James Baldwin (on being educated)

"The paradox of education is precisely this - that as one begins to become conscious one begins to examine the society in which he is being educated."

reimagining the education paradigm

for a long time, i'd casually dismiss schools as "more concerned with indoctrination than education." but after spending a little time with bronx high school students, i quickly realized that we are at a critical point in education right now. and the stakes are very high.

i've been grappling with what a "good education" could be. i have some thoughts on cultures, values and skills important to pass along to our next generation. and i'm exploring programs, resources and curricula to meet those needs. so solutions and alternatives are at the front of my mind whenever a critiques of standardized tests, No Child Left Behind, the school-to-prison pipeline, teachers unions or charter schools pop up. over time, i hope to sharpen those arguments and visions through this blog.

in the meantime, this RSA Animate video is one of the more provocative and original critiques of education i've seen.

Greetings and Thanks For Stopping By

Allow me to introduce myself..

My name is Shaun. I'm an Asian-american who is from many places and now lives in Brooklyn. Ieducate and organize young people in the bronx. i'm a book nerd, a hip hop nerd, and likely many more forms of nerd. I'm into spirituality but am not religion. I like politics but not government. I believe in self-determination, equality, and reparations. I love people and all things that bind people together - music, food, art, philosophy, sports, movies, dialogue, sex, chess..

Words you may see a lot on this blog are: identity, education, culture, roots, hip hop, society, r/evolution and freedom. If that's your shit too, please stick around, even (and especially) if you strongly disagree. I started this blog with the one intention of opening up discussion. so "say it wit ya chest" but keep it civil if you like, dislike, or just want to discuss anything further.

Peace and blessings.