Pure Manaʻo

"From the vantage point of the colonized, a position from which I write, and choose to privilege, the term 'research' is inextricably linked to European imperialism and colonialism. The word itself, 'research,' is probably one of the dirtiest words in the indigenous world's vocabulary." ( Tuhiwai Smith , 1999) Paula Moya, a Chicana researcher says, "identities are fundamental to the process of all knowledge production" ( p. 102 ).   Like Tuhiwai Smith, I must also embrace my identity as a colonized researcher.  Moya goes on to say that education,  "should not be about merely inculcating status quo values,"  but to reject the status quo as a way to inculcate a "transformative multicultural education" that will educate all learners for democracy and social justice  (p. 109). The Alana Project, starting with this professional development course, which becomes my dissertation action research, sees transformative multicu...

I have sat in on leadership meetings where we talk about extrinsic motivators for positive student behavior. When students are asked, "what would motivate you to do your homework, tuck in your shirt, not chew gum in school. . .?" students have answers, from the far fetched to the practical. Homework passes, free dress day (if uniforms are the norm), pizza party (or other food incentives), pool day, inflatables, etc. Sound familiar? We are trying to incentivize challenging tasks for the 13 year old who is in a hormonal battle that tops the cognitive/logical battle. I know I will sit in on more of these types of meetings, and I will be as professional as possible and "watch my face," but really, it's not going to work. Dan Pink's point on this TED talk is that science has found that the more challenging the task, the less people are affected by extrinsic motivators. In fact, the more incentive offered, the lower the performance. Dan Pink's TED talk...