That's the Way We've Always Done It

I am reading a book called Teaching the Digital Generation by Kelly, McCain and Jukes. It examines how educators can address the learning needs of secondary students immersed in a digital world by designing and implementing new instructional models and technology infrastructures. It starts by examining our railroad system.

Today in North America, the spacing between the rails on railroad tracks is always 4 feet, 8 1/2 inches--- a rather odd and seemingly arbitrary number. It is said that the reason that this particular spacing is used is because that's the rail spacing they used to build the railroads in England, and Englishmen built the railroads in America. So why did the English use that measurement for the spacing? It was because the English railcars were built by the same people who built the horse-drawn wagons in the pre-railroad era. That's the axle width wagon makers had always used, so they just kept on using it when they built the first railroad cars. Why did the wagon makers use that particular axle width? They did this because, if they used any other axle spacing, the wagon wheels would break on the sides of the established wheel ruts on English roads. So, where did those old rutted roads come from? The first long distance roads in Britain and Europe were build by Imperial Rome for the use of the Roman military, and they have been in use ever since. Why did the Romans use that particular axle spacing? That was the width of the two horses that were used to pull the chariots. Thus, the North American standard railroad track spacing of 4 feet, 8 1/2 inches derives from the original specification for an Imperial Roman war chariot.

This story is a great metaphor for our public school system. Schools were designed and developed for an Industrial Age that no longer exists. At the beginning of the Industrial Age more than 90% of students lived on farms or in rural areas. The school year had to be conceived as a seasonal accommodation. Why hasn't it changed? Because that's the way we've always done it. It is time to rethink some of these outdated notions. On Wednesday I will be taking a field trip with a group of students. As we board the train, I will be sure to point out that the tracks are 4 feet, 8 1/2 inches apart.

Walking in Someone Else's Shoes-What is Empathy

This week I have been reading the work of Paul Zak, a professor of neuroeconomics who is looking for biological explanations for empathy. I came across his work as I was continuing my research on storytelling.

Zak did an experiment to show how storytelling increases empathy. He showed participants a video telling the story of a father and his young son, who is dying from cancer. Viewers empathized with the characters in the video and were more likely to make a charitable donation after watching the video. In looking for biological explanations for empathy, Dr. Zak found increased levels of cortisol and oxytocin in the blood of those watching the video. Cortisol correlates with distress and focused the mind's attention. Oxytocin is a chemical associated with care, connection, and empathy. The study also scanned brain activity while watching the video and found that areas of the mind associated with understanding what others are doing were highly active, as were areas rich in oxytocin receptors.

Dr. Zak notes that viewers were asked to watch several videos about the boy and his father. Only those videos with a dramatic story arc produced cortisol and oxytocin in the viewer. Simply watching a video of a boy and his father walk around a zoo, for instance, produced no change in blood chemistry.

In other words, powerful stories with dramatic arcs can create chemical reactions in the reader or viewer that increase their empathy. A strong story can help connect characters to the viewer.

Professor Zak has a TED talks video that further describes his work. I highly recommend it.

Storytelling

http://blog.bufferapp.com/science-of-storytelling-why-telling-a-story-is-the-most-powerful-way-to-activate-our-brains

I have always been interested in storytelling. A good story captures my imagination and helps me remember things. I have always wondered why schools do not capitalize on this technique more often. History is really a subject based on "his" "story." Yet it was never really presented like that to me.
There seems to be a lot of research supporting the power of story (see link at top of page).
In addition I have been reading the work of Dr. Pamela Rutledge.

According to Dr. Pamela Rutledge Of the University of California Irvine:

•Stories have always been a primal form of communication. They are timeless links to ancient traditions, legends, archetypes, myths, and symbols. They connect us to a larger self and universal truths.


•Stories are about collaboration and connection. They transcend generations, they engage us through emotions, and they connect us to others. Through stories we share passions, sadness, hardships and joys. We share meaning and purpose. Stories are the common ground that allows people to communicate, overcoming our defenses and our differences. Stories allow us to understand ourselves better and to find our commonality with others.


•Stories are how we think. They are how we make meaning of life. Call them schemas, scripts, cognitive maps, mental models, metaphors, or narratives. Stories are how we explain how things work, how we make decisions, how we justify our decisions, how we persuade others, how we understand our place in the world, create our identities, and define and teach social values.


•Stories provide order. Humans seek certainty and narrative structure is familiar, predictable, and comforting. Within the context of the story arc we can withstand intense emotions because we know that resolution follows the conflict. We can experience with a safety net.

•Stories are how we are wired. Stores take place in the imagination. To the human brain, imagined experiences are processed the same as real experiences. Stories create genuine emotions, presence (the sense of being somewhere), and behavioral responses.

•Stories are the pathway to engaging our right brain and triggering our imagination. By engaging our imagination, we become participants in the narrative. We can step out of our own shoes, see differently, and increase our empathy for others. Through imagination, we tap into creativity that is the foundation of innovation, self-discovery and change.

What stories have been most powerful for me? Storytelling is a lot like blogging. Is that the power in blogging?