Critical+Lessons

The intro focuses on the critical need for, and lack of, critical thinking being taught in high schools. Noddings divides the book into chapters on self-knowledge and theories of motivation, teaching about war, about religion, about gender, house and home, other people, parenting, animals and nature, progaganda, and making a living (not in that order.) Chapter 1 discusses intrinsic motivation vs. extrinsic, giving examples of educators and psychologists advocating each theory, and discussing educational implications. Learning about learning and self-motivation, why we must be educated, are missing from school curricula. Motivation toward passing tests leads to little recall, as wel all know. Schools should teach why and how we learn, help students learn about both kinds of motivation. Preparation, incubation, illumination. Certain habits of mind are generalizable, such as the need for information before arguments or claims can be made. Critical thinking can't really be taught directly. Understanding and accepting our own motivations to learn are fundamental. Relevant quotes: A big question for educators is whether teachers should work woth the motives that students bring to the classroom--trying, of course, to steer them toward worthwhile ends--or encourage new forms of motivation designed to satisfy needs of which students are not yet aware." (p.11) "Students today need help in working through the meaning of achievement. Schools, with their system of competitive ranking, encourage students to think of success in terms of beating others out. Achievement, then, is defined as attaining a higher grade point average (GPA) than those with whom one is competing." (p.17) Chapter 2 is about War..."the attractions of war and the social construction of masculinity that supports its attractiveness." It discusses pacifism and the role of women as leaders against war. War is taught in schools, but never peace and pacifism. Propaganda and the ficklenss of people feed warmongering. War leads to loss or moral identity. Soldiers commit atrocities they would never expect themselves capable of. This moral identity loss, this "psychological upheaval" should be taught to prospective soldiers. Chapter 3 deals with House and Home. Physical structure, building opens so many possibilities for every subject. The importance of place and time...handling time, meaningful places. Life habits, labor, family roles. Coexisting and communicating. All of this should be taught in school for true multicultural and historic awareness. Comparing without competing, how homes and families have been redefined. Relevant quotes: "If we claim to educate, we must encourage yopung people to reflect on what war does and might do to the human beings engaged in it." (p.36) "A genuine education would at least prepare them for the psychological upheaval they may experience." (p.42) "Pacifism and peace movements rarely appear as major topics in today's social studies text books. A critical thinker should ask why this is so." (p.42) "Young people considering service in the military should be aware that combat sometimes induces the loss of moral identity." (p. 57) Chapter 3: House and Home relevant quotes: "The bold suggestion of this chapter is that schools should educate secondary school students for homemaking and provide critical lessons on everyday life. The topics are both intellectually rich and relevant to all human lives." (p. 64) "As students reflect on the importance of place in their own lives, they should be urged to consider how others feel about their native places. The topic is rich in possibilities for multicultural education." (p. 73) "Housing arrangements for families differe across cultures. The point throughout this exploration is to help students understand that the fiercely defended traditional family and its living arrangements are not sacrosanct." (p. 90) Chapter 4: Other People relevant quotes: "The study of gender--its history, psychology, and sociology--should be central to education." (p. 96) "If we want to encourage critical thinking with respect to socialization, we must periodically return to an examination of everyday behavior--behavior that is not governed by written laws or even explicit rules." (p. 101) "Sometimes people listen so uncritically to those in authority that their moral identity becomes bound up with authority." (p. 104) "The school has a heavy twofold responsibility: to socialize students and to provide them with the intellectual tools to understand, accept, shrug off, or reject parts of that socialization." (p. 106) Chapter 5: Parenting: