I was sent a link to the Word for Word podcast by my colleague/nemesis, Mark last week. While driving down to San Diego, I listened through the 50 minute lecture and Q&A by Parker Palmer. Framing a discussion of consensus and “messiness” around a parable of the Quakers, Palmer, illustrates some of the major problems with the overly bureaucratic urban school. Is there anyone to stand in the “tragic gap” that is splitting and antagonizing the climate of cynicism within our schools? Not in any consistent way, at least.

And in answer to Mark’s original question: yes, Palmer’s speech, and the book’s we’ve been reading have markedly similar themes. Perhaps we’re placating the wave of burn-out too idealistically by referencing these as the texts to propel us further. On the other hand, I’ve been leafing through the latest AERA journal and found some hopeful pages. Will discuss this further in the next post or two.

Related, this study, referenced in Palmer’s discussion sounds promising. Added to the exponentially expanding “to read” pile; I’ll do some digging sooner or later.