Rethink Learning Now

It is with enormous gratitude that I write this heartfelt thanks and reflection to my Shinnyo-En family. When I was invited to attend their conference in Hawaii and the lantern floating ceremony, I almost didn't come, as I was so busy with work and felt that it would be irresponsible to take off -- without my family -- for a week. So, I talked to my husband about going, and he said, "You should do this...it's a gift and it's as important to accept them as give them." And...

This year was very unique and it was something that we did not expect. Sixth grade was a challenge to us, because of the academic responsibilities that our teachers and parents expected of us. We had to keep up with school work and homework for three different teachers and as the seniors of the school we weren't prepared for this drastic change and strict rules of the sixth grade. It was imperative that shirts were tucked in, having silent lunches, no recess, and we had to be...

The Dalai Lama was once asked in front of a live audience what was the cheapest, fastest, easiest way to enlightenment. His reaction was to put his face in his hands and weep. After a few moments, he said that this was not a question a practitioner of meditation would ask, and that if he knew what enlightenment was, there would be no hesitation to do what it takes to attain it.

In this same way I could weep when I hear those who wield influence in the field of education...

Our mama taught us how to be simultaneously brave and pliant, and we found ourselves in this winning combination.

Mama Annie was my only teacher for much of my childhood. She home-schooled me through several formative years spent in Central Java, my father's birthplace. There I made note of the traditional preference that a woman not laugh too hard or be too assertive. There my peers were taught to wait, be patient, and to duck and look down when passing adult men.

One of the most educational experiences of my undergraduate years occurred during the summer between my freshman and sophomore years. I spent the summer working in the microbiology lab of a factory near my home to earn money for college. One of the microbiologists was an African-American man. We had many candid discussions that summer about race, including his many experiences with discrimination. His willingness to share his experiences transformed the way I interact publicly. For...

Many of the most significant learning moments in my life have happened to me throughout my 17 years as a professor at Georgia Southern University. One particularly poignant episode took place last year, in a class that I teach called Cognition and Language.

The class is a sophomore level course for education majors and focuses on cognitive and language development in children, including issues of 2nd language acquisition. I teach this course quite frequently, and I...