than the actual music itself.
-- Watch full movie here

The Virtual Choir

In a moving and madly viral 2010 video, composer Eric Whitacre led a virtual choir of singers from around the world. In this TED presentation he talks through the creative challenges of making music powered by YouTube, and unveils the first 2 minutes of his new work, "Sleep,"(2011) with a video choir of 2,052. In 2013 came Virtual Choir 4: Fly to Paradise and here the numbers are astonishing: 8,409 video submissions from 101 countries, truly a global choir --- fascinating...
-- read on Huffington Post - TED weekends
-- read about the Virtual Youth Choir

Standing Up to Poverty

“The assumption is that schools can solve all of these problems on their own.”
-- Jeff Cole, Community Learning Center Network Lead, NCFF
Standing Up to Poverty is a documentary film produced by NET in partnership with the Nebraska Children and Families Foundation which explores the impact of poverty on a child’s ability to learn, and the notion that schools need flexibility and community support to overcome this hurdle and pave the way for their students’ success. The film looks at the ramifications of living in poverty, and highlights some of the ways Nebraska schools are addressing this issue. But perhaps most important, the film encourages viewers to do their part, whether by volunteering time or resources, or by sharing this film to help generate awareness and support.
It is about Nebraska but really everyone can make an impact in a community - everywhere.

We Are the People We’ve Been Waiting For

The world is facing huge challenges and they're growing daily in severity, in scale and in complexity. It's no exaggeration to say that they're not going to go away. Indeed they will get worse unless we can start to find solutions and find them soon. If we're going to survive we desperately need the next generations to be smarter, more adaptable and better prepared than any that have gone before. Our only chance is to improve the way we teach our young. To equip young people with the skills and attitudes that might steer this world of ours to a far safer place than at present looks likely. The question is... is that what our current education system does? What we have is a system that's shaped by historical forces, but they're now almost totally bankrupt as ideas for education of the 21st century and we're betraying most of our children. Public systems of education, paid for from taxation, were invented to meet the needs of the industrial economy that was emerging in the 18th and 19th centuries when we needed a workforce who can do those sorts of things. The high schools of today were essentially designed in the 19th century and they've reached their zenith in the 1950s. In the old days we said "one size fits all"... thirty kids, put them in a classroom, and then teach them the same material that they're all expected to get it the same way. There's tendency to look backwards. There was a golden age of education but schools became steeped in history and the past, in static knowledge, and failed to capture the "here and now" and often failed to prepare young people for contemporary society, for the realities of the world in which we're living. And even more significantly they failed to prepare young people for the emerging issues of our time.
We Are The People We’ve Been Waiting For is a 75-minute documentary feature which examines the worldwide crisis in modern education. It observes how millions of young people are essentially being failed by the system and explores alternative ways of tapping into the reservoirs of talent that exist in the generation that will inherit the very complex world we have created. The documentary is anchored around five young Britons in their final year of formal education. They come from Swindon, considered to be the microcosm of British life in the 21st Century. Here they have all had the same educational opportunities – indeed, they could easily have attended one another’s schools – and yet, even the most successful student exposes the depth of the systemic failure in education. Through their experiences and comment, paralleled with the views of young people from all over the world, we observe the depth of the issues associated with education and the challenge associated with effecting change.

Why Art is Important to High School Students

The author of this video (Christopher Sykora) sat down with some high school students and asked them why art was important to their education. Their answers illustrate the vital academic role that art education serves in the development of all forms of intelligence and social awareness. In some cases, students spoke about their artistic processes which delivers a small glimpse of the cognitive stimulation art education offers to those lucky enough to have art in their school.
Very nice.

Teaching Success

Teaching Success is a feature documentary film investigating the teachable skills that lead to future success for students of all ages. With groundbreaking tools and compelling stories, the film aims at inspiring a nationwide revolution in education benefiting teachers, school leaders, students, and the general public alike. Teaching Success is produced by Schools That Can (STC), a nonprofit network committed to growing seats of quality in urban education. The STC network consists of 121 high performing and high potential schools across education sectors nationwide.

Success Starts with Teachers

On any given day, teachers make thousands of decisions, facilitate at least a dozen different lessons and connect with students on various levels. Often times, the most successful schools have the right supports in place to help its teachers continue to learn and grow so that they can ensure students do the same...For teachers in high-poverty schools however, there are growing pressures and a unique set of daily challenges that make the task of teaching become more than simply classroom learning. With input from administrators and teachers, this film explores what the field of teaching looks like today and how schools equip teachers to teach under-resourced learners, understand diverse student needs and pave the road to success for all Nebraska’s students. The stories from this film let educators share their experiences to explain our evolving state of education and most importantly, urge viewers to consider the question: what’s the value of a great teacher?
"Success Starts with Teachers" is the latest 30-min documentary from NelovesPS.
-- Click on image below to watch FULL documentary

The IMAGINE Project

20 November 2014 marks an important date on the global calendar: the 25th Anniversary of the Convention on the Rights of the Child – the most widely ratified legal agreement to protect child rights. To mark this day and generate much needed awareness and funds, UNICEF is embarking on The #IMAGINE Project – one of the world’s largest-ever combined music recordings, to one of the world’s most loved songs, John Lennon’s Imagine.
Through a new App, music artists, celebrity influencers including athletes and actors, and people around the world will be able to record their contribution (vocals and video) which will be mixed together to create a million voices ‘world’ version of the song Imagine, produced by David Guetta for UNICEF, in support of children around the world.
-- click here to visit Imagine Project website
-- read on Mail Online

Helping children succeed

Paul Tough is the author of How Children Succeed: Grit, Curiosity, and the Hidden Power of Character and Whatever It Takes: Geoffrey Canada’s Quest to Change Harlem and America. He is a contributing writer to the New York Times Magazine and a speaker on various topics including education, poverty, parenting, and politics.
In "How children succeed" he argues that character skills like determination and optimism is more important than raising test scores.
-- If you can't view video below try here
-- Listen to public-radio program “This American Life” on “How Children Succeed”
-- Watch interview with Paul on youtube





True Grit: Teaching Persistence and Resiliance

It Takes a Community

“The traditional function of a school is to provide academic and social growth. We understand that kids will be sent to us every day and we will teach them. That’s our traditional model. Students will come; I will impart knowledge, the end. We know that’s not going to create the students that we need. Instead, what schools need to be able to do is to develop well-rounded, diverse, creative thinkers. It’s a big task and it’s not a task that schools can do on their own.” 
-- Luisa Palomo Teacher, Liberty Elementary
There are many different factors that go into the education of a child. There’s classroom learning time, extracurriculars, health and nutrition, other basic needs, socio-emotional wellness, and extended educational opportunities outside of school, among others. Traditional models would suggest that schools are solely responsible for student learning: students come into the school classroom, learn new material from the teacher, then go home. However, schools recognize that this simplified process is no longer adequate to fully educate and develop well-rounded and engaged young citizens, especially for students coming from backgrounds of poverty. Although there is no silver bullet when it comes to solving the achievement gap, a good place to start is ensuring that all students have equal access to supplemental learning opportunities in order to reach their full academic growth and development. But schools can’t do it alone. Education must become an inclusive process in which each member of the community has an important role in contributing to opportunity equality so that each child has a chance to succeed in academics and in life.
"It Takes a Community" is a documentary on how business, nonprofit and mentoring organizations work together to support Nebraska public schools.
 -- Watch entire documentary here (by NelovesPS)

The Whole Child

"Children come to us with more than just their math book or their science book in their backpacks. And we know that it doesn't matter how great a curriculum you have, how great a teacher there is, or how great a mentor that you have. You can pour all the tutoring hours you want into this child, but if it's a child that’s facing violence, or is depressed, or is hungry, there's nothing that can address that issue other than taking care of that basic need first, because they are just not going to be ready to learn." -- Julane Hill Director of School Health, Nebraska Department of Education
From proper nutrition and physical fitness to accounting for the socio-emotional growth of students and the well-being of teachers, school-based health initiatives have empowered academic achievement and enhanced students' ability to learn. "The Whole Child" showcases exactly what schools are doing to prepare students to be focused and fit for the classroom and for life. By taking care of the whole child inside the classroom, Heartland schools illustrate the responsibility schools have to their students and the need for a safe and supportive learning environment.
-- Watch entire documentary here (by NelovesPS)

One Child at a Time

“It’s no longer just your reading, writing, arithmetic; there’s this whole social piece. How do you get involved with students in their lives [to] make sure that they have the kind of supports they need to be successful young people? I don’t know if the larger public really understands how big of a job public education really is, because it more than just academics.”
-- Nick Dressel Principal, Chadron Middle School
"One Child at a Time" the 30-minute documentary film on individualized learning explores how schools identify unique learning needs and support each student to enhance their success. From gifted learning to special education, alternative learning to ELL, individualized teaching practices impact all students throughout their school experience – no matter where they fall on the spectrum of ability.
-- Watch entire documentary here (by NelovesPS)

The key to success? Grit

"Grit is passion and perseverance for very long-term goals. Grit is having stamina. Grit is sticking with your future, day in, day out, not just for the week, not just for the month, but for years, and working really hard to make that future a reality. Grit is living life like it's a marathon, not a sprint." Leaving a high-flying job in consulting, Angela Lee Duckworth took a job teaching math to seventh graders in a New York public school. She quickly realized that IQ wasn’t the only thing separating the successful students from those who struggled. Here, she explains her theory of “grit” as a predictor of success.

The Landfillharmonic

While working as an ecological technician at the Cateura Landfill, the largest garbage dump of Paraguay’s capital Asunción, Favio Chávez got to know and befriended some of the 2,500 impoverished families who lived at the garbage dump working as recyclers. Witnessing the rampant illiteracy, extreme poverty, pollution and surrounding culture of drugs and gangs, Chávez became acutely aware that the children needed something positive in their lives – something to keep them out of the landfill and striving for something more. Favio, having previously been a music teacher, decided to share his love of music with the children, and he began teaching music lessons using the handful of personal instruments he owned. He quickly realized there weren’t enough instruments for all the eager students wanting to learn. With help from one of the trash pickers, he started experimenting with making instruments with the given resources. Using scraps of dirty oilcans, jars, wood, forks and other junk in the Cateura landfill, the instruments began to take shape and become finely tuned musical instruments - violins, flutes, cellos, drums…all made from trash. From this ingenuity, the “Recycled Orchestra” was formed with the local children as its members learning and performing Bach, Mozart and Beethoven (read on Go Campaign)
-- read on People
-- watch trailer of Landfillharmonic

Occupy Kindergarten

Kurt Schwengel has been teaching Kindergarten in Santa Monica, Ca since 1995. He is also a national presenter for a variety of topics ranging from technology to creative teaching. He is an "NBC Crystal Apple" winner, eHow education expert, Google Certified Teacher and SMUSD "Teacher of the Year". His Ted Talk "Occupy Kindergarten" has reached thousands of teachers across the country. In 1995, Kurt created his original Kindergarten curriculum, "Rock and Roll Kindergarten" and has traveled to almost every state in the country introducing his curriculum to over 20,000 teachers. In 2011 he began his grassroots movement "Occupy Kindergarten" in an effort to "bring the fun back to Kindergarten".
Fun talk, something to think about...

21st century learners

Patrick Newell interviews Arthur Costa for the 21Foundation, at the 14th International Conference on Thinking (14th ICOT) in Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, in June, 2009. Arthur Costa was Emeritus Professor at California State University, and is Author of “Habits of Mind”. Drawing on his substantial experience as an educator, Costa speaks about self-evaluation, the construction of meaning and preparing for the 21st century.


Arthur Costa Interview from 21 Foundation on Vimeo.

21:21 is a documentary film produced by 21 Foundation to highlight the urgent need for the adoption of 21st century learning methods. In the film, which was shot in schools in 9 countries, Learning Activist and 21 Foundation founder Patrick Newell demonstrates the problems with traditional teaching techniques, before introducing some of the fundamental elements of 21st century leaning - and demonstrating the positive effect that they have upon learners from all backgrounds.
We posted this some time ago - worth watching if you have not already done it.



21:21 from 21 Foundation on Vimeo.

YOLA Neighborhood Project

"The orchestra is a perfect metaphor for the community."— Gustavo Dudamel
Through Gustavo Dudamel's Youth Orchestra LA (YOLA) program – inspired by Venezuela's revolutionary El Sistema – the LA Phil and its community partners provide free instruments, intensive music training, and academic support to over 700 students from underserved neighborhoods, empowering them to become vital citizens, leaders, and agents of change.
The YOLA Neighborhood Project (YNP) aims to build healthy communities through universal access to music. In South L.A. and the Rampart District, school-day residencies inspire local students to join YOLA; local parent ensembles provide families with the opportunity to learn music; and LA Phil neighborhood concerts allow the community at large to experience one of the world's greatest orchestras in their own backyard. Each year, YNP culminates in a joint performance of over 1,000 children from partner schools and YOLA – demonstrating the immense power and joy of musical collaboration.

Encourage Creativity: Teach the Arts

Using their own words, three ordinary children with an extraordinary commitment demonstrate the power of art in their everyday lives. Ian (10 yrs old) suffers attention and learning challenges so he uses art to quell anxiety before gymnastics competitions and focus before big tests. Jordyn (8 yrs old) used dance and music to put an end to being bullied at school, make new friends, and deal with the feelings that come with growing up. Andrew (14 yrs old) is home-schooled, a Tae Kwon Do black belt, and has a composer fellowship with LA Philharmonic. Various educators discuss the profound impact the arts have on young people, from engagement to graduation, and employment to self-expression.
This is just great.

Why value music education

"What we lose most when we debilitate music education is the chance to create through music. Because music education does more than just train artists, it gives students exposure to the creative processes inherent to the arts, and human creativity is a valuable economic resource"
Joel Ostdiek, a sophomore at the University of Notre Dame, explores the power of music as a universal language. When he was teaching children in Uganda, music allowed him to navigate a country in which he had no prior experience and, from day one, to connect to the new people he met. Rather than highlighting the differences between people, sharing music allowed him to be find common ground with others because music is a language we can all understand.
Excellent presentation.

What if every child had access to music education from birth?

Anita Collins shares how learning music influences our brain development, and what this means for musical education. She was handed a clarinet at the age of 9, and it changed her life. This single event dictated her future career as a musician, music educator and academic.
Anita is currently Assistant Professor of Music and Arts Education at the University of Canberra and has been a Visiting Lecturer at the Australian National University.
-- watch "How playing an instrument benefits your brain" on TEDEd
-- read "Music improves young minds" on The Canberra Times

Importance of music education

As a member of Ringo's All-Starr Band, Richard Page shares his thoughts on music and the important role his parents played and his early music education.
Kasim Sulton is perhaps best known for being a long time member of Utopia, still performing with Todd Rundgren. As a solo artist his newest, "3", is released on 10/25/14. The list of artists that Kasim has performed and/or recorded with is extensive. He has made his life about music and the Spirit of Harmony was honored to have him discuss his feelings about the importance of music education.
The Spirit of Harmony Foundation (SOHF) is musician Todd Rundgren's philanthropic organization to support music education and music performance for young people. Through fundraising, special events, mentoring, advocacy, social entrepreneurship, and strategic partnerships, the Foundation works to promote the cultural, academic, social, and personal benefits of music.

Future Learning

Students are the future, but what's the future for students? To arm them with the relevant, timeless skills for our rapidly changing world, we need to revolutionize what it means to learn. Education innovators like Dr. Sugata Mitra, visiting professor at MIT; Sal Khan, founder of Khan Academy; and Dr. Catherine Lucey, Vice Dean of Education at UCSF, are redefining how we engage young minds for a creatively and technologically-advanced future.

Kids and Music - What a Wonderful World

Playing For Change is a movement created to inspire and connect the world through music. The idea for this project came from a common belief that music has the power to break down boundaries and overcome distances between people.

Rethinking Learning in the Digital Age

“Education needs to be more than about making a living, but about making a life.” 

MIT Prof. Mitchel Resnick talks about ways to transform education, the Lego Mindstorms, and the idea of constructionist learning.
Resnick and his Lifelong Kindergarten Group at MIT believe that through play, children develop and refine their imagination, curiosity and creativity. His work – including the development of Scratch, LEGO Mindstorms, and the Computer Clubhouse network – is based on the idea that as children playfully explore and experiment, they develop new ideas and new ways of thinking about the world around them.
-- read on Daily Adventures by A. Salcito





Check out ScratchJr: Coding for Young Kids - project funded via Kickstarter

Race to Nowhere

"Race to Nowhere" is a 2010 film that calls us to challenge current thinking about how we prepare our children for success. Named by TakePart.com as one of “10 Education Documentaries You Don’t Want to Miss”, “Race to Nowhere” brings communities together to spark dialogue and galvanize change in America’s schools. Featuring the heartbreaking stories of students across the country who have been pushed to the brink by over-scheduling, over-testing and the relentless pressure to achieve, “Race to Nowhere” points to a silent epidemic in US schools. Through the testimony of educators, parents and education experts, it reveals an education system in which cheating has become commonplace; students have become disengaged; stress-related illness, depression and burnout are rampant; and young people arrive at college and the workplace unprepared and uninspired.
-- other documentary films focused on Education Reform on Edutopia

The Purpose of Education

"There have been many measures taken to try to turn the educational system towards more control, more indoctrination, more vocational training, imposing a debt, which traps students and young people into a life of conformity… That’s the exact opposite of [what] traditionally comes out of The Enlightenment. And there’s a constant struggle between those. In the colleges, in the schools, do you train for passing tests, or do you train for creative inquiry?”
Noam Chomsky is an American linguist, philosopher, cognitive scientist, logician, political commentator and activist. Sometimes described as the "father of modern linguistics", Chomsky is also a major figure in analytic philosophy. He has spent most of his career at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), where he is currently Professor Emeritus, and has authored over 100 books. In this video he discusses the purpose of education, impact of technology, whether education should be perceived as a cost or an investment and the value of standardized assessment
-- Presented at the Learning Without Frontiers Conference - 2012- London (LWF 12)

"It doesn't matter what we cover; it matters what you discover." 
-- Victor Weisskopf, MIT's Professor of Physics
"That's basically it: that's good teaching. It doesn't matter what you cover; it matters how much you develop the capacity to discover. You do that and you're in good shape."
-- Noam Chomsky

Making Music in Primary Schools - Wider Opportunities

"They learn so much more than the music ... It’s developing their ability to concentrate, to work together and to listen. And of course learning an instrument gives them confidence, develops self-esteem, inspires them, and helps them to develop as a whole person. All of those are transferable skills which are being developed incredibly well through music. Some are even creating compositions together – so it’s collaborative learning too. But beyond that, the teacher’s learning too." 
-- David Crunkhurn, Head, Westbury-on-Severn C of E Primary
Gloucestershire Music are the county's music education service, which provides high quality music services for schools and young people.
-- read "10 things schools should know about learning music"

Music in schools: wider still, and wider

Ofsted is the Office for Standards in Education, Children’s Services and Skills. They report directly to the British Parliament and are independent and impartial. They inspect and regulate services which care for children and young people, and those providing education and skills for learners of all ages.
A 2012 Ofsted report examining music teaching found wide differences in the quality and quantity of music education in schools across England. One in five of the schools visited were judged inadequate for music. This report is based principally on evidence from 194 specialist music inspections and good practice visits in schools between 2008 and 2011, including curriculum lessons, additional instrumental and vocal tuition, and extra-curricular musical activities...To help schools and others interested in improving music teaching, Ofsted has produced six films exemplifying good practice in a wide range of settings -- read more here

Rage Medley

"One of the great things about young people is that they do question, that they do care deeply about justice, and they they have open minds."-- Zack de la Rocha (Rage Against The Machine)

We doubt that when Rage Against the Machine wrote pissed-off screeds like “Bulls on Parade” and “Killing in the Name” they ever imagined that one day a college marching band could cover their music. Nor that said band would actually do it well. But George Mason U’s crew has done just that.. (from REVOLVER)
No political statement here, just fun to watch and listen to :)
-- more videos here

more on PS22

Public School 22 in NYC has more than just an amazing chorus, they have an amazing story. These 5th graders went from performing in their school auditorium on Staten Island to closing the show at the 83rd Annual Academy Awards! It all started when their dynamic and caring teacher Gregg Breinberg started posting videos of their performances on YouTube. The videos went viral captivating viewers from your house to the White House (where they performed for President Obama) with the students' pure love of music. Celebrities and Indie Rockers alike started flocking to the elementary school to visit and perform. Then, at their annual Christmas concert they got a surprise visit from Oscar Co-Host Anne Hathaway who invited them to perform at the 83rd Annual Academy Awards. This documentary is an inspiring feel-good story that shows us children have a lot to teach about music, and that a talented teacher can teach his students the most important lesson of all; within themselves is the power to do anything.
-- read on Huffington Post
-- watch on ABC News
-- FB page


Once in a Lullaby: The PS22 Chorus Story (Trailer) from New Jersey Pictures on Vimeo.

why music should be in schools...

The PS22 Chorus is an elementary school chorus from Public School 22 in Graniteville, Staten Island (New York). It is composed of 60-70 fifth-graders, and is directed by Gregg Breinberg. PS22 is the largest elementary school in Staten Island which draws students from a wide cross section of ethnic groups and socio-economic levels.

Encouraging Strengths in Our Children

"Follow the child's strengths rather than the system's weaknesses"

Follow a child's strengths and passions, learn by doing, teach how to be in relationships, focus on what happens after college rather than just getting in, be concerned enough to resist measuring success by test scores, bravely look for ways to overcome teaching from outdated content silos: that is where the future of learning must focus -- Jenifer Fox

Jenifer Fox is an internationally published author, educational keynote speaker and leading innovator on 21st Century Learning. In 2007, Jenifer set out on a journey across the United States with business guru and strengths expert Marcus Buckingham to set the stage for the Strengths Movement to spread to schools. Since then, Fox has become widely known as an expert in developing programming with a focus on developing strengths, project based learning, differentiated instruction, school innovation and helping parents understand their children and their schools. She works with schools, non-profit organizations and parents helping them understand how to find educational solutions and models for success in the 21st Century.
Interesting points.

One Day One Goal

Peace One Day reporting: "It’s been a month since Peace Day and we’re just about catching our breath after a brilliant 21 September. All across the world we saw amazing events that inspired millions. From polio vaccinations in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), to celebrations involving 50,000 people in 17 cities across India and peace marches in Mexico, through global meditations, prayers, flashmobs and thousands of school events, every corner of the globe was mobilised in the name of peace... Peace Day this year really was a massive success...
Sport along with art can also bring hope, unity and reconciliation. Watch this nice video...
-- One Day One Goal FB page

Dancing in Jaffa

Pierre Dulaine, four-time ballroom dancing world champion, is fulfilling a life-long dream when he takes his program, Dancing Classrooms, back to his city of birth, Jaffa. For generations, Jaffa has been a city divided by two communities that continue to grow increasingly apart. Over a ten-week period, Pierre teaches Jewish and Palestinian Israeli children to dance and compete together. The film explores the complex stories of three children, all of whom who are forced to confront issues of identity, segregation, and racial prejudice as they dance with their enemy. We watch Pierre transform their lives, confirming his belief that dance can overcome hatred and provide the first steps towards real change.
Although set in Israel, this film is ultimately about one man’s hopeful endeavor to shift the paradigm and stop the hate. The film demonstrates the powerful role that the arts, and dance in particular, can play in enabling children to overcome prejudice and build strong personal ties with one another. Through his work, Pierre has demonstrated that the Dancing Classrooms method can be easily and successfully replicated worldwide.
-- Dancing in Jaffa website

Using our practical wisdom

"What we desperately need, beyond, or along with, better rules and reasonably smart incentives, is we need virtue. We need character. We need people who want to do the right thing. And in particular, the virtue that we need most of all is the virtue that Aristotle called "practical wisdom."
 If it is true that doctors should see patients not as organ systems and diseases but as people - people with lives, then it is equally as true that teachers should see students not as test scores but as people - people with most of their lives ahead of them! However, the rules and incentives that are driving education policies today are squeezing the life out of classrooms. Standardized curriculums and high stakes testing are demoralizing both the practice and practitioners - that is, the teachers, along with entire education system, are being demoralized and deprofessionalized by policy makers' incessant demand to rule and incentivize everything in education -- read on "for the love of learning"
In this interesting TED talk, American psychologist Barry Schwartz dives into the question "How do we do the right thing?" With help from collaborator Kenneth Sharpe, he shares stories that illustrate the difference between following the rules and truly choosing wisely.
Barry Schwartz is an American psychologist and Dorwin Cartwright Professor of Social Theory and Social Action at Swarthmore College.
-- Schwartz's TED talks

Does singing change the brain?

“Sing like no one is listening, love like you've never been hurt, dance like nobody's watcbing, and live like it's heaven on earth.” -- Mark Twain
Tania de Jong AM makes the case that people singing together can change the brain. Pushing the idea that creativity is the strategic tool of the 21st century, she says how our voices have been silenced and that it's not doing us any good. She explains how singing is a survival mechanism, how it makes our hearts beat together and can help heal strokes and depression. With singing, and the potential she believes it has, Tania dedicates herself to enhancing and promoting ingenuity and founded Creativity Australia and Creative Universe to do so. As a leading Australian soprano and through 'With One Voice', Tania works with disadvantaged communities. In 2008 she was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia for services to the arts and for the establishment and development of arts enrichment programs for schools and communities.

What some people think about music

“There is a practical reason for music education: it teaches people to think, to solve problems, to take risks, to think independently, to be an entrepreneur and innovator. The virtues of music education are the virtues of free enterprise in general and of a high tech, knowledge based society in particular: flexibility, adaptability, inventiveness, even playfulness.”
 - William E. LaMothe, C.E.O., Xerox Company

 “The arts are an important component of education. Music reaches us and teaches us in ways that can enlighten, and inspire for a lifetime. Some people may see music as entertainment, not relevant to the problems of the day, but music is very important in giving a sense of direction and purpose to the youth of our society.” 
 - John Bryan, CEO, Sara Lee Corporation

 “A grounding in the arts will help our children to see; to bring a uniquely human perspective to science and technology. In short, it will help them as they grow smarter to also grow wiser.” 
 - Robert E. Allen, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, AT&T Corporation

 “Helping our children become the most informed, well-rounded people they can be is the greatest gift we can offer them. It will allow them to embrace the world and to reach their full potential in both their personal and professional lives. It is our job, as parents, educators, and friends, to see that our young people have the opportunity to participate in music. In addition to learning the valuable lesson that it takes hard work to achieve success, music education can provide students with a strong sense of determination, improved communication skills, and a list of other qualities essential for successful living.” 
 - Edward H. Rensi, President, McDonald's Corporation

 “Music has a great power for bringing people together. With so many forces in this world driving wedges between people, it's important to preserve those things that help us experience our common humanity.” 
 - Ted Turner, Corporate Executive

Music can boost language and reading skills

Nina Kraus, a neurobiologist at Northwestern University, found that musical training has an impact in strengthening neural functions as well as a connection with sound and reading of children in impoverished areas.“Research has shown that there are differences in the brains of children raised in impoverished environments that affect their ability to learn,” Kraus said in a press release from the APA. “While more affluent students do better in school than children from lower income backgrounds, we are finding that musical training can alter the nervous system to create a better learner and help offset this academic gap.”
This study recently published on published in The Journal of Neuroscience did not take place in a laboratory, but in the offices of Harmony Project in Los Angeles, a nonprofit after-school program that teaches music to children in low-income communities.
-- Read "Study: Learning a musical instrument boosts language, reading skills" on PBS Newshour 
-- Read "This Is Your Brain. This Is Your Brain On Music" on NPR Ed
-- Watch Prof. Nina Kraus discuss the benefits of music making on the brain
-- Watch Prof. Nina Kraus discuss how the brain hears music
-- Go to Harmony Project website



The documentary below is extremely inspiring, please take the time to watch.

To This Day

Shane Koyczan is an award winning Canadian poet, author and performer. The world took notice of him when his influential, anti-bullying, To This Day Project video went viral in early 2013 and has reached over 14 million views and counting. To This Day is a project based on a spoken word poem. Animators and motion artists brought their unique styles to 20 second segments that will thread into one fluid voice. This collaborative volunteer effort demonstrates what a community of caring individuals are capable of when they come together.
The art (poetry and visuals) becomes the medium to a powerful message. For those who haven't listened or watched this, it is worth it.
-- go to the project page
-- go to the TED lesson

A Musical Fix for American Schools

Research shows that music training boosts IQ, focus and persistence.
"American education is in perpetual crisis. Our students are falling ever farther behind their peers in the rest of the world. Learning disabilities have reached epidemic proportions, affecting as many as one in five of our children. Illiteracy costs American businesses $80 billion a year. Many solutions have been tried, but few have succeeded. So I propose a different approach: music training. A growing body of evidence suggests that music could trump many of the much more expensive “fixes” that we have thrown at the education system. ... Until recently, though, it has been a chicken-and-egg question: Are smart, ambitious people naturally attracted to music? Or does music make them smart and ambitious? And do musically trained students fare better academically because they tend to come from more affluent, better educated families? New research provides some intriguing answers. Music is no cure-all, nor is it likely to turn your child into a Nobel Prize winner. But there is compelling evidence that it can boost children’s academic performance and help fix some of our schools’ most intractable problems."
-- read full article by Joanne Lipman on The Wall Street Journal

5 Ways Education Must Change

Geoffrey Canada outlines 5 ways education must change in order to better serve students and communities.
Geoffrey Canada is an American social activist and educator. Since 1990, Canada has been president of the Harlem Children's Zone in Harlem, New York, an organization which states its goal is to increase high school and college graduation rates among students in Harlem.
-- watch his TED talk "Our failing schools. Enough is enough!"

Can Creativity Be Taught?

"Creativity is the process of having original ideas that have value"
"If there was a moment when our crisis in education hit critical mass it may well have been the date Sir Ken Robinson’s TED talk went up on YouTube. In just 19 minutes his wry but eviscerating presentation gave voice to what so many of us are living through: our schools are failing to recognize creativity; we’re failing to prepare the next generation for the challenges that lie ahead." 
-- VANITY FAIR
Sir Ken Robinson is an internationally recognized leader in the development of creativity, innovation and human resources in education and in business. He is also one of the world’s leading speakers on these topics, with a profound impact on audiences everywhere.
-- Listen to his recent BBC Radio 4 - The Educators interview

Art education as a civil right

Professor Patty Bode talks about how education involves learning and teaching, and learning is what makes us fully human. Art, she argues, is thus a big aspect of being fully human. Dr. Patty Bode asserts art education as a civil and human right through her teaching, research, service, art making and activism. With a focus on democratization of the arts, her work reinvigorates the arts in urban schools, juvenile justice facilities, neighborhood community settings, and engages cultural institutions to re-imagine their role in art education.
Dr. Bode teaching prepares art educators to pedagogy through multicultural education and innovative classroom practice by highlighting the role of radical thought in the transformation of schools and society. She has published and lectured on critical art pedagogy and re-theorizing curriculum to redefine art education. Interesting talk.

How Art Can Change Society

Sarah Lewis describes how photography and music are often the catalyst for radical societal change. Lewis is a curator and historian based in New York. She is the author of The Rise: Creativity, the Gift of Failure, and the Search for Mastery

4 Great Leadership Lessons from the Arts

Math and science are noble endeavors, but real leadership is taught in the arts.
Here are four powerful lessons taught best by artists:
1. Lead a Project from Start to Finish
2. Manage Dynamic People Effectively
3. Ensure Total Accountability
4. Implement Big Picture Thinking
Interesting article by Kevin Daum in Inc.com -- read it here

Power of the arts

Over the last several years the focus of US education has been fixed firmly on the sciences. But research shows that the arts help children do better in all subjects and improve the likelihood that they will stay in school longer. We already spoke about Orchard Gardens Pilot School in Boston. Here the results have been dramatic. In just three years the students at the once-troubled school have improved their basic academic skills and many say the arts have changed their lives.



Music is one of the most ancient arts, but it's now the subject of hi-tech inquiry from scientists who wonder how music affects the brain. Researchers are using everything from simple instruments to cutting-edge brain scans to detect how music and the brain interact. They suspect that music can help improve focus and calm while also dictating mood.
-- read on BBC News

Pay it forward

The MusicianShip is a charitable non-profit organization that facilitates music lessons, experiences and opportunities. While their mission is not exclusive to any one particular group, they are focused on at-risk youth as they benefit most from positive outreach and music scholarship preparation.
Another great example of how music can make a difference.
-- read and watch them on abc news

Raise Up

Interesting analysis on the issue of kids dropping out of school. Dropping out is a process not an event, it is a whole trajectory that leads towards greater and greater marginalization for young people, according to Pedro Noguera. Clearly poverty has a direct effect out of a lot of young people ability to graduate from and succeed in school. But there are also fundamental problems within our schools. We are not teaching the right curriculum, our teachers are not being prepared to engage with our young people, and generally we are not teaching what needs to be taught, according to Khary Lazarre-White.
Pedro Noguera is Pedro Noguera is the Peter L. Agnew Professor of Education at New York University. Dr. Noguera is a sociologist whose scholarship and research focuses on the ways in which schools are influenced by social and economic conditions, as well as by demographic trends in local, regional and global contexts.
Khary Lazarre-White is a social entrepreneur, educator, non-profit executive, writer and attorney. He is the Executive director and co-founder of The Brotherhood/Sister Sol, an organization that provides comprehensive, holistic and long-term support services to youth who range in age from eight to twenty-two.
This interview was to promote Raise Up , an online hip hop and spoken word competition for youth ages 15-22. Youth who enter are asked to speak on the national high school drop out crisis. Five individual winners have each received a $5,000 educational scholarship and a trip to Washington DC to perform at the Kennedy Center on September 28. One group piece has been selected to receive a $2,500 award -- watch coverage of event at Kennedy Center

Do you hear the people sing?

-- read new lyrics on the Telegraph

Music Education and the Brain

The benefits of music education has been researched for decades. Most recently neuroscientists have been excited about the significant differences they have seen between the brain functions of musicians, when compared with non-musicians. It has become clear that music education before the age of 7 has the greatest benefits to brain development. Furthermore it has been found that it only takes, at the very lest, an hour a week of structured, formal music education to make permanent and positive changes to the brain functions of every child. This film has been made for music educators, parents, principals and policy makers to help get across the importance of music education in every child's education.


Music Education and the Brain from Anita Collins on Vimeo.

Listen this way: music, mystery, and Meditation

Violinist Benjamin Sung is Assistant Professor of Violin at Florida State University, a faculty artist at the Brevard Music Center, and concertmaster of the Fargo-Moorhead Symphony. Ben takes a short tour through his own mind to look at the inner workings of a piece of music in the moment of performance, drawing the listener closer to the mysterious spiritual center of music. Ben is an enthusiastic advocate of contemporary music and has worked with many of the greatest composers of this generation. Very interesting talk.

The All-Star Orchestra

Gerard Schwarz serves as Music Director of the All-Star Orchestra and the Eastern Music Festival. Schwarz recently completed his 26th and final season as Seattle Symphony Music Director and now serves as its Conductor Laureate. Music programs in schools around the world are being cut, so he created a project to help more people to learn music. He brought together an orchestra of the world's finest musicians, and created a free television series so that anyone can see and hear performances of the world's greatest classical pieces. In addition, it offers interpretations, historical context, and practical teachings about music. The series has already won multiple Emmy Awards and touched the lives of millions.

The true power of the performing arts

"The arts, whatever they do, whenever they call us together, invite us to look at our fellow human being with generosity and curiosity. God knows, if we ever needed that capacity in human history, we need it now. You know, we're bound together, not, I think by technology, entertainment and design, but by common cause. We work to promote healthy vibrant societies, to ameliorate human suffering, to promote a more thoughtful, substantive, empathic world order." 
Ben Cameron is the Program Director, Arts, at the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation in New York, where he supervises a $13 million grants program aimed at the theatre, contemporary dance, jazz and presenting fields. In this TED talk he looks at the state of the live arts — asking: How can the magic of live theater, live music, live dance compete with the always-on Internet? In his talk, he offers a bold look forward.

Arts Expansion Initiative - Boston US

The Boston Public Schools Arts Expansion Initiative is a multi-year effort to expand arts education in schools across the district. Launched in 2009 by EdVestors, BPS Arts Expansion is focused on a coherent, sustainable approach to quality arts education for all Boston Public School (BPS) students. A true public-private partnership, BPS Arts Expansion has brought together local foundations, the school district, arts organizations, higher education institutions and the Mayor's Office. This collaboration of local leaders along with students, families, and school staff believe in the power of art to develop creative, engaged learners. Their focus is to ensure that all BPS students, regardless of where they attend school, have access to high quality arts education.
Great initiative.
-- read "Connecting Creative Youth Development and In-School Arts Education" on Artsblog

2012

Arts Education Expanding in Boston Schools from Chris Lovett on Vimeo.

2014

Art Programming to Expand in Boston Schools from Chris Lovett on Vimeo.

Crucial Impact of the Arts

"For art establishes the basic human truth which must serve as the touchstone of our judgment. We must never forget that art is not a form of propaganda, it is a form of truth" - JFK
Actor Kevin Spacey talks about how the arts is humanity's weapon to fight against injustice in the world. This is an excerpt from the Nancy Hanks Lecture on Arts and Public Policy at the Kennedy Center, part of Arts Advocacy Day 2011 put on by Americans For The Arts in partnership with Ovation. Great speech.



Kevin Spacey on President Lincoln and the Arts

Kids Review Famous Paintings...

The Huffington Post visited the Arts Camp at the West Side Y to talk to a group of kids ages five to six about famous art. From Renaissance-era portraits to 20th century masterpieces, the students acted like miniature art critics, proving how impactful even a color copy of a painting can be. Apparently the best art critics are 5 years old!
This is funny and very interesting -- read full article on Huffingtone Post

Life is Your Talents Discovered

In this closing of TEDxLiverpool, Sir Ken Robinson argues that talent is often buried and that we need to search for it. In fact, the foundation of wisdom may be the willingness to go and look for it.. Sir Ken has given three TED presentations on the role of creativity in education (His 2006 talk has attracted over 27 million views and seen by an estimated 250 million people worldwide) and changed the lives of many. In 2011 he was listed as “one of the world’s elite thinkers on creativity and innovation” by Fast Company magazine, and was ranked among the Thinkers50 list of the world’s top business thought leaders. He comes from an arts in education background influencing the formulation of the National Curriculum in England. For twelve years, he was professor of education at the University of Warwick, and is now professor emeritus. In 2003, he received a knighthood from Queen Elizabeth II for his services to the arts.

Kids need more than test prep

Orchard Gardens, a school in Roxbury, Mass., had been plagued by bad test scores and violence -- but one principal's idea to fire the security guards and hire art teachers is helping turn it around. Chris Plunkett, a visual arts teacher in this school, spoke with NBC's Katy Tur about the success of the arts program that led to an inspiring turnaround for students. He said the classes help develop trust between the faculty and students. During one particularly memorable project, he asked his eighth graders to write a memoir about a life experience and what they learned from it and then create a self-portrait.“I couldn't believe how honest and candid they were, and how much I learned about them,” Plunkett said. “I mean it was really, it was one of the most incredible things I've seen in eighth graders.” -- read on NBC news

>> Click here or on image below to watch video

Art inspires life

Sometimes this can happen...

Peace Like A River

I've got peace like a river / I've got love like an ocean / I've got joy like a fountain in my soul
Be the Peace you want to see in the world...Happy Peace Day to all tomorrow!!!

Can music change the world?

"Music can give hope and encouragement in the times of the greatest and deepest crisis..
All my life I have been focused on the music I was playing, on refining the music I was playing or even worse on my persona on the stage, but I have been ignoring the third and most important element of music making: the audience. So when the door opened that night...I realized that the universal message of music had remained completely unchanged...to connect, to share, to communicate. And for the first time in my life I walked on the big stage not feeling nervous because I knew why I was playing music."
Panos Karan is a classical pianist of Greek origin. He was educated at the Royal Academy of Music as a student of Sulamita Aronovsky. He is also founder of Keys of Change, a young charity formed by individuals of different backgrounds who deeply believe that playing music can make this world a better place. Their goal is to promote and establish musical education and its benefits in remote areas around the world.
This is a wonderful talk by a remarkable young man, a powerful message of hope through music.

Why choose the arts?

This is fun...

Heal the World

We Could Fly So High / Let Our Spirits Never Die / In My Heart / I Feel You Are All / My Brothers / Create A World With / No Fear / Together We'll Cry / Happy Tears / See The Nations Turn / Their Swords / Into Plowshares

Planting seeds of mindfulness

"Planting Seeds" The Power of Mindfulness is based on the book "Planting Seeds" practicing mindfulness with children by Thich Nhat Hanh and the Plum Village Community. Mindfulness is a powerful tool to help children, parents, teachers and communities develop the skills to promote peace in themselves and in the world around them. This feature documentary and animated film is produced by Peace is the Way Films, whose work is focused on ordinary people and communities who made a decision to do something positive and constructive to make the world a better place.
The film stars Jay, an incredible teenager from Hong Kong who is a mindfulness practitioner. Jay will show us how to compassionately transform situations (bullying, parents fighting) and himself using "The Power of Mindfulness."

Creativity Is the New Literacy

As a global society we are currently facing crises across every imaginable sector including economic, climate and humanitarian issues. What is the one common thread in all these crises? The solution lies in the power of human creativity. Today we have a creativity crisis. On the positive side, thought leaders are taking notice of the critical need for creativity. A recent study of 1500 CEOs cited creativity as the #1 leadership competency. However, current education paradigms stifle creativity because our archaic system was built around farming and factory ways of life. How do we empower this new generation of learners to solve the world’s issues with creative skills? It starts with an education system that cultivates creativity and a society that puts value on creativity. Creative, problem solving skills placed in the hands of every learner will unleash a new culture that will tirelessly pursue amazing, creative alternatives until something works (from SXSW)
Chase Jarvis, renowned photographer and director turned digital entrepreneur, co-founded creativeLIVE in 2010 to share free creative education with the world. Since that time creativeLIVE has delivered more than 1 billion minutes of free online education to 2 million people across every country in the world. Please watch his talk at the World Domination Summit.


Chase Jarvis from Chris Guillebeau on Vimeo.