Thanks for a chance to wax nostalgic
Doug Peck (usgtrjrb@ibmmail.com)
Tue, 2 Apr 1996 13:27:39 EST
I read with interest Denise Cochran's recent posting regarding the
restructuring of schools and had to smile at her suggestions about
incorporating the notion of "family" into the school. As a youngster,
I received my early education in a one-room country schoolhouse in
southwestern Michigan. Denise's thoughts mirror quite well my
recollection of those days. Our single teacher was responsible for
about forty students distributed throughout grades one to eight and,
as you might imagine, keeping us all on task in a one-room situation
must have been something of a challenge. One of the things that seemed
to make it work was a kind of "mentoring network" in which the "older"
kids helped school the younger ones on material that the older ones
had only recently mastered themselves. It really WAS very much like a
family - all of us cared about the others, each accepted some
responsibility for a joint venture, we all seemed to be pursuing the
same objectives, there was (dare I say it) a respect for age
(regardless of how small the age differential might actually have
been), and (as Denise suggests) there was an ongoing interpersonal
relationship that ran for years. Five university degrees later, I
still think of those early years as some of the best and most
constructive in my own educational experience. To this day, I consider
myself blessed for having had them. Thanks, Denise, for calling to
mind some very pleasant memories.
Douglas C. Peck, Ph.D.
usgtrjrb@ibmmail.com
Best regards,
DOUG (6-2591)