De Nguyen
November 28, 2006
Americans with Disabilitis Act, Perkins, and No Child Left Behind are federal legislation programs that have a major impact on career and technical education. How these programs impact the K-12 school system, Regional Occupational Programs, Adult Schools, Community Colleges and Universities?
There are several federal legislation programs that impact career and technical education. The main three programs are Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), Perkins Act (Perkins) and No Child Left Behind (NCLB). These programs have also made an impact on primary, secondary and post-secondary levels of education. Each program has prompted significant change to the educational systems that we know today.
Americans with Disabilittis Act (ADA)
President George H. W. Bush signed the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990 into law on July 26, 1990. The ADA is a wide-ranging civil rights law that prohibits, under certain circumstances, discrimination based on disability. It affords similar protections against discrimination to Americans with disabilities as the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which made discrimination based on race, religion, sex, national origin, and other characteristics illegal. Disability is defined as a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits a major life activity. The determination of whether any particular condition is considered a disability is made on a case by case basis. Certain specific conditions are excluded as disabilities, such as current substance abusers and transsexuality.
ADA is divided into five titles. Title II of the ADA covers state funded schools such as universities, community colleges and vocational schools. Title III of the ADA covers private colleges and vocational schools (Parent Advocacy Coalition for Educational Rights 2006).
If a school receives federal dollars regardless of whether it is private or public it is also covered by the regulations of Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act requiring schools to make their programs accessible to qualified students with disabilities.
A school may not discriminate on the basis of disability. It must insure that the programs it offers, including extracurricular activities, are accessible to students with disabilities (Americans with Disabilities Act 2006). Title II of the ADA requires that all programs, services and activities of public entities comply with the ADA because public entities are considered instrumentalities of the government. Public entities must assure to individuals with disabilities access to all of their facilities’ programs, services and activities. Program accessibility means that, when viewed in its entirety, each program is readily accessible to and usable by individuals with disabilities. Program accessibility is not only for individuals with mobility impairments, but also for individuals with vision and hearing impairments. Thus, entity officials need to consider not only physical barriers such as doors, restrooms and sports fields, but also programmatic barriers such as accessible building signage, public telephones and alarms with visible signals.
Testing can be a great barrier for students with disabilities. Although each student’s disability is individual, under ADA, schools must establish a process for making testing possible, whether it be allowing extra time to complete a test or providing a distraction-free space, sign language interpreters, readers, or alternative test formats. These accommodations are made to enable individuals with disabilities to demonstrate their mastery of the subject matter being tested.
By implementing ADA, students with disabilities now have equal access to the many educational privileges that at one time were near impossible.
Perkins
The Carl D. Perkins Vocational and Technical Education Act (Perkins) was originally authorized in 1984 and most recently reauthorized by President George H. W. Bush on August 12, 2006. It is the newest legislature of a series of federal career and technical education funding Acts. The purpose of Perkins is to develop more fully the academic, vocational, and technical skills of secondary and postsecondary students who elect to enroll in vocational and technical education programs by:
1) Building on the efforts of states and localities to develop challenging academic standards;
2) Promoting the development of services and activities that integrate academic, vocational, and technical instruction, and that link secondary and postsecondary education for participating vocational and technical education students;
3) Increasing state and locals flexibility in providing services and activities designed to develop, implement, and improve vocational and technical education, including tech-prep education; and
4) Disseminating national research, and providing professional development and technical assistance that will improve vocational and technical education programs, services, and activities (California Department of Education 2006).
Types of Activities Supported: State and local funds generally are to be used for the following types of activities:
Serving as a catalyst for change by driving program improvement
Developing a strong accountability system that ensures quality and results
Strengthening the integration of academic, career and technical education
Ensuring access to career and technical education for special populations, including students with disabilities
Purchasing equipment to ensure that the classrooms have the latest technology
Providing career guidance and academic counseling services
Providing professional development and technical assistance for teachers, counselors, and administrators
Supporting career and technical education student organizations
Current Perkins law allows for more state and local flexibility and raises expectations for students participating in career and technical education by holding them to the same high academic standards as all other students. States and localities are embracing the new accountability requirements of the 1998 Perkins law and are working to develop effective methods to improve programs and measure student progress and success (Association for Career and Technical Education 2006).
No Child Left Behind
The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, commonly known as NCLB, is a United States federal law that reauthorizes a number of federal programs that aim to improve the performance of U.S.'s primary and secondary schools by increasing the standards of accountability for states, school districts and schools, as well as providing parents more flexibility in choosing which schools their children will attend. Additionally, it promotes an increased focus on reading and re-authorizes the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA). NCLB is the latest federal legislation which enact the theories of standards-based education reform, formerly known as outcome-based education which is based on the belief that high expectations and setting of goals will result in success for all students.
The act was written with provisions for accountability. These provisions state that it must describe how it will close the achievement gap and make sure all students, including those who are disadvantaged, achieve academic proficiency. It must produce annual state and school district report cards that inform parents and communities about state and school progress. Schools that do not make progress must provide supplemental services, such as free tutoring or after-school assistance; take corrective actions; and if still not making adequate yearly progress after five years, make dramatic changes to the way the school is run (U.S. Department of Education 2006).
Under NCLB, school districts have more local freedom. It will be possible for most school districts to transfer up to 50 percent of the federal formula grant funds they receive under the Improving Teacher Quality State Grants, Educational Technology, Innovative Programs, and Safe and Drug free School programs to any one of these programs, or to their Title I program, without separate approval. This allows districts to use funds for their particular needs, such as hiring new teachers, increasing teacher pay, and improving teacher training and professional development. Similarly, the law’s consolidation of bilingual education programs gives states and districts more control in planning programs to benefit all limited English proficient students.
A new demonstration program allows selected states and school districts to consolidate funds received under a variety of federal education programs so that they an be used for any educational purpose authorized under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, as amended by the NCLB Act in order to assist them in making adequate yearly progress and narrowing achievement gaps. In addition, the new Improving Teacher Quality State Grants program gives states and districts greater flexibility to choose the teacher professional development strategies that best meet their needs to help raise student achievement.
NCLB puts special emphasis on determining what educational programs and practices have been proven effective through rigorous scientific research. Federal funding is targeted to support these programs and teaching methods that work to improve student learning and achievement.
Reading programs are an example. NCLB supports scientifically based reading instruction programs in the early grades under the new Reading First program and in preschool under the new Early Reading First program. Funds are available to help teachers strengthen current skills and gain new ones in effective reading instructional techniques (U.S. Department of Education 2006).
References:
Americans with Disabilities Act (2006). Retrieved on November 16, 2006 from
http://www.usdoj.gov/crt/ada/adahom1.htm.
Association for Career and Technical Education (2006). Carl D. Perkins Act – Background. Retrieved on November 16, 2006 from http://www.acteonline.org/policy/legislative_issues/Perkins_background.cfm.
California Department of Education (2006). Carl D. Perkins Vocational and Technical Education Act of 1998. Retrieved on November 20, 2006 from http://www.cde.ca.gov/perkins.
Parent Advocacy Coalition for Educational Rights (2006). ADA Q & A: Section 504 & Postsecondary Education. Retrieved on November 16, 2006 from http://www.pacer.org/pride/504.htm.
U.S. Department of Education (2006). No Child Left Behind. Retrieved November 20, 2006 from http://www.ed.gov/nclb/landing.jhtml.
Tuesday, September 18, 2007
Sunday, September 16, 2007
NAME: De Nguyen
DATE: October 31, 2006
International, National, State, and Regional Analysis that Impact Career and Technical (Vocational) Education
Globalization or internationalization refers to growing reliance in a world market and an increasingly interdependence of the world’s economy. The newly merging of global markets such as the European Community, North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), and the homogenization of tastes is influencing by the media and travel. This merging of the world market certainly changes and affects the global labor market which will, in turn, affect the Career and Technical Education (CTE).
The global economy will influence people's lives and careers from the international to the local level, whether or not they are employed by international firms. The most important influence is the emergence of flexible and information-base technologies. The CTE has generally focused on helping people understand the relationship between education, work, and acquire employability skills. Now with the integration of global labor market, people need assistance to realize the opportunities and meet challenges of the international workplace. The new challenges require the role of CTE to shift its occupational education focuses to meet the needs of the present world labor market in all territories.
International Analysis that Impact Career and Technical (Vocational) Education
The Globalization and the Internationalization of Research on Career and Technical Education by Jay W. Rojewski concerns the focuses of the CTE in training workers to settle in this new international labor market. The new competency required for international workers includes managing information, resources, and relationships with people as well as self-management. Instead of the old-style division of labor into discrete tasks, job functions will converge, and work teams will consist of individuals who are experienced in brokering and leadership roles. The new competitive framework requires a broader training in the technical, communication, and the creation of personal service techniques. The starting point, of course, is basic skills in reading, writing, computation, and most important, the ability to learn continuously throughout life. A number of the skills needed for work in the global economy are reflected in current curriculum. These skills emphasize the development of critical thinking, tech-prep, the integration of vocational and academic education, and the competencies of the Secretary's Commission on Achieving Necessary Skills (SCAN). Career educators can collaborate with vocational and academic educators and employers in documenting the need for these skills and infusing them in a multidisciplinary approach. To some extent, the knowledge of occupational exploration, job search competency, interviewing preparation, career and personal development planning are still important.
The challenges of the global economy are an opportunity not only for organizations to redesign themselves across national borders, but also for education to transcend its traditional boundaries and re-envision ways to prepare people for life and for work.
National Analysis that Impact Career and Technical (Vocational) Education
California Association for Career and Technical Education (CACTE): Strategic Plan 2005-2008 records eight goals which the CACTE is trying to achieve by 2008 nationally. At the national level, the CTE is facing the questions about its role in today’s high school. According to the National Association of state Directors of CTE Consortium 2000, one of the major issues is: does vocational education and processes associated with it belong to today’s high school? The goal of CACTE is to solve the vocational education issues. The effort of the CACTE is to provide leadership in development of an educated, prepared, and competitive workforce, with support from the business, industry, federal government, and legislation.
State Analysis that Impact Career and Technical (Vocational) Education
According to Education Commission of the States: Economic/Workforce Development 2004, in most states, the authority over CTE lies with either higher education governing or coordinating boards, or with the state board of education. In California, the government, mainly state and local, has two roles in CTE:
The first role is to provide funding for education facilities to offer CTE to middle,
high school, and adult learners.
The second role is to set the academic standards and policies to CTE
programs which must comply with and qualify for federal funding (Perkins).
The No Child Left Behind (NCLB) has significant impacts on the state role in CTE. From the California review 2006, the new state’s purposes included that the Governor should restructure the role of the current Secretary for Education. The Secretary should be charged with synchronizing education, workforce preparation, and advising the Governor on education policy and programs. The Secretary should report directly to the Governor and manage a new Department of Education and Workforce Preparation. The Secretary for Education and Workforce Preparation's strategic goals should be to:
* Develop, implement and disseminate a coherent policy for pre K-20 education
* Ensure that California's education system is coordinated with the growing
needs of the state's labor market for skilled and educated workers
* Ensure the effectiveness and accountability of California's educational
programs and their providers
* Establish coherent financial policy and performance-based budgeting
strategies which are tied to education policy and desired educational
outcomes
The proposed Department of Education and Workforce Preparation differs from the California Department of Education in its plan to focus on educational policy across the pre-K-20 continuum, implement higher educational policy and programs, and align education with workforce needs. Under the Governor's Reorganization Plan for the California State Government, the California Department of Education's focus will continue to be the administration of pre-K-12 programs. The Superintendent will continue to be an elected office, and the Secretary for Education and Workforce Preparation will be the Governor's appointed spokesperson and advisor on educational matters. These positions are intended to work in a coordinated manner to ensure that California's pre-K-20 education enterprise works smoothly with respect to funding program implementation and over-arching policy.
Regional Analysis that Impact Career and Technical (Vocational) Education
According to California Department of Education 2006 report by the district, the high school drop out rate has become an issue in San Bernardino and Los Angeles County. The California Alliance for Career training in the United States (CACTUS) realizes that there are several solutions and options to young adults. High school graduates may have the option to attend two or four-year colleges or universities, career and occupational program, or the military. Conversely, drop-outs have fewer choices, such as the option for college. High school drop-outs may become a new part of society’s problem through unemployment, crime, and will need public assistance such as welfare (McCauley, 2005). CACTUS should communicate that there are interdependent relationships between young adults and society. If the young adults fail, society cannot benefit.
The military is an alternative option that is available to these young adults. It is true that the military offers considerable CTE and career occupational trainings. This may not be an attractive option for young adults and their parents, but it is the next best choice.
Resources
California Association for Career and Technical Education (CACTE): Strategic Plan
2005-200. (n. d.). Retrieved October25, 2006, from http:// www.
acteonline.org/about/atates/upload/CACTE_StrtegicPlan05-08.doc
California Department of Education Educational Demographics Unit Prepared:
10/27/2006 4:18:18 PM. (n. d.). Retrieved October 27, 2006, from http:// dq.cde.
ca.gov/dataquest/CoRpt2.asp? cChoice=dEthGrade&cYear=2004-05&TheCounty=36
%2CSAN%5EBERNARDINO&cLevel=County&cTopic=Dropouts&myTimeFrame
=S&submit1=Submit
Education Commission of the States: Economic/Workforce Development 2004. (n. d.).
Retrieved October 19, 2006, from http:// www.ecs.org/clearinghouse/55/56/5556.htm
ETV01 Restructure the Role of the Secretary for Education. (n. d.). Retrieved
October 25, 2006, from http://cpr.ca.gov/report/cprrpt/issrec/etv/etv01.htm
Globalization and the internationalization of research on career and technical education.
(n. d.). Retrieved October28, 2006, from http://vnweb.hwwilsonweb.com.libproxy/.
lib.csusb.edu/hww/results/results_fullrexr_maincontentframe.jhtml:jesssionid
McCauley, D. (2005). Decline in California’s vocational education must be addressed
Business Journal, 202 (7), 23-25. October 27, 2006,
DATE: October 31, 2006
International, National, State, and Regional Analysis that Impact Career and Technical (Vocational) Education
Globalization or internationalization refers to growing reliance in a world market and an increasingly interdependence of the world’s economy. The newly merging of global markets such as the European Community, North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), and the homogenization of tastes is influencing by the media and travel. This merging of the world market certainly changes and affects the global labor market which will, in turn, affect the Career and Technical Education (CTE).
The global economy will influence people's lives and careers from the international to the local level, whether or not they are employed by international firms. The most important influence is the emergence of flexible and information-base technologies. The CTE has generally focused on helping people understand the relationship between education, work, and acquire employability skills. Now with the integration of global labor market, people need assistance to realize the opportunities and meet challenges of the international workplace. The new challenges require the role of CTE to shift its occupational education focuses to meet the needs of the present world labor market in all territories.
International Analysis that Impact Career and Technical (Vocational) Education
The Globalization and the Internationalization of Research on Career and Technical Education by Jay W. Rojewski concerns the focuses of the CTE in training workers to settle in this new international labor market. The new competency required for international workers includes managing information, resources, and relationships with people as well as self-management. Instead of the old-style division of labor into discrete tasks, job functions will converge, and work teams will consist of individuals who are experienced in brokering and leadership roles. The new competitive framework requires a broader training in the technical, communication, and the creation of personal service techniques. The starting point, of course, is basic skills in reading, writing, computation, and most important, the ability to learn continuously throughout life. A number of the skills needed for work in the global economy are reflected in current curriculum. These skills emphasize the development of critical thinking, tech-prep, the integration of vocational and academic education, and the competencies of the Secretary's Commission on Achieving Necessary Skills (SCAN). Career educators can collaborate with vocational and academic educators and employers in documenting the need for these skills and infusing them in a multidisciplinary approach. To some extent, the knowledge of occupational exploration, job search competency, interviewing preparation, career and personal development planning are still important.
The challenges of the global economy are an opportunity not only for organizations to redesign themselves across national borders, but also for education to transcend its traditional boundaries and re-envision ways to prepare people for life and for work.
National Analysis that Impact Career and Technical (Vocational) Education
California Association for Career and Technical Education (CACTE): Strategic Plan 2005-2008 records eight goals which the CACTE is trying to achieve by 2008 nationally. At the national level, the CTE is facing the questions about its role in today’s high school. According to the National Association of state Directors of CTE Consortium 2000, one of the major issues is: does vocational education and processes associated with it belong to today’s high school? The goal of CACTE is to solve the vocational education issues. The effort of the CACTE is to provide leadership in development of an educated, prepared, and competitive workforce, with support from the business, industry, federal government, and legislation.
State Analysis that Impact Career and Technical (Vocational) Education
According to Education Commission of the States: Economic/Workforce Development 2004, in most states, the authority over CTE lies with either higher education governing or coordinating boards, or with the state board of education. In California, the government, mainly state and local, has two roles in CTE:
The first role is to provide funding for education facilities to offer CTE to middle,
high school, and adult learners.
The second role is to set the academic standards and policies to CTE
programs which must comply with and qualify for federal funding (Perkins).
The No Child Left Behind (NCLB) has significant impacts on the state role in CTE. From the California review 2006, the new state’s purposes included that the Governor should restructure the role of the current Secretary for Education. The Secretary should be charged with synchronizing education, workforce preparation, and advising the Governor on education policy and programs. The Secretary should report directly to the Governor and manage a new Department of Education and Workforce Preparation. The Secretary for Education and Workforce Preparation's strategic goals should be to:
* Develop, implement and disseminate a coherent policy for pre K-20 education
* Ensure that California's education system is coordinated with the growing
needs of the state's labor market for skilled and educated workers
* Ensure the effectiveness and accountability of California's educational
programs and their providers
* Establish coherent financial policy and performance-based budgeting
strategies which are tied to education policy and desired educational
outcomes
The proposed Department of Education and Workforce Preparation differs from the California Department of Education in its plan to focus on educational policy across the pre-K-20 continuum, implement higher educational policy and programs, and align education with workforce needs. Under the Governor's Reorganization Plan for the California State Government, the California Department of Education's focus will continue to be the administration of pre-K-12 programs. The Superintendent will continue to be an elected office, and the Secretary for Education and Workforce Preparation will be the Governor's appointed spokesperson and advisor on educational matters. These positions are intended to work in a coordinated manner to ensure that California's pre-K-20 education enterprise works smoothly with respect to funding program implementation and over-arching policy.
Regional Analysis that Impact Career and Technical (Vocational) Education
According to California Department of Education 2006 report by the district, the high school drop out rate has become an issue in San Bernardino and Los Angeles County. The California Alliance for Career training in the United States (CACTUS) realizes that there are several solutions and options to young adults. High school graduates may have the option to attend two or four-year colleges or universities, career and occupational program, or the military. Conversely, drop-outs have fewer choices, such as the option for college. High school drop-outs may become a new part of society’s problem through unemployment, crime, and will need public assistance such as welfare (McCauley, 2005). CACTUS should communicate that there are interdependent relationships between young adults and society. If the young adults fail, society cannot benefit.
The military is an alternative option that is available to these young adults. It is true that the military offers considerable CTE and career occupational trainings. This may not be an attractive option for young adults and their parents, but it is the next best choice.
Resources
California Association for Career and Technical Education (CACTE): Strategic Plan
2005-200. (n. d.). Retrieved October25, 2006, from http:// www.
acteonline.org/about/atates/upload/CACTE_StrtegicPlan05-08.doc
California Department of Education Educational Demographics Unit Prepared:
10/27/2006 4:18:18 PM. (n. d.). Retrieved October 27, 2006, from http:// dq.cde.
ca.gov/dataquest/CoRpt2.asp? cChoice=dEthGrade&cYear=2004-05&TheCounty=36
%2CSAN%5EBERNARDINO&cLevel=County&cTopic=Dropouts&myTimeFrame
=S&submit1=Submit
Education Commission of the States: Economic/Workforce Development 2004. (n. d.).
Retrieved October 19, 2006, from http:// www.ecs.org/clearinghouse/55/56/5556.htm
ETV01 Restructure the Role of the Secretary for Education. (n. d.). Retrieved
October 25, 2006, from http://cpr.ca.gov/report/cprrpt/issrec/etv/etv01.htm
Globalization and the internationalization of research on career and technical education.
(n. d.). Retrieved October28, 2006, from http://vnweb.hwwilsonweb.com.libproxy/.
lib.csusb.edu/hww/results/results_fullrexr_maincontentframe.jhtml:jesssionid
McCauley, D. (2005). Decline in California’s vocational education must be addressed
Business Journal, 202 (7), 23-25. October 27, 2006,
Saturday, September 15, 2007
Trade and Industrial Cluster
De Nguyen
October 30, 2006
Trade and Industrial Automotive Servicing Operation
Statement of Purpose: The purpose of this report is to synthesize key descriptive elements of a service area or division into a single coherent program description that as a minimum includes separate treatment of the profession’s thought in each of the following areas: trade and industry, agriculture, family and consumer science, technical, business, and marketing. Such programs may or may not be federally subsidized. Keep in mind, vocational education courses are not considered general education courses. Nevertheless, a good vocational program provides for a continuation of general education experiences.
Abstract: The career clusters links what students learn in school with the knowledge and skills they need for success in college and in society. Career clusters identify pathways from secondary school to two and four-year college, graduate school, and the work place, so students can learn in school and what they can do in the future. This connection to future goals motivates students to work harder and enroll in more rigorous courses. There are varieties of career cluster frameworks, including one created by the United States Department of Education (States’ Career Clusters, 2006) which incorporates 16 clusters. Career and Technical Education (CTE) prepares both youth and adults for a wide range of vocational and technical educations that require varying levels of education. The most common service areas covered in CTE including Trade and Industrial, Business, Health Occupations, Agriculture, Family and Consumer Sciences, Marketing, and Technology. This paper focuses on synthesizing key descriptive elements of the automotive servicing operation which is a sub-set of vocational or occupational education in the Trade and Industrial service area of the CTE. As a sub-level within the Trade and Industrial service area, the automotive technology education is divided into many specialized educational sub-level such as smog check, mechanic, body collision and refinishing, sale, parts, management, and diesel technology et cetera.
Service area: Technology relates unambiguously to the human living conditions. “Technology has become so user friendly, and it is largely ‘invisible’. We drive high-tech cars but know little more than how to operate the steering wheel, gas pedal, and brake pedal ” (Pearson & Young, 2002). It also highlights an element of intellectual effort that is dominant in every society, but that traditionally is neglected in formal education. This clearly implies that the technology education is important especially, in technology literacy aspect. The economy is increasingly being driven by technology innovation and because an escalating percentage of jobs requirements in technological skills, a rise in technological literacy will have strong economy impacts. Technological literacy is an important assess to the CTE professionals of the fast changing pace of the automotive industry.
In the Trade and Industrial service area of the CTE, the automotive technology is commonly known as automotive mechanics. This field contributes major parts in transportation, distribution of goods, sport and pleasure, and according to Smogcheck Fact Sheets, 2006, air pollution is also one of the principal negative contribution of this industry to the environment. Many of CTE service areas depending heavily and experiencing the rapid innovations of this field in recent years. The growing economy and the fast increasing in population require more and better automotive products and higher quality services, nationwide and worldwide. The high cost of energy and preserving the environment push the demands and expectations of this industry even further. There are many modern mechanical improvements, sophisticated digital devices, and software applications integrated in this field (Duffy, 2000); which tends to attract investment and implementation from other service areas. These investments and depending on the transportations give the CTE professionals with automotive technology competencies a highly competitive edge in the labor market.
Content Taught/Competencies Developed: The evolution of automotive repair has seen a change in emphasis from mechanical to technological work. Presently, vehicles use high-tech computers and complex electronic systems to monitor the performance of the vehicle. A strong sense of understanding concerning the operation of a vehicle, including how each device interacts, as well as the ability to deal with electronic diagnostic equipments and digital reference manuals is the key to the success of a technician. Currently, the automotive technology education is divided into a variety of specialized service areas for training. From Hughes, James G. (2003), the automotive technology pedagogy involves in below major categories: Automobile Training, Undercar Technician, Parts Specialist, Collision Repair/Refinish, Medium/Heavy Duty Truck, Engine Machinist, and School Bus. Recently, the Service Consultant, Alternative Fuels, and Hybrid Technology are added to this vocational education field. The National Institute for Automotive Service Excellence (ASE), a non-profit organization, established the ASE certifications in all automotive specialization areas throughout the U. S., Canada, and oversea. This certification program is to ensure the professional quality of the certified technicians. These certified technicians must retake the exams every five years to make sure that they keep up with the constantly changing of technology (Lundquist, 2000).
For the purpose of this paper, only three clusters of the automotive technology education will be discussed.
The automotive mechanic area: This cluster of study involves courses in
Basic Automotive Mechanic
Engine Performance I, II
Electrical/Electronic I, II
Computerized Control Systems I, II, III
Manual/Automatic Transmission
Brake
Suspension/Steering
Automotive Heating and Air Conditioning
The collision repair/refinishing area: This clusters of study involves courses in
Core Training Program
Non-Structural Repair I, II, III
Structural Repair I, II, III
Automotive Gas Metal Arc (GMA) steel and aluminum welding
Refinishing I, II, III
Original Equipment Manufacture (OEM) specific repair
Estimating, Management, and Appraisal I, II, III
The instructional lessons and performance tasks of the above two clusters are closely following the National Automotive Technicians Education Foundation (NATEF) standards. The purpose of NATEF certification program is to improve the quality of training offered at the secondary and post-secondary levels. NATEF will evaluate the technician training programs against standards developed by the automotive industry and recommend qualifying programs for certification (accreditation) by the ASE. The Board of the National Institute for Automotive Service Excellence is the body responsible for the Collision Repair/Refinish and Automotive Mechanic programs. The ASE will grant certification to programs and certify technicians that comply with the evaluation procedures and meet the established standards. The NATEF also evaluates the providers of in-service technicians training programs under a program called Continuing Automotive Service Education (CASE).
The smog check area: This cluster of study involves courses in
Laws and regulations of State Bureau of Automotive Repair (BAR)
Basic Clean Air Car course
Advance Clean Air Car course
Citation Training course
BAR (ASE Alternative) Training courses
BAR 2005 Transition Training (up date every two years)
Smog Check Technician Licensing Examination course
This sub-level under the automotive technology education area started in 1982. According to California Bureau of Automotive Repair: Smog Check Technician Licensing Examination Handbook, (2006), California became the 20th state in the nation to adopt a vehicle inspection and maintenance (Smog Check) program. The BAR is mandated by law to administer the Smog Check program. There have been a number of program changes over the years, but the goal of Smog Check program remains the same: to reduce air pollution produced by the motor vehicles from the automotive industry.
Where are the programs offered?: The Automotive Mechanic and Collision Repair/Refinish programs are widely offered throughout many public junior high schools, post-secondary schools, community and junior colleges (McCade & Boynton, 1997). Specially, at the high school level, under the Carl D. Perkins Vocational and Applied Technology Education Act Amendments of 1990, there are many organizations involve or take a part in such as: Automotive Youth Educational Systems (AYES), Regional Occupation Center and Programs (ROCP), or School-to-Career programs.
While the Smog Check program is available only to experience technicians, and usually offered at post-secondary school levels, community and junior colleges, or private vocational institutes.
National Issues: According to the U. S. Bureau of Labor Statistic, 2004-2005 Career Guide to Industries, the automotive industry is one of the largest industries in the Unites States. It creates 6.6 million direct and related jobs. It produced $243 billion in payroll and compensation with 5.6 % in private sector compensation. For every worker directly employed by an automaker, nearly seven spin-off jobs are created. Employment of automotive service technicians and mechanics is expected to increase about as fast as the average (10-20%) through the year 2012. This amounts to 82,000 to 164,000 new jobs between 2002 through 2012.
The above information indicates that the automotive industry needs to adjust to this potential growth. The adjustment issues involve in (Gray, 2000):
Image and Promotion-Combating negative public perception of the industry due to stereotypes and misinformation, increasing awareness about viable occupations that pay well and have growth potential, recruiting young people and transitioning workers.
Diversity of the Workforce-Tapping in new pools of labor to diversify the make-up of the workforce. Supporting individuals with limited English proficiency.
Capacity and Instruction-Providing resources and curriculum to stay current with today’s technology, recruiting more teachers and trainers, offering continuing education for instructors and certified technicians to keep them current in their field of knowledge to retain them in the industry, exploring other curriculum delivery methods such as distance learning and on-line modular courses.
Training and Education-Focusing on employability or job readiness skills such as communication, reading, writing, math, problem solving, team-building, and customer service skills. Addressing concern about the skill gaps of new employees and the retraining (or up-grade skill) of incumbent workers. Ensuring that all training and educational programs in automotive technology education are certified and standardized by the industry leaders.
Key Resources:
What are career clusters? (n. d.). Retrieved October 11, 2006, from
http://www.careerclusters.org/whatis.cfm
High growth industry profound (n. d.). Retrieved October 11, 2006, from
www.doleta.gov/BRG, www.careervoyages.gov, http://www.careeronestop.org/
Welcome to the web site of NATEF, the national automotive technicians education
foundation (n. d.). Retrieved October 28, 2006, from
http://www.natef.org/about.cfm
Perkins (n. d.). Retrieved October 17, 2006, from http://www.cde.ca.gov/ci/ct/pk/
California bureau of automotive repair: smog check technician licensing examination
handbook (n. d.). Retrieved October 28, 2006, from
http://www.smogcheck.ca.gov/stdhome.asp
Sources Of All Air Pollutants Measured In California: Smog check fact sheets (n. d.).
Retrieved October 16, 2006 from
http://www.smogcheck.ca.gov/stdPAge.asp?Menu=/includes/Menu_
GenInfo.htm&Body=/Geninfo/Factsheets/Air_Pollution_Sources-Sep_2003.htm
Publications
Pearson, Greg, & Young, Thomas A. (Eds). (2002). Technically speaking why all
Americans need to know more about technology. Washington D.C.: National
Academy Press.
Tomorrow’s environmentally “clean/green” vehicles are here. (n. d.).
Retrieved October 17, 2006, from http:// www.ase.com/Content/NavigationMenu/
Motorists2/ASE-Articales/Green-Vehicles.htm
Duffy, James E. (2000). Modern automotive technology. Tinley Park, Il: The
Goodheart-Wilcox company, Inc,
Hughes, James G. (2003). Guide to the automobile certification examination. Upper
Saddle River, NJ: Pearson-Prentice Hall.
Journals:
McCade, Joseph M., & Boynton, John (1997). Engineering and the middle school link.
Technology Teachers, 23,n5, pp10-14. Retrieved October 19, 2001, from
http://www.uk1.csa.com.libproxy.lib.csusb.edu/ids70/view_ record.php?id
=2&recnum=1 6&SID=241293b4382bd531d31c6c0ee0caa0f8&mark_
id=search%3A2%3A5%2C10%2C20
Gray, Don (200). Auto service career preparation moves to the fast track. Tech
Directions, 59, n6, pp 19-21. Retrieved October 19, 2001, from
http://www.uk1.csa.com.libproxy.lib.csusb.edu/ids70/view_record.php?
id=2&recnum=12&SID=241293b4382bd531d31c6c0ee0caa0f8&mark_
id=search%3A2 %3A5%2C10%2C20
Lundquist, Patricia A., (2000). Get your automotive program nationally certified! Tech
Directions, 59, n6, pp 15-16. Retrieved October 19, 2001, from
http://www.uk1.csa.com.libproxy.lib.csusb.edu/ids70/view_record.php?id=2&recnum=1
id=2&recnum=11&SID=241293b4382bd531d31c6c0ee0caa0f8&mark_
id=search%3A2%3A5%2C10%2C20
Key People:
California Automotive Teachers (CAT)
Steve Ford, Southern California AYES Director
John Chocholak, High School/ROP
Rick Escalambre, BAR Education Advisory Committee
California Vocational Secondary, Postsecondary, & Adult Leadership Division
Patrick Ainsworth, Director
Barbara Brown, Palm Desert ROP Coordinator
October 30, 2006
Trade and Industrial Automotive Servicing Operation
Statement of Purpose: The purpose of this report is to synthesize key descriptive elements of a service area or division into a single coherent program description that as a minimum includes separate treatment of the profession’s thought in each of the following areas: trade and industry, agriculture, family and consumer science, technical, business, and marketing. Such programs may or may not be federally subsidized. Keep in mind, vocational education courses are not considered general education courses. Nevertheless, a good vocational program provides for a continuation of general education experiences.
Abstract: The career clusters links what students learn in school with the knowledge and skills they need for success in college and in society. Career clusters identify pathways from secondary school to two and four-year college, graduate school, and the work place, so students can learn in school and what they can do in the future. This connection to future goals motivates students to work harder and enroll in more rigorous courses. There are varieties of career cluster frameworks, including one created by the United States Department of Education (States’ Career Clusters, 2006) which incorporates 16 clusters. Career and Technical Education (CTE) prepares both youth and adults for a wide range of vocational and technical educations that require varying levels of education. The most common service areas covered in CTE including Trade and Industrial, Business, Health Occupations, Agriculture, Family and Consumer Sciences, Marketing, and Technology. This paper focuses on synthesizing key descriptive elements of the automotive servicing operation which is a sub-set of vocational or occupational education in the Trade and Industrial service area of the CTE. As a sub-level within the Trade and Industrial service area, the automotive technology education is divided into many specialized educational sub-level such as smog check, mechanic, body collision and refinishing, sale, parts, management, and diesel technology et cetera.
Service area: Technology relates unambiguously to the human living conditions. “Technology has become so user friendly, and it is largely ‘invisible’. We drive high-tech cars but know little more than how to operate the steering wheel, gas pedal, and brake pedal ” (Pearson & Young, 2002). It also highlights an element of intellectual effort that is dominant in every society, but that traditionally is neglected in formal education. This clearly implies that the technology education is important especially, in technology literacy aspect. The economy is increasingly being driven by technology innovation and because an escalating percentage of jobs requirements in technological skills, a rise in technological literacy will have strong economy impacts. Technological literacy is an important assess to the CTE professionals of the fast changing pace of the automotive industry.
In the Trade and Industrial service area of the CTE, the automotive technology is commonly known as automotive mechanics. This field contributes major parts in transportation, distribution of goods, sport and pleasure, and according to Smogcheck Fact Sheets, 2006, air pollution is also one of the principal negative contribution of this industry to the environment. Many of CTE service areas depending heavily and experiencing the rapid innovations of this field in recent years. The growing economy and the fast increasing in population require more and better automotive products and higher quality services, nationwide and worldwide. The high cost of energy and preserving the environment push the demands and expectations of this industry even further. There are many modern mechanical improvements, sophisticated digital devices, and software applications integrated in this field (Duffy, 2000); which tends to attract investment and implementation from other service areas. These investments and depending on the transportations give the CTE professionals with automotive technology competencies a highly competitive edge in the labor market.
Content Taught/Competencies Developed: The evolution of automotive repair has seen a change in emphasis from mechanical to technological work. Presently, vehicles use high-tech computers and complex electronic systems to monitor the performance of the vehicle. A strong sense of understanding concerning the operation of a vehicle, including how each device interacts, as well as the ability to deal with electronic diagnostic equipments and digital reference manuals is the key to the success of a technician. Currently, the automotive technology education is divided into a variety of specialized service areas for training. From Hughes, James G. (2003), the automotive technology pedagogy involves in below major categories: Automobile Training, Undercar Technician, Parts Specialist, Collision Repair/Refinish, Medium/Heavy Duty Truck, Engine Machinist, and School Bus. Recently, the Service Consultant, Alternative Fuels, and Hybrid Technology are added to this vocational education field. The National Institute for Automotive Service Excellence (ASE), a non-profit organization, established the ASE certifications in all automotive specialization areas throughout the U. S., Canada, and oversea. This certification program is to ensure the professional quality of the certified technicians. These certified technicians must retake the exams every five years to make sure that they keep up with the constantly changing of technology (Lundquist, 2000).
For the purpose of this paper, only three clusters of the automotive technology education will be discussed.
The automotive mechanic area: This cluster of study involves courses in
Basic Automotive Mechanic
Engine Performance I, II
Electrical/Electronic I, II
Computerized Control Systems I, II, III
Manual/Automatic Transmission
Brake
Suspension/Steering
Automotive Heating and Air Conditioning
The collision repair/refinishing area: This clusters of study involves courses in
Core Training Program
Non-Structural Repair I, II, III
Structural Repair I, II, III
Automotive Gas Metal Arc (GMA) steel and aluminum welding
Refinishing I, II, III
Original Equipment Manufacture (OEM) specific repair
Estimating, Management, and Appraisal I, II, III
The instructional lessons and performance tasks of the above two clusters are closely following the National Automotive Technicians Education Foundation (NATEF) standards. The purpose of NATEF certification program is to improve the quality of training offered at the secondary and post-secondary levels. NATEF will evaluate the technician training programs against standards developed by the automotive industry and recommend qualifying programs for certification (accreditation) by the ASE. The Board of the National Institute for Automotive Service Excellence is the body responsible for the Collision Repair/Refinish and Automotive Mechanic programs. The ASE will grant certification to programs and certify technicians that comply with the evaluation procedures and meet the established standards. The NATEF also evaluates the providers of in-service technicians training programs under a program called Continuing Automotive Service Education (CASE).
The smog check area: This cluster of study involves courses in
Laws and regulations of State Bureau of Automotive Repair (BAR)
Basic Clean Air Car course
Advance Clean Air Car course
Citation Training course
BAR (ASE Alternative) Training courses
BAR 2005 Transition Training (up date every two years)
Smog Check Technician Licensing Examination course
This sub-level under the automotive technology education area started in 1982. According to California Bureau of Automotive Repair: Smog Check Technician Licensing Examination Handbook, (2006), California became the 20th state in the nation to adopt a vehicle inspection and maintenance (Smog Check) program. The BAR is mandated by law to administer the Smog Check program. There have been a number of program changes over the years, but the goal of Smog Check program remains the same: to reduce air pollution produced by the motor vehicles from the automotive industry.
Where are the programs offered?: The Automotive Mechanic and Collision Repair/Refinish programs are widely offered throughout many public junior high schools, post-secondary schools, community and junior colleges (McCade & Boynton, 1997). Specially, at the high school level, under the Carl D. Perkins Vocational and Applied Technology Education Act Amendments of 1990, there are many organizations involve or take a part in such as: Automotive Youth Educational Systems (AYES), Regional Occupation Center and Programs (ROCP), or School-to-Career programs.
While the Smog Check program is available only to experience technicians, and usually offered at post-secondary school levels, community and junior colleges, or private vocational institutes.
National Issues: According to the U. S. Bureau of Labor Statistic, 2004-2005 Career Guide to Industries, the automotive industry is one of the largest industries in the Unites States. It creates 6.6 million direct and related jobs. It produced $243 billion in payroll and compensation with 5.6 % in private sector compensation. For every worker directly employed by an automaker, nearly seven spin-off jobs are created. Employment of automotive service technicians and mechanics is expected to increase about as fast as the average (10-20%) through the year 2012. This amounts to 82,000 to 164,000 new jobs between 2002 through 2012.
The above information indicates that the automotive industry needs to adjust to this potential growth. The adjustment issues involve in (Gray, 2000):
Image and Promotion-Combating negative public perception of the industry due to stereotypes and misinformation, increasing awareness about viable occupations that pay well and have growth potential, recruiting young people and transitioning workers.
Diversity of the Workforce-Tapping in new pools of labor to diversify the make-up of the workforce. Supporting individuals with limited English proficiency.
Capacity and Instruction-Providing resources and curriculum to stay current with today’s technology, recruiting more teachers and trainers, offering continuing education for instructors and certified technicians to keep them current in their field of knowledge to retain them in the industry, exploring other curriculum delivery methods such as distance learning and on-line modular courses.
Training and Education-Focusing on employability or job readiness skills such as communication, reading, writing, math, problem solving, team-building, and customer service skills. Addressing concern about the skill gaps of new employees and the retraining (or up-grade skill) of incumbent workers. Ensuring that all training and educational programs in automotive technology education are certified and standardized by the industry leaders.
Key Resources:
What are career clusters? (n. d.). Retrieved October 11, 2006, from
http://www.careerclusters.org/whatis.cfm
High growth industry profound (n. d.). Retrieved October 11, 2006, from
www.doleta.gov/BRG, www.careervoyages.gov, http://www.careeronestop.org/
Welcome to the web site of NATEF, the national automotive technicians education
foundation (n. d.). Retrieved October 28, 2006, from
http://www.natef.org/about.cfm
Perkins (n. d.). Retrieved October 17, 2006, from http://www.cde.ca.gov/ci/ct/pk/
California bureau of automotive repair: smog check technician licensing examination
handbook (n. d.). Retrieved October 28, 2006, from
http://www.smogcheck.ca.gov/stdhome.asp
Sources Of All Air Pollutants Measured In California: Smog check fact sheets (n. d.).
Retrieved October 16, 2006 from
http://www.smogcheck.ca.gov/stdPAge.asp?Menu=/includes/Menu_
GenInfo.htm&Body=/Geninfo/Factsheets/Air_Pollution_Sources-Sep_2003.htm
Publications
Pearson, Greg, & Young, Thomas A. (Eds). (2002). Technically speaking why all
Americans need to know more about technology. Washington D.C.: National
Academy Press.
Tomorrow’s environmentally “clean/green” vehicles are here. (n. d.).
Retrieved October 17, 2006, from http:// www.ase.com/Content/NavigationMenu/
Motorists2/ASE-Articales/Green-Vehicles.htm
Duffy, James E. (2000). Modern automotive technology. Tinley Park, Il: The
Goodheart-Wilcox company, Inc,
Hughes, James G. (2003). Guide to the automobile certification examination. Upper
Saddle River, NJ: Pearson-Prentice Hall.
Journals:
McCade, Joseph M., & Boynton, John (1997). Engineering and the middle school link.
Technology Teachers, 23,n5, pp10-14. Retrieved October 19, 2001, from
http://www.uk1.csa.com.libproxy.lib.csusb.edu/ids70/view_ record.php?id
=2&recnum=1 6&SID=241293b4382bd531d31c6c0ee0caa0f8&mark_
id=search%3A2%3A5%2C10%2C20
Gray, Don (200). Auto service career preparation moves to the fast track. Tech
Directions, 59, n6, pp 19-21. Retrieved October 19, 2001, from
http://www.uk1.csa.com.libproxy.lib.csusb.edu/ids70/view_record.php?
id=2&recnum=12&SID=241293b4382bd531d31c6c0ee0caa0f8&mark_
id=search%3A2 %3A5%2C10%2C20
Lundquist, Patricia A., (2000). Get your automotive program nationally certified! Tech
Directions, 59, n6, pp 15-16. Retrieved October 19, 2001, from
http://www.uk1.csa.com.libproxy.lib.csusb.edu/ids70/view_record.php?id=2&recnum=1
id=2&recnum=11&SID=241293b4382bd531d31c6c0ee0caa0f8&mark_
id=search%3A2%3A5%2C10%2C20
Key People:
California Automotive Teachers (CAT)
Steve Ford, Southern California AYES Director
John Chocholak, High School/ROP
Rick Escalambre, BAR Education Advisory Committee
California Vocational Secondary, Postsecondary, & Adult Leadership Division
Patrick Ainsworth, Director
Barbara Brown, Palm Desert ROP Coordinator
Friday, September 14, 2007
Ken Wilber
Ken Wilber’s Quadrants
Ken Wilber’s first book, The Spectrum of Consciousness, emphasized the layered stages of individual development, and the worldview of each (issues, problem-solving approaches, etc.). Through a series of subsequent books, Wilber pursued specific emphases of these worldviews and the relationship between them. Then, after intense study of over a hundred different hierarchies of human development—individual, social, anthropological, philosophical, spiritual, etc.—he realized that each of the sequences represented a part of the truth, and they somehow fit together into a larger pattern of “all that is.” He aligned them in a matrix with four parts, now known as quadrants. The process of articulating all these parts was very simple.
First, Wilber noticed that some of the sequences were about interiors (subjective emotions, thoughts, aspirations, etc.), while others were criteria of exteriors (sizes, shapes, quantities, structures, etc.). This process can be shown by drawing a vertical line down a blank sheet of paper, with one side representing interiors and the other exteriors.
Figure 1: Interiors and Exteriors
INTERIOR
EXTERIOR
Next he found that some of the sequences described individual things (personal development, emotions, individual constraints or expectations, etc.); others applied to shared or collective things (economic systems, social units, cultural expectations, etc.). So he divided the same page with a horizontal line (Figure 2).
Figure 2: Interiors and Exteriors X Individual and Collective
INTERIOR
INDIVIDUAL
EXTERIOR
-------------------------------------
INDIVIDUAL
INTERIOR
COLLECTIVE
EXTERIOR
COLLECTIVE
Wilber saw this configuration included all the sequences with which he had been wrestling. Each quadrant could be identified by its placement: Upper Left (UL), Upper Right (UR), Lower Right (LR), and Lower Left (LL). Each had logical themes that emerged from the labels. The UL quadrant (interior, individual) contained “I” interpretations and intentions; he called it the subjective area. The UR (exterior, individual) contained “it” things that could easily be measured—behavioral, empirical; he called it the objective area. The LR (exterior, collective) suggested interobjective, socioeconomic relationships—another type of “it.” The LL (interior, collective) showed the intersubjective “we;” he called it the cultural area.
The big picture on all this is that the two right quadrants (two types of “it”) align with a materialist-scientific perspective and sociological Truth. The UL quadrant (the “I”) corresponds with the Beautiful, with aesthetics. And the LL quadrant (the “we”) corresponds with morality or the Good. So, on a single page he was able to denote Truth, Beauty, and Goodness. The process was getting both interesting and promising.
Next Wilber recognized that to each quadrant could be assigned what Habermas had termed a “validity claim:” an inherent criterion to help identify whether the things associated most directly with that quadrant were indeed properly considered there. The validity claim for the UL subjective quadrant was truthfulness. Our understanding of subjective realities depends on self-reports; the only test of such information is whether the person is being truthful. The validity claim for the UR objective quadrant was truth, according to the empirical, scientific meaning of the term. The validity claim for the LR social quadrant was functional fit—for example, the extent to which socioeconomic organization fits with social experiences and professed aspirations. The validity claim of the LL cultural quadrant was justice, the extent to which group experiences were consistent with the group’s moral and legal parameters. (Note: In a Wilberian sense “social” indicates infrastructure [external—buildings, transportation and information systems, land use, and so forth]. “Culture” denotes value-oriented worldspace [internal—morés, shared expectations, perceived constraints, and so forth].) When all this is combined on one sheet of paper, the result corresponds with Figure 3.
Figure 3: Wilber’s Quadrants
Upper Left (UL)
INTERIOR
(Individual, Intentional)
INTERPRETATIVE/SUBJECTIVE/“I”
Validity Claim: Truthfulness
INDIVIDUAL
Upper Right (UR)
EXTERIOR
(Individual, Behavioral)
EMPIRICAL/OBJECTIVE/“It”
Validity Claim: Truth
INDIVIDUAL
COLLECTIVE
(Collective worldspace)
INTERSUBJECTIVE/CULTURAL/”We”
Validity Claim: Justice
INTERIOR
Lower Left (LL)
COLLECTIVE
(Collective, Empirical)
INTEROBJECTIVE/SOCIAL/”It”
Validity Claim: Functional Fit
EXTERIOR
Lower Right (LR)
With a few abiding rules, this system functions effectively to engage the intellect and the imagination; it is a wonderful tool for gaining clarity on issues. Consistent with the integral emphasis, the quadrants are all connected—the quadrant structure encourages us to be inclusive, to see interconnections. Another way of expressing this principle is to acknowledge that each of the exterior things has an interior, and each thing in the universe is part of some larger thing. As mentioned in the first essay, subatomic particles are parts of atoms, which are parts of molecules, which are parts of cells, which are parts of organs, which are parts of organisms, which are parts of social units… One way of recognizing these interconnections—to recognize that each thing exists by itself, and is also part of a larger thing—is to acknowledge that our placement of things in the respective quadrants is really just to facilitate consideration of it. There is a difference between the quadrant map and the actual territory; we want to use the quadrants to tease out relationships that otherwise might have gone unnoticed, but the system is not intended to replace reality. Having identified these caveats, a little time directed to illustrate the quadrants will demonstrate their usefulness to educators. For example, Figure 4 shows how the qauadrants apply to the work of teachers.
Figure 4: Domains of Education from a Teacher’s Point of View
Subjective
RATIONALE FOR THE WORK
Objective
CLASSROOM INSTRUCTION
Cultural
PROFESSIONAL IDENTITY
Social
ADMINISTRATION
In Figure 4 the rationale for the work is portrayed as a subjective (UL) phenomenon. Why is the teacher engaged in this type of teaching? This question can only be answered personally, because they are about subjective interiors.
The objective (UR) quadrant is the domain of classroom instruction. This is the arena that should be the core of our daily work, where teacher expectations—goals and objectives—interact and help shape student learning. Under this heading we associate curriculum, classroom logistics, and activities and interactions.
The social (LR) quadrant is the reality of the socioeconomic system; its validity claim is “functional fit,” in part the correspondence between how we earn our living and how we think. It is about resources, both human and material, as reflected most concisely in the budget, the province of administration. Many educators focus mostly on funds assigned to equip and stock their classrooms—this is an accurate but partial view. Educators themselves are essential resources (denoted “personnel” in budgets), as are the physical plant in which they teach and the furniture that occupies those spaces (capital outlay), the procedures by which students come to and leave their classes, and the services of volunteer tutors.
The cultural (LL) quadrant is associated with professional identity. In this domain we consider professional networking, such as occurs through professional association conferences, contact with persons at other locations who provide similar services, and the reading and writing of professional journals.
Think about the quadrants as representing these four domains can facilitate thinking about education: rationale for the work (subjective or UL), instruction (objective or UR), administration (social or LR), and professional identity (cultural or LL). The next display is intended to use as a worksheet you can use sort out concepts associated with the quadrants for your school of thought (SOT). After that some potential errors of the Wilberian system are introduced from the relevant literature.
Some Themes of the _____________________________ School of Thought
Upper Left (UL)
INTERIOR
(Individual, Intentional)
INTERPRETATIVE/SUBJECTIVE/“I”
Validity Claim: Truthfulness
INDIVIDUAL
Upper Right (UR)
EXTERIOR
(Individual, Behavioral)
EMPIRICAL/OBJECTIVE/“It”
Validity Claim: Truth
INDIVIDUAL
COLLECTIVE
(Collective worldspace)
INTERSUBJECTIVE/CULTURAL/”We”
Validity Claim: Justice
INTERIOR
Lower Left (LL)
COLLECTIVE
(Collective, Empirical)
INTEROBJECTIVE/SOCIAL/”It”
Validity Claim: Functional Fit
EXTERIOR
Lower Right (LR)
Eleven Common Errors Identified By and About Wilber
1. The pre-trans fallacy
“Is the entirely emotional, irrational state of mind the same as the superrational, transcendent mind which is aided by intuition? "To the untutored eye," "prerational and transrational states appear...nonrational." There are at least two results of this error. First, "Genuine mystical and contemplative states are seen as a regression...to infantile states....The superconscious- ness is reduced to the subconscious, the transpersonal is collapsed to the prepersonal...." Second, "if one...confuses pre and trans, then one will elevate all prerational states to some sort of transrational glory..." (SES, p. 206). "...interior evolution... [goes] from prepersonal to personal to transpersonal" (A Brief History…, p. 245). "...typical or conventional culture is not often imbued with a great deal of genuine spirituality. But the remedy is to go post-conventional, not pre-conventional. Spirit transcends and includes both culture and nature, and thus integrates and unifies both." (A Brief History…, p. 290).
2. Anti-elitism elitists—two examples follow:
class=Section2>
A. "...many feminists and many ecophilosophers claim...any sort of hierarchy or 'ranking' is oppressive, even fascist. They say that...value ranking is 'old paradigm' or 'patriarchal' or simply oppressive...ought to be replaced with a linking, not a ranking, worldview. They're...aggressive with this point... hurl...vicious accusations...This is a bit disingenuous...you can't avoid hierarchy. Even the antihierarchy theorists... have their own hierarchy, their own ranking...[T]hey think linking is better than ranking. Well, that's a hierarchy, a ranking...But...they don't own up to this...their hierarchy becomes unconscious, hidden, denied. Their hierarchy denies hierarchy. They have a ranking system that says ranking is bad." (A Brief History…, pp. 28-28; emphasis in original).
B. "In Thomas Kuhn's now-famous formulation, scientific facts are embedded in cultural practices or paradigms. This does not deny the objective component of the knowledge; it denies...the knowledge is merely objective or innocently empirical. In other words...to assert...all truth is 'strictly empirical,' empiricists have to stand in intersubjective structures that their own theories cannot even account for. The linguistic assertion that all valid knowledge is empirical is not itself empirical, and thus...they contradict themselves..." ("An Informal Overview...," p. 123; emphasis in original).
3. Gross reductionism
"Gross reductionists...do not believe...interiors exist...so ...meaning, value, consciousness, depth, culture...never come up for them....Gross reductionism first reduces all quadrants to the Upper Right, and second—this is the gross part—then reduces all the higher order structures of the Upper-Right quadrant to atomic or subatomic particles." (SES, p. 129-130; emphasis in original).
One dimension of this problem is that the attributes of the left and the right quadrants diverge. For example, "none of the Left Hand aspects have simple location. You can point to the brain, or to a rock, or to a town, but you cannot simply point to envy, or pride, or consciousness, or value, or intention, or desire." Further, "All Right Hand paths involve perception, but all Left Hand paths involve interpretation. And there is a simple reason for this: surfaces can be seen, but depth must be interpreted." (A Brief Hisotry…, p. 90; emphasis in original).
A second dimension of gross reductionism is that depth (quality) and span (quantity) become confused. See A Brief History…, p. 103 for a discussion of this problem in relation to "ecofascism." "...depth and span was ditched in favor of merely... span alone. Qualitative distinctions were replaced merely with quantitative distinctions and technical measurements. 'What does it mean?' was fundamentally replaced with 'What does it do?' Intrinsic value disappeared into empirical action terms. 'What worth?' was replaced with 'How much?' Greater was replaced with bigger. Cultural meaning drifted into functional fit and holistic interaction of surfaces. Morals melted into systems theories. Eros was converted to instrumental-functional efficacy, and Agape melted down into an affirmation of ordinary Descended life." (A Brief History…, p. 418; emphasis in original).
4. Subtle reductionism (flatland)
"Subtle reductionism simply reduces every event in the Left Hand to its corresponding aspect in the Right Hand. That is, subtle reductionism reduces all I's and all we's to their corresponding empirical correlates, reduces them to its. Mind is reduced to brain; praxis is reduced to techne; interiors are reduced to bits of digital its; depth is reduced to endless surfaces roaming a flat and faded system; levels of quality are reduced to levels of quantity; dialogical interpretation is reduced to monological gaze—in short, the multidimensional universe is rudely reduced to flatland." (Eye of Spirit, p. 21).
5. Narcissism
"Deconstruction maintained that all meaning is context-dependent, and contexts are boundless....Postmodern deconstruction ...leads precisely and inevitably to nihilism: there is no genuine meaning anywhere, only nested deceptions. And this leaves, in the place of art as sincere statement, art as anarchy, anchored only in egoic whim and narcisstic display. Into the vacuum created by the implosion that is so much of postmodernism, rushes the ego triumphant." (Eye of Spirit, p. 98). "....'the interpreter, not the artist, creates the work'....This view... claims that there is no universal truth at all—except for its own, which is universal and superior in a world where nothing is supposed to be universal or superior at all..." (pp. 129-131).
6. Dominator hierarchies
"...you can...see how holarchies can go pathological. If the higher levels can exert influence over the lower levels, they can also overdominate or even repress and alienate the lower levels. And that leads to a host of pathological difficulties, in both the individual and society at large....in psychoanalysis (shadow holons refuse integration), critical social theory (ideological holons distort open communication), democratic revolutions (monarchical or fascist holons oppress the body politic), medical science interventions (cancerous holons invade a benign system), radical feminist critiques (patriarchal holons dominate the public sphere), and so on." (SES, p. 22). "...the cure for this pathology, in all systems, is essentially the same: rooting out the pathological holons so that the holarchy itself can return to harmony....It is not getting rid of holarchy per se, but arresting (and integrating) the arrogant holons." (p. 22).
7. Retro-romanticism
"...there is a price to be paid for every evolutionary step forward. Old problems are solved or defused, only to introduce new and sometimes more complex difficulties. But the retrogressive Romantics—whether the ecomasculinists or the ecofeminists—simply take the problems of the subsequent level and compare them with the accomplishments of the previous level, and thus claim everything has gone downhill past their favorite epoch. This is pretty perverse." (A Brief Hisotry…, p. 50; emphasis in original). "The Eco-Romantic solution—back to nature!—is...no solution at all..." (p. 276). "...why not get serious about this retrogression and really carry it to its conclusion: everything past the Big Bang was a Big Mistake" (p. 295).
8. Mere ascension (Eros)
"Eros is the love of the lower reaching up to the higher (Ascent)....In individual development, one ascends via Eros (or expanding to a higher and wider identity)....unintegrated Eros does not just reach up to the higher levels and transcend the lower; it alienates the lower, represses the lower—and does so out of fear (Phobos), fear that the lower will 'drag it down'—always it is the fear that the lower will 'contaminate it,' 'dirty it,' 'pull it down.' Phobos is Eros in flight from the lower instead of embracing the lower. Phobos is Ascent divorced from Descent. And Phobos, we can see, is the ultimate force of all repression (a rancid transcendence)....They are dangerous people, these Ascenders..." SES, pp. 339-340; emphasis in original).
9. Mere descension (Agape)
"Agape is the love of the higher reaching down to the lower (Descent)...In individual development, one integrates via Agape (or reaching down to embrace with care all lower holons), so that balanced development transcends but includes—it is negation and preservation, ascent and descent, Eros and Agape....Thanatos, on the other hand, is Descent divorced from Ascent. It is the lower in flight from the higher, compassion gone mad: not just embracing the lower but regressing to the lower, not just caressing but remaining stuck in it (fixation, arrest)—cosmic reductionism run amok....They are dangerous people, these Descenders, for in the name of Agape and compassion, otherwise so appropriate, they mistakenly destroy all higher in a frantic attempt to embrace the lower." (SES, pp. 339-341; emphasis in original).
10. Scientism (a result of reductionism)
"The Big Three [art, morals, science] began to collapse into the Big One: empirical science, and science alone could pronounce on ultimate reality. Science...became scientism...it didn't just pursue its own truths, it aggressively denied...there were any other truths at all!" (A Brief History…, p. 265).
11. Wilberism (based on Lane's critique)
"...the tendency to 'inflate,' to 'exaggerate,' to 'hype'... things which are not yet knowable. It is...the inclination to indulge in spiritual hyperbole, gross exaggerations that do not (perhaps cannot) convey the precision necessary for the progression of transpersonal psychology as a science. Wilber...exaggerates way too much...on matters of ultimate importance. I don't think he does it intentionally...but...it fundamentally taints his work... most reductionistic scientists...cannot distinguish Wilberian gems from Wilberian rubbish. I write this...not so much to 'dis' Wilber ...but to...frame what I think limits the import of his research on the harder sciences..." (Lane, 1996, pp. 1-2).
References
Lane, D. (1996). Critique of Ken Wilber: Prologue. MSAC
Philosophy Group (on line at
http://weber.ucsd.edu/~dlane.wil.html)
[a ten part series—the first is Ken Wilber's Achilles' heel].
Wilber, K. (1996). A brief history of everything. Boston:
Shambhala.
Wilber, K. (1995). An informal overview of transpersonal studies.
Journal of Transpersonal Psychology, 27(2), 107-129.
Wilber, K. (1995). (SES) Sex, ecology, spirituality: The spirit of
evolution. Boston: Shambhala.
Wilber, K. (1997). The eye of spirit: An integral vision for a
world gone slightly mad. Boston: Shambhala.
Wilber, K. (1993/1977). The spectrum of consciousness. Wheaton,
Illinois: The Theosophical Publishing House.
Ken Wilber’s first book, The Spectrum of Consciousness, emphasized the layered stages of individual development, and the worldview of each (issues, problem-solving approaches, etc.). Through a series of subsequent books, Wilber pursued specific emphases of these worldviews and the relationship between them. Then, after intense study of over a hundred different hierarchies of human development—individual, social, anthropological, philosophical, spiritual, etc.—he realized that each of the sequences represented a part of the truth, and they somehow fit together into a larger pattern of “all that is.” He aligned them in a matrix with four parts, now known as quadrants. The process of articulating all these parts was very simple.
First, Wilber noticed that some of the sequences were about interiors (subjective emotions, thoughts, aspirations, etc.), while others were criteria of exteriors (sizes, shapes, quantities, structures, etc.). This process can be shown by drawing a vertical line down a blank sheet of paper, with one side representing interiors and the other exteriors.
Figure 1: Interiors and Exteriors
INTERIOR
EXTERIOR
Next he found that some of the sequences described individual things (personal development, emotions, individual constraints or expectations, etc.); others applied to shared or collective things (economic systems, social units, cultural expectations, etc.). So he divided the same page with a horizontal line (Figure 2).
Figure 2: Interiors and Exteriors X Individual and Collective
INTERIOR
INDIVIDUAL
EXTERIOR
-------------------------------------
INDIVIDUAL
INTERIOR
COLLECTIVE
EXTERIOR
COLLECTIVE
Wilber saw this configuration included all the sequences with which he had been wrestling. Each quadrant could be identified by its placement: Upper Left (UL), Upper Right (UR), Lower Right (LR), and Lower Left (LL). Each had logical themes that emerged from the labels. The UL quadrant (interior, individual) contained “I” interpretations and intentions; he called it the subjective area. The UR (exterior, individual) contained “it” things that could easily be measured—behavioral, empirical; he called it the objective area. The LR (exterior, collective) suggested interobjective, socioeconomic relationships—another type of “it.” The LL (interior, collective) showed the intersubjective “we;” he called it the cultural area.
The big picture on all this is that the two right quadrants (two types of “it”) align with a materialist-scientific perspective and sociological Truth. The UL quadrant (the “I”) corresponds with the Beautiful, with aesthetics. And the LL quadrant (the “we”) corresponds with morality or the Good. So, on a single page he was able to denote Truth, Beauty, and Goodness. The process was getting both interesting and promising.
Next Wilber recognized that to each quadrant could be assigned what Habermas had termed a “validity claim:” an inherent criterion to help identify whether the things associated most directly with that quadrant were indeed properly considered there. The validity claim for the UL subjective quadrant was truthfulness. Our understanding of subjective realities depends on self-reports; the only test of such information is whether the person is being truthful. The validity claim for the UR objective quadrant was truth, according to the empirical, scientific meaning of the term. The validity claim for the LR social quadrant was functional fit—for example, the extent to which socioeconomic organization fits with social experiences and professed aspirations. The validity claim of the LL cultural quadrant was justice, the extent to which group experiences were consistent with the group’s moral and legal parameters. (Note: In a Wilberian sense “social” indicates infrastructure [external—buildings, transportation and information systems, land use, and so forth]. “Culture” denotes value-oriented worldspace [internal—morés, shared expectations, perceived constraints, and so forth].) When all this is combined on one sheet of paper, the result corresponds with Figure 3.
Figure 3: Wilber’s Quadrants
Upper Left (UL)
INTERIOR
(Individual, Intentional)
INTERPRETATIVE/SUBJECTIVE/“I”
Validity Claim: Truthfulness
INDIVIDUAL
Upper Right (UR)
EXTERIOR
(Individual, Behavioral)
EMPIRICAL/OBJECTIVE/“It”
Validity Claim: Truth
INDIVIDUAL
COLLECTIVE
(Collective worldspace)
INTERSUBJECTIVE/CULTURAL/”We”
Validity Claim: Justice
INTERIOR
Lower Left (LL)
COLLECTIVE
(Collective, Empirical)
INTEROBJECTIVE/SOCIAL/”It”
Validity Claim: Functional Fit
EXTERIOR
Lower Right (LR)
With a few abiding rules, this system functions effectively to engage the intellect and the imagination; it is a wonderful tool for gaining clarity on issues. Consistent with the integral emphasis, the quadrants are all connected—the quadrant structure encourages us to be inclusive, to see interconnections. Another way of expressing this principle is to acknowledge that each of the exterior things has an interior, and each thing in the universe is part of some larger thing. As mentioned in the first essay, subatomic particles are parts of atoms, which are parts of molecules, which are parts of cells, which are parts of organs, which are parts of organisms, which are parts of social units… One way of recognizing these interconnections—to recognize that each thing exists by itself, and is also part of a larger thing—is to acknowledge that our placement of things in the respective quadrants is really just to facilitate consideration of it. There is a difference between the quadrant map and the actual territory; we want to use the quadrants to tease out relationships that otherwise might have gone unnoticed, but the system is not intended to replace reality. Having identified these caveats, a little time directed to illustrate the quadrants will demonstrate their usefulness to educators. For example, Figure 4 shows how the qauadrants apply to the work of teachers.
Figure 4: Domains of Education from a Teacher’s Point of View
Subjective
RATIONALE FOR THE WORK
Objective
CLASSROOM INSTRUCTION
Cultural
PROFESSIONAL IDENTITY
Social
ADMINISTRATION
In Figure 4 the rationale for the work is portrayed as a subjective (UL) phenomenon. Why is the teacher engaged in this type of teaching? This question can only be answered personally, because they are about subjective interiors.
The objective (UR) quadrant is the domain of classroom instruction. This is the arena that should be the core of our daily work, where teacher expectations—goals and objectives—interact and help shape student learning. Under this heading we associate curriculum, classroom logistics, and activities and interactions.
The social (LR) quadrant is the reality of the socioeconomic system; its validity claim is “functional fit,” in part the correspondence between how we earn our living and how we think. It is about resources, both human and material, as reflected most concisely in the budget, the province of administration. Many educators focus mostly on funds assigned to equip and stock their classrooms—this is an accurate but partial view. Educators themselves are essential resources (denoted “personnel” in budgets), as are the physical plant in which they teach and the furniture that occupies those spaces (capital outlay), the procedures by which students come to and leave their classes, and the services of volunteer tutors.
The cultural (LL) quadrant is associated with professional identity. In this domain we consider professional networking, such as occurs through professional association conferences, contact with persons at other locations who provide similar services, and the reading and writing of professional journals.
Think about the quadrants as representing these four domains can facilitate thinking about education: rationale for the work (subjective or UL), instruction (objective or UR), administration (social or LR), and professional identity (cultural or LL). The next display is intended to use as a worksheet you can use sort out concepts associated with the quadrants for your school of thought (SOT). After that some potential errors of the Wilberian system are introduced from the relevant literature.
Some Themes of the _____________________________ School of Thought
Upper Left (UL)
INTERIOR
(Individual, Intentional)
INTERPRETATIVE/SUBJECTIVE/“I”
Validity Claim: Truthfulness
INDIVIDUAL
Upper Right (UR)
EXTERIOR
(Individual, Behavioral)
EMPIRICAL/OBJECTIVE/“It”
Validity Claim: Truth
INDIVIDUAL
COLLECTIVE
(Collective worldspace)
INTERSUBJECTIVE/CULTURAL/”We”
Validity Claim: Justice
INTERIOR
Lower Left (LL)
COLLECTIVE
(Collective, Empirical)
INTEROBJECTIVE/SOCIAL/”It”
Validity Claim: Functional Fit
EXTERIOR
Lower Right (LR)
Eleven Common Errors Identified By and About Wilber
1. The pre-trans fallacy
“Is the entirely emotional, irrational state of mind the same as the superrational, transcendent mind which is aided by intuition? "To the untutored eye," "prerational and transrational states appear...nonrational." There are at least two results of this error. First, "Genuine mystical and contemplative states are seen as a regression...to infantile states....The superconscious- ness is reduced to the subconscious, the transpersonal is collapsed to the prepersonal...." Second, "if one...confuses pre and trans, then one will elevate all prerational states to some sort of transrational glory..." (SES, p. 206). "...interior evolution... [goes] from prepersonal to personal to transpersonal" (A Brief History…, p. 245). "...typical or conventional culture is not often imbued with a great deal of genuine spirituality. But the remedy is to go post-conventional, not pre-conventional. Spirit transcends and includes both culture and nature, and thus integrates and unifies both." (A Brief History…, p. 290).
2. Anti-elitism elitists—two examples follow:
class=Section2>
A. "...many feminists and many ecophilosophers claim...any sort of hierarchy or 'ranking' is oppressive, even fascist. They say that...value ranking is 'old paradigm' or 'patriarchal' or simply oppressive...ought to be replaced with a linking, not a ranking, worldview. They're...aggressive with this point... hurl...vicious accusations...This is a bit disingenuous...you can't avoid hierarchy. Even the antihierarchy theorists... have their own hierarchy, their own ranking...[T]hey think linking is better than ranking. Well, that's a hierarchy, a ranking...But...they don't own up to this...their hierarchy becomes unconscious, hidden, denied. Their hierarchy denies hierarchy. They have a ranking system that says ranking is bad." (A Brief History…, pp. 28-28; emphasis in original).
B. "In Thomas Kuhn's now-famous formulation, scientific facts are embedded in cultural practices or paradigms. This does not deny the objective component of the knowledge; it denies...the knowledge is merely objective or innocently empirical. In other words...to assert...all truth is 'strictly empirical,' empiricists have to stand in intersubjective structures that their own theories cannot even account for. The linguistic assertion that all valid knowledge is empirical is not itself empirical, and thus...they contradict themselves..." ("An Informal Overview...," p. 123; emphasis in original).
3. Gross reductionism
"Gross reductionists...do not believe...interiors exist...so ...meaning, value, consciousness, depth, culture...never come up for them....Gross reductionism first reduces all quadrants to the Upper Right, and second—this is the gross part—then reduces all the higher order structures of the Upper-Right quadrant to atomic or subatomic particles." (SES, p. 129-130; emphasis in original).
One dimension of this problem is that the attributes of the left and the right quadrants diverge. For example, "none of the Left Hand aspects have simple location. You can point to the brain, or to a rock, or to a town, but you cannot simply point to envy, or pride, or consciousness, or value, or intention, or desire." Further, "All Right Hand paths involve perception, but all Left Hand paths involve interpretation. And there is a simple reason for this: surfaces can be seen, but depth must be interpreted." (A Brief Hisotry…, p. 90; emphasis in original).
A second dimension of gross reductionism is that depth (quality) and span (quantity) become confused. See A Brief History…, p. 103 for a discussion of this problem in relation to "ecofascism." "...depth and span was ditched in favor of merely... span alone. Qualitative distinctions were replaced merely with quantitative distinctions and technical measurements. 'What does it mean?' was fundamentally replaced with 'What does it do?' Intrinsic value disappeared into empirical action terms. 'What worth?' was replaced with 'How much?' Greater was replaced with bigger. Cultural meaning drifted into functional fit and holistic interaction of surfaces. Morals melted into systems theories. Eros was converted to instrumental-functional efficacy, and Agape melted down into an affirmation of ordinary Descended life." (A Brief History…, p. 418; emphasis in original).
4. Subtle reductionism (flatland)
"Subtle reductionism simply reduces every event in the Left Hand to its corresponding aspect in the Right Hand. That is, subtle reductionism reduces all I's and all we's to their corresponding empirical correlates, reduces them to its. Mind is reduced to brain; praxis is reduced to techne; interiors are reduced to bits of digital its; depth is reduced to endless surfaces roaming a flat and faded system; levels of quality are reduced to levels of quantity; dialogical interpretation is reduced to monological gaze—in short, the multidimensional universe is rudely reduced to flatland." (Eye of Spirit, p. 21).
5. Narcissism
"Deconstruction maintained that all meaning is context-dependent, and contexts are boundless....Postmodern deconstruction ...leads precisely and inevitably to nihilism: there is no genuine meaning anywhere, only nested deceptions. And this leaves, in the place of art as sincere statement, art as anarchy, anchored only in egoic whim and narcisstic display. Into the vacuum created by the implosion that is so much of postmodernism, rushes the ego triumphant." (Eye of Spirit, p. 98). "....'the interpreter, not the artist, creates the work'....This view... claims that there is no universal truth at all—except for its own, which is universal and superior in a world where nothing is supposed to be universal or superior at all..." (pp. 129-131).
6. Dominator hierarchies
"...you can...see how holarchies can go pathological. If the higher levels can exert influence over the lower levels, they can also overdominate or even repress and alienate the lower levels. And that leads to a host of pathological difficulties, in both the individual and society at large....in psychoanalysis (shadow holons refuse integration), critical social theory (ideological holons distort open communication), democratic revolutions (monarchical or fascist holons oppress the body politic), medical science interventions (cancerous holons invade a benign system), radical feminist critiques (patriarchal holons dominate the public sphere), and so on." (SES, p. 22). "...the cure for this pathology, in all systems, is essentially the same: rooting out the pathological holons so that the holarchy itself can return to harmony....It is not getting rid of holarchy per se, but arresting (and integrating) the arrogant holons." (p. 22).
7. Retro-romanticism
"...there is a price to be paid for every evolutionary step forward. Old problems are solved or defused, only to introduce new and sometimes more complex difficulties. But the retrogressive Romantics—whether the ecomasculinists or the ecofeminists—simply take the problems of the subsequent level and compare them with the accomplishments of the previous level, and thus claim everything has gone downhill past their favorite epoch. This is pretty perverse." (A Brief Hisotry…, p. 50; emphasis in original). "The Eco-Romantic solution—back to nature!—is...no solution at all..." (p. 276). "...why not get serious about this retrogression and really carry it to its conclusion: everything past the Big Bang was a Big Mistake" (p. 295).
8. Mere ascension (Eros)
"Eros is the love of the lower reaching up to the higher (Ascent)....In individual development, one ascends via Eros (or expanding to a higher and wider identity)....unintegrated Eros does not just reach up to the higher levels and transcend the lower; it alienates the lower, represses the lower—and does so out of fear (Phobos), fear that the lower will 'drag it down'—always it is the fear that the lower will 'contaminate it,' 'dirty it,' 'pull it down.' Phobos is Eros in flight from the lower instead of embracing the lower. Phobos is Ascent divorced from Descent. And Phobos, we can see, is the ultimate force of all repression (a rancid transcendence)....They are dangerous people, these Ascenders..." SES, pp. 339-340; emphasis in original).
9. Mere descension (Agape)
"Agape is the love of the higher reaching down to the lower (Descent)...In individual development, one integrates via Agape (or reaching down to embrace with care all lower holons), so that balanced development transcends but includes—it is negation and preservation, ascent and descent, Eros and Agape....Thanatos, on the other hand, is Descent divorced from Ascent. It is the lower in flight from the higher, compassion gone mad: not just embracing the lower but regressing to the lower, not just caressing but remaining stuck in it (fixation, arrest)—cosmic reductionism run amok....They are dangerous people, these Descenders, for in the name of Agape and compassion, otherwise so appropriate, they mistakenly destroy all higher in a frantic attempt to embrace the lower." (SES, pp. 339-341; emphasis in original).
10. Scientism (a result of reductionism)
"The Big Three [art, morals, science] began to collapse into the Big One: empirical science, and science alone could pronounce on ultimate reality. Science...became scientism...it didn't just pursue its own truths, it aggressively denied...there were any other truths at all!" (A Brief History…, p. 265).
11. Wilberism (based on Lane's critique)
"...the tendency to 'inflate,' to 'exaggerate,' to 'hype'... things which are not yet knowable. It is...the inclination to indulge in spiritual hyperbole, gross exaggerations that do not (perhaps cannot) convey the precision necessary for the progression of transpersonal psychology as a science. Wilber...exaggerates way too much...on matters of ultimate importance. I don't think he does it intentionally...but...it fundamentally taints his work... most reductionistic scientists...cannot distinguish Wilberian gems from Wilberian rubbish. I write this...not so much to 'dis' Wilber ...but to...frame what I think limits the import of his research on the harder sciences..." (Lane, 1996, pp. 1-2).
References
Lane, D. (1996). Critique of Ken Wilber: Prologue. MSAC
Philosophy Group (on line at
http://weber.ucsd.edu/~dlane.wil.html)
[a ten part series—the first is Ken Wilber's Achilles' heel].
Wilber, K. (1996). A brief history of everything. Boston:
Shambhala.
Wilber, K. (1995). An informal overview of transpersonal studies.
Journal of Transpersonal Psychology, 27(2), 107-129.
Wilber, K. (1995). (SES) Sex, ecology, spirituality: The spirit of
evolution. Boston: Shambhala.
Wilber, K. (1997). The eye of spirit: An integral vision for a
world gone slightly mad. Boston: Shambhala.
Wilber, K. (1993/1977). The spectrum of consciousness. Wheaton,
Illinois: The Theosophical Publishing House.
Saturday, March 10, 2007
Session 10: Wrapping-up
Session 10: Wrap-up of this course
Etec 623 covers variety of topics which range from Management and Leadership through Professional Development. I realized that I am more technological literacy now in my educational field than I was when I started this course. These topics forced me to think, analyze, use, manage, assess, and understand the advantages and limitations of educational technologies on the manager and leader perspective.
Etec 623 leads me closer to the characteristics of a technological literacy person. It improves and brings the awareness in me on the “knowledge, ways of thinking and acting, and capability” characteristics in educational field. It endows me the self-confidence and erudition to continue on my career path.
On the “knowledge” characteristic, I learn to recognize the pervasiveness and availability of educational technologies which I can implement, utilize, or adopt to improve my teaching techniques, enhancing my program, and effectively help my students. I will spend time to understand basic concepts, terms, and trade-offs of the technology which I decide to espouse. I will carefully examine the trade-offs, limitation, and the balance of costs and benefits before I make final decision because some of the technologies can be anticipated and some that cannot. In addition, the knowledge of technology helps me to appreciate the development and use of technology involved in my profession.
On the “ways of thinking and acting” characteristic, I will seek information about new technologies. I will consider and ask pertinent questions regarding the benefits and risk of technologies which I or we decide to adopt. I am also conscious and aware that participating in decisions about the development, adaptation, and use of technology are one of the most important factors.
On the “capabilities” characteristic, I learn many of hand-on skills, such as blog and website building, using the software for planning and organizing training sessions, technique and process of writing proposals. I am also learning the skill of evaluating and making informed judgments about technological risks and benefits on the new technology. The capability of management and leadership skills will certainly places me in a better position to expand my ability to serve more effectively.
Those above skills enable me to be technologically literate and to better evaluate technology choices by asking the right questions, examples are as follows:
What is the short-term and long-term risk of developing or using the educational
technology which I choose?
What are the costs of not developing or adapting these technologies?
Who will have access to these technologies?
Who will control it?
Who will benefit and who will lose by these educational technologies?
What will the impact of these technologies be on my classroom, my programs, and me?
Etec 623 provides me with the tools to make well-informed decisions in the selection of choosing new techniques, planning, leadership role and more. Better yet, Etec 623 turns me into a technologically literate person. A technologically literate person must know how each new technology, plan, or program works. Its advantages and disadvantages, how to operate it, and so on. The topics in this course widen my “knowing” about my job and help me to make wiser and more educated decisions. For example, If anything I need for my classroom, program, or plan, I must request or propose it. If I do not do ask for what I need, 100% that I will not have it or get approved. If I request, I start of with 50% chance of getting it. Sometimes when I really need some things, I must be a little bit aggressive to get it. I said "a little bit aggressive", not greedy. It is very important to get "support" for what I need from colleagues and co-workers. Without their support, my chance will begin from 0%. This means I must get long with everyone at work , and try to be supportive and helpful to everyone.
Week of March 12, 2007 to March 18, 2007
Saturday March 10, 2007
Post the last topic for Etec 623.
Continue to work on improving my website.
Organizing my lessons plans and lab. sheets for the courses that I teach.
Will spend next week to make comments on other scholars' postings.
Etec 623 covers variety of topics which range from Management and Leadership through Professional Development. I realized that I am more technological literacy now in my educational field than I was when I started this course. These topics forced me to think, analyze, use, manage, assess, and understand the advantages and limitations of educational technologies on the manager and leader perspective.
Etec 623 leads me closer to the characteristics of a technological literacy person. It improves and brings the awareness in me on the “knowledge, ways of thinking and acting, and capability” characteristics in educational field. It endows me the self-confidence and erudition to continue on my career path.
On the “knowledge” characteristic, I learn to recognize the pervasiveness and availability of educational technologies which I can implement, utilize, or adopt to improve my teaching techniques, enhancing my program, and effectively help my students. I will spend time to understand basic concepts, terms, and trade-offs of the technology which I decide to espouse. I will carefully examine the trade-offs, limitation, and the balance of costs and benefits before I make final decision because some of the technologies can be anticipated and some that cannot. In addition, the knowledge of technology helps me to appreciate the development and use of technology involved in my profession.
On the “ways of thinking and acting” characteristic, I will seek information about new technologies. I will consider and ask pertinent questions regarding the benefits and risk of technologies which I or we decide to adopt. I am also conscious and aware that participating in decisions about the development, adaptation, and use of technology are one of the most important factors.
On the “capabilities” characteristic, I learn many of hand-on skills, such as blog and website building, using the software for planning and organizing training sessions, technique and process of writing proposals. I am also learning the skill of evaluating and making informed judgments about technological risks and benefits on the new technology. The capability of management and leadership skills will certainly places me in a better position to expand my ability to serve more effectively.
Those above skills enable me to be technologically literate and to better evaluate technology choices by asking the right questions, examples are as follows:
What is the short-term and long-term risk of developing or using the educational
technology which I choose?
What are the costs of not developing or adapting these technologies?
Who will have access to these technologies?
Who will control it?
Who will benefit and who will lose by these educational technologies?
What will the impact of these technologies be on my classroom, my programs, and me?
Etec 623 provides me with the tools to make well-informed decisions in the selection of choosing new techniques, planning, leadership role and more. Better yet, Etec 623 turns me into a technologically literate person. A technologically literate person must know how each new technology, plan, or program works. Its advantages and disadvantages, how to operate it, and so on. The topics in this course widen my “knowing” about my job and help me to make wiser and more educated decisions. For example, If anything I need for my classroom, program, or plan, I must request or propose it. If I do not do ask for what I need, 100% that I will not have it or get approved. If I request, I start of with 50% chance of getting it. Sometimes when I really need some things, I must be a little bit aggressive to get it. I said "a little bit aggressive", not greedy. It is very important to get "support" for what I need from colleagues and co-workers. Without their support, my chance will begin from 0%. This means I must get long with everyone at work , and try to be supportive and helpful to everyone.
Week of March 12, 2007 to March 18, 2007
Saturday March 10, 2007
Post the last topic for Etec 623.
Continue to work on improving my website.
Organizing my lessons plans and lab. sheets for the courses that I teach.
Will spend next week to make comments on other scholars' postings.
Thursday, March 8, 2007
Session 9: Professional Development
Session 9: Professional Development
This week pod cast is about the professional development. It includes many elements of why, reason for, purpose, the need, effective, following-up, and more about training. Below is my memory of my first teaching job which involved with training.
“Well, just another same ‘bull…’ again.”, “I can’t do it on that day.”, and “Why do we have to do this every time?” Those were phrases that I heard after the first meeting, a week before the semester began. It was about mandatory for all of us, the automotive instructors, to meet with the library personnel to arrange the time to bring the students in our class to the Learning Center for basic “e-mail and computer” training. The reason was students would be issued an e-mail account to send in their Honda assignments modules. In addition, they must know how to navigate the websites to search for the automotive information.
Four years ago, I was at the first training session with my students, and the library staffs did a great training job as they supposed to. After students came back from the Learning Center, I had noticed that most of them knew the usage of e-mail for their Honda learning modules effectively. But their skill on exploring the Internet to obtain the manufacture’s information on the vehicle they work on was not adequate. They kept using the hard copies of technical manuals instead of the Internet. Once in awhile, they needed new information, and they forgot how to find it by using the computer.
I finally figured out why they did not use the Internet. The reason was the work sheet assignments have not been up-dated for awhile. Most of the specifications they need to know were on older vehicle models. This information was not in the electronic manuals. I brought this matter up at the faculty meeting. The result was all instructors, including myself, must up date our lessons plans and performing task sheets with more new vehicles for students to use both the electronic and hard copy manuals. When this happened, I was not popular among the instructors (Besides, I was a new-hired instructor too.)
Four years later, now, no one remembers this, and no one complains about updating the lesson plans every year. We all have the assignments with the newest vehicles and technologies up to date. It now becomes natural for all the students to run to the computer to find the specifications they need three or more times during their workshop hours.
Week of March 5, 2007 to March 11, 2007
Activities and Log
Monday to Thursday
Listen to podcast and think about this topic.
Fine tune my blog and website.
Learning the Dreamweaver and trying to create my Homepage.
Write this posting and posted it.
Read and commented other scholars postings
Begin to listen to next week podcast and work on the next week posting.
All my three projects completed and submitted last week.
This week pod cast is about the professional development. It includes many elements of why, reason for, purpose, the need, effective, following-up, and more about training. Below is my memory of my first teaching job which involved with training.
“Well, just another same ‘bull…’ again.”, “I can’t do it on that day.”, and “Why do we have to do this every time?” Those were phrases that I heard after the first meeting, a week before the semester began. It was about mandatory for all of us, the automotive instructors, to meet with the library personnel to arrange the time to bring the students in our class to the Learning Center for basic “e-mail and computer” training. The reason was students would be issued an e-mail account to send in their Honda assignments modules. In addition, they must know how to navigate the websites to search for the automotive information.
Four years ago, I was at the first training session with my students, and the library staffs did a great training job as they supposed to. After students came back from the Learning Center, I had noticed that most of them knew the usage of e-mail for their Honda learning modules effectively. But their skill on exploring the Internet to obtain the manufacture’s information on the vehicle they work on was not adequate. They kept using the hard copies of technical manuals instead of the Internet. Once in awhile, they needed new information, and they forgot how to find it by using the computer.
I finally figured out why they did not use the Internet. The reason was the work sheet assignments have not been up-dated for awhile. Most of the specifications they need to know were on older vehicle models. This information was not in the electronic manuals. I brought this matter up at the faculty meeting. The result was all instructors, including myself, must up date our lessons plans and performing task sheets with more new vehicles for students to use both the electronic and hard copy manuals. When this happened, I was not popular among the instructors (Besides, I was a new-hired instructor too.)
Four years later, now, no one remembers this, and no one complains about updating the lesson plans every year. We all have the assignments with the newest vehicles and technologies up to date. It now becomes natural for all the students to run to the computer to find the specifications they need three or more times during their workshop hours.
Week of March 5, 2007 to March 11, 2007
Activities and Log
Monday to Thursday
Listen to podcast and think about this topic.
Fine tune my blog and website.
Learning the Dreamweaver and trying to create my Homepage.
Write this posting and posted it.
Read and commented other scholars postings
Begin to listen to next week podcast and work on the next week posting.
All my three projects completed and submitted last week.
Tuesday, February 27, 2007
Session 8: Data Driven Decision Making
Session 8: Data-Driven Decision-Making
As I understand from this week podcast, data-driven decision-making is a method to collect useful data to evaluate, decide to follow, or to implement a set of goals or to settle in making an important decision. In educational field, data-driven decision making has become a school-reform mantra that is celebrated but widely misunderstood, and is often ignored (despite its hype) or actively feared.
At its best, data-driven decision-making is much more than an accountability tool; it is a diagnostic tool that permits or encourages teachers to tailor instruction and method to student needs. Thus, it finds that the teachers can improve and more easily direct their students toward success.
In reality, when the word “collecting data” is mentioned, the data collector would not gain much support from the educators. Why have some educators been resistant to a concept that has so much support from the government, businesses, parents and others? The first reason is fear and loathing. With only slight exaggeration, it is safe to say that most educators view data as the enemy. Data is something a third party requires you to gather about yourself with the expectation that it will be used to embarrass you down the road.
The second and collateral reason for educator resistance is that, with few exceptions, educators see data as a burden, not an asset. A teacher needs to spend time with his or her students, not with data entry and arcane analysis. With the notable exception of attendance data, which in most districts generates revenue, school data neither simplifies life nor increases a sense of professional efficacy.
As I mentioned in the second paragraphs, I have been using the data driven in decision making (I did not know that it has such name.) since my first class that I taught. About the fourth week of every semester, I always give students in my class a survey (I came up with this survey.) In this survey, I ask them to grade me according last four weeks as their teacher. They will give me a grade on my word usage, language, pronunciation, my teaching style, my performance, and my availability to them et cetera. I have been changing these questions accordingly to the situation of each class, but there were always 20 questions all together. I have been using these data to improve myself and tailor my teaching techniques and trying to reach all of them. They love it. I can tell by their attitude toward me and by overhear it when they talk to each others about my teaching. I guess that they see and feel my answers toward their needs from the questionnaire. After I took EDUC 607, I learned to extrapolate and interpret these data with a better accuracy. This semester, I think that I manipulate and understand the data from my students with improved precision and to closer real needs of my students, both in the classroom and in the workshop.
Week of February 27, 2007 to March 4, 2007
Activities and Log
Monday-Tuesday
Listen to podcast
Write the article
Post it on the blog
Completed the project 2 Power Point Training
I have problem to up load it to my website
Continue to work on this problem and hope will have it up load soon.
Wednesday
I am able to up load my project 2 Power point.
One thing I do not like is when click on this link, you cannot just
click open to open it. You must save it then open folder.
I do not know if this is the way it should be or still I need to fix it.
I am investigating this problem right now before I fix it. If it is the way it supose to be,
I will leave it alone because I do not want to work on a problem that does not exist.
My three projects are completed.
They can be viewed individually on the nav. links or from the ETEC 623 Portfolio link
on my web site. www.denguyen.com.
From now until the end of this week, I will spend time to read other scholars' articals and post my comments.
As I understand from this week podcast, data-driven decision-making is a method to collect useful data to evaluate, decide to follow, or to implement a set of goals or to settle in making an important decision. In educational field, data-driven decision making has become a school-reform mantra that is celebrated but widely misunderstood, and is often ignored (despite its hype) or actively feared.
At its best, data-driven decision-making is much more than an accountability tool; it is a diagnostic tool that permits or encourages teachers to tailor instruction and method to student needs. Thus, it finds that the teachers can improve and more easily direct their students toward success.
In reality, when the word “collecting data” is mentioned, the data collector would not gain much support from the educators. Why have some educators been resistant to a concept that has so much support from the government, businesses, parents and others? The first reason is fear and loathing. With only slight exaggeration, it is safe to say that most educators view data as the enemy. Data is something a third party requires you to gather about yourself with the expectation that it will be used to embarrass you down the road.
The second and collateral reason for educator resistance is that, with few exceptions, educators see data as a burden, not an asset. A teacher needs to spend time with his or her students, not with data entry and arcane analysis. With the notable exception of attendance data, which in most districts generates revenue, school data neither simplifies life nor increases a sense of professional efficacy.
As I mentioned in the second paragraphs, I have been using the data driven in decision making (I did not know that it has such name.) since my first class that I taught. About the fourth week of every semester, I always give students in my class a survey (I came up with this survey.) In this survey, I ask them to grade me according last four weeks as their teacher. They will give me a grade on my word usage, language, pronunciation, my teaching style, my performance, and my availability to them et cetera. I have been changing these questions accordingly to the situation of each class, but there were always 20 questions all together. I have been using these data to improve myself and tailor my teaching techniques and trying to reach all of them. They love it. I can tell by their attitude toward me and by overhear it when they talk to each others about my teaching. I guess that they see and feel my answers toward their needs from the questionnaire. After I took EDUC 607, I learned to extrapolate and interpret these data with a better accuracy. This semester, I think that I manipulate and understand the data from my students with improved precision and to closer real needs of my students, both in the classroom and in the workshop.
Week of February 27, 2007 to March 4, 2007
Activities and Log
Monday-Tuesday
Listen to podcast
Write the article
Post it on the blog
Completed the project 2 Power Point Training
I have problem to up load it to my website
Continue to work on this problem and hope will have it up load soon.
Wednesday
I am able to up load my project 2 Power point.
One thing I do not like is when click on this link, you cannot just
click open to open it. You must save it then open folder.
I do not know if this is the way it should be or still I need to fix it.
I am investigating this problem right now before I fix it. If it is the way it supose to be,
I will leave it alone because I do not want to work on a problem that does not exist.
My three projects are completed.
They can be viewed individually on the nav. links or from the ETEC 623 Portfolio link
on my web site. www.denguyen.com.
From now until the end of this week, I will spend time to read other scholars' articals and post my comments.
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